CLAIMED BY THE ENEMY

I was always taught to trust my instincts. They were honed from years of training with The Silver Thorn, a secretive order of elite werewolf hunters. The moment I caught the faintest scent of something out of place in the air, I knew something was wrong. It was the scent of power—dark, rich, and unmistakably his. Ryker Duskbane. "We're close," Elias whispered, his voice steady despite the weight of the mission. His presence behind me was constant, like a shadow that never left my side. I hated the way he always managed to remain calm, even when the situation was dire. I felt the familiar rush of adrenaline, the heightened awareness that made everything around me sharper—brighter. My team, clad in dark leather, moved like ghosts through the underbrush, each step calculated and silent. We were here to do one thing: kill Ryker. The Alpha of the Northern Ridge. "Check your six," I muttered to Elias, as my eyes scanned the dark shadows of the dense forest. It felt like the very trees were watching us. I paused. The air was thick with the scent of the forest, but underneath it, something else lingered—something dangerous. A flicker of movement caught my eye. I motioned for the team to halt, and they did, instinctively. My heart thudded in my chest. I wasn’t sure what was out there yet, but my instincts had never steered me wrong. "Something’s off," I said under my breath. "Stay alert." "Stay focused, Nina," Elias replied. "Remember what we're here for." I clenched my jaw. He was right, of course. Ryker Duskbane was a montand er, a tyrant who rubrutallylity. The stories told of his arrogance, his charm, and his cruelty. He was everything I’d been trained to kill. But there was something else in his presence—something I couldn’t explain. Something about him that gnawed at me, tugging at the edges of my resolve. Suddenly, the hairs on the back of my neck stood up. The sound of something moving swiftly through the trees made my pulse spike. It wasn’t the usual animal or wind-induced rustle. No. This was deliberate. Before I could raise the alarm, the first blow came. A blur of movement. One of my team members, Tyler, crumpled to the ground with a sickening c***k. "Ambush!" I shouted, but it was too late. From all sides, Ryker's pack descended upon us—swift, brutal, and organized. My heart hammered as I spun around, trying to assess the situation. The wolves were everywhere, their glowing eyes cutting through the darkness. They were too fast. Too many. We weren’t prepared for this. I felt a sharp tug at my side. I turned just in time to see Elias being pulled away by two wolves. "Get to the Alpha!" he yelled, his voice strained. "Finish the mission, Nina!" But I couldn’t. I had to save him. He was my mentor, the only family I had left. Without thinking, I lunged forward, trying to break free of the snarling wolves surrounding me. But my efforts were in vain. A massive figure appeared from the shadows—Ryker Duskbane himself. His tall, muscular frame loomed in front of me, his eyes gleaming with a dangerous mixture of amusement and contempt. "Well, well," he said, his voice smooth and taunting. "The Silver Thorn's prized hunter. I should have known you'd be the one to lead the charge." I raised my blade, ready to strike, but something stopped me. Something in his gaze. There was a flicker of recognition in his eyes—something almost... familiar. "You should have stayed in the shadows, little hunter," he said, a wicked smile curling his lips. "Now, you belong to me." Before I could react, a sharp pain exploded in my chest. I gasped, clutching my ribs as if the air itself had turned to fire. Ryker staggered, his hand flying to his chest as he groaned in pain, his eyes wide with shock. "What the hell is this?" I whispered, my voice shaky. I could feel the heat coursing through me, burning my very soul, and I knew he felt it too. The pain was excruciating, a connection neither of us had been prepared for. His hand gripped my arm, tightening until I thought my bones might snap. "What have you done to me?" he snarled, his voice full of fury. "I—" I tried to speak, but the pain was overwhelming. It felt like my insides were being ripped apart, and yet, I could feel his agony mirrored inside me. It was as though our very souls had collided in an unforgiving, ancient force. "You’ve triggered the binding spell," Ryker growled, his voice barely above a whisper. His face twisted in both pain and confusion. "What kind of witchcraft is this?" I didn’t have the answers. All I knew was that every breath felt like it might be my last. My vision blurred, the edges of the world darkening as the pain became unbearable. My knees buckled beneath me, and I collapsed to the ground. Ryker knelt down beside me, his hand hovering over my face as if he wanted to touch me but couldn’t bring himself to. His eyes searched mine, torn between fury and something else—a strange, unnameable emotion. "I’m not your enemy," he muttered, almost to himself. "This wasn’t supposed to happen." His words made no sense. Everything I’d been taught about him—everything I’d believed—was unraveling before my very eyes. This wasn’t a fight anymore. This was something far more complicated. As the pain began to subside, I forced myself to look at him, meeting his gaze for the first time. "What do you mean?" I raised my voice barely a whisper. Ryker’s jaw clenched as if he was battling something within himself. He looked down at me, his expression hardening. "It’s not just you," he said, his voice tinged with disbelief. "It’s us. This bond—this curse—it’s not supposed to exist." The ground seemed to shift beneath me, and I tried to push myself upright. "What does that mean? What have you done to me?" Ryker’s eyes flickered with an emotion I couldn’t place. "It’s not what I’ve done," he said, his voice quieter now. "It’s what you are." But before I could demand more answers, something else crashed through the underbrush. A figure emerged from the trees—a wolf, massive and menacing, its fur matted with blood. It moved with a grace that belied its size, and its eyes... its eyes glowed with an eerie, unnatural light. "This isn’t over," Ryker whispered, his voice heavy with regret. I barely had time to react as the creature lunged toward me. "Get back!" Ryker shouted, pulling me away just as the wolf snapped its jaws. I was left breathless, trapped between the world of the hunters and the werewolves, bound by an ancient curse I didn’t understand, facing an enemy I had no hope of defeating alone. And then, Ryker’s voice, low and strained, cut through the chaos. "You think you can kill me?" he snarled, as the wolf bared its teeth. "You don't even know what you're up against." I looked up at him, my heart racing, and for the first time since I’d set foot on this cursed land, I wasn’t sure who the real enemy was. "Tell me what’s happening," I demanded. But before he could answer, the wolf lunged.