Chapter 12

Selena’s POV

It wasn’t Cullen.

It was Brian.

Cullen’s best friend.

I nearly lost it when I saw him answering Cullen’s door. Brian was standing at the door like he was a model from a fashion ad. He had a wide grin on his face that was annoying, like he thought that everything was just a joke to him. 

“Ouuuuuu, Selena, the woman of the moment,” he sang it like a song he just discovered was his new favorite one. His was filled with something mischievous. “What brings you here this early morning?” 

Of course. Of course it had to be Brian. That cocky, annoying ass. He teased me every chance he got. And if he even sniffed out why I was really here? Forget it. He’d make it his life’s mission to remind me forever.

I forced a weak smile and cleared my throat. “Umm… is Cullen in?” I asked him as I tried my best to sound like everything was okay, but my hands were sweating inside my hoodie sleeves. 

“Nope, he is not in,” Brian said as he leaned against the door frame and crossed his hands on his chest. Then he looked at me with his eyes narrowed, he was looking at my face like I was a puzzle he wanted to try all his possible best to solve. “Hmm, why are you looking for Cullen this early morning?” 

Panic shot through me. I couldn’t tell him the truth. Not in a million years. Not if my life depended on it. My brain worked double time and, thank God, a lie rolled off my tongue before I could choke.

“Ava sent me,” I said, making my voice as bored as possible. “She said I should ask him when his next game was going to be.” 

Brian’s eyebrow arched up like it was trying to escape his forehead. “Games are always announced, Selena. Everyone knows that. So you didn’t need to come here and ask Cullen himself.”

Crap.

My shoulders lifted into a shrug, casual but inside I was dying. “I don’t know. Ava just sent me,” I said it very fast and I didn’t wait for him to ask me any other question, I turned quickly and walked away from his face. 

I could feel his eyes on my back, like he was worried if he had done something to annoy me that I walked away in such a hurry. I knew he was already suspecting me too, his brain would be thinking of a million reasons why I’m here now. I had walked to the end of the hallway about to turn to the corner and I heard him close the door. 

And immediately he closed that door I felt like very relieved and lighter. I rested my back on the wall that was there and let out the longest breathe I had ever held in my whole life. 

I finally got to the outside of the dorm building and the cold breeze brushed on my skin. My hand held my chest like I was trying to hold my heart that was breaking, together. I started to feel heavy, and my head was even more heavier. I did not want to go back to my dorm room, at least just not now. 

So I walked.

I slipped out through the back road of the school, the one that was always quiet. People did not normally pass that road, and so it was quiet. That felt like the good place for me because right now that was exactly what I needed. 

The road was a long lonely road surrounded by a forest and tall trees. 

The breeze was cool and it made my body start to shiver. I put my hand inside my joggers pocket and brought out my AirPods, then I wore it and started to play Chris Brown’s latest album that he just released. The music only helped me a little by drowning out the thoughts in my head. I put the hood over my head, and my hands into my hoodie pocket. I kept my head down as I started to walk down the road. 

I didn’t want to see anyone.

I didn’t want anyone to see me.

Just me and my music.

But then—my wolf snapped awake.

The hair on my arms stood. The air around me shifted. A chill ran through my spine.

Danger.

I froze mid-step.

At first, I tried to ignore it, tried to convince myself it was my imagination acting up. But no. The feeling clung to me like smoke.

Slowly, I paused my music. My ears strained, listening.

That’s when I heard it—low, guttural growling coming from the woods that lined the road.

My stomach dropped.

I lifted my head and scanned the trees. At first, I didn’t see anything. It was just shadows and silence. Then I saw it, something moved in between the trees. 

And my eyes landed on it.

A wolf. Not just any wolf. A rogue.

Its eyes glowed, hungry and mean, locked straight on me. And from the way it moved closer and closer, I knew it hadn’t just stumbled upon me by accident. No. It had come directly for me.

My breath caught. My fists curled at my sides. I didn’t want to shift. Not yet. My wolf stirred restlessly inside me, but I pushed her down, keeping calm—or at least I was trying to.

Step by step, the rogue came closer. Its growl vibrated through the air, heavy and sharp.

Then, before I could decide what to do—it charged at me.

A scream got trapped in my throat. My body went stiff. I lifted my arms to cover myself, ready for the hit, ready for claws, teeth, and pain— 

But it never came.

Instead, something moved fast and hit the rogue from the side. My eyes opened wide as another wolf, bigger, stronger, and faster, jumped into the fight.

The sound was brutal. Snarls. Growls. Flesh tearing. The air smelled of blood and smoke.

And then—it was over.

The rogue collapsed, its body burning into ashes right in front of me. My eyes widened as the flames consumed it, and then, almost too suddenly, it was gone. Nothing but dust.

A Forbidden.

That was the only explanation. It wasn’t just a rogue—it was one of them.

And then I saw it.

A piece of its body hadn’t burned completely. Something fell right in front of me, landing with a faint thud on the dirt. My hands shook as I bent down and picked it up.

It wasn’t just flesh. It was… a message.

My eyes scanned the words written across it.

“With love, from Jasmine.”

My chest seized. My breathing turned uneven. My vision blurred.

Jasmine.

She had sent this. She had wanted this. She was trying to scare me, trying to kill me—or worse, trying to warn me of something bigger.

My hand shook so badly I almost dropped the piece. I wanted to scream, to cry, to tear it apart.

But then—

I looked up.

And there it was.

The wolf that had saved me.

It stood tall in front of me. Its fur, dark was glowing in the thin sunlight that broke through the trees. Its eyes—not wild like the rogue, but sharp, intelligent. Its chest rose and fell, muscles tense as it stood tall, watching me.

Not moving.

Not leaving.

Just standing there.

Looking down at me.

Like I was its next prey.

My breath hitched. My body trembled. Fear mixed with something else I couldn’t even name.

Because in that moment, I didn’t know if I’d been rescued—

Or if I had just stepped into something far, far more dangerous.

Was this thing going to attack me too?