Bound by the Moon

Chapter 32

The rain fell harder now, each drop a sharp reminder of the storm brewing both outside and within Astrid. She stood frozen in place, her mind spinning with everything Isolde had said. The dark forest around her seemed to mirror the tangled thoughts swirling in her head, branches clawing at the sky as if reaching for answers. But no matter how much she wanted clarity, all she felt was uncertainty—an unease that crawled beneath her skin, coiling in her gut.

You can't hide this forever.

Isolde's words echoed in her mind, relentless. And she was right. There was something festering inside Astrid, something powerful and dangerous. But what Isolde didn't know—what no one could know—was just how deep that danger ran. It wasn't just about the power she had unleashed when she fought Ryker. It was about Kael. His face flashed in her memory, his cryptic words lingering like a whisper in the back of her mind.

"You're more than you know, Astrid. And they're right to fear you."

She closed her eyes, trying to block him out, but his voice persisted like a half-remembered dream. There had been something about the way he'd looked at her, like he could see straight into her soul, into the places even she was afraid to confront. It unsettled her in ways she couldn't fully explain. Kael knew things—things he shouldn't have. But more than that, he had awakened something in her, something she wasn't ready to face.

And that terrified her more than anything.

Then there was her wolf, always there, caged and suppressed, snarling at the boundaries Astrid had imposed on it. She had felt it clawing at the surface, more wild and volatile with every passing day. Isolde had warned her: keeping it chained, trying to control it with force—it could only last so long. Sooner or later, it would break free.

Or destroy me in the process, Astrid thought grimly.

A rustling sound broke through her thoughts. Astrid's body tensed instinctively, muscles coiling as she spun toward the noise. Lucien stepped out of the shadows, his form materializing through the rain like a ghost. His clothes were soaked through, hair plastered to his forehead, but it was the expression on his face that sent a jolt of guilt through her. He looked tired, yes, but more than that—he looked worried. The crease between his brows was deeper than usual, his eyes shadowed with concern.

"We need to talk," he said, his voice low and urgent, cutting through the storm.

Astrid's heart skipped a beat, her pulse quickening. Had he sensed it? Had he figured out that she was keeping something from him? She had always been able to read Lucien—his moods, his thoughts—but right now, his expression was unreadable, his eyes dark and searching.

"Okay," she managed to say, though her throat felt tight.

Lucien stepped closer, his eyes locking onto hers with an intensity that made her feel exposed. He was giving her a chance—a chance to tell him the truth, to let him in. But the truth about Kael and the state of her wolf burned on the tip of her tongue, too dangerous to share. Astrid felt like she was walking a razor's edge. One wrong move, one slip, and everything would fall apart.

"I didn't mean to hide anything from you," she began, carefully choosing her words. It wasn't a lie—at least, not completely. "But I didn't know what to say. I didn't know how."

Lucien's expression softened slightly, but the tension in his jaw remained. "You've been different, Astrid. Distant. Ever since Ryker's escape. I know something's wrong."

Astrid felt the weight of his gaze pressing down on her. He was too close to the truth, too close to uncovering everything. She swallowed, forcing herself to stay calm. She couldn't tell him about Kael, not yet. Lucien already had too much on his plate with the search for Ryker, the unrest within the pack—he didn't need to know about the stranger who had come out of the shadows, stirring things inside her that she didn't even fully understand.