Samara
Nine years old
“Samara! Samara, wake up!” my mother says urgently, shaking me awake.
“Hmm, what?” I ask sleepily. There’s a lot of banging nearby.
“Samara, wake up, you have to get dressed. The pack is under attack!”
I shoot up in bed. “What?”
“Hurry and be as quiet as possible,” my mother says, tossing clothes at me. It’s late fall, but we’ve already had our first snow and the air outside is cold.
I begin putting on the clothes over my nightclothes to save time, sliding my feet into shoes without lacing them up while my mother puts a coat on me.
“Listen to me. We’re going to sneak out of here and then you’re going to ride Simone and we’ll get you to safety.”
I haven’t gotten my wolf yet, I won’t until I turn 10, so I’ll have to ride my mother’s wolf so we can move faster. The only problem is, my family is descended from the rare white wolf. The gene comes from my mother’s side. Her wolf is white, my sister, Althea’s wolf is white, and I expect that my wolf will be white as well.
Usually, a wolf’s color is decided by the color of the person’s hair. But the women in my family are different. We are a very rare breed of wolf that descends from a long, pure line of Alphas. It doesn’t matter that my hair is brown, my wolf will be white.
My mother’s wolf’s pure white coat will be easily seen, even in the forest.
“Come on, Samara! We have to go!” she says.
“What about Althea?” I ask as my mother drags me into the hallway. She listens for a moment and then begins dragging me to the end of the hallway.
“She’s not in her room. She may already be helping your brother and father fight.”
My sister, Althea, is nineteen years old. My brother, Theodore, or Teddy as I call him, just turned eighteen. We have been planning his Alpha ceremony for nearly a year. My parents have been planning their retirement for the same amount of time. He is due to take over the pack this coming weekend.
At the end of the hallway, my mother opens the secret compartment that was put into this wall years ago when my great grandfather first built this packhouse. Only the Alpha family knows where the secret compartment is.
Just as my mother pushes me into the space, I hear a snarl behind her. Her eyes go wide, and she looks at me, quickly taking my face in her hands.
“Listen to me. You get downstairs. Find your father or your brother. They will get you out of here. I love you. Never forget that,” she says, and slams the door in my face.
A moment later I hear something heavy smash against the door, and I hear the sounds of clothes tearing before I hear Simone’s angry snarl. I stand in the small space, my hands over my mouth, trying not to cry out.
I listen to the battle on the other side of the door. I don’t have my wolf yet, so I don’t have a link to my family. But when I hear a wolf yelp, before the telltale ripping of flesh and I hear my father’s wolf cry in agony at losing his mate, I know that it is my mother who lost the battle outside the door.
I want to scream but a wolf’s nose at the bottom of the door jolts me back to reality. I race down the stairs as I hear wolf claws scratching to get through the door.
When I reach the first floor, the sounds are even louder than they were upstairs. I stand on the inside of the secret compartment, quietly sobbing, fear and grief keeping me frozen in place.
I’m not sure how long I stand there before the door is wrenched open.
I scream before I’m pulled into my brother’s arms.
“Thank the goddess, I’ve been looking everywhere for you,” he says, looking around quickly before pulling me out of the room.
“Listen to me, you have to run. Our parents are dead. If I win, I will find you. If not, stay hidden, don't let them find you, they will kill you,” he says, pulling me down the corridor.
He stops, pushing me behind him, just as a wolf leaps at us. My brother’s claws extend, and he slashes the wolf’s throat mid-air. He grabs my hand and is dragging me down the hall before the wolf’s dead body hits the ground.
“Where do I go?” I ask.
“Go south. These attackers seem to be from up here in the north. Stay out of the packs if you can, we don’t know who is a friend and who is a foe. If you can’t, don’t tell them who you are. Keep your Alpha blood a secret. Do you understand?”
“Yes,” I say, crying.
He stops, looking around before turning to me and taking my face in his hands. “You’re stronger than you know, little sister. You can do this. I have faith in you.”
He leans in and kisses my forehead. “I love you, Teddy.”
“And I love you, Sammie,” he says.
His head jerks up. “Hide! Now!”
I turn, looking for a place to hide. He points to a small closet, and I rush to get inside. It has shelves and blankets, and I grab a blanket to cover myself with it. When I turn back, his finger is at his mouth, telling me to be quiet. I nod and get into the closet, tucking myself onto the floor under the lowest shelf.
I wait, listening.
“Oh, Sawyer, it’s you. I thought it was another one of those attackers,” my brother says, speaking to one of his best friends. I start to get out of the closet, knowing that they will help me get out of here.
I’ve just cracked open the door, my hand still holding the knob when I see a glint in Sawyer’s hand.
