Present Day
I wake up startled and panting as the memories of my first shift start to slowly fade to the back of my mind.
‘What the fuck was that?’ Enyo asks.
‘That would be a nightmare, Enyo,’ I say as I breathe deeply, trying to calm my pounding heart. I wipe my forehead, and my whole body is covered in a layer of sweat as I remember the pain from that night.
‘No shit, sherlock,’ she says sarcastically, rolling her eyes. ‘Why are you dreaming of our first shift? That needs to be locked away and never thought of again.’
‘It wasn’t all bad. Our first run was fun,’ I say as I get up out of bed to pee.
‘Okay, so remember that part and forget the rest,’ she demands.
It’s my turn to roll my eyes. ‘Like it’s that easy,’ I huff.
‘Whatever. Happy Birthday, by the way.’ I stop washing my hands and look up into the mirror, my green eyes changing to blue as Enyo pushes forward. ‘Do you think we’ll find our mate straight away?’ She asks excitedly.
‘We don’t have time for a mate,’ I sigh and go back to washing my hands.
‘You’re eighteen now, Athena. We can find our mate and settle down. Isn’t that the dream?’
‘That’s your dream. You know what my dream is,’ I say sternly, getting angry.
‘Yeah, yeah. I miss Dad too. But there’s more to life than just tracking down his killer,’ Enyo says softly.
Rage washes over me, and I feel myself shifting. I take a deep breath and try to calm down. “Nothing is more important than finding those responsible for killing Dad,” I growl.
‘Just shift already! We haven’t been for a run in weeks,’ Enyo whines, trying to force the shift.
I grip the bathroom counter, trying to keep control. ‘You’re not helping Enyo,’ I say and look into the mirror, her eyes blazing back at me. ‘We’re among humans. You know we can’t expose ourselves,’ I say. She whimpers, pulling back begrudgingly and settles in the back of my mind.
‘Thank you,’ I sigh as my eyes turn back to their usual emerald green. I splash some cool water on my face and look at myself in the mirror again. Flashbacks of the day my father was killed fill my mind. I can’t believe he’s been gone for two years. As tears form in my eyes, I sigh and shake my head, clearing the images from my mind. I put my ash brown hair up in a tight ponytail and run a quick shower to wash the sweat from our dream away. When I get out, I quickly dry off, apply some mascara, then walk back into the room, pick up my suitcase from the floor, and place it on the bed. Rummaging through it, I grab a pair of black skinny jeans and a black turtleneck and get dressed.
Just as I finish tying the laces of my hiking boots, my phone rings. Looking at the screen, I see my mom’s face and I sigh. “I’m sorry, Mom, I just can’t talk to you right now.” Rejecting the call, I put my phone into the pocket of my jacket, put it on, and zip it up. I grab the motel key, car keys, and wallet and head out the door, locking it behind me.
I head over to my truck and get in, start her up and turn on the heater, wishing it was already warm. ‘Goddess, it’s cold today,’ I think as I shiver. While I wait for the truck to heat up, I pull my phone out of my coat pocket, find the address I saved in my notes yesterday, and enter it into the GPS.
‘Why are we going to see this old hunter? He’s not going to know anything, and even if he does, why would he tell us? If we die today, I’m gonna be furious,’ Enyo says angrily, not happy with today’s plan.
‘Stop being dramatic, Enyo. Derek said he knows what pack attacked us.’
‘Derek doesn’t know his ass from his elbow,’ she snorts. ‘How do you know this isn’t a trap?’ She asks.
‘Why would he do that? We pay him for information, and he hasn’t steered us wrong before,’ I say as I hold my hands up in front of the heater vent.
‘He hasn’t “steered” us anywhere,’ she says sarcastically. ‘Every bit of information he’s given us has been a dead end, and we’re no closer to the truth. He has not found a single lead on what happened that day. He’s just taking our money,’ she grumbles.
‘We’ll see,’ I say as I put the truck into drive and pull out of the motel parking lot.
I head north through town, following the GPS towards Bill Stokes ranch. I sigh as I drive along. I really hate the city. I feel claustrophobic not being in the open space of the countryside. I’ve spent the last five months travelling around and speaking to neighboring packs, trying to find information about the attack on my pack, but no one could give me any information. So, I’ve been here for 3 weeks now working with a private investigator, Derek Williams, and this is the first lead he has found.
