Chapter 2

TWO YEARS LATER

“Dante!”

I looked up, still counting the reps the man beneath me, Arnold was lifting. 

“Yeah?” I called back, not moving my eyes from Arnold.

“Ten minutes till closing, you nearly finished?” 

Blaine was anxious to leave, being a Friday night and all. 

I eyed Arnold, whose face looked like it was going to burst. 

“That’s it, pal. Easy,” I gripped the bar, marveling at how weak humans were. I could lift this thing with my little finger, and I wasn’t the most powerful wolf in the world. 

“How is it so easy for you?” Gasped Arnold, sweat dripping into his bloodshot eyes. “I bust a guy five days outta seven in here, and you’re barely breaking a sweat.”

“Metabolism, good genes. Same time Monday?” 

Arnold threw a towel around his neck, his purple cheeks fading as he puffed. “If I don’t die of a heart attack.”

I cleaned down the equipment, tossing the wipes into the waste bin. 

Blaine was tapping away at his phone, his eyebrows furrowed. 

“You off out tonight?” 

“Yeah, gotta pick my stepsister up from some ballet class first,” he grumbled, lifting his eyes to mine. “You?”

“Nah. You go, I’ll lock up,” I offered.

“Nice one, bro. See you Monday,” Blaine grinned, his eyes locked back on his phone. 

I flicked the lights off, checking all the windows were secure, before wiping down all the equipment. 

After Arnold left, I hit the lights, cracking my neck from one side to the other when the fresh air hit me. 

I checked around me, heading to my bike, which shone in the moonlight like it was glowing just for me. 

“Hey, baby.” I stroked it, hooking my leg over. “We need to go for a ride.”

The engine purred beneath me as the wind whipped against my hair, and I realized I’d left my helmet at the gym. 

It’s not as if I need it. Ha. 

It would take a lot more than a bike crash to wipe me out. 

I rode away from the Seven Woods, traveling much further along the coast. I needed a run; my limbs were aching for it. I didn’t want to run into anyone from my old pack. I needed to put some mileage between us and head in the opposite direction. 

Miles was the next town along, and I knew there were no wolves there. Miles was classed as no man’s land, too small and insignificant for anyone to care enough to dwell there. 

I parked my bike beside a gate that led to the woods, dropping my backpack beside a tree. I glanced around, allowing the change to happen. 

My bones snapped as my skin stretched, the burning hot pain running through me as my wolf came forward, yawning. 

Time to run.

Once in wolf form, I felt alive. 

My wolf was sad and had been ever since we left Sasha, despite knowing we had no choice. I ran along the jagged coastline, glimpsing the ocean as the moon danced over it. 

Hey, girl. We heard you’ve been asking some questions about the old library. What business is it of yours?

My ears pricked up, and I stilled, not an easy feat when you’re doing sixty miles an hour. 

Please leave me alone!

Please, no!

Someone help me!

I hesitated, but not for long. 

The pleading voice belonged to a woman, and she was in need. The others were sickening, their words making my wolf bare his teeth. We weren’t violent, but we would never stand by why a woman’s attacked. 

Never. 

The twigs snapped beneath my feet, and the scent of blood reached my nostrils. 

I was close. 

Stay still bitch! 

Hold her arms! 

Fuck, bitch!

I pushed with everything I had, my wolf grinning at the thought of finding these bastards. The clearing appeared, and beyond that, I saw them. 

Three males surrounded a young girl, one holding her arms down at her sides, the other yanking at her jeans as she let out a bloodcurdling scream. 

I knew I was the only one that could hear her. 

Which only fuelled my wolf further. 

Smack. 

The girl’s head lolled to the side, but I could hear her breathing. 

I snapped my jaws, a snarl leaving my throat as the three men jumped back, their hands outstretched. 

“Dude… that’s a dog, what, are you scared? Kick it!” the biggest thug ordered, his eyes wide with fear. 

The other two moved back slowly, tongues licking trembling lips. The air was thick with fear, but now it was theirs. 

“Go on, Bill. You d-do it,” stammered the skinny one. 

“That’s not a fucking dog, man! That’s a…wolf!”

“Don’t be so stupid! Wolves live in the mountains!” 

I let out a growl, a deep one that echoed off the derelict buildings around us. 

“Run, man!” One cried out, but I had already leaped into the air. 

I wasn’t a killer. I didn’t have it in me. 

But they didn’t know that. 

I sank my teeth into the leg of the nearest guy, my wolf yelping with excitement as his blood flooded my mouth. 

I hadn’t had human blood in so long—only ever in battle—and that was long ago.

 The screams of the filth between my jaws made me release him, but not before my wolf snarled and growled, chasing them for sheer theatrics. 

I circled back to the girl on the floor, my snout nudging her chilly face. 

She was beautiful. 

I licked her cheek, and the taste of cherry candy and vanilla filled my mouth, overwhelming my senses. I nudged her again, licking her face as I whined in her ear. 

Leave her, commanded my wolf. 

I couldn’t. 

What if they come back?

The girl’s eyes flickered, her hand curling into my fur as she mumbled something incoherently. 

“Oh!” She gasped, her eyes widening as she scrambled backward, her hands slipping on the asphalt beneath her. 

My wolf smirked at me.

Now, will you leave? 

I bowed my head, letting the girl know I wouldn’t attack her. 

I moved away, heading to the woods. I was ready to change back into my human form, and I didn’t want her to see that. 

I didn’t make it far into the woods when it happened, and I stood completely naked. I tugged a backpack from behind a tree, heaving a sigh of relief.

You have to prepare for every eventuality, I’d discovered early on. Humans were curious creatures, and if they sniffed a mystery, they were there with their scientists and recording equipment. 

I tugged on a pair of joggers, reaching into my backpack, when I heard a twig snap behind me. My head twisted, my eyes narrowed. 

‘Who’s there?” I demanded, my voice still laced with a growl. 

Snap. 

The moonlight slipped through the trees, falling onto the leaves first, making them look alive. There was a flash of fire, but it was too vibrant to be anything Mother Nature had created. 

“Come out,” I said gently, as the air carried the scent over to me. 

Cherries and vanilla. 

She peered out from behind a tree, her slender fingers gripping the bark as her mouth came into view—a perfect ‘O’ shape. Her lips were the color of the summer sky at dawn, but the side of her mouth dripped with blood. 

“You’re…a….” she stammered, holding her head as she stumbled woozily. 

“Shit,” I hissed to myself, striding forward to catch her before she hit the floor. 

Her jeans were open, the button no longer there to hold them together. Her ripped shirt fluttered open, exposing a pale pink bra against her flawless ivory skin. I had no option but to carry her back to the gym while trying to come up with a story she might believe.