Besides me, the body of the rogue collapsed to the ground dead. One quick hit, one nasty end. I battled to calm my shaking limbs, my breath came in jagged gasps.
The guy before me—no, the Alpha—stood upright and fixed his silver eyes on me with an incomprehensible expression. Proof he had just saved my life, the smallest trace of blood stayed on his claws.
I battled to raise myself, stifling agony in my side. Though I felt tired and weak, I couldn't afford to be vulnerable. not yet. Not right in front of him.
He raised his head and fixed a sharp eye for evaluation. "A rogue running alone thus deep in the wild?" His voice was rich, consistent, and somewhat amused. It was also frighteningly close. You either are desperate or stupid.
I pushed myself to stand, straightening my shoulders even as my knees almost gave out. "I'm neither either."
Though his lips slightly curved, it was more of a challenge than a smile. "then, Luna, what are you?"
Luna, the title, was a blade to the belly. I started to flutter before I could stop. I no longer identified as Luna. I amounted to nothing.
His eyes flashed with curiosity. He had picked up my response. Really bad.
"I have not time for this." Turn on my heel, resolved to keep on. My flight had been desperate and careless. But I could not afford diversion. Not even the sort with sharp silver eyes and an atmosphere demanding compliance.
I moved three steps before I sensed his heat behind me. You hurt.
I turned my back on him.
"You won't last the night in territory under revolt."
I tightened my mouth and continued to walk.
He moved in the following second. Quickly.
Before I could react, he stepped in front of me, blocking my path with an effortless grace that sent a shiver down my spine.
His eyes narrowed just a little. "You are tenacious."
I looked back at him unflinching. "And you're in my way."
For a long moment, we stood there, locked in a silent battle of wills. Something in his expression then changed. Questions. Calculation. A hint of something I couldn't place.
"Fine," he murmured. "Go ahead. Walk into the dark. Walk straight into the jaws of death."
I didn't give him the satisfaction of reacting, even though my instincts screamed that he was right. The rogues had come too fast, too aggressively. If I had been alone…
I would have been dead.
Still, I couldn't trust him. I wouldn't trust him.
I tried to step around him, but once again, he moved effortlessly to block me.
"You have two choices, little wolf," he said smoothly. "You can die alone out here, or you can come with me."
His arrogance grated against my nerves. I had spent years standing beside an Alpha. I knew their kind. They spoke in commands and expected obedience.
But I wasn't someone's Luna anymore. I wasn't bound by anyone's rule.
I would never belong to an Alpha again.
So I lifted my chin and met his gaze with fire in mine. "I choose neither."
A slow, dangerous smirk spread across his face. "Then I hope you're a fast runner."
A growl echoed in the distance.
I stiffened.
More rogues.
His smirk deepened. "I'd run if I were you."
My stomach twisted. I had barely survived the last fight. I had nothing left in me.
I hated him for being right.
"Where are you taking me?" I demanded.
He raised an eyebrow. "So you do want my help."
I clenched my fists. "Just answer the damn question."
His amusement lingered, but he finally gave me what I wanted. "My pack."
I blinked. Pack?
I had assumed he was a rogue. But if he had a pack, then…
"Who are you?" I asked warily.
For the first time, something shifted in his gaze. He studied me, as if deciding whether to give me the truth.
Then, he smirked.
"I'm Kai," he said. "Alpha of the Shadow Moon Pack."
Darkness stretched endlessly as we moved through the dense forest. I was exhausted, my limbs screaming in protest, but I refused to show weakness.
Kai kept a steady pace ahead of me, his movements effortless, lethal. He didn't slow, didn't wait, but somehow, I knew he was keeping track of me.
"Why are you really alone out here?" he finally asked, his voice low.
I hesitated. No one had ever asked me that before.
Everyone in Silver fang had already known the answer. They had watched me fall.
I forced my voice to stay steady. "I was banished."
He didn't react the way I expected. No shock. No pity. No questions.
Just a quiet, "Ah."
I hated how that one sound made me feel exposed.
"Why?" he asked after a moment.
I hesitated again. I wasn't sure why I even bothered answering. Maybe it was exhaustion. Maybe it was the fact that, for the first time, I wasn't standing in a pack that had already judged me.
"My mate rejected me," I admitted. The words tasted like poison.
Kai made a low sound. "He must be a fool."
I stiffened. "Excuse me?"
Kai shrugged, unfazed. "Only a fool would throw away something that belongs to him."
A sharp, bitter laugh escaped me before I could stop it. "That's where you're wrong," I said, voice sharp. "I don't belong to anyone."
He turned to me, silver eyes gleaming in the darkness. Something flickered in his expression. Approval? Interest?
Then, he smirked. "Good."
The moment we crossed into his pack's territory, the change in energy was immediate.
A sense of watchful eyes, of unseen wolves lurking in the trees.
"Your pack doesn't seem friendly," I muttered.
Kai chuckled. "They don't trust outsiders."
I tensed. "Then why bring me here?"
He didn't answer right away. Instead, he turned fully to me, his expression unreadable. "Because I want to see what you're capable of."
A chill ran down my spine.
Before I could question him, a figure emerged from the shadows—a woman, tall and sharp-eyed.
She stopped a few feet from us, gaze flicking between me and Kai. "You brought a stray?"
Kai's smirk widened. "She's more than a stray, Raine."
The woman—Raine—snorted. "Doesn't look like it."
My fists clenched.
Kai leaned in slightly, voice low but full of challenge. "Then test her."
My stomach dropped.
Raine grinned, stepping forward. "With pleasure."
Before I could react, she lunged.
My body moved on instinct, dodging just in time as her claws sliced through the air.
It wasn't over.
She came at me again, faster, sharper. A test. A challenge. A fight I had no choice but to win.
I barely had time to breathe before she struck again.