The name Shadow Vale hung between us like a curse, heavy and foreboding. A chill swept over my skin, and I fought the instinct to recoil.
"No one goes there," I whispered.
Damien's silver eyes flickered with something unreadable. "No one who doesn't want to be hunted."
My pulse quickened. "You think we'll be safe?"
A muscle in his jaw tightened. "No. But Lucien won't be safe, either."
The trees around us whispered in the dark, as if the forest itself recoiled from the mention of that place. Shadow Vale was more legend than truth—a hidden realm of darkness and ancient power where even alphas feared to tread.
"You've been there before." It wasn't a question.
"Yes."
I clenched my fists to stop the trembling in my hands. "And you think it's a good idea to go back?"
"I think it's the only choice we have," Damien said, his voice calm but resolute. "Unless you want to keep running until there's nowhere left to hide."
We moved quickly, the wind howling like a mournful specter as we slipped deeper into the wilderness. Every step took us farther from the world I once knew—deeper into a place where shadows ruled and legends came to life.
"Tell me about the Shadow Vale," I said, my voice barely above a whisper.
Damien's expression didn't change, but a darkness settled over him, like a storm cloud rolling in.
"It's where the cursed go," he said. "Where the bonds of power are broken, and wolves are free of the chains that bind them."
"Free?" My heart thudded painfully. "You mean—"
"The mate bond doesn't rule there," he finished. "The vale has its own laws. Its own dangers."
Hope surged in my chest. A place where the mate bond could be severed. A place where I could finally be free of Lucien's hold.
"But it comes with a price," Damien warned.
"What kind of price?"
He glanced at me, his eyes cold and fierce. "It's a place of nightmares, Sienna. A place where power consumes the weak. If you're not strong enough to control it, it will destroy you."
---
As we neared the edge of the vale, the air grew thick, heavy with a weight I couldn't name. The ground beneath my feet felt wrong—too soft, too cold, as if life itself had been drained from the earth.
The trees loomed larger, their branches twisted like claws. Mist coiled around us, whispering secrets in a language I couldn't understand.
"This is it," Damien said quietly.
I swallowed hard, my throat dry. "How do you know?"
"You feel it," he answered. "Like a shadow pressing against your soul."
He wasn't wrong. Every step forward felt like walking into the jaws of a beast.
---
We crossed an invisible threshold, and the world shifted.
The air grew colder, sharper. The trees twisted into grotesque shapes, their bark scarred with claw marks that pulsed with a faint, sickly glow. The ground beneath my feet felt like stone and ash.
"What… is this place?"
"Shadow Vale," Damien whispered. "A world between worlds."
A shiver raced down my spine as I took it all in. This was no ordinary forest. This was a place where nightmares lived.
"Stay close," Damien warned. "And whatever happens, don't listen to the voices."
"Voices?"
He didn't answer.
---
We moved deeper into the vale, the mist thickening around us. My heart pounded in my chest, every nerve on edge. I felt them before I saw them—eyes watching from the darkness, their gaze burning with hunger and malice.
"Are those—"
"Wraith wolves," Damien said grimly. "They were once like us. Now they belong to the vale."
The wraith wolves circled us, their bodies barely solid, more shadow than flesh. Their eyes glowed like embers, filled with rage and sorrow.
"What do they want?"
"Everything."
One of them lunged, its jaws snapping inches from my face.
Damien moved faster than I could see, his claws flashing as he struck the creature. It dissipated into mist, reforming a moment later with a guttural snarl.
"They can't be killed," he said. "Not here."
My heart raced. "Then how do we fight them?"
"We don't." He grabbed my arm, pulling me forward. "We run."
---
We raced through the vale, the wraith wolves on our heels. The mist thickened, swallowing the world in shadows. My breath came in ragged gasps, my muscles burning with exertion.
"Damien!" I gasped. "I can't—"
"You have to."
The wolves howled, a sound that pierced my soul. Their voices carried the weight of every broken bond, every shattered promise.
"Don't listen," Damien said sharply.
But it was too late.
Their whispers slithered into my mind, cold and insidious.
He will never love you.
You will always be his.
You are weak.
I stumbled, my vision blurring.
"Stay with me!" Damien's voice cut through the fog, a lifeline pulling me back. "They can't take what you don't give them."
"I'm trying!" I cried, my voice breaking.
"Try harder."
We burst into a clearing, the mist thinning just enough to reveal a stone archway carved with ancient runes.
"What is this?" I gasped.
"The gate."
"To what?"
"Sanctuary."
The wraith wolves howled behind us, their shadows stretching like claws.
"Go," Damien urged, pushing me forward.
I stumbled through the archway, my heart hammering as the air shifted.
The whispers fell silent.
The shadows receded.
I collapsed to my knees, gasping for breath.
"We made it."
Damien's voice was hoarse, filled with relief and exhaustion.
I looked up, my vision clearing.
But what I saw made my blood turn to ice.
Beyond the gate lay a city of shadows—twisted spires and crumbling towers that seemed to defy reality. A dark throne sat at its center, wreathed in flames that burned without light.
"Welcome to Shadow Vale," Damien said grimly.
---
And sitting on the throne, watching us with eyes of fire…
Was Lucien.