2. Ethan

Iawoke with a start, the remnants of my nightmare fading as reality rushed in. Drenched in sweat, I sat up in bed and kicked at the sheets tangled around me. My hand smoothed over my face as I fought to steady my racing heart. The same nightmare had haunted me since the night I was cursed with the monster inside me.

Sitting there, I tried to steady my breathing, and shake off the remnants of the nightmare that felt all too real. The transformation. The total loss of control. It was vivid as hell, causing my heart to start racing all over again.

I stood and pressed my palms into my eyes. “Just a nightmare,” I ground out, though the assurance rang hollow.

It wasn’t just a nightmare. It had happened. And it was a nightmare I still lived today.

The desire for a cure, for some semblance of my old life, gnawed at me, causing me to feel even more hollow. I was stuck in this half-life, caught between man and beast, belonging to neither world now.

That was the truth of things; that was my life.

With a sigh, I forced myself out of bed. The normalcy of my day felt like a mockery now. Coffee. Shower. Breakfast. Each action felt stiff and meaningless as the beast churned inside me.

I avoided the mirror as I brushed my teeth. I didn’t need to see the man there, didn’t need to look into his eyes. They were a stranger’s eyes now, filled with a darkness and hollow depth that hadn’t been there before.

They were the beast’s eyes now.

Silence filtered through the cabin as I made my way to the front door. I was isolated up here on the mountain, but it was for the best. Stepping outside, I breathed in the fresh morning air, trying to find a semblance of peace in the nature that surrounded my small haven. There was none to be found, though. Even the gentle whisper of the wind through the trees reminded me of what I’d become, and of what I’d lost.

These woods were both my sanctuary and my prison.

Here, I could let my beast out, let him roam without fear of hurting anyone. But each time I reluctantly gave way to him, it became harder to lock him away again. The line between us blurred with each passing day, and I feared there would be a time when I wouldn’t be able to fight my way back.

The beast inside me made a noise—a huff of disapproval—and I knew he thought I was being dramatic, but I wasn’t.

After all, I called him beast for a reason.

As I tackled household tasks of clearing fallen branches from around the cabin and my workshop, tending to my small garden, and repairing a section of my fence that my beast had smashed last time I’d let him free, I welcomed the physical exertion that came with it all. It helped to still the chaos in my mind.

However, it was only a short-lived escape.

The reality was, I was trapped in a life I hadn’t chosen, a life that felt more like a life sentence without parole.

The sharp buzz of my cell phone broke through my thoughts. Glancing at the caller ID, I saw my little sister’s name lighting the screen.

“Hey, Mia,” I answered.

“I need you to meet me downtown, like right now,” she insisted, her tone urgent.

“Is everything okay?” I asked, concern stirring within me and my beast.

“Just come, Ethan.”

Concern knotted my stomach. Mia wasn’t one to ask for help lightly. “I’m on my way,” I said, before I could think better of it.

The protective older brother in me overriding the bear’s desire for isolation.

“Thanks. I’m on Main Street, right in front of the coffeeshop. I’ll explain when you get here,” Mia replied before ending the call abruptly.

The drive into town was a blur as my mind raced with possible scenarios Mia could have gotten herself into.

Had she found trouble? Or worse, had trouble found her? Was it her car again?

When I made it into town, I noticed right away that Main Street was busier than usual today. People milled around booths set up along the sides of the street. My confusion grew as I parked my truck and climbed out. I headed toward the coffeeshop, where Mia had said she’d be. As I scanned the faces around me, searching for the one person who could explain the chaos, I spotted her standing at a booth with a banner draped from the canopy that said Ethan’s Woodworking.

My heart stalled. What the hell was this?

“Ethan, you’re here!” Mia shouted. My gaze snapped to her. A wide smile stretched across her face. “Look, I set up a booth for you! Your woodworking skills are on full display.”

She gestured to the table filled with my creations she’d clearly stolen from my house.

“How did you get all this?” I demanded.

My tone was sharp, but I couldn’t help it. Betrayal and shock warred within me even though I knew she’d done this out of love—and most likely concern for my well-being. Mia hated how much of a hermit I’d recently become. Even so, that didn’t justify her parading my creations around for everyone to see without my okay first.

My gaze drifted, soaking in those standing around the booth admiring my work. Something shifted in me. A flicker of something long ago snuffed out sparked to life again. Was it possible there was a part of me, apart from my beast, that still craved human connection, and a place among these people?

“I...” My voice trailed off as my initial anger fizzled out at the sight of the joy in Mia’s eyes. She’d taken a huge risk putting this together and not telling me. “Thank you,” I said.

She exhaled a relieved breath and then pulled me in for a tight hug. “I’m glad you’re okay with it. I’m not gonna lie. I was a little worried for a second.” She released me, her gaze meeting mine once more. “I know I should have said something to you about it, but I wanted it to be a surprise. Everything you’ve made is too amazing to sit in the corner of your workshop,” she said, gesturing to my creations.

As she busied herself showing me the display, explaining her choices, something inside me settled. The market, with all its noise and people, wasn’t my beast’s territory, but for once, I didn’t feel like that was where we needed to be. For once, it felt like he was calm outside of the woods and away from the cabin.

Maybe there was hope after all. Maybe this was the step forward I’d needed. While it wasn’t a step back to who I was before my beast, it might be a step forward to who I could be despite him.

“All right,” Mia said, flashing me a grin. “Well, have fun. I’ve got somewhere else to be.”

“What?” I demanded. Was she seriously about to hightail it out of here? “You’re not leaving.”

“Like I said, I have somewhere else to be.” She wiggled her fingers at me in a wave before walking away. “You’ll do great. You’ve got this.”

I stared after her. She’d left. What a brat.

Exhaling a slow breath, I closed my eyes to center myself. When I opened them again, I glanced around, soaking in the lively atmosphere of the market, and a booth across from mine drew my attention. It wasn’t the array of lotions that caught my eye, or the intricately designed banner that hung proudly above the booth.

It was the woman standing at it.

There was something about her—something magnetic and alluring. She captivated me, stirring a sense of curiosity I hadn’t felt in a long time. I was utterly unable to tear my eyes away from her as she displayed her products to potential customers. A quiet confidence radiated from her every move.

Our eyes met for a brief moment, and I swore a jolt of something passed through me in that instant. My beast felt it, too. I could feel him stir, but surprisingly, not in a way that concerned me.

Instead, he watched her as if captivated by her magic, too.