Chapter 7 – Wolf
–LIA’S POV–
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I woke up to sounds of shuffling outside my room. I frowned, grabbing my phone and checking the time. It was only 12:45. Maybe my parents had returned to surprise me.
A smile took over my lips, and I sat up, kicking the blanket off my feet. I climbed out of bed and walked up to my bedroom door, pressing my ear against it to see if I could hear anything.
But for a while, there was nothing, and then…
I thought I heard an animal outside.
Low, rumbling growls, almost pained or hungry.
My eyes widened, and I backed away from the door, slapping a hand over my mouth. My heart beat paced, goosebumps covering my skin.
How did an animal get in? It sounded like a big one. I was certain I had locked the doors.
The growls got louder, and I could hear them even at a distance from the door. Whatever it was, was right outside my bedroom. I held my breath, pursing my lips tightly.
Something banged against the door, pulling a scream from my
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mouth. Before I could rush to the bed to get my phone, the door of my room ripped open, and a huge, brown wolf pounced inside, its eyes gleaming. It was larger than any wolf I’d seen before, even in pictures. And there was something really odd about the way it stared at me with its big blue eyes.
I found myself frozen in place, my feet refusing to move. Tears rolled down my cheeks, quiet sobs filling the room. It started to walk towards me, tilting its head. I managed to back away, until I stumbled over a fold in the carpet, falling on my ass. Still, I quickly shuffled away from it, until I was backed against the wall.
I was going to die tonight. On my birthday. I was going to become a meal to a gigantic wolf.
It moved closer, lowering its head to my level. I closed my eyes shut now, jamming my head to the wall. Beads of sweat rolled down my forehead, my legs trembling uncontrollably. The wolf’s warm breath fanned against my face, making me hold mine, as my heart pounded to be let out of my chest.
The wolf sniffed deeply, its nose nudging against my neck. I let out a whimper, curling my toes, my fingers clenching the material of my pajamas.
It let out a low growl again, and then pulled away from me, retreating.
I opened my eyes a second later, to find the room empty.
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It was gone.
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I couldn’t sleep after that.
A part of me wasn’t even sure if it really happened. But the broken door of my room served as proof.
I scrolled news pages all night to see if any wolf attacks were reported. But I came across no such thing.
I wasn’t even sure if that thing was a wolf. It was too big to be one. Maybe I was sleepy and imagined a wolf? Maybe I saw something like that because of my fear of The Hounds lately? It could be a mountain lion, or a bear. But wolves weren’t this huge in size.
My alarm sounded, and I sighed. It was three in the afternoon already. I hadn’t slept a wink all night. My evening with Blake would be tiring now.
I forced myself to leave the bed in order to get dressed. There were dark circles under my eyes, so I decided to put on more makeup than I normally would. After making myself look more like a human and less like a zombie, I put on a black halter top and white jeans. I checked the time, and there were only fifteen minutes left until four. Blake would get here soon.
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I sat down on the couch in my room, scrolling on my phone, waiting for the time to pass. I would fall asleep any second, so I had to keep myself busy. I decided to stalk The Hounds‘ Instagrams to see if they posted anything about Zane’s birthday. But surprisingly, there wasn’t a single post.
Something moved behind me, instantly making me flinch. I shot out of the couch, turning around, toward the door. Was the wolf back? The door of my bedroom was slightly open.
Taking in a deep breath, I walked up to it, peeking outside. When I didn’t see anything for a while, I opened it fully and stepped out. I quickly scanned the corridor and then down the stairs, to make sure the house really was empty. Once I was certain of it, I allowed myself to relax. Last night had really traumatized me. Maybe I should’ve told someone about it. I would complain later that day.
I walked back to my bedroom and stepped in, turning around and shutting the door. It was still half–way broken at the hinges, but I had to work with what I had.
I then turned around again, to face my bed, but my breath caught in my throat.
Standing right in front of me was Zane Adams, a weird expression on his face.
I opened my mouth to scream, but in a swift move, he pushed me against the door, clasping his hand over my mouth. The
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second his skin made contact with mine, weird tingles erupted throughout my body, making my eyes widen. My heart raged in my chest as the scent of his cologne flooded over me.
“Shh… Mine…” He whispered, staring at me, his face inches away from mine. I felt his breath on my face, and gazing into his eyes somehow reminded me of the creature I’d met last night.
Did he just call me his?
I let out a small whimper, trying to push him away. But Zane used his free hand to grab my wrists too, trapping me completely.
“I won’t hurt you,” he said softly, his eyes seeming dark. Even his voice sounded different. It was huskier, more throaty. A bit…
animalistic?
I continued to struggle to free myself, letting out another muffled whimper.
Zane silently stared at me, leaning in closer and closer. I held my breath, closing my eyes shut.
He slowly dipped his face into my neck, sending shivers throughout my body, making my knees go weak. His hold on me tightened, as though sensing it. I felt him sniff me, and frowned, freaking out at what was happened. My phone began to buzz on the bed. It was probably Blake.
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“Let go of me,” I tried to say, but it came out all muffled. When I tried again, struggling harder, Zane clicked his tongue.
“I said I won’t hurt you,” he practically growled at me, making me flinch.
Then he let out a sigh and pulled away to meet my gaze.
“I’ll lower my hand, but you have to promise you won’t scream,‘ he whispered. His pupils were weirdly dilated, in a creepy way. Was he high or something?
