The Elders' Hall stood before Ayla like a dark, oppressive fortress. She could feel the weight of its age pressing down on her shoulders, its walls exuding secrets and warnings. Inside, the air was thick with the smell of old wood and dust, and the murmurs of the Elders filled the space like an unsettling hum. They sat in their high-backed chairs, their faces stone-cold and unreadable.
Rhett stood at her side, his jaw clenched, muscles tense. He had been quiet ever since they left the woods, where the shadowkin had attacked. But now, his silence spoke louder than words.
Ayla's heart pounded in her chest as she stepped forward, her fists clenched at her sides. "Why are we here?" she asked, her voice cutting through the thick silence of the room.
The Elder at the center, Elder Larkin, finally spoke. His voice was low and firm. "You've returned to Ashpine. The curse has been awakened, and now you must face what's coming."
Ayla's eyes narrowed. "You've known all along, haven't you?" she demanded, her tone rising in anger. "You knew what would happen, and you did nothing."
Larkin's expression remained unchanged. "There was nothing to be done. The bloodline is cursed. We warned your grandmother, but she chose to defy us."
"Then why didn't you tell me?" Ayla's voice trembled with frustration. "Why didn't you warn me? If you knew all of this, why didn't you help me sooner?"
A bitter laugh escaped from the Elder beside Larkin, a woman with sharp eyes and graying hair. "Help you?" she scoffed. "We've all seen the signs. The mark on your skin... the creature in the woods. It's a curse. It's in your blood, and it will claim you. Just like it claimed your grandmother."
"You think I don't know that?" Ayla shot back, stepping closer to the Elders, her fury bubbling over. "I'm already marked. But I'm not going to stand here and let you tell me what I can and can't do. You've made your choices. Don't expect me to follow in your footsteps."
"You walk the same path," another Elder muttered from the shadows. "You've already taken the first steps. You're just too blind to see it."
"I'm not blind," Ayla snapped. "I'm just not afraid of the truth. You all pretend to be guardians of this town, but you're nothing more than cowards hiding behind old prophecies."
She turned on her heel, her anger burning hot. "I'm done," she spat. "I won't sit here and listen to this. If you have nothing useful to say, I'm leaving."
Rhett's hand shot out to grab her arm. "Ayla, don't."
She jerked her arm away, her eyes flashing. "Don't try to stop me, Rhett. I've had enough of this. Enough of all of you."
"You're walking away from answers," Elder Larkin said behind her. "Just like your grandmother did. And it killed her."
Ayla stopped, her breath catching. She didn't turn around. "No," she said coldly. "What killed her was your silence."
She didn't wait for their response. With a final glare at the Elders, she stormed out of the hall.
The cold night air greeted her as she stepped outside, but it did nothing to cool the fire inside her.
Rhett was quick to follow. "Ayla, wait!" His voice was strained, desperate, but she kept walking, not caring to look back.
"Ayla!" Rhett's voice broke through the night, his footsteps growing louder behind her. She could feel his presence closing in and he caught up with her in a few strides, his hand gripping her arm once more, but this time, she didn't pull away.
She spun around to face him, her face flushed with anger.
"What do you want, Rhett? I'm not going back there. I'm not going to sit and wait for whatever curse is supposed to kill me. If they're not going to help me, then I'll figure this out on my own."
"You don't have to do this alone," he said quietly, his eyes searching hers. "You don't have to run. I'll be here with you. Always."
Ayla's heart felt the sincerity in his voice, but the anger still burned inside her. "You don't get it, Rhett. They're all just sitting there, waiting for me to fail. They've already decided my fate. Why should I trust them? Why should I trust anyone in this damn town?"
His grip on her arm softened. "You can trust me. I swear it."
But Ayla's frustration broke free, and she shook him off. "I can't even trust myself right now! I don't know who I am anymore. I'm not just some helpless girl you can protect. I'm cursed. And no one can change that."
"I don't care about the curse," Rhett insisted. "I care about you. With or without it."
She looked away. "Then maybe you're just as blind as they are."
She turned away, not waiting for him to respond. "I don't want to hear it, Rhett. I need space. I need to figure things out on my own. Just… leave me alone."
He didn't stop her. He watched her go, his expression filled with a mix of sorrow and helplessness. She felt the weight of his gaze, but she didn't look back.
~~~~
The night felt colder as Ayla made her way home, her mind racing with everything that had happened. The mark. The wolf. The Elders' cold dismissal of her fears. She had thought they would help her. But now, she was more lost than ever.
And yet, she couldn't shake the feeling that something or someone was watching her. A sense of being hunted, of being marked by forces she didn't understand. She quickened her pace, the thought of being alone in the woods scaring her.
When she finally reached the edge of town, she felt it again, the sense of something closing in, something dark and predatory.
She paused, glancing over her shoulder. "Who's there?" she called out, trying to keep her voice steady. Silence.
But as she walked past the trees, the rustle of leaves made her stop in her tracks.
"Don't do this," she whispered, almost to herself. "Not now. Not again."
And then, she heard it. A growl.
She froze, her heart in her throat, as the hairs on the back of her neck stood on end.
"Please…" she murmured, slowly backing away. "I'm not your enemy."
A low snarl answered her.
Ayla's eyes darted through the darkness, searching for movement. "If you're trying to scare me, it's working," she said, voice shaking but defiant. "But I'm not running."
A shadow lunged at her from the dark, its glowing eyes burning through the night.
"NO!" she screamed, throwing her arms up. Then, there was only darkness.