Chapter 1
Time...
Author's POV
His sharp eyes were fixed on his prey. He stood perfectly still, as if time passed around him without ever touching him. Whenever he entered this state, he felt nothing except the purpose he had set for himself.
And that leopard had been giving him trouble for several days now...
But his senses caught a faint movement, and only those strange irises shifted rapidly in that direction. He possessed the ability to see extremely well—almost unnaturally well—as though the cells within his eyes expanded whatever image he wished to focus on.
The first thing he noticed was the gleam of a rifle barrel and a dark gaze staring through the scope.
He lowered his eyes toward his prey and realized that someone else intended to bring it down.
Slowly, he moved behind the trunk of a tree, his movement almost imperceptible.
He glanced at his fingers, at the claws already prepared, and dragged them across the bark, putting the leopard on alert.
He heard the crack of the rifle.
But the shot missed.
A small ironic smile appeared on his lips.
He had no idea who the man holding the weapon was, but his pride was far too great to allow someone else to kill his prey.
Lately, he had often sensed him in that valley, and he knew he was a stranger. The scent was unfamiliar, but every time he tried to find out who he was, the man disappeared.
He heard noise behind him and already knew who was approaching.
His attention returned to the mysterious figure, but just like every other time, he had vanished.
— Jacob? What are you doing there?
He heard his brother's voice and slowly turned toward them.
— I was tracking my prey, he replied seriously, as he usually did.
Compared to Joseph and Jonah, he was the most serious of the three and often preferred to be alone.
— Our parents are waiting for you at home, Jonah told him, looking at his brother with admiration.
Although they were all the same age and looked very much alike, Jacob seemed somehow more blessed.
A few years earlier, his body had begun to change. He was far more muscular than his brothers and nearly a head taller.
A complete contrast to when they had been children and he had been the smallest and weakest of the three.
But the years had been kind to him and had shaped him into an exceptionally handsome young man.
Every girl in the valley they called home looked at him with longing.
Heads turned wherever he went.
Yet he walked proudly among his people, caring very little for romance.
— I'll come, he said firmly and began walking.
Joseph watched him with a grin and once again tried to imitate him exactly as he always did. He clasped his hands behind his back and started walking just like his brother.
— Didn't you catch anything today? Jonah asked, trying to keep up with him.
— Maybe I would have if you two hadn't made so much noise. I don't know how Alpha manages to hunt with you around, he replied sharply, referring to his father.
When he returned to the pack, he felt the admiring looks directed at him because of his appearance.
But he headed straight for his parents' house, where he saw his grandfather standing proudly in front of it.
He held a special admiration for the man.
He loved his parents deeply, but he felt especially close to his grandfather and great-grandfather.
— Good afternoon, Grandfather, he said, bowing slightly before him.
— Jacob... empty-handed today? the older man asked in surprise, knowing how skilled his grandson was at hunting.
— Unfortunately, my brothers made me lose my prey today, he replied, pressing his full lips into a straight line.
The man looked at his grandsons with affection.
As similar as they were, the differences between them were impossible to miss.
He loved them equally.
But he could not lie.
There was something different about Jacob.
Something he felt deep within his soul.
As though it were the call of blood itself.
— Next time, let's go together, the man said.
Jacob's smile widened immediately.
He loved hunting with his grandfather.
Just as he loved all the stories told by him and by his father, Ivan.
He wanted an adventure of his own.
He was twenty-one years old, and life in that place seemed unbearably dull.
He wanted to discover the world.
To see what lay beyond the hill and beyond the forest where he spent most of his time.
— Jacob.
He heard his name and turned to see his parents.
Ivan approached him and looked into his eyes exactly as he had done since the very first moment.
Jacob was his pride.
He loved all his sons equally, but just as his own father had always had a weakness for Jacob, Ivan carried the same weakness for his son.
— Dad... he said with all the love he felt for the man who had saved their lives when they had been little pups.
— I'm leaving your brothers in your care. Your father and I will be gone for a while, Ivan told him.
Jacob raised an eyebrow.
— Where are you going, Dad? he asked eagerly.
— Your father has some matters to take care of. We'll return home soon, Ivan replied, gently caressing his handsome face.
— I trust you, Jacob, he whispered before kissing his forehead.
Nazir stepped forward as well, gazing at his son with affection.
He ran a hand across Jacob's face before looking at his other sons.
They were their pride.
And throughout all these years, they had lived happily beside their children.
— We love you, he told his son, kissing his temple.
— Take care of your brothers.
Jacob watched as his parents left the valley behind.
He wanted to go with them.
Desperately.
But his father's words stopped him from asking to come along.
He wanted to see the world.
He felt as though his spirit was slowly dying here.
Then the image of that man crossed his mind again.
The man who always seemed to appear whenever he went hunting.
From the scent alone, he knew he was nothing more than an ordinary human.
And Jacob intended to find him.
To learn who he was.
And perhaps...
Perhaps that man could show him the world beyond the valley.
