THE TRUTH

Alicia POV

I made it three blocks before my brain overrode common sense.

Desmond's face when he'd heard that howl was pure terror barely masked as concern. And the way he'd walked toward the woods like he was expecting something.

Nobody walked toward creepy forest sounds at night.

Which meant either Desmond had a death wish or he knew exactly what was out there.

I pulled a U-turn that would've failed me in driver's ed and headed back.

I silenced my phone and pulled into the lot, killing the headlights.

The parking lot was empty. No sign of Desmond.

But something moved in the shadows near the tree line. Something big.

I wanted to stay in the car and call campus security or Maren.

But I grabbed the flashlight from my glove compartment and got out.

"This is how people die in horror movies," I muttered. "Stupid people who ignore every red flag."

Trees loomed overhead, blocking out most of the moonlight. My flashlight beam cut through the darkness.

I heard a closer howl. 

My hands started shaking.

"Desmond?" I kept my voice low. "If you're trying to scare me, it's working."

Movement to my left. I swung the flashlight.

A deer bolted past, white tail flashing.

I pressed my hand against my chest, feeling my heart try to escape.

"Just a deer. Everything's fine."

Except nothing was fine, because now I heard voices.

"—told you to stay away from her." Desmond's voice, tight with anger.

"I don't take orders from runaway pups." A different  voice. 

I crept closer, using trees for cover. Through the branches, I could see a small clearing.

Desmond stood in the center, facing someone I couldn't make out. His posture was all wrong and dangerous.

"She doesn't remember," Desmond said. "Leave her alone."

"For now. But memory magic isn't permanent. Eventually, she'll remember everything." The stranger moved into view.

He was older, maybe late twenties, with sharp features and eyes that reflected my flashlight beam wrong. 

I must've made a sound because both of them turned.

"Alicia?" Desmond's voice cracked. "What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same thing." I stepped into the clearing, flashlight raised like a weapon.

The stranger smiled. "Well. This is unexpected."

"Who are you?"

"Someone who knew your mother." He studied me. "You look like her. Same eyes. Same stubborn jaw."

"You knew my mom?"

"Sarah Bloodmoon was hard to forget." He took a step toward me.

Desmond moved between us instantly. "Don't."

"Relax, pup. I'm not going to hurt her." The stranger's smile widened. "Yet."

"Leave. Now." Desmond's voice dropped an octave, resonating in a way that made the hair on my neck stand up.

"Or what? You'll tell Matthew? Pretty sure he already knows." The stranger looked at me again. "Has he told you what he is yet? WHAT YOU ARE?"

"Shut up," Desmond growled.

"She deserves to know. Especially since they're coming for her."

My mouth had gone dry. "Who's coming for me?"

"Alicia, go back to your car." Desmond didn't turn around. "Please."

"Not until someone explains what's happening."

"Bad timing for truth sessions," the stranger said. "But since you asked…"

He moved. One second standing still, the next charging at Desmond.

They collided like thunder.

I stumbled backward, dropping my flashlight. It rolled across the ground, the beam spinning.

In the stuttering light, I saw them fighting. But it wasn't normal. They moved too fast, hit too hard. Desmond threw the stranger into a tree with enough force to crack the trunk.

The stranger laughed and got up like nothing happened.

"Come on, Hayes. Show her what you really are."

"No."

"She's going to find out anyway."

Desmond's hands curled into fists. In the flashlight's glow, I saw something impossible.

His fingers were changing. Lengthening. Nails darkening into claws.

I couldn't breathe.

"Stop looking," Desmond said, voice strained. "Alicia, close your eyes."

I couldn't. Couldn't tear my gaze away as his shoulders broadened, his spine curved. Bones cracking.

The stranger shifted too. He dropped to all fours and his body rippled, fur erupting along his skin.

Ten seconds. That's all it took.

Where the stranger had been standing, a wolf now crouched. Massive, easily three times the size of any normal wolf, with gray fur and those same too-bright eyes.

It growled, and the sound vibrated through my chest.

Desmond was still partially transformed. Stuck between human and something else. Fighting it.

"Go," he managed. "Run."

The wolf lunged.

Desmond met it halfway, and they crashed together in a tangle of claws and teeth.

My brain finally caught up with my legs. I ran.

Branches whipped my face. Roots tried to trip me. Behind me, the sounds echoed through the trees—snarling, growling, things breaking.

