Bella and the Sealed Alpha Beast

Bella's POV

"What's that?" I whisper to myself, my small voice echoing in the quiet forest.

I stop walking and stare ahead through the tall trees. There's something big and dark between all the green leaves and brown branches. My heart starts beating faster, but not just from being scared. I'm curious too, like when Mama hides my birthday presents and I want to peek.

I know I shouldn't be here. I told Mama I needed to go pee really bad during the boring grown-up meeting, but instead of going to the bathroom, I wandered outside. The other hunter families were talking about serious stuff that made their faces look angry and worried. I didn't want to sit still anymore, so I snuck out when nobody was looking.

Now I'm lost, and there's this huge castle in front of me.

It's not like the pretty castles in my storybooks. This one looks sad and forgotten, with dark stones and broken windows. Some of the walls have cracks, and there are tiny trees growing on top of it. Vines hang down like long green hair, and everything looks dusty and old.

I take a step closer, then another. My shoes make soft sounds on the dead leaves covering the ground. "Maybe there's a princess inside," I say to myself, trying not to feel scared. "Or maybe a dragon."

But as I get closer, I don't see any princess or dragon. I just see an old wooden door with metal handles that look rusty. There are spider webs everywhere, and some of them are so big they stretch from one side of the door to the other.

"Mama's gonna be really mad if she finds out I'm here," I mumble, but I can't make myself turn around and go back. The castle is calling to me somehow, like it wants me to come inside.

I reach out and touch the door handle. It's cold and feels rough under my small fingers. When I push, the door makes a loud creaking sound that makes me jump. It opens slowly, and I can see inside.

It's dark in there, but not completely black. Some light comes in through the broken windows, making everything look gray and spooky. I can see dust floating in the air, dancing like tiny fairies. The floor is made of big stones, and there are more spider webs hanging from the ceiling.

I step inside carefully. The air smells funny, like old books and rain and something else I can't name. My footsteps sound really loud, even though I'm trying to walk quietly.

"Hello?" I call out, but nobody answers. Of course nobody answers. This place looks like nobody has lived here for a really, really long time.

I walk further inside, looking around at everything. The walls are made of the same dark stones as the outside, and they're really tall. I have to tip my head way back to see the ceiling. There are old pieces of furniture covered with white sheets, like ghosts sleeping.

But then I see something that makes me stop walking and just stare.

On the far wall, there's a huge picture in a fancy gold frame. It's so big that it goes almost from the floor to the ceiling. But it's covered in dust and dirt, so I can't see what the picture shows.

I walk over to it, feeling excited and nervous at the same time. The frame is really pretty, with swirls and flowers carved into the gold. But the picture behind the glass is so dirty that it just looks like a big brown smudge.

"I wonder what it is," I say out loud, because talking makes me feel less alone in this quiet, spooky place.

I reach up as high as I can and start wiping away the dust with my hands. It's thick and gross, and it makes my nose tickle. Some of it falls on my dress, making dark streaks on the blue fabric. Mama's definitely gonna notice that.

I keep wiping, standing on my tippy-toes to reach higher. The dust comes off in big chunks, and slowly I can see colors underneath. There's brown and black and gray and...

"Ow!" I cry out and pull my hand back fast.

One of the nails holding the picture frame to the wall is sticking out a little bit, and it scratched my finger. A drop of bright red blood appears on my fingertip, and it hurts enough to make my eyes water.

The blood drips off my finger and lands right on the glass of the picture, making a small red spot that spreads out a tiny bit.

I stick my hurt finger in my mouth to make it stop bleeding and look at what I've uncovered.

It's a wolf.

Not a cute, fluffy wolf like in my picture books. This wolf looks real and wild and powerful. Its fur is dark gray and black, and its eyes are bright yellow like sunshine. But there's something scary about those eyes too. They look angry and sad and... hungry.

The wolf is sitting up straight and proud, like a king on his throne. Its mouth is open a little bit, and I can see sharp white teeth. Around its neck is a thick chain with a heavy lock, like someone put it there to keep the wolf trapped.

I stare at the wolf, and for a second, I get the strangest feeling that it's staring back at me. Which is silly, because it's just a painting. Paintings can't look at you.

But those yellow eyes seem so real, so alive. And the way the wolf is sitting, it almost looks like it's about to jump right out of the picture and...

The eyes blink.

I gasp and take a step back, my heart pounding so hard I can hear it in my ears. The wolf's eyes definitely blinked. And now its head is turning just a little bit, like it's trying to get a better look at me.

"That's impossible," I whisper, but I can't stop staring.

The wolf's mouth opens wider, and I swear I can see its chest moving up and down like it's breathing. The chain around its neck starts to glow with a strange, dark light.

"BELLA!"

I jump and spin around so fast I almost fall over. Mama is standing in the doorway, and she looks really, really mad. Her face is white, and her eyes are wide with fear and anger.

"What are you doing in here?" she demands, rushing over to me. "I told you to stay close to me!"

"I'm sorry, Mama," I say quickly, feeling tears start to come. "I just wanted to explore, and I found this castle, and there's this picture of a wolf, and I think it moved, and…"

"We're leaving. Right now." Mama grabs my hand and starts pulling me toward the door. She's walking so fast I have to run to keep up.

"But Mama, the wolf…"

"Don't." Her voice is sharp and scary. "Don't ever come back to this place, Bella. Do you understand me? Never, ever come back here."

I nod because her voice sounds so serious it scares me. As we reach the door, I look back over my shoulder at the portrait.

The wolf is staring right at me with those bright yellow eyes, and I swear it's smiling.