Bound by Shadows

CHAPTER 1.

Chapter 1: The Enigma in the Dark

The city of Nocturne breathed like a living beast—its streets pulsed with neon lights, the air thick with the scent of rain and blood. It was a city built on power, where the strong thrived and the weak disappeared. Alphas ruled. Omegas submitted. Betas existed in the spaces between, struggling for scraps of control.

But there was something else. Something worse.

The Enigmas.

A mistake in the order of nature. A force no one understood, no one controlled. Unpredictable. Unstable. Unnatural.

Lucian Varros never feared anything in his life. He was an Alpha—strong, ruthless, undefeated. Fear was for the weak. And yet, as he stood in the dim glow of the alleyway, blood dripping from his fingers, something in the air made his instincts scream.

He wasn’t alone.

The bodies of his would-be attackers lay crumpled around him—Betas, too stupid to know they had never stood a chance. The fight had been brief, brutal, but something wasn’t right. The scent of iron filled his lungs, but beneath it, something else lingered. Something sharp. Cold.

A presence.

Lucian turned, and then he saw him.

Perched casually against the brick wall, bathed in shadows, was a man. Or something like one. Tall, lean, draped in black like the night itself. But it wasn’t the way he stood that sent a chill down Lucian’s spine—it was his eyes.

Golden. Piercing. Wrong.

Lucian knew what he was before he even spoke.

An Enigma.

“I must say, I expected more.” The voice was smooth, laced with something sharp, something dangerous. “The great Lucian Varros, struggling against a handful of Betas? You’re losing your touch.”

Lucian’s muscles tensed. He had never met this man, but he had felt his presence before. Watching. Stalking. Hunting.

“Who the hell are you?” Lucian’s voice was low, edged with warning.

The man tilted his head, a slow smirk tugging at his lips.

“Cassiel Vale.”

The name slithered into the night like a whispered curse.

Lucian had heard it before. A name spoken in hushed voices, wrapped in warnings. An Enigma who didn’t just exist—he thrived. A predator among predators.

Lucian took a step forward, baring his teeth. “What do you want?”

Cassiel didn’t move. Didn’t flinch. His golden gaze dragged over Lucian slowly, deliberately, as if he was measuring him. Tasting him.

And then, he smiled.

“Isn’t it obvious?” he murmured, voice dipping into something darker. “I want you.”

A muscle in Lucian’s jaw ticked. His body reacted before his mind could process—he lunged. Fast. Too fast for a normal man to react.

But Cassiel wasn’t normal.

Before Lucian’s hands could wrap around his throat, Cassiel was gone. The air shifted, and suddenly he was behind him, his breath ghosting against Lucian’s ear.

“You’re quick,” Cassiel murmured, voice laced with amusement. “I like that.”

Lucian twisted, aiming a sharp elbow at his ribs, but Cassiel was already moving, slipping out of reach like smoke.

He was playing.

Lucian’s blood ran hot, adrenaline laced with something foreign—something dangerous. He had fought countless battles, had crushed those who challenged him without hesitation. But this wasn’t a fight.

It was a hunt.

And for the first time, he wasn’t sure who was the prey.

Cassiel exhaled, watching him with a gaze that was too knowing.

“You can’t win against me, Alpha,” he purred, voice a low caress. “But I’d love to watch you try.”

Lucian’s fists clenched, rage warring with something deeper, something darker. He should attack again, should end this before it spiraled into something he couldn’t control.

But Cassiel was still watching him. Smirking. Waiting.

And Lucian had the sickening realization that the Enigma was enjoying this.

That he wanted this.

That maybe—so did Lucian.

The thought made his stomach churn, his pulse spike. He growled, stepping back, forcing air into his lungs. “Stay the hell away from me.”

Cassiel’s smirk only widened. He took a slow step forward, as if testing just how far Lucian would retreat.

He didn’t.

Cassiel hummed, his golden eyes glinting with something predatory. “I think we both know that’s not going to happen.”

Lucian held his ground, heart hammering against his ribs. He had faced death, had torn apart those who opposed him without a second thought.

But Cassiel Vale wasn’t a man.

He was a storm, an inevitability.

And something deep inside Lucian whispered the terrifying truth—