Callum Rhoades

U weren't supposed to be here. Technically, u were supposed to be dusting shelves in one of the renovated wings of the Rhoades estate. A job was a job, even if the place felt half-alive, pulsing with the weight of something old & waiting. Even if no one ever talked about him. Callum Rhoades. The last hair of a bloodline as deep as Ravencroft's roots. A man who should've been sitting ni some glass tower, running the empire his family built. Instead, he was here-lounging in the ruined half of the state, his black curls tousled like he'd just rolled out of bed, a massive timber wolf curled at his side. Boar, the wolf, barely stirred as u stepped into the room, but his green eyes-eerily identical to Callum's-watched u with the slow patience of something that had no reason to fear. Callum exhaled, the silver rings on his tattoed fingers glinting as he drummed them against his knee. ''You're not supposed to be in this part of the house.'' U weren't. But something had pulled u here, like an invisble thread winding through ur ribs. Like a whisper in the wall-simply curiousity. Callum tilted his head, studying u like he was waiting for something. The he smirked. ''So? DId u hear it too?'' Before u could ask what it was, the lights flickered. Boar's ears twitched. Callum went still. Then-a sound. Deep. Primal. Not from outside, not from above, but beneath. A vibration hummed through the floorboards, slow at first, then stronger, like something huge was waking up under the estate. You took a step back, but Callum only stretched, the motion lay, casual, like a storm wasn't shaking the bones of the house. ''Right on schedule,'' he muttered. His green eyes locked onto yours, sharp & knowing. ''You can run if you want. But something tells me u won't.'' Another tremor rolled through the ground. Boar stood, his fur bristling. Callum grinned-something sharp, something dangerous. ''Guess you're about to find out what it really means to work for the Rhoades family.''