#
After being stuck in traffic for 20 minutes, we finally get out of the city and onto the open country road, and I feel like I can breathe again. As we drive along, I look out the windscreen, admiring the glistening snow that’s covering everything as far as the eye can see. My heart clenches as I think about the last time we shifted and went running in the snow. Enyo is right. We really need to shift.
#
Another 20 minutes later, we finally come across the Stokes ranch. Pulling off the road, I stop at the small gate, and I get out and try to open the gate to drive through it, but it’s padlocked with a chain wrapped around it. I glance around to make sure no cars are coming, then I take the padlock and twist it and break it in my hand. I pull the chain off and drop it on the ground and open the gate.
I get back in my truck and drive through the gate and down the dirt road. There’s no livestock in the paddock that I can see, and there’s broken, rusted fences along the road. It looks like Bill Stokes has gotten too old to keep up with the maintenance of his property. After a few minutes, I come upon a clump of enormous trees that begin to shade the road and darken the surrounding area with their dense tangle of branches and foliage. Then, after a few more moments, they open to surround a beautiful modern two-story ranch-style house. With glass windows from floor to ceiling on the left-hand side of the house, you can see a nice sitting area through the windows. I drive around the circular driveway and park near the front door. I look up at the house through the truck windscreen. It doesn’t look like anyone’s home.
I take a deep breath to steady my nerves and open the truck door. I step out but instantly freeze when I hear someone yell out, “STOP RIGHT THERE!” and the pump of a shotgun.
“Fuck.”
‘Is now a good time to say I told you so?’ Enyo asks, her hackles raised. ‘Not helpful,’ I tell her, my heart hammering in my chest as I turn slowly to face the house, finding an old man standing at the front door with a pump-action shotgun aimed at us. “Mr Stokes?” I call out, “My name is Athena Argos. I’m just here to talk to you.” “I know who you are, mutt. And you’re not welcome here,” he says coldly. “How did you even find me?” “Derek Williams gave me your address,” I say calmly, and the old man looks surprised by that. I raise my hands above my head and step around the front of the truck. “Mr Stokes, if you know who I am, then can you please tell me what you know about what happened to my pack? Derek said that you might be able to help me.” He studies me for a moment before responding. “Arrogant, little she-wolf. Just like that Alpha of yours,” he says as he spits on the ground. “Niko thought he was above it all. But we showed him,” he says as a cruel grin spreads across hi
‘Athena, it’s been two hours, and he still hasn’t called back. We need to get into his office and see if there is anything in there we can use,’ Enyo nags me. ‘I’ve left him voicemails. He’ll call back soon. He always does.’ ‘Athena, get the hint. He is not calling you back. So, let’s go around to the back door of his office and see if we can get in.’ I cave and get out of the truck and go around to the back of the building. I find the back door to Derek’s office and try the door handle. ‘It’s locked, just like the main door. What now?’ I ask Enyo. ‘Do I really need to answer that? Break it down!’ I take a step back and kick the door in, and I walk into Derek’s office, but stop immediately. The whole place is empty, besides Derek’s desk, a coffee table and filing cabinet. “What the fuck?” I say, surprised. I take a few more steps into the room to look around. Every drawer of the filing cabinet in the corner is completely open, and there are random pieces of paper spilled on t
3 weeks later I slam my fist down on the table in the motel room. “This is useless. We’ve visited five different packs, and no one will talk to us,” I say, frustrated and tired. ‘You can’t really blame them. From the little we have found out, what happened is a tragedy.’ “Well, someone needs to talk. How are we supposed to find out who did this if they refuse to talk about it?” ‘Who are we meeting with today?’ Enyo asks as I stand up and pack my things into my backpack, getting ready to leave. “The Moonstone pack. Let’s hope they’re willing to talk,” I say as I pick up my backpack, leave the motel room, and head to the truck and get in. I throw my gear onto the seat, start the truck, and head towards the Moonstone territory. # I travel south along the old highway until I finally come across the turnoff we need. I pull onto the old dirt road and find an SUV parked on the side of the road. The young guy standing near the vehicle waves me down, so I pull over and wind my window d
