Chapter 5

I had always heard stories of wolves who lost their packs. Some were tragic, others deserved, but I never imagined that I would become one of them.

Walking away from the Silver Fang pack that night, the cold air biting at my skin, I didn't realize just how cruel the world outside my pack could be. I traveled to the nearest pack territory.

Exhausted and starving, after days of wandering, my feet were blistered, and the clothes I'd been banished in were little more than tattered rags when I reached the border of the Moon Crest Pack.

I was hopeful. Their reputation for fairness was well known, and I thought, maybe here I'll find refuge. The guards stationed at the border stopped me immediately.

"State your business," one of them barked, his eyes narrowing as he took in my disheveled appearance.

"I'm seeking sanctuary," I said, trying to keep my voice steady. "I've been cast out of my pack, but I mean no harm. I just need a place to stay."

He stepped closer, his nose flaring as he took in my scent. The moment his face twisted into a grimace, he spoke. "You carry the scent of Alpha Lucas," he said, his voice low and dangerous. "Why?"

"I didn't choose this!" I snapped, unable to keep the bitterness out of my voice. "He marked me against my will."

"I don't care how it happened," he interrupted, shaking his head. "We don't want trouble with the Silver Fang Pack. Move along."

"Wait," I pleaded. "Please. I'm not here to cause problems. I just need a place to rest."

"Go," he barked, his growl cutting me off.

I took a step back, my heart sinking. "At least let me explain."

The other guard sneered. "Explain what? What did you do to get yourself banished? Cheat on your alpha? Betray your pack? Spare us the sob story. We're not interested."

His words hit me harder than any blow could have. I stared at them, trying to muster some sort of response, but there was no point. Their faces were already set with disgust and fear.

I turned and walked away, my legs trembling beneath me.

The pattern repeated itself over and over. Every pack I approached turned me away the moment they caught Alpha Lucas's scent on me. Some tried to mask their disdain with politeness; others didn't bother.

At the Black Pine Pack, an older wolf named Garrett listened to me for a few moments before shaking his head.

"It's not that we don't sympathize," he said, though his eyes were hard. "But Alpha Lucas is not someone we want to cross. Even allowing you to stay for a single night could bring his wrath down on us."

"Do you even know what he did to me?" I asked, my voice trembling with frustration. "Do you have any idea how he destroyed my life?"

"I don't," he said bluntly. "And I don't want to."

At the Shadow Ridge Pack, the treatment was even worse. A young woman named Kelly sneered as she walked me to the border.

"You're wolfless, aren't you?" she asked, her tone dripping with mockery.

I didn't respond, but the silence was enough of an answer.

"Figures," she said. "What good is a wolf without her wolf? You're nothing but dead weight. No pack is going to take you in. So why don't you save yourself the humiliation and stop trying?"

Her words echoed in my mind long after I left their territory. I hated that she had seen through my weakness so easily, but worse, I hated that she was right.

One pack after another shut their doors on me. Some were cruel, like Kelly, while others simply looked at me with pity before sending me away. No one cared about my story, about how Lucas had taken everything from me and then cast me out like I was nothing.

By the time I reached the last pack I could think to try, I was hanging by a thread. The alpha of the Iron Claw Pack actually took the time to meet with me, but the moment I walked into his office, he wrinkled his nose and leaned back in his chair.

"You reek of Alpha Lucas," he said bluntly.

I clenched my fists, swallowing the surge of anger that rose within me. "I can't help that."

"I don't care," he interrupted. "Do you have any idea what kind of man he is? The destruction he's capable of? Do you really think I'd risk my pack's safety to take in someone like you?"

"I'm not asking for much," I said, my voice barely above a whisper. "Just a place to sleep. I'll work for it."

"No," he said firmly. "I'm sorry for whatever happened to you, but you need to leave. Now."

When I stepped out of his office, I knew it was over. No pack would ever take me in—not as long as I carried Lucas's scent.

I spent that night in the woods, curled up against the base of a tree, my body racked with silent sobs. The pain of rejection was overwhelming, but worse was the realization that I had nowhere else to go.

The thought of living among humans terrified me. They were a different species, with their own strange ways and customs. I had no idea how to navigate their world, and the idea of being surrounded by them, always having to hide who I was, filled me with dread.

But what choice did I have?

By morning, I had made my decision. I gathered what little strength I had left and started walking toward the nearest human town.

The first thing I noticed as I approached was the noise. Cars honked, people shouted, and unfamiliar music blared from open windows. It was overwhelming, and I hesitated at the edge of the town, my heart pounding.

"You look lost," a voice said, startling me.

I turned to see a man standing nearby, his hands shoved into the pockets of a worn leather jacket. His eyes were kind, but there was a wary edge to his expression.

"I'm new here," I said, my voice shaky.

He nodded slowly, his gaze sweeping over me. "You don't look like you're from around here. Where are you coming from?"

"Far away," I said vaguely. "I'm just passing through."

His eyebrows lifted, but he didn't press further. "Well, if you're looking for a place to stay, there's a shelter a few blocks that way." He pointed down the street. "It's not much, but it's better than sleeping on the street."

"Thank you," I said, my throat tightening as I walked toward the shelter.

I felt the weight of everything I had lost collapse down on me. I didn't belong here among the humans, but I didn't belong anywhere else either. For the first time since my banishment, I allowed myself to cry. The tears came in a flood, and I didn't try to stop them.

I cried for my parents, for the wolf I never got the opportunity to meet, for the pack that had betrayed me, and for the life I would never have.

But as the tears subsided, a strange sense of determination began to take root in my chest. I had survived this far, hadn't I? I had endured the cruelty of my pack, the rejection of my mate, and the hostility of every wolf I had encountered since—and now, the overwhelming strangeness of the human world.

If this was my new reality, then I would find a way to live in it. I didn't know what the future held, but I knew one thing for certain: I would not let Alpha Lucas or anyone else break me.

I would survive.