Chapter 27
The silence stretched between them, thick and suffocating.
Kieran didn't speak.
Didn't deny it.
And that was worse than if he had.
Riley felt something cold and sharp dig into her ribs, twisting deep. The realization that she had hurt him in another life, another time settled in her bones like a sickness.
Her fingers curled into fists. "Tell me I'm wrong."
Kieran exhaled, running a hand through his dark hair. He wouldn't meet her eyes.
That was all the answer she needed.
She took a step back, her breath sharp. "I" She stopped herself, throat tightening. "How?"
Kieran's golden eyes flickered in the dim light. "It doesn't matter."
"The hell it doesn't." Her voice was sharper than she intended, raw with something she didn't want to name.
Kieran clenched his jaw. "You don't remember everything. And I'm not going to be the one to force you to."
Riley shook her head, frustration curling hot under her skin. "You can't keep protecting me from this."
Kieran's gaze snapped to hers, something dangerous and tired in the way he looked at her. "I'm not protecting you, Riley. I'm protecting myself."
Her breath caught.
Before she could respond, Nova's voice cut through the night.
"You guys might wanna stop arguing and get inside."
Riley turned to find Nova standing in the barn doorway, arms crossed, expression tight. "Unless, of course, you want to get ripped apart by Tobias's wolves."
The weight of those words settled in Riley's chest.
Right.
The pack was still hunting them.
Whatever had happened between her and Kieran, whatever she had done to him in another life, it didn't change the fact that Tobias was out there, closing in.
Kieran's expression shuttered, slipping back into something unreadable.
"Let's move."
Riley hesitated.
Then, with a last glance at him, she turned and followed Nova inside.
But the weight of what she had seen, of what she had felt in that memory, didn't fade.
And neither did the fear that, if it happened before
It could happen again.
Inside the Barn
Nova paced, chewing on the inside of her cheek. "Okay, so let's talk about the fact that we're completely screwed."
Kieran sighed, sinking into a wooden crate. His shirt was still stained with blood, though his wound had already begun to heal. "We need a plan."
Nova rolled her eyes. "No shit, Sherlock."
Riley barely heard them.
Her mind was still tangled in what she had seen.
Blood on the snow.
Kieran, broken at her feet.
Her voice, whispering, this has to end.
The images wouldn't leave her.
They clawed at the edges of her mind, slipping in between her breaths, curling into her ribs.
She swallowed hard. "What if Elias was right?"
Nova and Kieran both looked at her.
Nova frowned. "About what?"
Riley exhaled, forcing herself to meet their eyes. "About me."
Kieran's jaw tightened. "Don't."
"No, I need to say it." She clenched her fists. "What if I was the reason for all of this? What if I did start the war?"
Nova shifted uncomfortably. "I mean I wouldn't put it past you."
Kieran shot her a glare.
Nova shrugged. "What? You have a vibe."
Riley dragged a hand through her hair, frustration bubbling beneath her skin. "I don't want a vibe, Nova. I want answers."
Kieran exhaled slowly. "Then let's find them."
Riley looked at him, searching for something in his golden eyes.
For the first time, she wasn't sure she liked what she saw.
The night stretched on, thick with tension.
The barn was cold, the air heavy with the scent of dust and earth. Nova curled up in the hay, arms folded beneath her head.
Kieran stood by the open window, watching the trees.
And Riley?
She couldn't sleep.
Because something was wrong.
She could feel it, thrumming under her skin, curling into her veins like smoke and fire.
A hunger.
Deep, sharp, insatiable.
She shifted, fingers twitching.
Her mouth felt dry, her body restless, aching.
Like she needed something.
Something she couldn't name.
She pushed up onto her elbows, her breath unsteady.
Kieran didn't turn.
But his voice was low, careful.
"You feel it, don't you?"
Riley froze.
Her pulse spiked.
"Kieran" Her throat was dry. "What's happening to me?"
Kieran finally turned, his golden eyes dark with something she couldn't quite place. "You're waking up."
Riley's breath hitched.
It wasn't the first time she had heard those words.
Callum had said the same thing.
And she was starting to think he was right.
She pushed herself up fully, fingers digging into the hay beneath her. "I don't like this."
Kieran took a slow step closer, his voice gentle but firm. "You need to control it."
Riley clenched her jaw. "And if I can't?"
Kieran's gaze flickered.
And that's when she realized
He wasn't afraid of her losing control.
He was afraid of what she'd do if she didn't.
Her stomach twisted. "I need air."
She didn't wait for a response.
She shoved open the barn door and stepped into the cold night.
The Blood on Her Hands
The second she was outside, the hunger intensified.
She gasped, gripping her arms, her whole body trembling.
The trees whispered around her, the wind curling through the leaves like a voice she couldn't quite hear.
And then
She smelled it.
Blood.
Warm, rich, calling to her.
Her vision blurred, her breath coming faster.
The hunger inside her roared.
She moved before she could stop herself.
One step.
Two.
Then a rabbit.
Small, twitching, wounded.
Riley's body locked up.
The scent of blood was strong and intoxicating.
She swallowed hard. No.
But her fingers were already reaching.
Already moving.
She didn't know what she was doing until her hands were around its tiny body
Until she could feel its fragile, beating heart beneath her palms.
A sharp gasp tore from her lips.
She jerked back, stumbling away.
What the hell was wrong with her?
The rabbit bolted, disappearing into the brush.
Riley's hands shook.
She stared down at them, her breath unsteady.
No blood. No marks.
But the hunger was still there.
Still waiting.
Kieran's voice was quiet behind her.
"Now do you believe me?"
Riley closed her eyes.
Because she did.
She just wasn't sure she wanted to.
Because she did.
She just wasn't sure she wanted to.
Riley stood there, her breath unsteady, the cold night air biting at her skin.
The hunger hadn't left. It curled in her stomach, waiting. Watching. Like it was alive.
She pressed her shaking hands to her sides, willing herself to breathe. To be normal.
But normal was already gone.
Kieran stepped closer, his golden eyes dark and knowing. "This is just the beginning."
Riley let out a sharp, bitter laugh. "Great. Love that for me."
Kieran didn't smile.
Because they both knew what this meant.
The ruins had changed her.
The past was waking up inside her, piece by piece.
And the part of her that once ended a war?
It was coming back.
Riley exhaled shakily, staring into the darkness.
If she didn't stop this now
She wasn't sure she'd ever want to.