Chapter 58

[ 1,237 words ]

Small world

58: 58.

Small world Aria

The air in the enforcer building feels wrong the second I step inside.

Too sharp.

Too tense.

My wolf lifts her head immediately, hackles rising beneath my skin.

*Something’s off,* she murmurs.

No kidding.

Ronan stands at the front of the room, arms crossed, jaw tight.

Barric is beside him, along with Thorne, Kade, and Liam.

No one’s talking.

That alone is enough to tell me this isn’t routine.

I move to stand next to Liam, brushing my fingers against his for a second.

Grounding.

He squeezes back, but his eyes stay locked on Ronan.

“This isn’t a drill,” Ronan says, voice low but carrying easily across the room.

“We have a problem.”

A ripple of unease moves through all of us.

Barric steps forward, tossing a tablet onto the table.

“Humans are posting videos.”

My stomach drops.

“What kind of videos?” Thorne asks, though I already know.

Barric taps the screen.

“Partial shifts. Claws, eyes, bone movement. Enough to look fake… until it doesn’t.”

Liam swears under his breath.

Kade goes still beside me, his presence sharpening, predatory.

“They’ve always had stories,” I say slowly.

“Urban legends, conspiracy forums…”

“Not like this,” Ronan cuts in.

“This is different. It’s gaining traction. Views in the millions. People analyzing frame by frame.”

They’re seeing us, my wolf whispers, pacing now.

Barric nods.

“And that’s not all. Human disappearances are up. Not localized. Widespread.”

Silence slams into the room.

“That confirms it,” Thorne mutters.

Ronan’s gaze sweeps over us.

“The veil is weakening.”

The words land heavy in my chest.

For years, the separation between our world and theirs has held.

Fragile, but intact.

Enough to keep us hidden.

Enough to keep them safe.

If that’s breaking…

My thoughts jump immediately to Hazel.

My sister is human.

Fully human.

Living in the city.

One of the videos was from the city.

My pulse spikes.

She’s vulnerable, my wolf growls.

We should go to her.

“I’m increasing patrols,” Ronan says, pulling me back.

“Full coverage. Rotations tightened. I don’t want anything getting close to the pack. Not humans, not rogues, not anything we can’t explain.”

Barric nods.

“We move in pairs minimum.”

Ronan looks directly at him.

“All enforcers. No exceptions.”

A chorus of agreement follows.

But I barely hear it.

Hazel’s face flashes in my mind.

Laughing.

Oblivious.

Unprotected.

We should bring her here, my wolf insists.

She’d never agree.

And even if she did… bringing a human into the center of a pack when tensions are this high?

Dangerous in a different way.

My phone vibrates in my pocket, jolting me.

I step back slightly and check it.

Unknown number.

Normally, I’d ignore it.

Today, I don’t.

“Aria,” I answer quietly, turning away from the group.

“Hi, this is Claire from the realty office. I hope I’m not catching you at a bad time?”

Right.

The house.

My mom’s house.

The one I’ve been trying to sell for months.

“No, it’s fine,” I say, forcing my voice steady.

“We have an interested buyer. He’d like to meet in person, if possible. Today.”

That surprises me.

“Today?”

“Yes, he’s very motivated.”

My wolf pauses her pacing.

Motivated can mean desperate.

Or something else.

Still… the idea of finally getting rid of that house sends a strange mix of relief and guilt through me.

“Okay,” I say.

“I can meet.”

We set a time and place—a café in town.

When I hang up, Liam is already watching me.

“What is it?”

“Realtor. Someone wants to see my mom’s house.”

He nods slowly.

“You want me to come?”

I hesitate.

Ronan is already assigning patrols.

Liam’s name comes up.

“Looks like you’re busy,” I say.

His jaw tightens.

“I don’t like you going alone.”

“I won’t be alone,” I say, glancing toward Kade.

Big mistake.

Kade is already looking at me.

“I’ll go,” he says simply.

Liam doesn’t look thrilled, but he nods.

“Stay in touch,” he tells me.

“I will.”

We won’t be alone, my wolf says, calmer now.

But stay alert.

***

Town feels… different.

Kade and I walk down the main street, and I can feel it in the air.

People still smile.

Still nod.

But it doesn’t reach their eyes.

There’s a tension beneath the surface.

A wariness.

“They feel it,” I murmur.

Kade grunts.

“Humans aren’t as oblivious as we like to think.”

A group passes us, their conversation hushed.

One of them glances at us too long.

