The forest moved.
Not violently.
Not rushed.
Slow.
Deliberate.
Branches parted as a tall figure stepped out of the trees.
He didn't look monstrous.
That was the disturbing part.
Dark coat.
Black boots.
Silver hair falling loosely over sharp eyes.
But those eyes…
They were wrong.
Too bright.
Too hollow.
Too hungry.
The entire clearing went silent.
Every wolf shifted slightly into defensive stance.
Ryan stepped forward.
Calm.
Controlled.
But lethal.
"You crossed my territory," he said coldly.
The stranger smiled faintly.
"And you brought my prey into it."
Hazel's mark burned instantly.
Pain shot up her arm.
She clenched her jaw.
"So you're the Devourer," she said.
Her voice was steady.
Stronger than she felt.
The man's gaze snapped to her.
Interest sparked in his eyes.
"Well," he murmured.
"You're not trembling."
Hazel lifted her chin.
"Should I be?"
The Devourer chuckled softly.
"Most Eclipse heirs scream when they meet me."
The words rippled through the pack.
Most.
Ryan's eyes darkened.
"You've killed others," Liam growled.
The Devourer looked almost bored.
"Of course."
He stepped closer.
Wolves growled around the clearing.
None attacked.
Not yet.
Because the pressure rolling off him felt wrong.
Ancient.
Hazel felt it too.
Her mark pulsed violently.
The Devourer inhaled deeply.
Like he was savoring something.
"Yes…" he whispered.
"Your power is still sealed."
Hazel frowned.
"What does that mean?"
Ryan answered quietly behind her.
"It means he wants to consume it before it fully awakens."
The Devourer grinned.
"Exactly."
He took another step forward.
Ryan moved instantly.
Blocking the space between them.
The temperature dropped.
Venom rose inside him like fire.
Blade sharpened with cold precision.
Ralph stood ready.
The Devourer studied Ryan carefully.
"Lucifer's son."
Ryan's expression didn't change.
"You've heard of me."
"Oh yes," the Devourer said calmly.
"Tribrid Alpha. Wolf, vampire, demon."
His smile widened slightly.
"You would taste… extraordinary."
Several wolves growled loudly now.
Ryan didn't move.
"You're not touching anyone here."
The Devourer tilted his head.
"You misunderstand."
His gaze shifted back to Hazel.
"I only came to see if the rumors were true."
"Which rumors?" Hazel asked.
"That the Eclipse heir survived infancy."
The clearing went still.
Hazel blinked.
"Survived?"
The Devourer nodded thoughtfully.
"They usually don't."
Ryan's jaw tightened.
Hazel felt cold spread through her chest.
"Why?"
The Devourer smiled slowly.
"Because Eclipse heirs are unstable."
He tapped his chest lightly.
"And I make sure they never reach maturity."
Venom snarled inside Ryan.
Kill him.
Blade agreed quietly.
Now.
But Ryan held control.
Because something about this encounter felt… wrong.
Too easy.
The Devourer wasn't attacking.
He was studying.
Testing.
His eyes returned to Hazel again.
"Interesting," he murmured.
"What?"
"You haven't awakened yet."
Hazel's mark burned harder.
"What happens when I do?"
The Devourer's smile widened dangerously.
"You become worth devouring."
The wolves erupted into growls.
Ryan stepped forward another inch.
"That's enough."
The Devourer laughed.
"Relax, Alpha."
He raised both hands casually.
"I didn't come to fight today."
No one believed him.
His gaze lingered on Hazel one last time.
"But I will return."
Hazel's voice hardened.
"You're not welcome."
His eyes gleamed.
"I don't need permission."
Then he leaned slightly closer.
Just enough that only she and Ryan could hear him.
"When the eclipse rises…"
His voice dropped to a whisper.
"…I will taste your throne."
Ryan's control snapped for half a second.
Venom surged.
Dark energy exploded outward from him.
The ground cracked violently.
But the Devourer had already stepped back.
Laughing.
"Ah," he said softly.
"There's the demon."
Ryan's eyes were nearly black now.
"Leave."
The Devourer bowed mockingly.
"For now."
And then—
He vanished.
Not ran.
Not fled.
Gone.
The forest slowly breathed again.
But the tension remained.
Hazel exhaled shakily.
Ryan turned toward her instantly.
"Are you hurt?"
Hazel stepped back.
Again.
The distance returned immediately.
"I'm fine."
Ryan's expression hardened slightly.
"You're not fine."
The mark on her wrist glowed through the fabric.
Angrier now.
More alive.
Hazel looked down at it.
"So he's killed others like me."
Ryan didn't answer immediately.
That was answer enough.
Her voice dropped.
"How many?"
Ryan's silence lasted two seconds too long.
Hazel looked back up at him.
Eyes colder now.
"You knew."
He didn't deny it.
"I suspected."
Hazel laughed bitterly.
"Of course you did."
She turned away.
Walking back toward the pack house.
Ryan watched her go.
The distance between them growing again.
Sera stepped beside him.
"He came alone," she said quietly.
Ryan nodded.
"Yes."
"That means he's confident."
Ryan's gaze remained on Hazel's back.
"No."
Sera frowned slightly.
"Then what?"
Ryan's voice darkened.
"That wasn't the hunt."
Venom whispered inside him.
He was measuring her.
Blade murmured coldly.
And us.
Ryan's eyes lifted slowly toward the forest line.
Because one thing was now certain.
The Devourer hadn't come to attack.
He had come to confirm something.
And now that he had—
The real hunt was about to begin.