Chapter 10

CHAPTER 10

KNOX

A s they lay there, entangled in each other's arms, the events of the day seemed to melt away, leaving only the heat of their desire and the promise of more to come. Knox knew he had found something special in Ruby, and he was determined to protect and cherish this new bond, no matter what challenges lay ahead.

The night stretched on, a symphony of sighs and whispers, the heat of their passion banishing all thoughts of the outside world. For those stolen hours, nothing existed beyond the entwining of their bodies and souls as they finally gave in to the magnetic force that had drawn them together since the beginning.

Knox held Ruby close, her curves melding perfectly to his muscular frame as they explored the depths of their connection. It was a dance as old as time, primal and consuming, and he reveled in every second of it.

As the first blush of dawn crept through the curtains, Knox lay awake, Ruby’s soft breathing a soothing rhythm against his chest. Despite the warmth of her body curled up next to him, a chill of responsibility began to seep into the room, wrapping around his thoughts like a shroud. His protective instincts, now fiercely tethered to the woman beside him, clashed with the needs of his clan.

He brushed a stray lock of hair from Ruby's face, marveling at her peaceful expression. She was oblivious to the complexities of his world; a world where the lines between man and beast blurred in the shadows of the Colorado Rockies. As much as he wanted to stay lost in the sanctuary of her embrace, the alpha within him stirred, restless and vigilant.

The sound of his phone vibrating on the nightstand pulled him from his reverie. With careful movements so as not to disturb Ruby, Knox reached for the device, his heart sinking as he read the message that awaited him. A scout from a rival grizzly-shifter clan had been sighted near the outskirts of Silver Falls, their intentions unknown but undoubtedly threatening.

Knox's mind raced with strategies and contingencies, the familiar mantle of leadership settling on his shoulders. The peace of the night before felt like a distant dream as he contemplated the implications of bringing a human into his dangerous world. He could protect her from many things, but the politics and perils of shifter clans were a different beast altogether.

His gaze lingered on Ruby once more, the depth of his feelings for her clashing with the reality of his position. With a silent vow to safeguard both Ruby and Silver Falls, Knox slipped from the bed and dressed quickly, leaving her a note that he was needed back at his compound. He paused at the doorway, taking one last look at the woman who had unknowingly captured the heart of a grizzly-shifter. Then, with the quiet resolve of an alpha, Knox stepped out to face whatever threats loomed over his clan and his town, carrying with him the warmth of a passion that had forever altered his very being.

Dawn had barely broken, and the first rays of the sun were just making their appearance over the mountains in the distance, beginning to dispel the cloak of shadows that came with the moon’s silvery vigil. With each step, the earth whispered secrets to his senses as he moved with preternatural grace away from Ruby’s lodge and the tempest she stirred in his heart. Knox found solace in the embrace of the forest.

He paused for a moment, his breath fogging in the crisp air as he looked back at the path he had taken. The distance did little to quell the fire that Ruby ignited within him—a fire he had thought to contain. His hands worked deftly, stripping off his clothing with swift, practiced movements, folding them into a tight bundle that he could carry with ease.

Knox summoned his bear, an ancient call that thrummed through his veins. As the familiar swirling mist encompassed him, accompanied by thunder, lightning and shards of varying colors, his muscles contracted and bones reformed beneath skin that rippled and changed texture. As the mist fell away, he was on all fours, his paws now lethal weapons with razor-sharp claws and his body covered in a dense fur that allowed him to blend seamlessly with the trees. He was once again the grizzly—large, powerful, and liberated from human complexities.

Knox lifted his snout to the sky, taking in the scents carried by the wind. There was the dampness of the earth, the decay of fallen leaves, and beneath it all, a trace of wildflowers—the lingering essence of Ruby that clung to him like a second skin. His ears twitched at the distant sounds of the forest as it woke from its slumber—the rustle of small creatures in the underbrush, the distant cry of a hawk overhead.

He gripped the bundle in his powerful jaws, the scent of pine sap and earth filling his nostrils as he darted into the underbrush. The forest floor yielded beneath his pounding paws, every stride carrying him further from Ruby’s haunting allure and closer to the relative safety of his clan’s compound.

