Prologue

As a child, I once saw a stone avalanche in the mountains at the edge of our territory.

The Beta of my pack told me then that all this strength, all this force came from the movement of a tiny rock. He said that just one stone is sometimes enough to wake up the force so unstoppable that the only thing you can do later is to observe the changes you cannot do anything about.

Years later, I will think about it again when suddenly I will come face to face with once again a very powerful force against which I will be completely helpless.

But now I am unbothered by it, now the thing that matters the most is my pride.

My strength is what makes me proud; my fighting skills are what makes me proud. The territory of the Blackwood pack is something that makes me proud. My pack is what makes me proud. For the last seven years, since I became an Alpha at the age of 20, I have made it one of the strongest packs in this country. We are feared, respected, prosperous, admired, and I'm proud, and I'm proud of what I have achieved.

Right now, I'm sitting in my office with my Beta, Third, and Head Warriors; we are discussing the probability of expanding the territories and recent hunters' movements.

My older brother is sitting in the corner and patiently listening to our discussion from time to time giving his advice. I value his advice, and I value how great support he gives me.

He could have been an Alpha himself, but when he was 20, and I was 16, he and our father stopped talking with each other, and his wolf became visibly weaker. I have never known what happened between them, but at some point, Hayden decided to give up his claim to Alpha's title, and our father chose to put all his hopes in me, and even though he was rough and strict,

I'm so proud I'm his son.

I am also happy that becoming the Alpha didn't cost me my brother. That he accepted my rule and supports me every day.

Suddenly I hear a painful howl, and Hayden falls to the floor, clutching his chest and crying painfully. Immediately we are all next to him, trying to help, but he shivers and keeps sobbing.

"Rose," he finally says, looking at one of our pack's omegas who is in charge of all the housework in the packhouse. She immediately grabs his hands and looks at him, frightened.

"My mate is dead," he says slowly, as tears keep coming down his face.

"Your daughter is dead, Rose," he whispers before he passes out.

"What the hell," I yell," since when Hayden had a mate!!!"

At that moment, I'm still unaware of the fact that the first stone has started to move, and soon it will be destined to move more rocks which will soon become an avalanche that will change my life forever.