Chapter Fourteen

Hunt Begins

The first howl rose with the dawn.

It echoed across the mountains, long and sharp, carried on the cold morning wind. My wolf froze inside me, hackles raised. I had heard many howls in my life, but this one was different. It was not a call to gather. It was a declaration of war.

Lucien lifted his head, his coal-dark eyes gleaming. He didn’t look surprised. “It begins.”

I wiped sweat from my brow, chest still heaving from the brutal drills he’d forced me through. “What begins?”

“The hunt,” he said simply, his smile curving like a blade. “Your precious Alpha has declared you prey.”

My blood ran cold. “What?”

Lucien’s shadows rippled as he stepped closer, voice dripping with amusement. “You didn’t think Derrick would lick his wounds in silence, did you? No. He will use you to remind his pack who holds power. Every wolf loyal to him will hunt you, Kimberly. Not just his warriors. All of them. The weak, the strong, the ambitious—they’ll all want a taste of the Alpha’s prize.”

The air seemed to vanish from my lungs. My father’s desperate warning echoed in my mind. Run, Kimberly. Run, and do not look back.

But I hadn’t run fast enough.

“He’ll kill me,” I whispered, though my voice trembled with more fury than fear.

Lucien chuckled. “No. He won’t kill you. He’ll break you. Collar you. Parade you at Mona’s side like a trophy.” His eyes glinted with cruel amusement. “Death would be mercy. Derrick doesn’t believe in mercy.”

A shiver raced down my spine. Rage followed close behind.

“I won’t let him,” I said through clenched teeth.

Lucien tilted his head, studying me. “Then you’d better learn faster. The hunt has begun, and the forest belongs to the pack. They will track your scent, your heartbeat, your very fear. If you falter, they will drag you back.”

He stepped away, arms folded. “This is your next lesson. Survival. No drills, no shadows summoned in safety. Out there, it’s kill or be killed.”

The second howl rose, closer now, joined by dozens more. The chorus of wolves vibrated through the ground, rattling my bones.

Lucien’s grin sharpened. “Run, little wolf. And don’t look back.”

---

The forest closed around me as I sprinted, branches whipping at my arms, the earth biting beneath my bare feet. My lungs burned, but I didn’t stop. The howls were everywhere now, weaving through the trees, circling me like vultures.

Every scent on the wind felt sharper, every sound magnified. My wolf surged, senses alive, urging me faster.

They’re coming, she warned.

I already knew.

The first hunter appeared before me, leaping from the shadows with claws extended. Instinct screamed, and the shadows answered, lashing from my hands like whips. They struck him midair, hurling his body into a tree with a sickening crack.

I didn’t stop to check if he lived.

Another darted from the right, jaws snapping. I ducked low, shadows swirling around me like armor. His teeth scraped harmlessly across the black shield before I sent him sprawling with a burst of dark energy.

For every wolf that fell, two more replaced them. The forest swarmed with them, their eyes glowing, their snarls deafening. I was surrounded.

Panic threatened to choke me. Too many. Too strong.

But then I remembered Mona’s smile, Derrick’s slap, Catherine’s sneer. And suddenly, fear burned into fury.

“No more,” I hissed, shadows curling tighter around me.

The next wolf lunged, and this time, I met him head-on. I struck, shadows spearing through his chest. His scream echoed as he collapsed, and the others faltered, hesitation flickering in their glowing eyes.

Good. Let them fear me.

I raised my hands, shadows swirling like a storm, my silver-marked palm glowing under the moonlight even in daylight’s reach. My wolf’s voice rang fierce inside me: We are not prey. We are the storm.

The wolves circled but didn’t charge. For the first time, they hesitated.

Then a voice cut through the chaos. Low. Commanding. Terrifying.

“Enough.”

The hunters stilled instantly, lowering their heads.

My heart slammed against my ribs as the trees parted, and Alpha Derrick himself stepped into the clearing. His amber eyes locked on me, blazing with fury and something darker.

Mona was at his side, her smile curved like victory.

Derrick’s lips parted in a snarl. “Did you really think you could run from me, Kimberly?”

The shadows writhed around me, my wolf snarling inside. I lifted my chin, refusing to bow.

“I’m not yours anymore.”

Derrick’s laugh was low, cruel. “Oh, little wolf. You’ve always been mine. You just don’t realize it yet.”

The pack howled in unison, the sound echoing through the forest, drownin

g out the beat of my racing heart.

The hunt was no longer beginning.

It had found me.