When I didn’t respond, he spoke again. “Do not scream, or I’ll gag you again. Understand?”
My eyebrows knitted together, but I nodded.
He slowly removed his hand from my mouth, letting me take in a huge gulp of air. “What the hell are you doing here?” I asked, still trying to free my hands. “Get away from me.”
“Shh,” Zane whispered, grimacing. He pressed his index finger to my lips, sending tingles through my face. What was this feeling? “You’re too loud, Lia. Please. My head’s hurting. I came here for peace.”
I gave him an incredulous look. “What?” I pulled my lips away from his finger.
Zane rolled his eyes. “Just calm down,” he muttered, before
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leaning in again. I let out a small scream, only for him to cover my mouth again. He leaned his forehead on the wall, right beside my face. “You can’t follow instructions, I’ve noticed. It’s not a very nice quality, love.”
I tried to snap at him, but he wasn’t really letting me speak. My phone kept buzzing, and I wanted to cry. But even that wouldn’t be heard. What the hell did Zane want? And why was he touching me like that? He had never even looked at me twice before. This guy was definitely not in his senses right now.
“I know, you’re probably really confused right now. Maybe even afraid,” he said softly, his breath fanning my ear as he spoke, tickling. I tried to cover it with my shoulder, but Zane moved closer and held my shoulder in place by leaning his chin on it. He took in another deep breath. “Don’t be afraid of me, Lia. I’ve never hurt you.”
That was partially true. He’d never helped me either, so it didn’t
matter.
“I know,” he said again, making my eyes widen. Could he hear my thoughts or something? “I should’ve saved you. I should’ve stopped them. But I didn’t. It’s not my fault though. I didn’t have an idea.”
My frown deepened. Didn’t have an idea? Of what? That his friends were jerks to me? That I was being tortured by them? I wanted to scoff, but my mouth was covered by his hand.
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“It stops today, though,” he muttered. “It’s gonna be hard, explaining it to them. You’re… Lia. Little Lia.”
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I had no idea what this guy was on about. My head was aching now. Bad.
“I should probably let you go now, right?”
I nodded, hard.
“But you’re gonna scream, and I’m not ready to leave yet.”
I shook my head as much as I could with his hand tightly blocking my mouth.
“Don’t make a lot of noise either, please.
I hummed softly.
He removed his hand again, and I coughed, scowling at him.
“What are you doing?” I asked. “Why are you… harassing me
like this?”
Zane frowned. “Harassing you?” he asked. “You… you don’t feel anything?” He looked genuinely confused.
I blinked up at him. Did he mean the weird tingles? The electricity? Did he feel it too? I thought I was imagining it.
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Chapter 7 – Wolf
My phone buzzed again, and now the doorbell rang.
“That must be Blake,” I said. “Zane, please let me go.”
His expressed hardened, eyes narrowing. “Blake? Why?”
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“To celebrate my birthday,” I whispered. “Please. Let go of me. What are you doing here? What is this?”
His face fell slightly. “Right… happy birthday, Lia. You turned sixteen as well, right?”
I nodded. “Happy birthday to you too. Now leave. Please, Zane,” I begged.
“Why are you going out with him? Do you… do you like him or something?” he asked.
I tried to push him away again, but he only pushed me against the door harder. I clicked my tongue. “That’s nome of your business,” I stated. “Look, Zane, whatever this is, whatever new prank you guys have come up with, keep it to school. Or I will go to authorities. Bullying me at school is one thing, but you guys are breaking into my home now? This is not done.”
He raised a brow, his blue eyes darkening further. “Or what? What are you gonna do? What do you think the authorities will do?”
I frowned, then sighed in defeat. “I didn’t think you were like the
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others,” I said softly. “But you just proved me wrong. There’s clearly a reason you’re their Alpha.”
Zane’s eyes widened. “Alpha?”
“I’ve heard them call you that. It’s stupid, by the way.” I didn’t know where I was getting the courage to insult him, but it was probably because I knew Blake was outside. The doorbell rang again.
Zane’s lips curled into a smile. “Your hero is getting restless,” he whispered, leaning in closer to me. I sucked in a breath, my eyes widening, heart racing faster. Zane’s gaze dropped to my lips for a second, and I curled my toes, bracing myself. Was he going to kiss me? No, he couldn’t stoop that low. “I will leave, Lia, for now. But I will be back whenever I want. You don’t wanna go to the authorities or anyone else unless you want them to drop dead. I promise I won’t harm you in any way. Don’t be afraid of me. Alright?”
I gaped at him, unable to digest his words. Finally, he let go
of my wrists and stepped away from me. But I didn’t let myself relax. Not while he was still here.
“I’ll see you again tonight. Keep the door unlocked if you don’t want it broken down.” Zane winked, and then placed his hand
on my eyes.
“Hey,” I said, pushing his hand off.
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“Behave,” he scolded, making me freeze. “Keep your eyes shut.”
I found myself obliging. He took off his hand, and yet, I still did not open my eyes. I heard him walk away.
When I opened my eyes, he was gone. My window was open.
I released a trembling breath, unsure of what to feel. Then I quickly grabbed my phone, which was still ringing.
“Hey, I’m here, I’m here. Sorry, I was… I’ll be down in a second. Sorry.” I hung up before he could respond, then approached the window and looked out. My heart jumped in my chest when my gaze met Zane’s. He was still standing outside, staring up. A smile took over his lips when he saw me. Then he turned around and left again.
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