e

line and fear. After three days on a bus with strangers, none the

enuity and defiance. For a moment, as the bus nears its final stop, I marvel at h

The sheer amount of smells in the atmosphere is causing my wolf senses to be ov

rast to the dull grays and browns of my old world. This is not j

ber and creams, but what it lacks in style it makes up for in anonymity. I pay in cash and the recept

in cash, saved up from odd jobs and errands over the years, lies within the duffel

small studio apartment not too far from downtown, and it's available immediately. T

make arrangements for an immediate move-i

s hair dye, and soon I'm standing in front of the bathroom mirror,

cts to hide my heterochromia eyes; a dead gi

he soapy water. The perfume I spritz on afterwards is floral with a hin

y pocket and a makeshift résumé in my bag. I walk a few blocks and find a charming café with a "Help Wanted"

n with a warm smile and an artistic flare e

erested in the job," I s

d looks up. "You're hir

edia

xpected life of a wolf pack's princess. It's empowering in its normalcy, and

f I'm being watched after all. Did my father's trackers find me already, waiting to stri

k and head back to my apartment. The setting sun paints the sky i

d sit down to eat alone, finally letti

ore me. A labyrinth of lights that glimmer and glow like stars in the night sky, filled with life

or regret, but of relief and acceptance. It's a new feeling for me, the weight

taken into

of bars or boundaries; it's the presence of oppor

dn't care about trading me off like a prized sheep; I had to do this for

f electric stars, a sense of peace washes over me. The path ahead is uncertain, perhaps dangerous

I've left behind, but for the first time, I embrace the unknown with an

she is now, would be able to sympathiz

rothed to an unknown man. I am a young woman in a vast city, learn

*

o

rs old

, and documents that require my immediate attention. The weight of leadership-of be

ned with portraits of previous Alphas, a lineage of powerful men who ruled with an iron fist. Their eye

he door bursts open. It's Kaden, my older brother and the pack's Beta. He's o

d to hear this,

d with the interruption. "Th

ella has run away. Her father just confirmed it. T

enching involuntarily. Aella, my soon-to-be Luna, daring

He's already sent out trackers.

snap, cutting him

ut

kers. Aella is my responsibility, and

nspired. Aella isn't just a runaway. She's my future Luna, the woman des

rect challenge to my authority, a slap in the face t

to his, letting the full force of my Alpha comman

ays been this way, seeing as I'm younger than him and the Alpha. But

rn with the Alpha gene,

o of the Westlands Pack; the filthy fucking Italians I am forced to dea

an't apologiz

ff your trackers, Leonardo. I will find Aella. When I do, we will continue a

ating the risks. Finally, he speaks, his voice laden with r

ck if it's the last thing I do," I reply befo

the audacity of her escape that infuriates me; it's the underlying implication-that

d too much to let a young woman

g is challenging an established social order, undermining my authority. As far as I'm con

that I cannot, and

the forests and fields that have been passed down through generations of Alphas.

ave to spend the rest of my life teaching her. And as for any notions of freedo

ally eager to hunt. It senses the challenge, the aff

uences of her actions. I'll bring her back

s to. And eventually, she will see that it's