The journey was a blur of verdant hues and shadow, the rustle of leaves and the occasional snap of a twig underfoot his only companions. With each bound forward, Knox felt the weight of Ruby's presence fading, replaced by the familiar pull of pack and territory.

His powerful limbs propelled him forward, galloping through the woods with a speed and agility no human could match. Trees blurred past him, branches and brambles snapping underfoot. The cool air filled his lungs, invigorating and sharp, as he raced towards the clan’s compound, driven by the text he had received.

And yet, even as he ran, his thoughts were not on the home and the people who awaited him but on the carvings that adorned some of the door frames of Ruby’s abode. Intricate patterns that seemed to hold the weight of centuries whispered to some primal part of him. He wondered if they might be a clue to the treasure, or destiny, or some kind of a connection that was more than mere coincidence.

As he traced his fingers over them, Knox was felt certain that the etchings provided some kind of answer to where the treasure as hidden. In the same way he knew that denying his fate—a fate entwined with Ruby’s—was a battle he was destined to lose. Though he might make better time as his grizzly, he could never outpace the truth of what his heart desired.

As he neared the compound, the denser woods gave way to a clearing where the outlines of rustic buildings emerged, bathed in a soft glow from the scattered torches. Knox slowed to a trot before stopping and shifting back with a fluidity born of long experience. Knox reclaimed his human shape, standing naked for a moment before retrieving his clothes, dressing in silence while contemplating his next move.

"Back so soon?" Coco's voice cut through the stillness, tinged with a note of surprise as she emerged from the shadows. Her eyes, reflecting the morning light, studied him with an inquisitive tilt of her head.

Coco waited, the air between them charged with unspoken questions.

"It's Ruby," he finally admitted, his voice no more than a low rumble. Vulnerability flickered in his eyes—a rare glimpse of the man beneath the beast. "I can't stay away. It's like... she's under my skin."

At first Coco’s gaze remained hard, but then it softened. Knox and his siblings had always been close. Her entire being seemed to relax as she realized the depth of his feelings. She reached out to touch his arm, offering silent support as Knox grappled with the pull of a destiny he was still reluctant to embrace.

The sights, sounds and smells of the forest hung heavy in the air as Knox stood before his sister, his thoughts a tempestuous sea churning with the image of Ruby etched into every crashing wave. The blue hours of dawn wrapped themselves around the compound like a protective shroud, yet it did little to shield him from the piercing clarity of Coco's gaze.

"Your plan to stay away from her," Coco began, her voice a playful lilt that danced through the charged atmosphere, "it seems about as effective as a screen door on a submarine."

Knox snorted, the corner of his mouth twitching in a begrudging smile. It was true; his resolve melted away each time he caught sight of Ruby, like frost under the morning sun.

"Perhaps," he conceded, running a hand through his tousled hair, the strands catching the dappled sunlight in golden wisps. His eyes, however, betrayed a spark of intrigue as he changed the subject. "There's something else. Above Ruby's doors there are carvings. Ancient, cryptic."

"Carvings?" Coco's eyebrows rose, the hint of her own interest now piqued as she stepped closer, the glow from the torches casting dancing shadows across her features.

"Yes," Knox continued, his voice lowering to a whisper as though the very trees might be eavesdropping on their conversation. "Symbols that I've seen before, in some of the old texts. They might be a clue to the treasure."

Coco's expression turned contemplative, the playful tease subsiding. The treasure, long sought after by their clan, could change everything. If the legend about its value were true, having that kind of wealth could provide them with a financial safety net, enough to keep future generations comfortable. And if Ruby's home held a piece of that puzzle...

"You think it’s real?" she asked, her determination slicing through the uncertainty that had settled over Knox like a dense fog. “You have to show me.”

"As soon as I can, but there are other things that will need to take precedence," Knox replied, the decision anchoring him back to the here and now.

They stood together, two silhouettes against the backdrop of the ancient forest, bound by secrets and the unseen threads of fate that seemed to weave tighter around Knox with each passing moment. The hunt for the treasure was more than some kind of quest; it was a path laden with whispers of destiny, leading him inexorably back to the one place he fought so hard to escape—back to Ruby.