I burst into the parking lot and nearly collided with my car.

Keys. Where were my keys?

Pocket. They were in my pocket.

My hands shook so badly I dropped them twice before getting the door open.

The fighting sounds had stopped.

I looked back at the tree line.

A wolf emerged from the shadows. Black fur, golden eyes, massive.

It stopped ten feet away. Just watching me.

My brain screamed at me to get in the car and drive.

But those eyes...

"Desmond?"

The wolf's ears flicked forward.

"Oh my god."

It took a step closer. I backed up until I hit my car door.

"Stay there. Just…stay there."

The wolf sat.

This was a werewolf.

My ex-step-brother was a werewolf.

I laughed. Couldn't help it. It came out hysterical, right on the edge of tears.

"This is insane. This isn't real."

The wolf made a sound. Almost like a whimper.

"Don't do that. Don't look sad. You're a WOLF."

It shifted. I watched in horrified fascination as the transformation reversed. Bones snapping back, fur receding, until Desmond knelt on the pavement.

Naked.

I immediately looked away. "Oh my god."

"Sorry." He sounded exhausted. "Give me a second."

I heard rustling.

He'd found his clothes. Jeans on, shirt in hand. Blood on his shoulder from a cut that was already healing.

Already. Healing.

"You're a werewolf," I said.

"Yeah."

"My ex-step-brother is a werewolf who I apparently dated when I was twelve and then forgot because of magic."

"That's... mostly accurate."

I slid down the side of my car until I was sitting. "I need a minute."

"Take as long as you need."

He sat across from me, maintaining distance.

"The guy you were fighting," I said eventually. "He said he knew my mom."

Desmond's expression shifted. "He might have."

"And he said something about me. About what I am." I looked up. "What did he mean?"

"Alicia…"

"No more lies. Tell me everything."

He ran his hand through his hair. It was shaking.

"Your mother was a werewolf. Royal bloodline, Bloodmoon Pack. She left when she was eighteen, married your dad, had you."

The words didn't make sense. "My mom was human."

"No. She wasn't."

"She died in a car accident when I was eight."

"She was killed. By someone from her old pack, probably."

My chest felt tight. "Why?"

"Leaving the pack, especially royal bloodlines—some see it as betrayal."

"And me? That guy said something about what I am."

Desmond looked at me with those too-gold eyes. "If your mother was a werewolf, that makes you..."

"No." I stood. "No, I'm human. I've been human my entire life."

"You're dormant. The wolf is there, just sleeping."

"That's not possible."

"It is. Especially in half-human children. Some never shift at all."

"So what, I'm just walking around with a wolf inside me?"

"It doesn't work like that."

"Then how does it work? Because nothing makes sense!" My voice cracked. "You show up and suddenly my life is falling apart. Photos I don't remember, memories I can't access, and now you're telling me I'm not even human?"

"You are human. Just... also something else."

"That's not comforting."

"I know." He stood, took a step toward me. "But Alicia, that guy wasn't here by accident. Someone sent him. Someone who knows what you are."

"Why?"

"Your bloodline. Bloodmoon Pack has political power. If someone could control you, force you to shift, they could claim that power."

"I don't want political power. I want a normal life."

"I know. But that's not an option anymore." He was closer now. "People know you're here. They know what you are. And they're coming."

"Who?"

His phone buzzed. He checked it, and his face went pale.

"What?"

"My father. He's calling a Hunt."

"A what?"

"Formal challenge. Three days. If I can keep you safe, you're under my protection. If not..." He met my eyes. "The strongest wolf wins. And you become their property."

The words made me cringe. "That's barbaric."

"That's pack law."

"So what do we do?"

"We run. Tonight. Get you somewhere safe…"

Headlights flooded the parking lot. Three black SUVs pulled in, blocking both exits.

Doors opened. Six people stepped out, moving with that same fluid grace Desmond had.

All werewolves. All here for me.

A woman emerged from the center vehicle. Tall, beautiful, dangerous.

She smiled. "Hello, Desmond. Miss me?"

Desmond moved in front of me. "Lena."

"Matthew  sends his regards. And his ultimatum." She looked past him at me. "Three days, little Bloodmoon. Let's see if he can keep you alive that long."

She shifted. The others followed.

Six wolves surrounded us.

And I had absolutely no idea how we were getting out of this alive.