Hunted

Sable's POV

---

Garrick's question hangs in the air like a blade waiting to fall.

What the hell are you?

I don't answer. I can't. My wolf is still roaring inside me, her power thrumming through my veins like electricity. The three Alphas are standing between me and the tree line, and I can feel their wolves pressing against mine, testing, probing.

I need to run.

I bolt.

I don't make it three steps before Garrick's hand closes around my wrist.

The moment his skin touches mine, everything explodes.

My wolf surges so violently that I feel the ground crack beneath my feet. A shockwave ripples outward, throwing all three Alphas backward like ragdolls. Garrick hits a tree with a sickening thud. Merrick lands in the stream. Stellan somehow stays on his feet, sliding back but not falling.

I don't wait to see if they're okay.

I shift.

The transformation is faster this time, less painful. One moment I'm human, the next I'm something else entirely. Something massive. Something with fur as black as midnight and eyes that glow silver.

I run.

The forest blurs around me. I'm faster than I've ever been, faster than any wolf I've seen. Trees whip past. The wind howls in my ears. For one wild, glorious moment, I feel free.

Then I hear footsteps behind me.

Garrick.

He's in wolf form now, a massive black beast with eyes like ice. He's fast. Faster than he should be. He's gaining on me.

I push harder, but my body is still new to this, still learning. I stumble over a root, and that's all the opening he needs.

He tackles me.

We crash to the ground together, rolling through leaves and dirt. I snarl, snapping at him, but he pins me, his weight pressing me into the earth. His wolf is huge, powerful, but he's not attacking. He's just holding me there, staring into my silver eyes with something that isn't anger.

It's fascination.

"You're not supposed to exist," he whispers. Even in wolf form, I can understand him. The pack bond allows it. "Moon-Touched. They've been extinct for centuries."

I thrash beneath him. "Get off me."

"Not until you tell me what you are."

"I don't know what I am!"

The words rip out of me, raw and desperate. Garrick's eyes flicker with something. Surprise, maybe. Or pity.

Before he can respond, Merrick and Stellan arrive.

Merrick is in human form, his clothes wet from the stream. He's breathing hard but his eyes are sharp, calculating. Already planning. Already seeing the strategic value of a wolf like me.

Stellan shifts back to human. He's naked, unashamed, his pale body almost glowing in the moonlight. He looks at me with those strange eyes and smiles.

"She's the one I've been dreaming about," he says.

Garrick growls. "What are you talking about?"

"I've been having visions since I was a child. A woman with silver eyes. A child hidden in darkness. And now here she is." Stellan tilts his head. "The daughter of the Blood Moon."

"I don't know what that means," I snap.

"You will."

Garrick releases me, stepping back. I shift back to human, naked and trembling. The cold night air bites at my skin, but it's nothing compared to the cold fear in my chest.

Garrick throws his jacket over my shoulders. The gesture surprises everyone, including him. He looks away, jaw tight.

"This doesn't mean anything," he mutters.

Merrick steps forward. His voice is calm, measured. "You need to listen to us. If what Stellan says is true, you're in more danger than you realize."

"I don't need your help."

"You don't have a choice." Merrick's eyes are cold. "The Alpha Trials start in two weeks. You can't hide what you are anymore. And when people find out, they'll either want to use you or kill you."

"I can take care of myself."

"Can you?" He gestures at the three of them. "We found you in minutes. What do you think will happen when the entire pack knows?"

I hate that he's right.

"I don't trust any of you," I say.

"Good." Merrick almost smiles. "You shouldn't."

Stellan steps closer, and I notice Garrick tense. "You don't have to trust us. But you need allies. The Trials are designed to break wolves. You've never fought before. You've never trained. You don't know the first thing about surviving."

"And you do?"

"We've been doing this our whole lives." His pale eyes hold mine. "Let us help you."

I look at the three of them. Garrick, still glaring at the ground. Merrick, calculating and cold. Stellan, strange and knowing.

They're dangerous. All of them. But so is everything else in my life right now.

"No," I say.

I turn and run.

Not as a wolf. As a human. Barefoot, wearing Garrick's jacket, crashing through the forest like a wounded animal. I don't stop until I reach the academy. Until I'm back in my servant's room, door locked, back against the wall.

I can't hide anymore.

The secret is out.

---

The next morning, the academy is buzzing.

I hear it in the dining hall, in the hallways, in the whispers that follow me everywhere.

"Did you hear? There was a rogue wolf in the woods last night."

"Massive. Black as night. Eyes like silver."

"Silver? That's not possible. Wolves have gold eyes."

"Tell that to the three Alphas. They were there. They saw it."

I keep my head down. I eat my porridge. I pretend I don't hear.

No one suspects me. Why would they? I'm the useless orphan. The weak one. The omega who's never shifted.

But someone knows.

The note is tucked into my morning tea. A small slip of paper, folded neatly, hidden beneath the saucer. I almost miss it.

I unfold it with trembling fingers.

I saw you shift. I know what you are. Meet me tonight at the old bell tower, or I'll tell everyone.

My blood turns to ice.

I look around the dining hall, searching for anyone watching me. Garrick is at his usual table, surrounded by his crew. He's not looking at me. Merrick is reading a book, his expression blank. Stellan is staring out the window, lost in his own world.

None of them.

But someone.

I spend the rest of the day in a fog. Classes blur together. Teachers' voices fade into background noise. All I can think about is the note. The bell tower. The threat.

It's a trap. It has to be a trap.

But what choice do I have?

If I don't go, whoever sent this note will tell everyone. They'll expose me. The pack will know what I am. And then I'll be hunted. Experimented on. Killed. Whatever they do to wolves like me.

If I do go, I might walk into something worse.

But at least I'll know who I'm dealing with.

---

The old bell tower stands at the edge of the academy grounds. It's been abandoned for decades, its stone walls crumbling, its bells long since removed. Students say it's haunted. I've never believed in ghosts.

Tonight, I'm not so sure.

I climb the creaking stairs, my heart pounding with every step. The wind howls through the broken windows. Shadows dance in the corners of my vision.

At the top, someone is waiting.

A figure stands by the window, silhouetted against the moonlight. I can't see their face. I can't tell if they're male or female. All I know is that they're here. They knew I would come.

"Hello, Sable," the person says.

The voice is familiar. Too familiar.

The figure turns.

And I see who it is.

My blood runs cold.

"Hello, Sable. I've been watching you for a long time. And I finally understand what you are." A pause. "Do you want to know the truth about your mother?"