Velvet Grayfang
~~~~
I wasn't just burning anymore.
I was unraveling—heat coursing through me, so fierce I feared it would consume me.
Dawn bled into the trees, dew perched delicately on the leaves. The air was cold and pale, but no wind could cool the wildfire twisting beneath my skin.
I ran.
Through the dense forest, bare feet pounding the earth—faster than any prey I'd ever hunted.
My lungs screamed for rest, but I didn't stop. Not when the ache in my chest had nothing to do with my breath.
The pull hadn't faded.
Lucien's voice still curled through my veins like smoke. I'd hoped that sleep might strip it away—that when I woke, the heat would be gone.
But I had only dreamed of teeth and flame… and the place between my thighs where he hadn't touched me. Not yet.
So I ran. Breath uneven and ragged. But I ran still.
And when my legs gave out—when I couldn't run anymore—I trained.
The poor wooden post standing deep in the clearing, scarred from years of practice, suffered beneath my blade.
I swung fiercely.
On the fifth strike, it split—torn open by metal, by fury, by the fire in my fists.
Strike.Breathe. strike again— and… breathe.
But then, something shifted.
My hand moved before I willed it. My wolf surged—not in rebellion—but in hunger.
No…
I hadn't shifted since the last full moon.
And when I did, I nearly burned the entire place down.
Now, my bones ached—as if they were already choosing for me.
I bit down hard on the inside of my cheek.
Blood pooled on my tongue. Metallic. Sharp. It grounded me.
Something is changing me. Not just burning inside me but around me.
*******
I returned to the palace, tightening the sword in my grip. Sweat clung to my spine, my arms ached, and my legs trembled—but the burn still lived beneath my skin.
When I stepped into the council hall, silence swallowed the room. It didn't bother me.
Silence had become the norm. Not respect but fear. They feared what my fire could do… but still refused to accept me as the one meant to rule this pack.
A young warrior knelt at the center. Tanned skin, no older than eighteen. His shoulders were bloodied, the wounds fresh and smeared, his face pale—like he'd seen a ghost. Or worse, been sent to lead on the warfront. I didn't recognize him, but the crest on his collar bore a familiar sigil.
Irontrail Pack. One of ours—kept at a distance, but loyal.
Elder Harren stood near a pillar, close to the boy. His lips were drawn tight. "He came before dawn," he said. "Collapsed at the gates."
I knelt beside the boy so we were at equal height. He looked too scared to even raise his head.
"What happened?" I asked.
His voice was thin and trembling. "Rogues," he rasped, barely able to breathe. "Five, maybe six. We tried to hold the border but…" He coughed, spitting out blood between us. "They weren't hunting. They were sending a message."
My brows pulled together. My jaw tightened.
"What message?"
He finally looked up.
His next words cracked the air like ice. "There was a tree. Near the border. Scorched and marked with flame.
It… i-it bore the name Thorn."
The hall erupted. Loud murmurs and curses spread like wildfire—elders barking, guards growling.
Harren's voice boomed over them all. "So… he brings his name back not with peace, but with fire."
"He's summoning others," someone spat. "Using her as a claim."
My hands fisted at my sides. "We don't know that."
"He was exiled, Velvet," Elder Harren growled, his eyes darkening. "He's no Alpha anymore. What else would he want but blood and vengeance?"
Just then, Elias burst into the room, his eyes locking on mine. "You need to send warriors. Now."
"I'll handle it," I said through gritted teeth.
"You can't be objective," he snapped.
I froze.
The room went so still, if someone dropped a blade, it would've rung like thunder.
Elias took a slow breath. "He's in your head, Vel. Maybe even your bond. Look, I'm not blaming you… but you have to see it."
I turned to him, eyes narrowing.
"Do you question me as my Beta?" I asked, my voice quiet—but the weight it carried sent a chill through the room. "Or do you also see me unfit to rule?"
His lips parted, like he meant to speak, but I raised a hand, jaw clenched. "I am an Alpha—whether you or anyone else in this room agrees or not. So remember your place."
His face tightened. The silence that followed said everything. But I didn't stay to hear it.
*****
I left the hall before the flame inside me could cool. I didn't eat. Didn't speak. I just sat in my room—hands trembling, chest tight.
Suddenly, the wind that drifted through my parted curtains changed.
I felt it in my bones.
I felt him again.
—
I woke just past midnight—not from noise, but from heat.
The air in my chambers was thick with his scent. The curtains stirred, even though the windows were shut.
What is happening?
I sat up, trying to calm myself, but the heat rushed through my spine like I'd walked into fire. A sigh slipped from my lips as I raised my head—and that's when I saw it. Something glinting at the far end of the room.
I threw off the sheets, the silk nightgown clinging to my damp skin. My bare feet padded across the floor as I moved toward it.
A black feather lay on the stone sill—long, sleek, and at its tip, a faint red glow… as if it had been dipped in ember.
That scent again like smoke.
Lucien.
My hands trembled as they moved. Deep down, I knew this was a bad idea. No one had ever made me feel this kind of heat—and I knew Lucien was dangerous for me. Yet I reached for the feather like it could somehow quench the fire.
The moment my skin touched the shaft, a flash of pain shot through my palm. I hissed and stumbled back.
I stared at my hand. There was a burn. Small, but deep—and real. And it awakened something inside me.
My back arched. My breath caught, like I'd been pulled underwater, struggling to breathe.
Heat surged through my entire body. No—fire. It burned up my spine. My skin pulsed. My vision blurred.
I stumbled back, gripping the edge of the window as a deep growl built in my throat—like the roar of fire.
But it wasn't mine. It was hers. My wolf.
She wasn't pacing anymore. I felt her rising—climbing past the peak.
Red flickered at the edge of my vision. My eyes burned. My hands trembled. And then… everything went black.
The surge faded as fast as it came, but I was already on my knees, my entire body shaking.
What are you doing to me, Lucien Thorn?
What kind of power do you have over me?
I tried to sleep after that and I shouldn't have. Because I began to dream…
About him.
He was above me. Around me. And in his presence, heat curled like smoke—his skin brushing mine, even though he barely touched me.
He knelt at my feet while I leaned against the wall, breath ragged as I watched him. His golden eyes narrowed, darker now—like a flash of golden flame.
His hands braced against the wall. His mouth hovered inches from the softest place between my thighs—the place where the heat lived.
He didn't move.
He didn't bite.
He just waited. Watching me.
"Say the word," he murmured, his voice so thick it curled sharp and low into the deepest part of me.
"Say it, Velvet" he drawled, seductively. "And I'll give you everything. Or I'll ruin you trying."
I woke with a gasp, my hand clutching the sheets so tight my knuckles turned white.
My entire body was slick with sweat.
My breathing came ragged, and all I could think of was the flame still lingering between my thighs.
Damn it.
I lit the side lamp, golden light spilling across my chamber.
Then I heard movement—just outside the window.
I rushed over, heart racing, because the heat had returned… that strange heat I still couldn't explain.
It wasn't the wind.
Not a shadow.
It was golden eyes, watching me from the dark.