Chapter 2 The Unseen Thread

Winter

My heart pounded so hard against my ribs I thought it was going to pop right out of my chest.

“Don't look him in the eye. Whatever you do, Winter, do NOT look at him.”

Derek's warnings repeated over and over in my head like a loud alarm bell, but I couldn't help it. I was trapped. I was a twenty-two-year-old standing right in the middle of Crimson territory, on forbidden ground, staring directly up at Alpha Malakai. He was the most dangerous male in the entire academy.

I was terrified. My hands were shaking so badly I had to clench them into tight fists just to keep them steady. I had spent my whole life hidden away indoors, safe behind the thick walls of my family's estate. I had no experience with real danger. And now? Now I was stranded on enemy turf with no bodyguard, no brother, and no clear way out.

Then, my breath hitched.

A strange, electric heat bloomed right in the center of my chest. It was not pain, but a heavy, magnetic pull that vibrated straight to my core, making my heart hammer wildly against my ribs. My blood rushed warm through my veins, washing away the cold chill of the dark hall.

Deep inside my mind, my inner wolf, usually so quiet and shy, suddenly lifted her head. Her eyes snapped open, and she let out a low, breathless whine of pure, instant recognition.

“Mate,” her voice whispered through my mind, soft and desperate. “It is him.”

My eyes widened in terror. “No. No, no, no. This cannot be happening.”

Sprouting straight out of my chest was a thin, glowing thread of pure golden light. It hovered in the dim air of the hallway, stretching across the dark stone space and plugging directly into Malakai's chest.

Malakai froze in his tracks. His glowing copper eyes blew wide open. All that cold, brutal dominance melted into absolute shock for a single second. His sharp jaw clenched so tight I thought his teeth might break. Slowly, he dropped his gaze down to his own chest, staring at the bright golden line tying his heart to mine.

He saw it too.

Beside him, Roxanne's face twisted into pure disgust. She stepped closer to him, wrapping her arm around his leather sleeve and digging her sharp manicured nails into his jacket.

"Babe, she was trespassing!" Roxanne whined, her voice high with sudden panic. "She crossed the border on purpose! She is probably spying for her brother!"

The moment she called him babe and wrapped her hands around his arm, a violent, hot sting of pure jealousy slammed into my stomach. My head spun. Why did I care? I hated him! He was the enemy! But inside my mind, my inner wolf bared her white teeth and let out a vicious snarl.

Get her hands off our mate! my wolf screamed in my head.

I squeezed my eyes shut, horrified by my own reaction. “He is not our mate!” I screamed back at her in my mind. “He is a monster! His pack sent rogues to murder our parents!”

"Silence, Roxanne," Malakai growled.

The sound was so low and heavy it vibrated straight through the stone floor and into the soles of my boots. Roxanne flinched, snapping her mouth shut and pulling her hand back, though her hazel eyes practically burned holes through my face. My inner wolf let out a satisfied purr at seeing Roxanne forced to let go.

Malakai took a heavy step toward me. Then another.

He completely towered over me. Heat rolled off his body in thick waves, totally wiping out the cold chill of the dark hallway. My brain was screaming at me to run, but my knees felt like jelly.

He reached out. His long, rough fingers reached down and brushed against my knuckles for a split second.

BOOM.

The touch felt like a burst of energy under my skin. My internal ice magic went completely wild, panicking from the sudden hit of his intense heat.

Crack!

A loud sound tore through the quiet hall. Long, sharp spikes of freezing ice ripped right up out of the black stone floor, shattering the wall torches overhead and exploding into a thick cloud of frozen mist.

Roxanne shrieked, jumping backward to avoid getting struck.

"Winter!"

Footsteps thundered down the hall. Out of the fog rushed my older brother Derek, his face pale with anger, his glowing ice sword already drawn. Right behind him was Julian.

"Get away from her!" Derek roared. He threw his body right between Malakai and me, raising a solid wall of frost between us.

Julian scrambled to my side, grabbing my arms and pulling me tightly against his chest. He was shaking just as hard as I was, his blue eyes wide with anger.

"Winter! Are you hurt? Did he touch you?" Julian demanded, his voice trembling as he positioned himself as a shield in front of me. "Stay right behind me. I will not let him touch you!"

I stayed behind Julian's back, trembling as I peeked through the clear ice shield.

Malakai had not even flinched. The frost on his hand melted into steam against his warm skin. He ignored Derek's glowing sword completely. His burning eyes cut right past my brother's shoulder to lock onto mine. He looked down at the invisible spot where the golden thread connected us, then flashed a dark smirk.

"Keep your little Snowflake on a tight leash, Frost-Vein," Malakai called out smoothly, his voice laced with a hidden warning only I understood. "Next time she wanders over to my side, she is not coming back."

With a final look, Malakai turned around and walked off into the shadows with Roxanne and his guards trailing right behind him.

The second they were out of sight, Derek turned around, his face frantic. He checked my face, my arms, and my clothes with shaking hands.

"Are you okay? Did he hurt you?" Derek barked, his eyes wild with rage. He turned back toward the direction Malakai went, his frost blade glowing blue. "I am going to kill him. I don't care about the rules. I am going to tear him apart!"

"Derek, no!" I gasped, grabbing his arm with both hands and pulling him back. "Please! Don't! I am fine, I swear I am fine! Just take me away from here!"

Julian stepped up immediately, placing a firm hand on Derek's chest. "She is right, Derek. Calm down. Fighting him in their territory right now will do us no good. We need to get Winter out of here."

Derek growled loudly, but he finally lowered his sword. He grabbed my hand tightly in his own while Julian stayed glued to my other side, shielding me as we hurried out of the dark hall.

——

An hour later, I was sitting in the massive lecture hall for Elemental Theory. My hands were clamped tightly between my knees so nobody could see them shaking. My inner wolf was pacing restlessly back and forth in my chest, pushing me to look around the room.

Julian sat right next to me, his arm resting over the back of my chair, scanning the room like a hawk. Having him right there made me feel a little safer, but my stomach was still twisted into complete knots.

Slam!

The heavy double doors at the front of the room burst open. The Headmaster stepped onto the stage, his voice made louder by gold magic runes.

"Attention students," the Headmaster announced strictly. "Due to recent rogue attacks along our borders, the school council has made a mandatory decision. Effective immediately, all upperclassmen from Frost-Vein and Crimson packs will share all practical labs and advanced classes."

Loud gasps of anger erupted across the room.

My stomach dropped. Cold sweat broke out across my neck.

A heavy footstep echoed down the center aisle. The air in the room suddenly turned blistering hot.

Malakai walked into the lecture hall, surrounded by his senior Crimson guards. He followed the Headmaster's orders, taking the elevated seats directly behind and above my row. He was looking right down at the back of my neck.

Julian went rigid beside me, his hand dropping to the handle of his sword as he glaring up at the Alpha.

I sat glued to my seat, unable to breathe as the intense heat radiating off Malakai hit my back.

As Malakai passed my desk to reach the upper row, the corner of his heavy leather coat brushed against my shoulder. The heat was blinding. Without looking at me, his fingers flicked silently across my desk.

A small, folded slip of dark parchment landed directly onto my open notebook.

My heart stopped. I slowly slid the note down under the edge of my desk, unfolding it with trembling hands. Written in sharp, bold ink pressed with his official Crimson Alpha signet was a single message:

“Midnight. The lower training arena. Come alone, Snowflake. If you tell your brother or your shadow of a fiancé, I will challenge Derek to a legal pack duel before morning. And you know he won't survive it.”