My wolf shifts uneasily.

They’re looking closer now.

We reach the café and step inside.

The familiar scent of coffee and baked goods wraps around me, but it doesn’t quite settle the unease.

We grab a table near the window.

“I’ll get coffee,” Kade says.

“I can—”

“I’ve got it.”

He doesn’t give me a choice.

Typical.

I watch him at the counter, then scan the room.

That’s when I see him.

Ransom.

He’s sitting in the corner, leaning back like he owns the place.

My stomach tightens.

Him, my wolf says, ears flattening.

Kade returns, setting a cup in front of me.

“Thanks,” I say, still staring.

He follows my gaze.

His entire body goes rigid.

“Problem?” I ask lightly.

“That’s him,” Kade says.

“The buyer?”

Kade doesn’t answer.

Ransom stands and walks toward us, a slow, easy smile on his face.

“Aria,” he says.

“Ransom.” I force a polite smile.

“Didn’t expect it to be you.”

“Small world.”

Too small, my wolf mutters.

Kade steps slightly in front of me, subtle but unmistakable.

Ransom’s eyes flick to him, amused.

“And you are?”

“Kade.”

No handshake.

No friendliness.

Just tension.

I roll my eyes internally.

Males.

“How are you healing?” I ask Ransom, ignoring Kade’s posture.

“After that night?”

Ransom laughs.

“I’ve had worse.”

“Of course you have.”

We fall into an easy banter, like before.

But it feels… off.

Kade doesn’t relax.

Not even a little.

We finish our drinks and head to the house.

The moment we step inside, memories hit me like a wave.

The creak of the floorboards.

The faint scent of lavender that never quite left.

I swallow hard.

“Like I said,” I begin, forcing focus, “it’s a bit of a fixer-upper.”

Ransom walks slowly through the space, running a hand along the wall.

“I like that,” he says.

“Gives me something to do.”

Kade stays close to me, eyes tracking every movement Ransom makes.

“What do you do?” Kade asks suddenly.

There it is.

Ransom glances at him.

“A bit of this, a bit of that.”

“Specifics?”

I shoot Kade a look.

“He’s not applying for a job, Kade.”

Kade ignores me.

Ransom’s smile sharpens slightly.

“I work with my hands.

Construction.

Repairs.

That sort of thing.”

“Convenient,” Kade mutters.

I step between them slightly.

“The roof needs work.

And the back deck—”

“I can handle it,” Ransom says, his gaze still on Kade.

The tension is thick enough to choke on.

They’re circling each other, my wolf growls.

I take a breath.

“My mom loved this place,” I say, redirecting.

“It just needs someone willing to bring it back to life.”

Ransom’s expression softens slightly as he looks around.

“I’d do that.”

Something in his tone makes my chest tighten.

My intuition prickles.

Something’s wrong, my wolf says.

I nod slowly.

“Why this town?”

Ransom shrugs.

“Felt right.”

Not an answer.

Not really.

I force a smile.

“I actually have another offer to review. Let me take your paperwork, and I’ll get back to you by the end of the day.”

Kade glances at me, surprised.

Ransom studies me for a beat, like he knows I’m stalling.

Then he nods.

“Take your time.”

We exchange final words, and then he leaves.

The second the door closes, the air shifts.

I exhale sharply.

“Okay,” I say, turning to Kade.

“What the hell was that?”

“Get in the car,” he says.

Not an answer.

“Kade—”

“Aria.”

Something in his tone makes me listen.

We lock up and head to the car.

The moment we’re inside, I turn to him.

“Talk.”

Kade grips the steering wheel, knuckles whitening.

“Ransom,” he says slowly, “is not just some guy looking for a fixer-upper.”

My wolf leans forward, alert.

“What is he, then?” I ask.

Kade looks at me.

“He’s a hunter.”

The word hits like a gunshot.

Everything inside me goes still.

Danger, my wolf snarls.

“A hunter?” I repeat.

“You’re sure?”

“I’ve seen his kind before,” Kade says.

“The way he moves. The way he watches. He’s trained.”

My mind races.

Ransom seemed so nice.

We went out on a date crying out loud.

How can he be a hunter

Everything flashes before my eyes.

The videos.

The disappearances.

The weakening veil.

And now a hunter… in our town.

Looking at my house.

Getting close to me.

This isn’t a coincidence, my wolf says.

No.

It’s not.

So maybe neither was that date.

A chill slides down my spine.

Because suddenly, selling that house feels like the least of my problems.

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