Chapter 49 - The silence before the storm

🌙 Episode 49: The Silence Before the Storm

Lila's POV

The night was too still.

No owls, no rustling leaves, not even the wind dared to move. It felt as though the whole forest was holding its breath.

I stood on the porch of the safehouse, staring into the dark treeline. Ethan had stationed guards along the perimeter, their eyes glowing faintly as they scanned the shadows. Yet even with all that protection, I couldn't shake the feeling that we were already surrounded.

Ethan appeared beside me, his presence grounding but his face carved with tension. "It's tonight," he said simply.

I swallowed. "How do you know?"

"Because he wants me to." His golden eyes glimmered with a dangerous certainty. "Marcus thrives on fear. He'll strike when he knows we're ready… because he wants us to know it's hopeless."

My stomach knotted. "And is it?"

His hand brushed mine, warm and steady. "Not while you're here. You're my strength, Lila. He can't take that from me."

For a moment, I believed him. I wanted to. But deep inside, a whisper told me Marcus was already closer than we thought.

Marcus's POV

From the ridge above their camp, I watched the Alpha cling to hope like a drowning man to driftwood. Pathetic.

My wolves crouched in the shadows, hundreds of eyes burning with bloodlust. The air reeked of anticipation.

"Wait," I commanded softly. "Let them feel it first. Let the silence eat at them until they can't breathe."

One of my lieutenants shifted restlessly. "And then, Alpha?"

A slow smile curled across my lips.

"Then we burn their world to ash."

Ethan's POV

The bond between us tightened suddenly—sharp, urgent. My wolf bristled under my skin.

"They're here," I growled.

A horn sounded from the forest's edge, low and haunting. The guards stiffened, claws unsheathing.

And then the shadows moved.

Dozens—no, hundreds—of wolves poured from the treeline, their howls splitting the night.

I stepped in front of Lila, claws unsheathed, my heart pounding with both fury and fear.

"Stay behind me," I told her, voice rough.

The war had begun.

---

✨ End of Episode 49