Chapter 13 Avilyna
Avilyna
SOUNDS LIKE JUSTICE
Back in my room, which, of course, took me way too long to find, because apparently spatial awareness just isn't one of my many skills. I finally shut the door behind me with the satisfying click of the lock. Double-checked it, too. Some habits die hard, and with all the fuss I received, it’s better to be safe than sorry.
I don’t waste any time before heading straight to the shower.
Scorching hot water, steam curling around me like a protective barrier from the chaos outside.
For a moment, it’s just me, the heat, and silence.
By the time I step out, wrapped in the kind of calm you can only get from near-scalding water, I actually feel… human again, sort of.
Too exhausted to battle with my hair, because let’s face it, that’s always a losing fight, I just let it be its wild, unruly self. I throw on an oversized black t-shirt that swallows me enough to be comfy and call it good. Sleep is the goal now, peace and quiet; a few hours to myself.
Except, apparently, that was wishful thinking.
I swear I hadn’t been asleep for more than an hour, maybe two, if the universe was feeling generous, before the knocking started. Not knocking—banging. The kind that sounds like someone’s trying to settle a grudge with the door itself.
Still half in a dream, I fumble out of bed groggy, vision fuzzy, and about as graceful as a baby deer on ice. Every thud at the door sends a fresh wave of irritation through my skull. Disoriented, a heavy feeling settles in my gut.
It's not stopping.
Not slowing down. Just pounding, over and over again. My heart’s thudding, and the room starts spinning. And then… it stops.
Silence.
Heavy.
An unnatural kind of quiet that lingers a second too long. Leaning in, ear to the wood, I hear it, ragged, shallow breathing from the other side of the door. My skin prickles with fear. Every instinct in me is telling me not to move.
“I can smell you,” a low voice creeps through the barrier.
In an instant, I’m not just awake, I’m alert and fucking terrified.
Whatever this is… It’s not human, and it knows I’m here.
Adrenaline hits as a lightning bolt, and I’m moving before I can think.
I lunge for the desk. Stupidly thinking I can push it, but it doesn’t budge, not even a little.
After a few useless shoves and burning arms, I abandon that plan and grab the heavy chair instead.
I shove it toward the door, and then I hear… a click.
And the handle starts to turn.
Panic overrides everything. The chair forgotten, I throw myself at the door, slamming it shut with my shoulder as if my body alone might keep it closed. My key is still sitting pretty on the desk, completely out of reach. I can’t lock it, not like that will do anything, since it already was.
Then the voice growls, “Feisty.”
Just one word, that’s all it takes. It slithers through the air, chilling me down the spine.
And before I can react, the door explodes open.
I’m ripped off my feet, slammed to the floor like a rag doll.
Scrambling backward, my heart is pounding, my body rebelling against the instinct to run.
But there's nowhere to go, because the monster is blocking the only way out.
It’s a nightmare coming to life. Half-man, half-beast, frozen mid-transformation, not fully human nor creature, and the result is far worse than either.
It looms over me. Its skin is stretched taut, torn in places where the fur hasn't fully taken hold. Its arms ripple with muscle, but they’re covered in dark, coarse fur that clings, fighting to break free.
Those hands are too large, the fingers ending in claws that could slice through bone like butter.
But it’s the face that freezes my blood.
Its features are a grotesque mix of man and animal.
Eyes glowing, too bright, too feral, locked onto me with an animalistic intensity. Its breath comes in ragged rasps.
This thing doesn’t care who I am.
It only cares that I’m here.
And it’s hungry.
Then, a low growl rumbles from deep in its chest, the sound coming from the depths of a nightmare. Opening its mouth wider, its lips pulling away to show teeth that are far too sharp and long.
That’s my cue to move.
I turn, instinct pushing me to the wardrobe, but I don’t even get close.
My head slams into the door of the armour with a sickening crack, sending a wave of dizziness through me.
Before I can even think, its claws sink into my hair, yanking me back with a force that steals my breath.
In an instant, I’m face-to-face with the thing.
Its foul breath is hot against my skin, rancid.
Its eyes are locked on mine with a hunger that makes me feel like I'm its next meal.
“You don’t even care to recognize me, bitch.” The words come out low, guttural, twisted with a deep growl that makes my blood run cold.
“Sorry, I tend to forget about ugly pricks.” I force the words out through clenched teeth, voice strained.
“You’ll remember me after tonight.” His voice is distorted, as if it’s being ripped from its throat, dripping with malice.
The monster throws me onto the bed with brutal force, the impact knocking the wind from my lungs, only adding to the pounding in my head.
His belt buckle clinks as the lycan fiddles with it, distracted for just a split second.
I don’t hesitate. Planting one foot on the bed for support, I kick him with everything I have, right in the crotch. He howls in agony, doubling over, and I refuse to give him a chance to recover. My knee slams into his face with a sickening crunch, the sound of bones cracking ringing in my ears.
For a moment, I think I’ve got him, until I realize that the sharp sting is coming from his teeth sinking into my skin.
Pain rips through me like a jagged knife, and I scream—not from fear, but from the sheer rage of it.
Kicking him away, I spring off the bed, my muscles moving on pure adrenaline.
But the thundering footsteps behind me are a reminder that escape is a fragile thing, fleeting even.
As I’m about to pass the threshold, not looking in front of me, my face smashes into something solid.
Someone solid.
A broad, muscular chest, the unmistakable scent of cedarwood, mint, and an ingredient I’m starting to know all too well, flood my senses.
“Kai.” The word spills out of me in a rush, a breath of relief flooding my chest.
Kai steps in front of me, pushing me firmly behind him. His body taut, every muscle ready to strike. The moment he moves, the energy in the room shifts. Commanding, grounding, dangerous in that quiet, unmistakable way that doesn’t need explanation. He looks the same.
