Chapter 29 - The wolf unleashed

🌙 Episode 29: The Wolf Unleashed

Lila's POV

The night was too quiet. The fire had burned low, throwing only faint shadows across the clearing. Ethan sat with his back to me, every muscle taut, listening to the forest like it whispered secrets only he could hear.

I pulled my blanket tighter, though the chill that settled in my bones had little to do with the cold.

"Ethan?" I whispered.

He didn't turn. "Don't sleep. Not yet."

The way he said it made my heart race.

Before I could ask why, the sound came. A snap of a twig. Then another. Too deliberate to be an animal.

Ethan rose in a blur of movement, eyes glowing faintly in the dark. "Stay behind me," he ordered, low and sharp.

My throat tightened. "Hunters?"

"Hunters," he confirmed.

The shadows moved—three, no, four figures, weapons glinting as they circled. My pulse thundered. They'd found us.

Ethan's POV

I should have known they'd track us this far. The scent of silver stung the air, burning my senses. Four men, maybe more waiting nearby.

"Step aside, wolf," one called. "We only want the girl."

Rage flared hot. "You'll have to kill me first."

"Gladly," the hunter sneered.

They lunged.

I shoved Lila back as the first blade swung. Steel met my forearm, searing pain ripping through me as the silver burned. I growled, the sound ripping from deep in my chest.

"Ethan!" Lila's scream cut through the chaos.

The wolf inside me surged, demanding release. I'd fought it for years, always holding back, always afraid of what I'd become if I let go.

But tonight, with her life hanging by a thread, there was no choice.

I gave in.

Lila's POV

I watched in horror and awe as it happened.

Ethan's body convulsed, bones cracking, his frame stretching impossibly. His eyes blazed gold, fur rippling over his skin. Within seconds, he was no longer the man I knew—he was something more, something terrifying and beautiful.

A wolf. Massive, black as midnight, teeth bared in a snarl that shook the ground.

The hunters faltered, fear flickering across their faces. But then they attacked again.

Ethan met them with a fury I'd never seen. He moved like a shadow, claws flashing, teeth tearing through steel and flesh. The air filled with the sounds of battle—snarls, shouts, the clash of silver on fur.

I wanted to run, to hide—but I couldn't take my eyes off him.

This was Ethan. The man who'd saved me. The man I was falling for. And now I saw what he'd been hiding.

He wasn't just dangerous. He was unstoppable.

Ethan's POV

The wolf relished the fight. The sting of silver only fueled my rage. One hunter fell, weapon torn from his grip. Another fled into the dark, but I was faster.

Yet even through the blood and fury, part of me stayed focused on her. On Lila.

Because if they touched her—if they hurt her—I would destroy them all.

The last hunter raised his blade toward her. A snarl ripped from my throat as I lunged, slamming him to the ground. His cry cut short as I ended it.

Silence fell.

I stood in the clearing, chest heaving, blood dripping from my claws. The wolf's instincts screamed to hunt the rest, but then—

Her voice. Soft, trembling. "Ethan."

It cut through the haze like a lifeline.

Lila's POV

He turned toward me, massive and terrifying. For a heartbeat, fear gripped me—what if he wasn't in control? What if he didn't know me anymore?

But then I saw his eyes. Gold, yes, but familiar. Human. Ethan.

Slowly, I stepped forward. "It's you," I whispered.

He didn't move, didn't breathe. I reached out, hand trembling, and laid it gently on his fur. Warm, thick, real.

"You saved me," I said, tears burning my eyes. "Again."

The great wolf lowered his head, pressing against my hand, and my fear melted into something else entirely.

Not terror.

Trust.

Ethan's POV

The bond pulsed between us, undeniable, unbreakable.

I'd shown her the truth. The monster I really was. And instead of running, she touched me.

She chose me.

But even as relief flooded me, I knew this was only the beginning. The hunters wouldn't stop. The pack would question her. And now, the entire world I'd tried to keep her from had her in its grasp.

I shifted back, collapsing to my knees in the dirt, bloodied and bare.

Lila knelt beside me, her hands cupping my face, steady despite the tremor in her touch.

"You're not a monster," she whispered fiercely.

And for the first time in years, I almost believed her

✨ End of Episode 29