Chapter 13 - Forbidden Pull
The forest clearing behind the packhouse was quieter than usual that morning, the usual bustle of training subdued as I followed Dhruv through simple movement drills.
Cabir had joined us briefly, teasing lightly about my form, but there was a tension in the air I could not ignore. It was subtle, almost like the forest itself was holding its breath.
I was concentrating on shifting my weight smoothly when I suddenly felt it—a pull, sharp and insistent, unlike anything I had ever experienced before.
My breath caught as I realised it was coming from Manik, standing at the edge of the clearing, observing with those unnerving red-golden eyes of his.
There was no mistaking the intensity of the connection.
I froze for a moment, unsure how to react. Our eyes met, and I felt the pull strengthen, a silent tug that made my chest ache in ways I had never felt with Abhay—this was different. This was commanding, undeniable.
Later, as the training ended and the pack dispersed, I found myself alone on the balcony, cleaning my hands after a particularly clumsy fall during the drills. I felt him before I heard him step onto the balcony.
"You felt it, didn't you?" His voice was low, calm, but threaded with that unmistakable intensity that always made me tense.
I stiffened. "Felt... what?" I asked cautiously, unsure if I wanted to acknowledge it.
"The bond," he said quietly, stepping closer. "The pull I feel... Nandini, you need to tell me—do you feel it too?"
I looked away, uncertain, my hands twisting nervously. "I... I do," I admitted softly. "But it's impossible. I... I already have a mate. The bond... that's how it works. It's forbidden to have two."
His eyes darkened slightly, but he didn't step back. "Impossible doesn't mean it isn't happening," he said, his voice firmer. "Tell me what you feel."
I swallowed hard. "It's not... the bond I had before.
It's different. Calmer, stronger in a way I can't explain.
When I'm near you, I can... sense something.
A presence. I don't know what it is, but it makes me feel safer, stronger.
And yet..." My voice faltered. "I can't... I can't deny the connection, even if it shouldn't exist."
For the first time, I felt him shift beside me—not just in presence, but deeper. I felt the stirrings of something else—a presence behind the calm, like a shadow brushing against my own. I gasped lightly, stepping back instinctively.
"My wolf..." Manik muttered, his voice catching slightly. "He feels it too."
My eyes widened. "You... feel it? Even your wolf?"
He hesitated for a fraction of a second, then let the shift happen.
His amber-gold eyes flared with red as Shadow fully surfaced, a ripple of raw energy radiating outward.
I froze, stunned as for the first time, I could feel the wolf—not just in thought, but in emotion, in presence, in the very air around us.
The sensation was overwhelming: commanding, fierce, protective, and yet strangely gentle toward me. My own heart raced, and I could barely catch my breath, realising the wolf was acknowledging me in ways I had never imagined.
Manik's voice broke through, strained but steady. "I... I'm taking control back," he said, his eyes slowly returning to their normal red-golden hue, leaving me trembling but wide-eyed. The presence lingered, faint now, but unmistakable.
"I... I don't understand," I whispered.
"Neither do I," he admitted, his jaw tight. "But I will figure it out."
Later that evening, I found myself seated beside my parents in the quiet of the study. The events of the balcony and the sensation I had felt could not be ignored. I needed guidance—if anyone could help, it would be them.
"Dad" I began carefully, "there's something I need to discuss. It's... Nandini."
Raj's eyes, sharp yet gentle, fixed on me. "What about her?"
"The mate bond," I said quietly. "I felt it... strongly. And it isn't supposed to exist. She was rejected before she arrived here. That bond should have been broken. Yet I can't ignore what I felt. Shadow... he reacted too. More than I expected."
Neyonika's hand rested lightly on Raj's arm, her expression thoughtful. "You're saying the bond is... rekindling, in some way?"
I nodded. "It feels impossible, but it's real. I don't understand it."
Raj leaned back, frowning slightly. "There may be ways to understand this.
Long ago, before we ruled here, there was a sorcerer—some called him a sage, others a witch.
He lived deep in the mountains, close to the northern ridge.
If anyone could explain... or help control.
.. a bond that defied the rules, it would be him. "
I felt a twinge of both hope and apprehension. "You think he could help?"
Raj nodded slowly. "Perhaps. But be careful. The pull she exerts is not ordinary. Even a mate bond is normally clear-cut. What you're feeling is... exceptional."
I clenched my fists, my mind already racing ahead. "I will find a way," I said, my voice low. "I will understand it. And I will protect her."
The following morning, during training, I watched Nandini as she moved through the drills with Dhruv.
Something about her had changed overnight, though she looked the same on the surface.
There was a faint, unusual presence around her, subtle but undeniable—a quiet ripple in the air that made even Shadow stir in the distance.
I tilted my head slightly, trying to analyse it. "Interesting," I muttered under my breath.
Alya leaned beside me, noticing my scrutiny. "She's improving," she said lightly. "And...?"
I shrugged. "There's something about her. Something I can't quite name yet."
Alya gave me a playful grin. "It's probably just the magic of the Blood Moon pack rubbing off."
I didn't respond, keeping my focus on Nandini. The feeling lingered, faint but insistent, like a whisper of something more powerful hidden just beneath the surface.
Far to the north, Crescent Valley remained restless. The rumours of Nandini's survival had not only reached the neighbouring packs—they had begun to take root in Abhay's mind.
He could no longer ignore the strange ache in his chest, nor the pull he felt in dreams and fleeting thoughts. He had rejected her, yes, but now he realised the bond they once shared was stubborn, unyielding, and painfully alive.
"I need to know where she is," he growled to a patrol captain. "I don't care how, find her. And don't return until you have answers."
The patrol captain nodded nervously. "Yes, Alpha. We will search every territory nearby."
Abhay's eyes narrowed, burning with frustration and longing. His pulse raced with both anger and something he could not name. Nandini was alive. She was somewhere under the protection of Blood Moon Pack. And he had no power here to bring her back—not yet.
The first threads of tension that would pull Blood Moon and Crescent Valley together were now weaving themselves quietly, but inexorably, into the coming storm.