Chapter 6

AVA

The silence after the attack was deafening, the kind that burrowed into your chest and squeezed until breathing felt impossible.

I sat on the cold forest floor, my back pressed against a tree, trying to steady my racing heart. The others hadn’t shifted back yet. Their wolves prowled the perimeter, snarling at shadows as if daring the rogue to return.

But it wouldn’t. It didn’t have to.

Because it had already done what it came to do.

Logan shifted first, his human form bloodied and battered. He crouched in front of me, his eyes scanning my face, my arms, as though checking for injuries. “Are you hurt?”

I shook my head, my throat too tight to speak.

Landon and Lucas shifted next, their expressions grim as they approached. Liam stayed in his wolf form, his golden eyes fixed on the darkness like he could see something the rest of us couldn’t.

“That wasn’t just a rogue,” Lucas said, his voice low but steady.

“No,” Logan agreed, his jaw tightening. “It wasn’t.”

My hands trembled as I pushed myself to stand. The forest felt wrong, the air thick and suffocating. I had no words to describe the creature we’d just faced, but I knew one thing for certain—it wasn’t over.

“It was hunting me,” I whispered, my voice barely audible.

Logan’s head snapped toward me, his eyes narrowing. “What do you mean?”

I swallowed hard, the memory of its glowing red eyes burning into my mind. “It looked at me like I was the prize. Like I was the reason it was here.”

Landon cursed under his breath, running a hand through his messy brown hair. “Why would a rogue target you? You’re—” He stopped himself, his words hanging in the air like a noose.

An Omega.

He didn’t have to say it for everyone to think it.

Lucas stepped closer, his dark eyes scrutinizing me. “Are you sure? It could have been random.”

I shook my head violently. “No. It spoke to me.”

The weight of my words settled over them like a storm cloud. Logan’s expression darkened, his fists clenching at his sides.

“What did it say?” he asked, his voice low and controlled, but I could hear the edge of anger beneath it.

I hesitated, the rogue’s chilling words echoing in my mind. “‘You’ll wish I killed you tonight.’”

The silence that followed was suffocating.

“That’s not normal,” Lucas muttered, pacing.

“None of this is normal,” Landon snapped, his frustration evident. “We’ve never faced anything like that before. It was stronger, faster. Smarter.”

“And it’s still out there,” Liam finally spoke, his voice carrying a cold certainty as he shifted back into human form. “Watching. Waiting.”

Logan turned to him, his eyes sharp. “We need to get Ava back to the packhouse. Now.”

I bristled at his tone, but I didn’t argue. As much as I hated feeling like the weak link, I couldn’t deny the truth. Whatever that creature was, it wasn’t done with me.

The trek back to the Nightshade Packhouse was tense. The others stayed close, their senses on high alert. I felt like a prisoner being escorted, every step weighed down by the knowledge that I was the reason for their unease.

When the towering silhouette of the packhouse came into view, relief washed over me—but it was short-lived.

Inside, the atmosphere was no better. The pack members who had stayed behind sensed the tension immediately, their whispers filling the hall as they eyed our battered group.

Logan wasted no time. He led me to a secluded room, the others trailing behind. The moment the door closed, the questions began.

“What the hell is going on, Logan?” Landon demanded, his voice rising.

Logan ran a hand through his hair, his frustration evident. “I don’t know. But whatever that thing was, it wasn’t a regular rogue. It’s something else—something worse.”

“Worse?” Lucas echoed, his tone skeptical. “What could be worse than a rogue that can overpower all four of us?”

Logan didn’t answer. His gaze shifted to me, and I felt the weight of his unspoken thoughts.

“You think this has something to do with Ava,” Liam said, breaking the silence.

I flinched at his words. “Why would it have anything to do with me? I’m nobody. I’m—”

“An Omega,” Landon finished for me, his tone laced with disdain.

I glared at him, anger bubbling beneath my fear. “You don’t have to remind me.”

Logan held up a hand, silencing both of us. “Enough. This isn’t about rank. It’s about survival. If that thing is targeting Ava, we need to figure out why before it comes back.”

For the first time since the attack, I felt a flicker of hope. Logan wasn’t dismissing me as weak or useless. He was treating me like I mattered, like my survival mattered.

But that hope was short-lived.

Because as I met his gaze, I saw something else there—something he wasn’t saying.

“Logan,” I said hesitantly, my voice barely above a whisper. “What aren’t you telling me?”

He hesitated, his jaw clenching. “There’s a legend,” he began slowly. “About creatures like that. They’re called Shadowborn.”

The word sent a chill down my spine.

“They don’t just kill for sport,” he continued. “They’re drawn to something specific. Someone specific.”

My heart sank. “And you think that’s me?”

Logan didn’t answer. He didn’t have to. The look in his eyes said it all.

The door burst open suddenly, a young pack member panting as he stumbled inside. “Alpha, there’s something you need to see. Outside.”

Logan turned to us, his face grim. “Stay here. Don’t move.”

I wanted to protest, but the fear in the boy’s eyes stopped me. Something was wrong.

Something worse than the Shadowborn.

And as Logan and the others disappeared into the night, I couldn’t shake the feeling that the worst was yet to come.

But the Moon Goddess had other plans.