2 years ago ‘Let’s go down to the lake,’ Enyo suggests. ‘That training kicked both our asses.’ “Dad! We’re gonna go down to the lake for a swim. I’ll see you later!” I yell to Dad, who is training with some young pups. “Okay, sweet pea, I’ll see you for the afternoon run,” he yells back. I run into the tree line and strip down, putting my clothes in the small tool shed we use to store our things when we shift so we don’t shred our clothes. We quickly shift, and I let Enyo take control. She’s so graceful, considering her size. We run through the forest at full speed with little effort. Then, in no time at all, we’re jumping into the cool water of the lake. Enyo swims to the edge of the lake, and we shift. I dive back into the water, and I float on my back, enjoying the cool of the water and the sun shining down on us. ‘Do you think the training is going okay with the pups?’ Enyo asks. ‘If Dad needed us, he would have said so.’ ‘I know, but he seems to be slowing down a bit
Present Day I wake up to my stomach grumbling. It’s dark out, so I lean over and grab my backpack and get my phone out. Goddess, it’s 3am. I’ve slept for hours. I get up to pee, finding the ensuite on the other side of the room. When I’m done, I go to the sink and wash my hands as I look at myself in the mirror. My eyes are puffy and red from crying, the remnants of the nightmare still lingering in my mind. In the mirror behind me, I notice an oversized shower with various jets and decide to take a shower. I grab a towel from the cupboard near the sink, undress, and turn the water on as hot as I can stand. Water shoots out of the jets in all directions and standing beneath them feels like heaven. I wash my long auburn hair and feel slightly better afterwards. When I’m finished, I exit the shower, wrap myself in the large fluffy towel, and return to my room. I unpack my backpack and find the extra clothes at the bottom. I put on my workout shorts and top, my runners, and head downstai
Sitting on the long metal bench in the change room after getting dressed, I take a deep breath. I don’t know what has gotten into Enyo. She’s always been aggressive, but her aggression seems to be getting worse. I lean over to the cupboard where spare sneakers are and put them on, then take another deep breath to calm myself down. I’m about to leave the locker room when the door swings open, and Catherine walks in with two other women. They walk over to the corner of the room, and I can hear them snickering and looking in my direction. I ignore them, open the door, step out, and find my way back to the gym. When I get there, I see Alpha Peter and Beta Jason in the middle of the room, talking to an older guy. Alpha Peter stops talking when he sees me approaching and crosses his arms across his chest. I bow my head as a sign of submission and stand in front of the three men. “Athena, I’d like to introduce you to our pack doctor, Doctor Shields,” Beta Jason says. Doctor Shields holds
I slump back in the seat. This is too much. “I don’t understand any of this,” I say. “We all have the same marking?” “Yes, and all of them are in the same place. We think this mark shows that you’ve been blessed by the Moon Goddess. Apart from your eyes, this shows that you’re a chosen lycan,” Luna Rachel says. “Chosen for what? Why would I, or any of the others, be chosen or blessed by the Moon Goddess?” “We don’t know why you’ve been chosen, Athena. At the end of the day, what matters is finding those responsible for the attacks, and that will hopefully get us to the bottom of this,” Alpha Peter says. “But how?” I ask. “I have no idea where I’m supposed to go from here.” “I contacted Nicholas Teresi this morning and asked him to come down. He should be here tomorrow,” Doctor Shields says. “What? I didn’t ask you to do that,” Alpha Peter says. “I thought it could be helpful to get them together, Alpha. To see if they can help each other,” Doctor Shields says. Alpha Peter
I pack the last of my clothes into my suitcase while Beta Jason is on the phone with Alpha Peter. “Yeah. Room 12. Mhm. Yes, Alpha. We’ll wait here until they arrive. Thanks,” he says and ends the call. “Alpha is sending a group of warriors to escort us back to the compound. They’ll be here in about an hour,” he tells me. I nod as I head into the bathroom to grab my toiletries and makeup, packing them into a small bag. Then I turn to leave and crash straight into Beta Jason. “Shit, sorry,” he says, rubbing the back of his neck. “I was coming to see if you needed any help.” “Oh, I’m nearly done,” I smile awkwardly. “Thanks though, Beta.” “You can call me Jason,” he says as he moves to the side, my breasts rubbing against his chest as I move past him into the room. I feel his eyes on me as I get the last of my things from around the room and pack them in my suitcase. I turn and look at him, my heart rate picking up as we stare at each other. ‘Today has been a whirlwind of emotio