“I’m sorry brother, but it’s time for you to die,” Sawyer says before stabbing my brother several times with the knife. I tuck myself back into the closet, slapping my hands over my mouth as my brother falls to the floor, his eyes looking at me through the crack in the door.
‘Run!’ he mouths, and I nod, hoping he can see me.
“Sawyer! Sawyer, where are you?” I hear Roman, my brother’s other best friend call out.
Both of them? Both of them betrayed my brother?
“Roman, he’s dead. Theo is dead,” Sawyer says, tucking the knife away.
Roman looks past him, seeing Teddy on the floor, the blood pooling around him.
“Where is Samara?”
“I don’t know. I haven’t seen her. I think her mother was going to try and get her out, but…”
“But she didn’t make it. Fuck!”
“Come on, we need to get out of here,” Sawyer says. “Let’s try to find Samara, see if she’s still alive.”
They take off running, back toward where the fighting is coming from. When they’re gone, I wait, watching my brother’s body, staring vacantly at me.
When I finally crawl out of space, I rush up to Teddy, checking his pulse which is very slow.
“Run,” he chokes, blood dripping from his mouth.
“Teddy!”
“Run, Sammie. Stay hidden. Tell no one who you are.”
I nod, sobbing as I lean down and hug my brother before jumping up and racing out the side door of our packhouse.
I stay in the shadows, following the well known paths of our pack lands until I reach the borders. Then I turn, seeing that the fighting is continuing, our pack still trying to win.
I turn and begin to run as fast as I can. It’s nearly dawn when I finally fall exhausted into a wooded area that allows for a small amount of protection from anyone walking by.
I’m not sure how long I sleep, but my dreams are fitful with images of my mother’s wolf getting ripped apart and Sawyer stabbing Teddy over and over. I get up midday and begin to run again. I’m exhausted, but my brother told me to run, so I run. I stay off the main roads, not wanting to be found.
I run for days, barely sleeping until I collapse, unable to run any further. I curl up into a ball and wait for death to take me.
I barely feel the wet noses that are sniffing me before I hear the masculine voice.
“She’s just a pup. Get her to Alpha William. She needs help.”
I feel strong arms pick me up and the person begins running with me in their arms.
“Alpha, we found this pup on the outskirts of our borders,” the man holding me says.
I feel gentle fingers push the hair out of my face. It reminds me of the way my father moves the hair out of my face when it’s blowing around.
“Is that her blood?” a deep baritone voice asks.
“I’m not sure. We found her and when we realized that she’s still alive, we brought her straight to you.”
“Get her to the pack hospital. If nothing else, she looks nearly frozen. I don’t smell a wolf on her, so she won’t be able to heal herself if she is injured.”
I was taken the pack hospital where I was fed and treated for minor injuries and dehydration. Alpha William came to see me every day and on the second day, he asked me my name.
“Sam….antha. Samantha,” I say, quickly changing my name. Teddy told me to hide my identity, so that’s what I’m going to do.
“Samantha, do you belong to a pack?” he asks me kindly.
Tears begin streaming down my face and I shake my head.
“You’ve had a rough time of it, haven’t you?” he asks me kindly.
I nod, struggling to breathe with the weight of everything that I witnessed still fresh in my mind.
“You’re safe now. You can stay here. No harm will come to you.”
“Thank you.”
“What is your rank, pup?”
“Omega,” I say, deciding that’s the best way to hide in a pack while I wait and hope that my sister will come for me.
“Okay, Samantha. Once you’re cleared by my doctor, I’ll get you a room and we’ll get you set up with a work schedule. How does that sound?” he asks.
“Fine,” I say, thinking I won’t be here long.
Two weeks later, I overhear the nurses talking in the hallway. I find out that my family is dead, and that Sawyer has taken over as Alpha of my family’s pack.
It was at that moment that I swore an oath to myself and my family. I swore that one day I would return home and take revenge on Sawyer and Roman for what they did.
