4. Revenge

Kaliah POV

The two of us couldn’t stay at the inn forever. I knew that much was true.

Kiran suggested we stay another week before traveling to find his friend. I agreed, but I was also aware that things could go wrong at the drop of a hat.

“Tell me more about this friend of yours,” I said one evening when we were training.

He chuckled. “Remember when I was traveling north? Well, while I was driving, I came across this man being attacked by a group of rogue werewolves. I jumped off my bike and helped him. This gave the guy a chance to use the Dark Moon distress signal to call for help.”

My eyes widened. “You saved someone from the Dark Moon Pack?”

“Not just anyone from the pack, sis. I saved the Alpha—the head of the pack. Can you fucking believe it?”

I shook my head. “No, I can’t.”

“Believe it, Kaliah,” he said, laughing. “After I helped him, he said he owed me a favor. Given everything that has happened over the past few weeks, I figure it’s time we cashed in on that favor.”

My brother was right. It was time for us to cash in on the favor.

There was nothing else we could do—nowhere else to go.

In Seattle, we were essentially wanted fugitives. Every day that passed with us remaining here, we were putting ourselves in danger. The only way we were going to take ourselves out of danger was to leave not only the city, but the state.

I was going to have my revenge on Axel and everyone involved in the death of my family. But if I were dead, I couldn’t have revenge.

“But Kiran, the Dark Moon Pack is extremely territorial. They haven’t had contact with the Silver Moon Pack for decades.”

“Don’t worry, we’ll be fine.”

I sighed, but then I froze, my breath catching in my throat.

That scent.

Sharp. Bitter. Familiar.

Axel’s wolves.

No.

They had found us.

My brother took my hand, leading us out of the forest and back to the city.

I turned my head slightly, focusing on the breeze curling through the alley like a warning. There were three of them. Maybe four. Closing in fast.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” I muttered.

“It was a matter of time before they found us,” he muttered.

“Yes, but it doesn’t mean I have to like it.”

The two of us made it to an alleyway. I smelled them coming closer and closer, realizing that we had little choice but to engage them in a fight. If we didn’t, then it was going to mean the end of us right here and now.

I didn’t wait. I stepped out of the alley just as the first one lunged. His weight hit the ground with a dull thud as I ducked and slammed my elbow into his ribs. He wheezed, and I spun, sweeping his legs out from under him before driving my heel into his face.

One down.

“Shit,” Kiran hissed, and I heard the scrape of his boots as he backed up. “How did they find us so fast?”

Another wolf charged me from the left. I didn’t need to see him—his scent gave him away. I sidestepped, grabbed his wrist mid-swing, and twisted. His bones cracked. He screamed.

Two down.

I could feel the third one hesitate. Smart. But not fast enough.

“Come on,” I growled, turning toward him. “You want to die for him, too?”

He tried to bolt.

Big mistake.

I grabbed him by the back of his shirt and yanked him down hard. His skull smacked the cobblestone with a crunch. Three.

Footsteps pounded behind me. “Kaliah!” Kiran shouted, panicked. “We need to get the fuck out of here. Now!”

“Working on it,” I muttered, stepping back from the last body.

He was already halfway to the bike, keys jingling in his hand. “Let’s go, come on!”

I didn’t hesitate. I followed the sound of his voice, my boots splashing through shallow puddles as I ran. He reached out, grabbed my arm, and guided me toward the motorcycle.

“Up,” he said, voice tight.

I climbed on behind him without a word, gripping the belt around his waist. The moment I was settled, he revved the engine, and we took off, tires screeching over wet pavement.

The wind whipped past my face, carrying the metallic tang of blood and the distant howl of a wolf that hadn’t made it to the fight in time.

Too bad.

They’d have to do better than that.

The cold and fierce wind whipped past my face, carrying the scent of blood, smoke, and something else I couldn’t quite place—fear, maybe. Not mine. Theirs.

They’d expected an easy target. A blind girl. An Omega brother. What they got was me.

Kiran didn’t speak as we raced through the empty streets, the motorcycle roaring beneath us like a beast. His grip on the handlebars was tight, tense. I could feel it in the way his back moved with each breath. Fast. Shallow. He was scared.

But not for himself.

We swerved around a corner, the bike tilting dangerously close to the pavement. I could see the flicker of streetlights in the puddles we passed, fractured reflections like shattered glass. Behind us, I caught the distant hum of another engine.

I turned my head. “We’ve got a tail.”

“How close?”

“Half a block. Maybe less.”

He cursed under his breath. “Hang on.”

***

It was hard to say how long we drove. Kiran and I would stop to get some rest, using the money he had saved from working at the restaurant. The motels were cheap, filled with the scent of must, and in desperate need of cleaning.

But it was a place for us to lay our heads at night, so I wasn’t going to complain.

Every sound had me bolting up in bed, tense at what might come out and attack us.

My sight might be gone, but every part of me was on alert.

I still ached to see the world again. To see my brother’s goofy smile and mirth-filled eyes at something as simple as the stars in the night sky. He was still convinced that he was going to be able to cure my blindness, but the fact of the matter was, he wouldn’t be able to do that.

This blindness wasn’t something temporary. It was permanent and something I was going to have ot live with for the rest of my life.

I didn’t want to, but sitting and wallowing in self-pity wasn’t my style. My entire life, I had pushed forward, knowing only a warrior’s way. A warrior didn’t stop when the going got tough. You know what they did? They fought back, adjusting to their new circumstances and now allowing themselves to be controlled by the narrative.

If anyone was going to control the narrative, it was going to be me.

I kept up with my training while we were on the run as much as I could. Kiran didn’t have to train me anymore, my skills quickly reaching the level they were before. He was struggling to keep up with me as he always had done.

Nothing against my brother, but I was the warrior. He received training, but I leaned into it, making it a huge part of my identity.

“Kaliah, you bounce back fast,” he muttered during one of our training sessions on the run.

The two of us were in yet another cheap motel. A forest bordered the area, giving us a chance to keep up with our training.

“What choice do I have?” I spat back.

It was obvious to tell from the hitch in his breath that he flinched.

“Sorry, I shouldn’t have said such a stupid thing.”

I sighed softly, fiddling with the black headband that I continued to wear around my eyes. “No, Kiran, I shouldn’t have snapped at you. It wasn’t fair of me.”

Both of us were on edge, unsure of when we were going to be attacked.

The rest of our time on the road was spent similarly. I did my best to keep it together until finally we reached the Dark Moon Pack terrority.

I followed behind my brother, stiffening when we were stopped at the gate. He growled in frustration.

“I’m here to see a wolf named Damon. He owes me a favor.”

The guards laughed. “Yeah, you and the entire fucking city. Do us a favor and fuck off.”

“Hey, I saved his life once!”

The guards ignored us and my brother wasn’t happy with that fact. He rushed forward, trying to force his way in. I tensed, knowing a fight was going to start.

One of them grabbed me. I elbowed the guard, not about to allow myself to be hurt by anyone else.

The two of us fought valiantly side by side. These guards didn’t know what hit them, my movements a bit sloppy but I was able to do what needed to be done to take them down.

Kiran grunted in pain, likely from a hit that had landed on him. I turned towards the sound, lashing out at the guard who dared lay a hand on my older brother.

Then a loud, booming voice shouted one word that made me stop in my tracks.

“Mate!”

The words sounded fierce with protection, catching me by surprise. For a brief second, I feared Axel had found us, but I was quick to dismiss this thought because the voice didn’t belong to Axel.

It belonged to another Alpha, the voice making a warmth rush over me. I quickly shoved that feeling to the side, not wanting to allow myself to indulge such a thing.

All that would do is distract me.