The howl that echoed through the northern forest did not sound natural.
Evelyn felt it before she fully heard it.
A cold ripple moved through the training hall, subtle enough that another person might have dismissed it as a shift in temperature.
But the moment the sound reached the estate grounds, every flame inside the hall flickered violently. The fire crackled lower, and the atmosphere tightened.
Cassian's expression changed instantly. The warmth that had softened his features moments ago disappeared beneath sharp alertness. His posture straightened, shoulders tense, eyes narrowing toward the snow-covered windows.
"That wasn't a normal rogue," he said quietly.
Evelyn slowly set down her cup. "You can tell from a howl?"
"Yes." The answer came without hesitation.
Of course, he could. Werewolves.
She really needed to stop forgetting that she was surrounded by creatures with supernatural senses.
Another distant howl cut through the night, this one lower, rougher, almost distorted. The sound seemed to drag through the trees rather than travel cleanly through the air.
Evelyn felt goosebumps rise across her skin.
"That," she muttered softly, "sounds horrifying."
Cassian was already reaching for the sword resting beside the wall.
"Wait." Evelyn stood quickly. "You're not actually going out there, are you?"
He glanced toward her while fastening the sheath at his side. "The patrols will signal the manor if something's wrong."
"That did not answer my question."
Cassian hesitated briefly before admitting, "I'm not supposed to leave the estate."
"And yet you look very prepared to ignore that."
A faint shadow of amusement crossed his face. "You sound like Father."
Evelyn groaned internally.
Again with that comparison.
"I'm serious," she insisted. "Your father specifically told you to stay here."
The young heir looked away toward the windows, jaw tightening slightly. Snow drifted heavily outside now, obscuring the distant trees beneath pale moonlight. The entire forest seemed darker than before, the outlines of branches twisting together like skeletal fingers.
"He always says that," Cassian murmured. "As if danger disappears because I stay behind walls."
Evelyn frowned.
There it was again, that frustration buried beneath years of restraint. Cassian carried himself with remarkable composure, but every now and then, small cracks appeared beneath the surface.
Seventeen years old. Expected to become Alpha someday, to become strong, and to obey. The pressure of it all sat visibly on his shoulders.
Evelyn crossed her arms lightly. "And disobeying him fixes that?"
"No."
"Then what does it fix?"
Cassian fell silent.
The answer, apparently, was nothing.
Outside the hall, sudden movement disrupted the stillness of the estate. Guards crossed the courtyard quickly, their boots crunching against fresh snow while servants hurried indoors carrying extinguished lanterns. Somewhere in the distance, a bell rang once, low and heavy.
Cassian immediately looked toward the sound.
"What does that mean?" Evelyn asked.
"One bell means the outer patrol has reported unusual movement."
The way he answered so calmly made it even more unsettling.
Evelyn stared toward the dark forest again. "Why does this place have so many terrifying warning systems?"
"That's normal for northern packs."
"Your definition of normal concerns me deeply."
To her relief, that earned the faintest twitch near the corner of his mouth.
For a brief moment, the tension eased slightly.
Then another howl sounded.
Closer this time.
Both of them froze.
The sound scraped through the night with unnatural sharpness, followed by the sudden distant barking of wolves somewhere beyond the manor gates.
Cassian's expression hardened immediately. "Stay inside the training hall."
Evelyn blinked. "Excuse me?"
Before she could protest further, he moved toward the entrance.
"Cassian."
He paused.
Evelyn stared at his back, irritation rising unexpectedly fast. "You are not running into danger alone because of some dramatic self-sacrificing male lead instinct."
The young heir looked over his shoulder slowly.
"…Male lead?"
Oops.
Evelyn's soul nearly left her body.
She forced herself to recover immediately. "Figure of speech."
Cassian looked unconvinced.
Evelyn pointed accusingly at the door before he could ask questions. "And don't change the subject. You are staying inside."
"You're ordering me?"
"Yes."
"You're not my mother."
The words landed harder than either of them expected.
Silence filled the hall.
Cassian's expression shifted almost immediately afterward, as though he regretted saying it the moment it left his mouth. Not because the statement was untrue, but because it had come out sharper than intended.
Evelyn looked at him quietly for several seconds.
Then she sighed softly.
"I know," she said.
The tension in his shoulders tightened further.