SloaneOne Year LaterMy birthday is tomorrow. My tenth birthday. I’ll finally know if all my hard work has paid off.Please Moon Goddess, please let it have been enough.“SOANE!” I turn to see my brother running toward me on his small little toddler legs.“Hey, Teddy,” I say, rushing forward to scoop him up.“LOANE!” Aria yells, right behind him. I put him on one hip and then scoop her up into my arms as well.“You’ve got quite the handful there,” Aunt Samara says, walking up. Her stomach is large with their second pup, a little girl. They told me already that they’re going to name her Jessica after my grandmother. Jessica Devi. Grandma Devi doesn’t know that yet, but I know she’ll begin crying as soon as she hears.“I don’t mind,” I tell her and I don’t. At least here in our home and in our pack, no one makes snide comments about my parents being murderers. Uncle Roman caught a pack member once saying something and he not only publicly dressed them down until they were practically cr
SamaraThree months laterAyla is running through the most beautiful field I’ve ever seen.‘Ayla, where are we? How did we shift?’ I ask her.She’s quiet a moment. ‘I think we’re dreaming. This is ... real, but also ... not real.’‘What does that mean?’ I ask her.The air here feels so clean and crisp, the flowers are a perfect balance of scent without being cloying. The sun is shining on our back, and it feels warm but not too hot.Ayla begins to slow, going from run, to jog, to a walk. I follow her line of sight and see another wolf up ahead of us. She lifts her nose in the air and we both immediately recognize the scent.GILLIAN!Ayla races to her sister, sliding her body against Gillian’s as the two wolves whine and whimper at seeing each other again.‘Where are we, Gillian?’ Ayla asks her.‘Somewhere between worlds. I wanted to see you, to let you know that you don’t have to be sad for me anymore,’ she says as another wolf comes out of the forest behind her. Gillian smiles as the
Sloane“We’ve put all of you on the Alpha floor. I hope that’s acceptable. We’re very excited to have you here to celebrate Judith officially taking her place as the pack’s Luna,” Alpha Waylon says.“We’re very happy to be here,” Aunt Samara says. “How are you feeling, Judith?”“I’m nervous, but the pack seems accepting of me,” she says, then smiles at me. “I’m still hoping you’ll help me get ready tonight.”“Can Aunt Samara come too?” I ask. I’m not sure I’m ready to be alone with this woman. I barely know her but I’m pretty sure she and Alpha Waylon think I’m their granddaughter.I watch the smile falter briefly before she smiles even larger. “Of course your Aunt Samara can come. The more the merrier!” she says.“Why don’t we show you to your rooms,” Alpha Waylon says.“Yes, I’d like Samara to be able to rest for a few minutes and maybe you and I can have a private word, Alpha Waylon,” Uncle Roman says.I watch Aunt Samara’s eyes go unfocused and Uncle Roman’s go unfocused immediatel
RomanHearing Alpha William say that Sloane has shown improvement while she’s been away and seeing it in person is very different. He’s right. The sadness that was like a dark cloud hanging over her isn’t gone, but it’s shifted from the all-consuming grief that she was suffering when she left, to something that looks more manageable.She smiles when she sees us pull up, which makes me happy. I wasn’t sure she would have missed us.When we get out of the car, she rushes up to me, leaping into my arms. I can instantly feel the difference in her. Her young body is changing, becoming more muscular already. The intense running is stripping away any residual baby fat and the sparring with Will has obviously developed some of her muscles.“Whoa! Since when did you become a warrior?” I ask her.Her eyes go wide, and her mouth opens and closes.“Don’t worry, I already knew,” I say quietly.“How?” she asks, glancing at Alpha Will.“Alpha William,” I say.“You told your father?” she asks Will, th
SloaneBeing in Alpha William’s pack has been good for me, better than I thought it would be. First, Alpha William introduced me to his pack as his granddaughter. Then he went on to tell them all about Aunt Samara and how I was her adopted daughter, just like she was his. He didn’t say a word about my parents or why I was being adopted, just that I was.Then he introduced Scarlet as my best friend here to visit with us. It was really nice that no one here knew my story. They didn’t look at me, or whisper when they thought I couldn’t hear them. I know Uncle Roman and Aunt Samara would be angry if they knew that their pack did that, but it’s not worth the trouble. The things that they’re whispering can’t be worse than what my parents did.The first week with Scarlet was all about exploring everything in the pack. Well, that and Scarlet flirting with Will. He’s nice and all, but I’m just not interested in all of that. I was sad to see her go when her mom came to pick her up, but that gave
RomanSamara’s Luna ceremony was better than I could have imagined. After the ceremony, I took my mate around, showing her off to everyone. Only a couple of Alphas questioned if she really was a white wolf. Then Ayla pushed forward showing her power and word spread quickly. You don’t have to see Ayla to feel the strength that she has.After that, everyone had a good time. They didn’t need to ask if Sawyer and Dylan had been responsible for the Brenner’s deaths. Knowing they were gone and that I now control those packs was all the answer they needed. I danced with my mate, Sloane, and Scarlet, then carried Slade around after he fell asleep in Luna Jasmine’s arms.When the party finally began to wind down, Samara and I took Slade and Aria upstairs, telling Sloane not to stay up all night. However, all of us knew that she and Scarlet wouldn’t get a wink of sleep. Not to be outdone, I kept my mate up most of the rest of the night as well, reminding her once again how happy I am that she’s