Mostly.
Except for his eyes. They’re glowing now, imitating the moonlight with an eerie shimmer that isn’t entirely human. That’s when I notice it. The tattoo on his hand, the wolf, is glowing too, pulsing with the same otherworldly hue.
Is that what he meant by a mark?
“Did he hurt you?” Kai growls, voice low and sharp, refocusing me on what matters right now.
“I’m okay,” I manage, even though my voice doesn’t sound as steady as I want it to.
He doesn’t waste another second. Moving straight to the monster.
Quick, clean, precise, and in one fluid motion, he slams the lycan face-first onto the desk.
Twisting one of its arms behind its back until it lets out a guttural snarl of protest.
“Did he touch you?” Kai’s voice is cold now, coiled with fury. Every word lands with a punch.
“He tried,” I say, tone sharp, disgust curling in the back of my throat.
“Which hand?”
I blink. “Wh—what?”
Kai's eyes snap to mine. “With which hand did he try?”
His voice is lower now, dead serious, unshaken. Glowing eyes locked on me as if the rest of the world didn’t exist. It’s almost scarier than the thing pinned beneath him.
I’m still processing the question when the lycan starts thrashing beneath Kai’s grip, desperate to break free. But it doesn’t stand a chance.
“The right one.” My voice doesn’t shake; it’s cold, certain.
Kai moves before the words finish from ringing out of my mouth.
His blade flashes—a single, vicious arc, fast and unforgiving.
The lycan’s scream is drowned by the wet rip of tearing flesh.
Blood splashes across the floor, thick and heavy.
A severed hand lands with a dull thud, slowly rolling closer to my feet.
I should feel sick, horrified.
But I don’t.
Something inside me hums, dark and deep, a chord struck in the marrow of my bones. It coils through me, not fear... but satisfaction.
Kai’s eyes meet mine, burning, unreadable. His nostrils flare slightly, like he senses the shift in me. Then his gaze drifts, slow and deliberate, over every inch of my body. When he refocuses on my face, there’s a coy smile waiting, just enough to reveal fangs.
Not human—not hiding anymore.
With blood still slick on his fingers, he brushes a strand of hair behind his ear as if it’s nothing. “Let’s go, Princess,” Kai murmurs, voice low and charged. “The night’s just getting started.”
I follow in silence.
Behind us, my attacker’s screams rip through the air—broken, animal, begging.
His pain sounds like justice, and justice sounds a hell of a lot like a symphony.
I’m following, barely two steps behind, when I nearly trip over Wyll, who’s slumped dramatically against the doorframe like a bored cat. I stop short.
“Why do I feel like I missed all the fun?” he drawls, voice lazy, eyes gleaming with mischief.
“Don’t worry, apparently, the night’s only starting.” Then, I ask, confused, “Where are we even going?”
“Home,” they both say in unison.
I stare at them. “Yeah… I don’t think so.”
Kai doesn’t even look at me. “Until you learn to ward a room properly, you can’t be alone.”
“I am still not going.” He lets out an exasperated grunt, rubbing the bridge of his nose like I’m the headache he regrets inviting in. His blond hair falls over his face, muting the edges, but only for a second.
“I can just stay with Nalaka, I don’t—” I don’t get to finish. One moment I’m talking, the next I’m over his shoulder. “HEY! What the hell?!” I shout, legs kicking.
“Just shut up. You talk too much,” Kai says flatly, like he’s carrying a bag of flour instead of a full-grown, pissed-off woman.
“PUT. ME. DOWN!”
“If I were you, Kai,” Wyll calls from behind us, barely hiding a laugh, “I’d listen. She sounds murder-y.”
“Just do as you’re told, for once,” Kai mutters and then, with deliberate confidence, smacks me, hard. A hot sting shoots across my backside.
That’s it.
I twist and slap him square on the ass, putting everything I’ve got into it. The impact jolts him, making him stumble a step. He drops me without hesitation. The floor tilts as I land hard. I’m barely upright before he’s on me, grabbing my chin in a bruising grip.
His face is too close, his eyes too dark.
“Careful, Princess,” Kai hisses. “It’s dangerous to play with sharp objects.
” Then he leans in and licks the blood from my forehead, slowly—deliberately, like some twisted ritual.
The light in his gaze intensifies for a split second, making my breath catch.
And not in a good way, because heat pools down my belly.
But then he shoves me back like I’m something dirty on his hands, and I’m too stunned to speak.
“Kinky,” Wyll murmurs with a big smile on.
Kai shoots him a death glare. “Stay, go, I don’t care. But I’m the one calling the shots tonight. And I’m not saving anyone too stupid to stay out of danger.”
“I’m not even wearing shoes!” I snap, arms flailing slightly for emphasis.
“Not my problem,” Kai says, walking away, not a fucking care in the world. My glare sharpens. My feet throb just from looking at the hallway. Wyll sighs dramatically.
“Fine, I’ll grab them. But this is officially going on your list of favours owed.”
“What favours?”
“The high-and-mighty kind,” he says with a wink before vanishing into the room.
And just like that, I’m alone with Kai again, so I start walking, not particularly eager to stay alone.
Silence closes in, with the faint echoes of pained cries.
It’s awkward, heavy. The kind that presses in, begging to be broken, even if you’ll hate what comes next.
“Thanks. For earlier,” I murmur.
Kai doesn’t even look at me. “Don’t get used to it.”
Right, of course not.
Why did I even bother?
Wyll returns, tossing me my boots and a clean pair of socks. I mutter a thanks as I quickly put them on.
At least one of them isn’t a complete asshole.