Only now was Bryce truly taking in his surroundings.
His eyes slowly wandered across the room, and the more he looked, the more unreal it became. Then again, what else should he have expected from the home of the wealthiest couple in the Country?
The living room was enormous, so spacious that it made the apartment he rented feel insignificant in comparison.
Two luxurious sofas faced one another across a massive black marble coffee table trimmed with gold, their thick cushions looking so impossibly comfortable that even his own bed suddenly felt inadequate.
Above him, the double height ceiling stretched toward an upper floor. Elegant white paneled walls adorned with intricate decorative moldings surrounded the space, while floor to ceiling black framed windows flooded the room, revealing a breathtaking view of the perfectly landscaped garden outside.
A white marble fireplace stood against one wall, adding to the room’s quiet elegance, while a sweeping double staircase dominated one side of the hall, its polished white marble steps complemented by black wrought iron railings embellished with subtle gold details.
Every corner of the house radiated unimaginable wealth.
At the far end of the room, a pair of imposing wolf sculptures immediately captured his attention.
One had been carved from black stone, standing noticeably larger than the other. Beside it stood a second wolf crafted from grey stone, slightly smaller but equally lifelike. Both were so detailed they almost looked alive.
The sight immediately brought Vincent’s words rushing back into his mind.
’If you’re a werewolf, which you obviously are, why the hell aren’t you healing already?’
Bryce’s heartbeat quickened.
Almost instinctively, his fingers reached for the back of his head again, searching for the wound that had been there. There was still nothing.
His brows slowly knitted together. What had Vincent meant by calling him a wolf?
Surely he couldn’t have meant the actual animal.
Pulling his phone from his pocket, Bryce immediately opened Google and typed a single word.
Werewolf.
The search offered an ordinary definition of a wolf, describing it as a large wild canine that lived and hunted in social groups known as packs.
Bryce stared at the screen. He already knew what a wolf was.
Well... almost.
He certainly hadn’t known they hunted together in groups called packs.
His thumb froze over the screen for a second.
Packs.
He had heard that word before. Vincent and Leah had used it in their conversation.
Bryce slowly lowered the phone, his mind racing.
What exactly was their connection to wolves?
The pounding inside his head grew stronger with every passing second until trying to force the scattered pieces together became impossible. Letting out a quiet breath, he abandoned the thought altogether and walked toward the large glass doors ahead, their gold finished frames gleaming beneath the light.
Outside, the night had settled over everything, wrapping the world in a deep, unbroken darkness.
Under normal circumstances, Bryce would have dreaded every second of it. He had never been comfortable with the dark.
Even walking home alone after sunset had always made him uneasy, forcing him to glance over his shoulder more times than necessary.
After being kidnapped only a few hours earlier while wandering the city in an attempt to clear his mind, he should have been even more terrified now.
Surprisingly, he wasn’t.
The fear that had haunted him for years was simply... absent.
He stepped away from the mansion and continued toward the edge of the property. What surprised him almost immediately was the absence of a gate.
Considering who lived there, he had expected towering walls, layers of security, and heavily guarded entrances.
Instead, the estate blended almost seamlessly into the surrounding woodland, with towering trees forming a natural boundary that stretched as far as his eyes could follow.
The place felt isolated.
Hidden.
Almost as though its owners had intentionally chosen to disappear from the rest of the world.
Bryce couldn’t understand it.
With enough money to purchase any mansion in the most prestigious parts of Genovia City, why would the richest couple choose to live in the middle of a forest?
Once he left the estate behind, he stepped onto a broad asphalt road that cut straight through the woods. The silence was almost absolute. There wasn’t a single passing vehicle, no pedestrians, no distant lights from neighboring houses.
Of course there wouldn’t be. It was already three in the morning, and from what he could see, there didn’t appear to be another home anywhere nearby.
The deeper he looked into the forest, the darker it became, the dense canopy swallowing what little moonlight reached the ground.
They really are strange, Bryce thought. Who willingly chooses to live in a place like this?
Oddly enough, the forest didn’t unsettle him.
If anything, it had the opposite effect.
The crisp night air filled his lungs with every breath, carrying the scent of damp earth, fresh leaves, and wood.
The quiet surrounding him didn’t feel oppressive. It felt comforting. Every gentle rustle of leaves seemed to soothe him, dissolving the tension that had been weighing on him since Dave walked out of his life.
It made no sense.
He had always preferred the city. Crowded streets, bright lights, and the constant movement of people had always made him feel alive. The countryside had never appealed to him, and forests had certainly never been places where he imagined finding peace.
Tonight, however, everything felt different.
The deeper he walked beneath the towering trees, the more natural the surroundings began to feel, as though some part of him recognized the place long before his mind did.
Trying to find his way home, Bryce pulled out his phone and opened Google Maps, intending to check how far he was from Genovia City and call a cab.
But the map refused to load. He frowned and checked the signal.
Nothing.
Not even a single bar.
His phone had completely lost service.
Which meant he couldn’t even book a ride home.