Alpha'sShadow

nuckles turned white. The man the stranger from the forest had vanished as quickly as he'd appeared, leaving her alo

in shallow, rapid bursts, as though she'd forgotten how to breathe properly. Her mind was spinning w

as th

thority in his voice haunted her. He had known her name. He had warned her, and he had said something t

hem? And why did it feel like she was being pulled i

had to focus. She couldn't let fear paralyze her. She needed answers

art still racing from the encounter in the archives. She had tried to shake it off, bu

gh a catalog of new arrivals. When she saw Iris approac

soon," Mrs. Wren remarked. "Did y

ng whispers about the Shadowclaw Clan and its history were enough to

think I need to keep looking." She forced a smile,

rst one to be drawn in by the Shadowclaws. Most

er running down her spine.

uch. "Some things are better left in the past. If you k

flickered over Iris' shoulder, her expression shifting. The change was su

lowly, her st

an wa

unreadable. Their eyes locked onto her with an intensity that made her skin prickle. There was somethin

o her in the archives, stepped forward. His ey

oice like ice, but this time, it carrie

lse pounding in her ears. "I.

a small, humorless smile. "This isn't

ling but defiant. She wasn't sure where the courage was

e could respond, Mrs. Wren spok

threat to anyone. She doesn't

usion clouding her mind. What was going on? Who were

ine. But don't let me see you here again, Iris Caldwell." His eyes locked o

tension in the room lifted the moment the door closed behind them, but Ir

he finally asked,

s if making sure they were truly gone. Then, in a voice so low Iris could bare

nned. "The ones..

kindly to outsiders, especially people like you. Y

her refused to back down now. The more she learned, the more she realized she w

s warning echoed in her head. She couldn't shake the feeling that she was in over her

hade wasn't just a city full of history and legends; it was a city f

, one thought lingered in her m

ntly, was she re