Chapter 2 The Pull

The forest was wrong.

Ava knew it the moment she opened her eyes or thought she did. The trees were too sparse, their branches skeletal and reaching toward a sky that burned with unnatural light. A blood moon hung overhead, swollen and crimson, casting everything in shades of red and shadow.

She was running.

Her feet pounded against the earth, bare and cold, but she didn't remember starting. Didn't remember how she got here. The air tasted like copper and smoke, and her breath came in short, desperate bursts.

Something was chasing her.

Or was she chasing something?

She couldn't tell anymore it wasn't easy to.

Her body moved on instinct, muscles coiling and releasing with a power that didn't feel like her own. She glanced down at her hands as she ran and froze.

They weren't hands anymore.

Claws. Long, curved, dripping with blood that wasn't hers. Fur sprouted along her forearms, dark and sleek, and when she tried to scream, the sound that tore from her throat was a howl.

She stumbled, falling to her knees no, not knees all fours. Her reflection stared back at her from a puddle of rainwater, and the face looking back wasn't hers.

Golden eyes. Fangs. A muzzle slick with blood.

What was going on?

The blood moon pulsed above her, and somewhere in the distance, something howled back.

Ava woke with a gasp, her body jerking upright so violently that her sheets tangled around her legs. Sweat soaked through her shirt, cold and clammy against her skin. Her heart hammered in her chest like it was trying to escape.

She pressed a trembling hand to her throat, half-expecting to feel fur.

Nothing. Just skin. Just her.

"Just a dream," she whispered into the darkness. "Just a dream."

But it hadn't felt like a dream.

It had felt like a memory, like somehow she'd lived it.

She swung her legs out of bed, her bare feet hitting the cold floor with a soft thud. The apartment was silent except for the hum of the refrigerator and the distant wail of sirens outside. She glanced at the clock on her nightstand: 4:47 AM.

Too early to be awake. Too late to go back to sleep.

Ava padded into the kitchen, flicking on the light. She filled a glass with water and drank it in one long gulp, her hands still shaking slightly. The nightmares had started a while ago small at first, fleeting images she could brush off as stress or too much caffeine before bed.

But lately, they were different.

Lately, they felt even more real.

She could feel how real they felt everytime she woke up.

She set the glass down and leaned against the counter, staring at her reflection in the darkened window. Dark hair, pale skin, tired eyes. She looked like herself. She was herself.

So why did she feel like a stranger in her own body?

Her gaze drifted to the business card pinned to the corkboard above her desk. Varex Group sleek black lettering on matte white cardstock. She'd picked it up at a career fair three weeks ago, and ever since, she couldn't stop thinking about it.

No it was more than that.

She couldn't stop being drawn to it.

Today was the interview. Today, she'd finally get answers or at least a job.

Maybe both.

By the time Ava arrived at Varex Tower, the sun had burned through the morning fog, and the building loomed above her like a monument of glass and steel. It was massive, imposing, the kind of place that made you feel small just by standing near it.

She took a deep breath, smoothed down her blazer, and stepped inside.

The lobby was pristine marble floors, floor-to-ceiling windows, a receptionist who smiled with practiced politeness. Ava gave her name and was directed to the elevators. Fifteenth floor. Conference Room B.

When she stepped inside, six other candidates were already seated, each one looking polished and confident. Ava took the last available chair and folded her hands in her lap, willing herself to stay calm.

You've got this.

The door opened.

And he walked in.

Lucian Varex.

Ava had seen his photo on the company website, but it hadn't prepared her for the reality of him. Tall, sharp-featured, with dark hair swept back and eyes the color of ice. He wore a tailored black suit that probably cost more than her rent, and when he moved, it was with a kind of quiet authority that made the room feel smaller it was extremely noticeable.

He didn't smile. He Didn't need to. He didn't look like he did.

"Good morning," he said, his voice smooth and measured. "Thank you all for coming."

He took his seat at the head of the table and began the interview.

Ava barely heard the questions at first. She was too busy trying to shake the strange feeling crawling up her spine,the sense that she'd met him before. That she knew him, somehow.

But that was impossible.

Wasn't it?

When it was her turn to speak, she answered clearly, confidently, her years of reading and studying finally paying off. She could feel his gaze on her, assessing, and when she finished, he gave a single nod.

"Thank you, Ms. Monroe."

The way he said her name sent a shiver through her.

The interview ended thirty minutes later. One by one, the candidates stood, shook Lucian's hand, and filed out with polite smiles and murmured thanks.

Ava was the last.

She approached him, extending her hand. "Thank you for the opportunity, Mr. Varex."

His hand closed around hers and the world tilted.

It hit him instantly.

A vision.

Smoke. Fire. Bodies scattered across a blood-soaked battlefield. The sky was dark, choked with ash, and in the center of it all stood a man a vampire holding a child in his arms. The child was screaming, tears streaming down its face, and the man's eyes glowed red with fury and grief.

Lucian's breath caught. His grip tightened on Ava's hand.

And then

It was gone.

He released her abruptly, stepping back, his expression unreadable.

Ava blinked, startled. "Are you… okay?"

For a moment, he didn't answer. His jaw tightened, his eyes distant, like he was seeing something she couldn't.

Then he cleared his throat and nodded stiffly. "I'm fine. Excuse me."

He turned and walked out of the room without another word,

leaving Ava standing there, her hand still tingling where his had been.

She stared after him, heart pounding.

What on earth what that? What happened?