Evelyn walked toward him slowly, stopping only a few steps away. Up close, she could see how young he still was beneath all the discipline and composure. He tried so hard to appear untouchable that it almost made her chest ache.
"You don't have to accept me," she continued gently. "I barely understand why I'm here myself most days."
Cassian's gaze lowered slightly.
"But," Evelyn added, her tone firmer now, "I'm still the adult in this situation. Which means I'm allowed to worry if you try doing something reckless."
The silence stretched between them.
Snow tapped softly against the tall windows behind them while firelight flickered across the training hall walls.
Finally, Cassian looked away first.
"…I wasn't planning to leave the estate," he admitted quietly.
Evelyn narrowed her eyes. "That sounded suspiciously specific."
"I was only going to the southern wall."
"That is still outside."
"It's inside the estate boundaries."
"You argue like a lawyer."
Cassian almost smiled again.
A sudden sharp knock interrupted them before either could continue.
Both turned immediately toward the entrance.
One of the estate guards stepped inside, breathing heavily from the cold. Snow clung to his dark uniform and melted across the floor beneath his boots.
"Young Master," the guard said quickly, bowing his head. "The Beta sent word from the northern route."
Cassian straightened immediately. "What happened?"
The guard hesitated.
And for the first time since arriving in this world, Evelyn felt genuine fear crawl beneath her skin.
"The patrol discovered carcasses near the eastern ridge," the guard answered carefully. "Not human."
Cassian's expression remained controlled, though the air around him seemed to sharpen.
"What kind of carcasses?"
"Wolves."
Silence.
The guard swallowed visibly before continuing. "Torn apart."
Evelyn felt cold settle in her stomach.
The man lowered his voice further. "The Beta believes something crossed into Blackthorne territory from the northern forest."
The room went still.
Not rogues or ordinary predators.
Something far more dangerous.
Cassian spoke carefully now. "Did Father send further instructions?"
"Yes, Young Master. The Alpha ordered the inner estate gates sealed until dawn."
That explained the tension outside.
Evelyn glanced instinctively toward the windows again. The forest beyond the manor seemed impossibly dark now, the snowfall thick enough to blur the outlines of the trees entirely.
The guard bowed once more before leaving. The moment the door closed behind him, the training hall felt quieter than before.
Cassian walked toward the nearest window slowly, staring out into the storm.
Evelyn remained where she stood, watching him.
"You already knew something was wrong before tonight, didn't you?" she asked softly.
He did not answer immediately.
When he finally spoke, his voice sounded lower than before. "The northern forest has been changing for months."
Evelyn frowned slightly. "Changing how?"
"The wolves avoid certain areas now. Patrols pick up unfamiliar scents. Animals migrate south during winter even when they shouldn't." His jaw tightened faintly. "And sometimes the forest becomes completely silent."
That last part unsettled her the most. Forests were never truly silent. Not unless something had frightened everything else away.
Cassian turned back toward her. "Father thinks something is forcing rogues closer to pack territory."
"And what do you think?"
The young heir hesitated.
Then, very quietly, he answered, "I think the forest is hiding something."
A chill slid down Evelyn's spine. The fire behind them crackled softly, but the warmth no longer reached her properly. For some reason, the memory of Lucien's earlier warning returned vividly to her mind.
"The forest has begun to smell wrong."
As though even nature itself recognized something unnatural moving through the snow beyond Blackthorne Manor.
Evelyn crossed her arms tightly against the cold creeping into her skin.
"You know," she murmured softly, "my old life was incredibly boring compared to this."
Cassian blinked. "Old life?"
Another mistake.
Evelyn mentally screamed. She really needed to stop speaking like someone who had been reincarnated into fictional werewolf nobility.
She recovered quickly. "Before marrying your father."
The young heir studied her carefully again. That look was becoming dangerous. Cassian was observant, far too observant. Still, he let the explanation pass.
"You don't seem afraid," he said quietly.
Evelyn stared toward the dark windows. Snow continued falling endlessly outside, pale against the endless blackness of the forest.
"Oh, I'm terrified," she admitted honestly.
Cassian looked surprised.
Evelyn smiled faintly despite herself. "I'm just trying very hard not to make it everyone else's problem."
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
Then somewhere beyond the estate walls, deep within the northern woods, something screamed.