Clara tightened her grip on the back of the wooden chair, her knuckles whitening as Lucas's cries filled the small cabin. Her son's wails weren't ordinary—they came in bursts, each one tinged with a strange vibration that made the air hum. She didn't flinch anymore when it happened, but every time, the weight of what it meant pressed heavier on her chest.
"Lucas," she murmured, her voice steady despite the chaos. She crouched in front of him, brushing a hand through his soft, golden curls. His wide eyes, so much like his father's, shimmered with unshed tears. He clung to his stuffed wolf like it was his lifeline.
"Mommy's here," she whispered.
The knock came hard and fast, shattering the fragile moment. Clara froze, instinctively pulling Lucas close.
Whoever it was, they weren't local. People in this town didn't knock. They called from a safe distance, or not at all. The door didn't budge, but the sound of footsteps pacing outside reached her ears.
"Stay here," Clara ordered, her voice firm but soft. Lucas nodded, his little hands clutching the stuffed wolf tighter.
The visitor didn't wait for permission. A low, commanding voice cut through the tension. "Clara. Open the door."
Her breath hitched. She knew that voice.
Forcing her trembling hands to steady, she approached the door and yanked it open. Damien Blackwood stood on the other side, his presence as overwhelming as the storm she'd left behind.
"Clara," he said again, his tone laced with something unreadable—anger? Relief? Confusion?
For a second, she couldn't breathe. She hadn't seen him in over two years, and now he was standing here, the billionaire Alpha who had no idea what he'd left behind.
"You shouldn't be here," she said, her voice sharper than intended. She glanced over her shoulder, making sure Lucas stayed hidden.
Damien's dark eyes narrowed. "We need to talk."
"I have nothing to say to you."
"I think you do." His gaze softened as he leaned in slightly, lowering his voice. "Why did you run, Clara?"
The question was a bullet she'd been dodging for years, and now it hit her square in the chest.
"I don't owe you an explanation." She tried to close the door, but Damien's hand shot out, stopping it effortlessly.
He didn't push. He didn't have to. His presence alone felt like a force strong enough to break through any barrier. "You're hiding something," he said, his eyes boring into hers.
Clara's silence was answer enough.
Then, a sound broke through the tension—a small whimper from behind her.
Damien's eyes flickered past her, and his entire demeanor shifted. His gaze locked onto Lucas, who had peeked out from behind the chair, clutching his stuffed wolf.
"Who's that?" Damien's voice was low, careful. Too careful.
Clara's stomach churned. She stepped in front of Lucas, shielding him instinctively. "Leave."
Damien's eyes didn't leave the boy. "Clara. Who is he?"
"You need to go." Her voice cracked despite her best effort to stay composed.
But Damien didn't move. Instead, his eyes darkened, and his jaw tightened as realization dawned. "He's mine, isn't he?"
The question hung in the air, heavy with accusation and something else—something Clara wasn't ready to name.
Lucas chose that moment to step out from behind her. He looked up at Damien with wide, innocent eyes. "Who are you?"
Damien crouched, his movements slow and deliberate, as if approaching a frightened animal. "I'm—" He hesitated, glancing up at Clara before finishing. "I'm a friend."
Clara's pulse raced. This was a disaster. She'd spent years keeping Lucas safe, building a life far from Damien's world. And now, with a single knock on the door, it was all unraveling.
"You need to leave," she said again, her voice trembling now.
But Damien didn't rise. He stayed eye-level with Lucas, studying him with an intensity that made her stomach flip. "He's special, isn't he?"
The words sent a chill down her spine. "You don't know anything about him."
Damien finally stood, his eyes never leaving hers. "Maybe not. But I will."
Clara's chest tightened as the storm outside picked up, the wind howling through the cracks in the doorframe. Damien's presence had always been a force of nature, but now it felt like a hurricane threatening to rip through the fragile walls she'd built around her life.
And just like that, she knew there was no escaping him this time.
Damien's presence disrupts Clara's carefully constructed world, and with Lucas's unusual abilities becoming harder to hide, Clara faces the impossible choice of protecting her son or confronting the past she's tried so hard to escape.