Mia screamed.
The sound tore from her throat, raw and desperate, shattering the silence of the forest. Birds scattered into the night, their wings beating frantically above the canopy, but nothing else moved. The trees didn't help her. The shadows didn't hide her. And the three men—the monsters—only smiled wider.
"Louder," the blond one murmured, his pale eyes gleaming like shards of ice. His voice was quiet, but it cut her like glass. "I want to hear you break."
Her body twisted violently as the dark-haired man's grip clamped like iron around her wrist. Mia lashed out, kicking and scratching at him with everything she had. Her nails raked down his arm, leaving angry lines across his skin—yet he didn't flinch.
The marks healed before her eyes, the pale ridges fading into smooth flesh. No human could do that. No human could look so calm, so entertained, while she fought for her life.
"Don't—don't touch me!" she cried, her voice cracking. "I'll fight—I'll kill you—"
The brown-haired one pinned her other wrist above her head against the rough bark of the tree, grinning like a wolf with its prey. His laughter was hot against her ear. "You can fight all you want, pretty. That only makes it better."
Her chest heaved, panic burning through her until she could hardly breathe. Their eyes—silver, glowing, inhuman—gleamed brighter the more she struggled. They were feeding on this. Feeding on... her.
"How—" Her voice broke. Tears blurred her vision. "How do you know me? How do you know my name?"
The blond one's hand, cold as frost, brushed her cheek, tucking back a strand of damp hair. His lips curled in a faint smile. "Because you're ours, Mia. You've always been ours."
Her pulse spiked so hard she thought it might burst. "No! No, I don't even know you!"
The brown-haired one leaned close, nuzzling her temple, his grin wicked. "Doesn't matter. We know you. That's how it works."
The dark-haired one smirked, silver gaze burning into hers. "That's fate. You're our mate."
The word struck her like a knife. Mate. As if she were some prize animal. As if she didn't get a choice. Terror clawed through her chest until she could barely form words. "I'm not—I'm not yours! I don't belong to anyone!"
Her scream broke into sobs as the brown-haired one suddenly wrenched her from the tree. His arm locked around her waist, hauling her off her feet like she weighed nothing. She kicked, twisted, her fists pounding against his chest, but he only laughed harder, holding her tighter. "So soft," he teased, his teeth grazing her hair. "So afraid. I could drown in you."
"Put me down!" Mia shrieked, thrashing with every ounce of strength left in her. "Help! Somebody help!"
Her voice shattered against the silence. No one came. No one could.
The dark-haired one strode ahead, his long strides unhurried, as though there was no doubt in his mind she was theirs already. The blond followed close behind, his cold gaze fixed on her like a judge watching a sentence unfold. The brown-haired one carried her against his chest, her nails clawing bloody streaks into his skin. The wounds sealed instantly. Not a drop of blood fell.
Inhuman. They were inhuman.
"Stop fighting," the blond murmured, his tone like ice cracking over a frozen lake. "It's pointless."
"I'll never stop!" she spat, her voice raw with rage and terror.
"You will," the dark-haired one said without turning. His voice rumbled through the trees, a quiet thunder. "One way or another."
Mia's chest heaved with sobs, her eyes wild, scanning the woods. She thought about her tiny apartment back in the city—the chipped coffee mug by the sink, the hum of the old refrigerator, the safety of being invisible. She wanted that back. She wanted ordinary. But instead she was here, dragged through a nightmare by men who shouldn't exist.
Her struggles slowed, her strength fraying. Her arms felt heavy, her legs like lead. She wanted to keep fighting, but her body betrayed her. Still, the fear didn't stop. It poured from her, endless, and she saw it in their eyes. They fed on it like wolves on blood.
"Delicious," the brown-haired one whispered, inhaling at her throat. His voice shook with hunger. "Gods, I could drink from her forever."
"Don't drain her," the blond snapped. His words were sharp, though his voice never rose. His pale eyes glowed brighter, fixed on Mia's face. "She's our mate. We don't waste what's ours."
Mate. Again that word. She hated it. Hated how they used it like chains around her neck.
"Please—" her voice cracked, broken and small, "please let me go. I don't want this. I don't even know you—"
"You'll learn," the dark-haired one said, his tone certain, his silver eyes flicking back at her. "You'll understand."
The forest deepened around them, the trees thickening, their twisted roots clawing over the path. A mist curled low, pale tendrils creeping across the ground. Mia's tears blurred her vision, but she swore the fog... moved when the brothers passed, parting for them like obedient servants. The air grew heavier, colder, until every breath burned her lungs.
She whimpered softly, her voice a ghost. "What are you?"
The blond was the one who answered. His eyes glowed like frozen moons, his words deliberate, deadly. "Fear-bonded. Born of shadow. We live on what you humans bleed in the dark. And you…" His pale fingers brushed the line of her jaw, and she flinched so violently it hurt. "You are the sweetest we've ever found."
Her sobs tore free. "Stop—stop saying that! I'm not—I'm not—"
The brown-haired one chuckled, holding her tighter, his teeth grazing her skin. "Not ours? Pretty, you've always been ours. That's the part you don't understand."
The trees thinned suddenly, giving way to a clearing drowned in mist. The ground dipped sharply, and Mia's eyes widened as she realized they weren't walking into emptiness at all.
Rising from the fog like a phantom was a structure... impossible, ancient, and vast. Black stone towers pierced the sky, half-shrouded in vapor. Jagged spires clawed upward, glowing faintly with veins of silver light that pulsed like a heartbeat. The air around it vibrated, low and resonant, as if the world itself bent to its presence.
Mia's blood froze. "What… what is that?"
"Our stronghold," the dark-haired one said simply. His silver gaze glowed as the mist curled around his boots. "Our home."
Her stomach twisted violently, nausea flooding her. She shook her head, tears blurring her sight of the monstrous fortress. "No. No, I won't—I won't go in there—"
"You don't have a choice," the blond whispered, his cold smile faint as frost. "You're ours."
The brown-haired one pressed a kiss to her temple, wicked and mocking. "Welcome home, mate."
Mia screamed again, raw and hopeless, her cry swallowed by the mist as the three brothers carried her into the heart of the shadows.