Chapter 1

KEYWORDS: ICE - SHORT FORM OF THE FL'S NAME (ISIS) EPC - SHORT FORM FOR EMBER PACK COLLEGE SPC - SILVERMOON PACK COLLEGE HAPPY READING ****

Isis jotted down each point as Hale explained with keen attention. After a while, Hale dropped the textbook, signaling the end of class.

“So good luck, pups, don’t forget to make the mass communication department proud.”

Students rose to their feet until the professor walked out and the class dissipated. Isis got out and breathed in fresh air. She reached into her backpack and fetched her phone.

Giggling happily, she dialed her mum’s line and it rang several times before the latter picked up. “Mum! I finally got selected for Professor Hale’s class!!” Isis yelled happily.

On the other side, the woman was moaning, barely hearing what her happy daughter was saying. Isis frowned, “Mum? Are you listening? I said I took Professor Hale’s class today, which means I can now……”

“Fuck it, baby. Faster!” Isis heard. She froze, and all the ecstasy died down immediately. “M… mum?”

“Da.. Darling, can you…. Oh fuck it. Can you call me back?”

Isis’ brain sparked with anger, “Mum, did you even remember it’s my college’s inter-school sports competition today?”

“Baby, I’ll call you back. Be good at school, and enjoy yourself…. Oh, Max, you’re biting my nipples… You…” The line went dead afterwards.

Isis stood in trepidation. Sweat broke from her forehead as she realized what her mum was busy with.

‘She’s fuckin, as usual,’ Her wolf said as sorrow coursed through Isis’s veins.

From behind her, Isis heard happy voices yell. “Hello, journalist Ice!”

Isis turned slowly and saw her friendship circle; Alice and Fatima were standing there.

‘They must not know anything about my mum,’ She thought as she plastered a fake smile. “Guys,” she greeted.

They marched toward her. Alice poked her nose, “Look at you smiling happily. You’re now an EPC journalist.”

Fatima howled happily and helped her with the tripod stand. “Is your mum coming? I’m dying to see if you really look like her.”

Alice laughed in agreement. But Isis stopped. “My… my mum is not coming,” She announced slowly. “She was busy at work. Her boss won’t let her come.”

Fatima and Alice stopped. “Oh. Sorry that I asked.”

“It’s okay. We can have dinner at your home after the events today, right, Ice?” Alice blinked.

Another bang of shock hit Isis’ chest. How will she take her friends home to see her mum, whose basic source of income was prostitution?

Isis put on another smile again. Anything to make them stop talking, she thought. “Of course. Let’s get today over with first.”

The girls marched toward the stadium. As they mingled with other friends, Isis’s mind was calculating what lie she would give them at the end of the day.

As a third-year mass communication student at Ember Pack College, Isis Cepheus wanted her mum to be present on her special day, which is her first day as a professional College Journalist.

In the past years, Isis was used to carrying cameras and tripod stands around, while the seniors did the filming and interviewing. It was every junior’s dream to feature as a professional journalist on an event like this and just this once… Isis wanted her mum to be there at least.

However, since her mum is not here, Isis promised to take good pictures to show her later as she marched to the swimming arena, where the main event of the day will be happening.

“Alright, babes. I’m going for basketball,” Fatima bid after Isis took her seat amongst other Journalists from her class and other schools.

Alice pulled Fatima’s arms. “Why basketball? We should at least help Ice take some pictures.”

“No, Allie. Have you forgotten I hate swimming? I just…”

“Alright, enough with the arguments,” Isis said. “I can take care of myself. See ya later.”

“Record the hot guys with the highest quality,” Alice teased before leaving with Fatima, finally leaving Isis alone.

The competition commenced shortly after. As she was setting up her camera, she sighed at the thought of him — Alpha Dalton, her boyfriend, as well as her source of joy.

She waved eagerly at Dalton, who looked incredibly hot and breathtaking in his swimming trunks as he went toward the starting platform.

The whole school was hailing him. He could barely see Isis amongst the crowd, but she stole more pictures of him.

Dalton Lillard was the school’s hottest guy and the swim team captain. But lucky her, Isis thought. “He’s mine.”

Isis was happy to be controlling the camera herself for the first time and temporarily forgot about her slutty mum. She took proper caution as she filmed; her performance here will determine if she will be moving to Hale’s class permanently or not.

The whole of EPC was screaming, “Alpha Dalton!!”

As she filmed, her mind flashed back to when she first got entangled with Alpha Dalton. It was during a competition like this that she had fallen into the swimming pool.

He saved her, and even though they’re not mates, some unseen connection seemed to help them, and soon, they started dating—but this fact was only known to their friends.

“…..and yes, Alpha Dalton from EPC swam 10 seconds ahead of Alpha Alaric from SPC!!” The announcer yelled over the megaphone, and the scoreboard results appeared immediately.

Isis waved to Dalton, who barely noticed her, and again happily went to the interview shed waiting to make him her first interviewee.

However, as Dalton, who was beaming with smiles, got to the interview shed, he spared Isis, who was EPC’s journalist, no glance, as if she was never there.

Isis was confused; panic rose to her tongue immediately. She remembered that she could only attend Hale’s class if her first outing went well.

She pressed again when the others seemed to have kept quiet, “How did you feel about winning this Swimming Championship medal for Ember Pack College?”

For the first time, Dalton looked at her and smiled simply but coldly, “I’m good, thanks.”

Isis was confused. She wasn’t expecting this kind of reaction from him, especially as this was her first time, but she pressed on; eventually, all her questions were left unanswered!

“Why did you ignore me out there, Dal? I told you last week that for joining Professor Hale’s class, I have to give him good reports, right?” Isis yelled at Dalton after successfully getting him out of his friend’s circle.

They were now at the baseball arena since swimming had ended.

Dalton ran his hand through his hair carelessly, “Can I tell you something honestly, Ice?”

She blinked. “What?”

He scoffed shortly. “Have I ever told you, you’re very annoying?”

“What?” The words surprised her; Isis’s jaw dropped. “Dal, why are you suddenly….”

“I said that something is not right when you never let me or your friends meet your mum!” Dalton cut into her words. “If Fatima hadn’t told me, then all this while, I wouldn’t have known I was dating a whore’s daughter!”

Isis staggered back momentarily. A shocking gasp escaped her lips. “F…. Fatima told you this?”

“Can you deny it?” He shot back and pushed her head with a finger. “Better stay as quiet as you are, slut’s daughter, or else if the whole EPC knows of this, you’re cooked.”

Isis couldn’t say anything more; she only stared as he turned to leave, but he stopped again and dropped the banger she had never seen coming. “Let’s break up, Ice.”

“Wait, what?”

Dalton turned and pushed her head again, “Can’t you understand anything? I say let’s break the fuck up! I’m the swim team captain, I can’t date a slut’s daughter.”

"But Dal, that's my mum. I can tell her to stop....."

Dalton stopped. "That's your mum? Ohh. Have you forgotten that you're a stealer? What's the assurance that you won't be worse than your mum?"

The words broke her as she fell to her butt. He also knew she was a stealer? Another secret that Isis was keeping was that she was a stealer—a breed of the werewolf tribe that can mate with more than one person.

Basically, the breed of wolves that sleeps around just like... just like her mum, Isis thought as slow tears of agony rained down her face.

“It’s really over,” she thought.