by Emilia Rose
I was doing the right thing. I was doing the right thing. I was doing the right thing.
My wolf might’ve wanted to stay, but I wanted to go. This was my dream.
At 11:50pm, Dad started snoring. I waited anxiously by my bedroom door, grasping the keychain in my hand. If anything would give me strength to fulfil my destiny, it would be Luna Raya.
After another two minutes, I took a deep breath and peeked my head out of the door. Mom and Dad’s door was closed, and I could hear Mom cursing the Moon Goddess for having a mate who snored louder than her father.
I doused myself in a foul-smelling perfume to hide my scent from the guards, tiptoed down the stairs, skipping the floorboards that creaked, then slipped out of the door. The moon glowed so brightly in the sky, its light filing through the tree leaves and hitting the forest floor. Wolves growled viciously in the distance—in the direction of the packhouse.
To the west, guards were doubled… so I decided to sneak out to the east. I hurried through the woods, being sure not to leave my scent on any trees or bushes.
There was an eerie sense of danger in the air. I gazed around, making sure every step was in the right direction—away from the danger and not toward it.
Another wolf growled, and I ducked behind a tree. This one was closer, and it sounded different from any growl I had heard. Rogues, maybe? Ryker had been looking for new recruits for a reason.
Either way, I had to be more careful. If anyone saw me, I would be screwed. They’d tell Alpha Roman that someone was sneaking outside of the borders. Roman would track my scent and drag me back to my room, if not lock me in the pack prison for leaving without permission for the second time.
When I thought nobody was around, I walked carefully and quietly through the woods toward the borders. Three guards walked tensely around, gazing everywhere as if they were looking for something. Or someone.
Nothing could ever go easily for me.
The numbers 11:58 glowed on my phone. I tapped my fingers on the screen, waiting anxiously for them to be relieved of their positions at 12am. There would be more of them, but they usually weren’t as on-guard at that time. I had tried and tested this multiple times, sneaking out and going to the Night Raider’s Café with Derek in high school. I just had to be quiet.
That’s when I’d take my chance and sprint off of the property. I didn’t want to keep Ryker waiting. Tonight was my only chance to prove myself.
After crouching down behind another tree, I pressed my lips together. 11:59pm.
I gazed through the woods, trying to find a hidden passageway, when I locked eyes with Ryker. Standing about two hundred yards off of our property, he was looking directly at me. Waiting for me to make a move. Assessing my actions.
Though Ryker stood close enough for his scent to be noticed, Lycans were known to have an abundance of abilities to hide themselves, like scent cloaking. He didn’t move, just leaned against a tree with a smirk on that gorgeous face, and I knew that this was my first test. I would either escape without being noticed or get caught by Roman.
At 12:00am, the guards didn’t move. They continued to walk alongside the borders, watching. Ryker gazed down at his wrist and tapped it, as if to say: it’s time.
Fuck it. I needed to get out of here. Now.
I stepped out from behind the tree, heard Roman’s voice, and scurried back into hiding. Damn it, Roman. What was he doing here out of all places? He should be at the packhouse or by my window. Not here. On the other side of his property. This wasn’t even along his running trail.
He stood in the clearing and talked to a guard; his muscles were swollen from running, sweat coated the back of his neck, blood dripped from his lips. Was he hurt? Did someone attack him?
My wolf growled inside of me.
“Any more rogues?” Roman asked the guard.
The guard shook his head. “No.”
Roman scanned the woods slowly, like he knew someone was out here, and paused when he looked in my direction. After lifting his nose to the air and inhaling deeply, he pressed his lips together.
I froze. He paused for a few moments, then finally turned back to the man. The guard walked off and Cayden walked up behind Roman. His hands were soaked in blood, almost more blood than Roman’s. “Is everyone okay?” Cayden asked Roman.
Roman nodded.
“Everyone?” Cayden asked.
Roman sighed loudly and ran a hand through his thick brown hair. “Yes, Isabella is at home, safe.” His jaw twitched, and I could tell he wanted to say more.
Cayden arched a brow. “And you’re upset about that?”
The moonlight bounced off Roman’s dark eyes. “No. She just seemed… different when she left. Didn’t even say bye to me.” Roman walked a few steps toward the packhouse, fist clenched by his side. “She likes the hospital.”
Thanks for making me feel worse about this.
“Isn’t that what you wanted?” Cayden asked.
Roman took a deep breath. “Yes, that’s what I wanted, but…”
“But?”
Roman growled. “But she’s fine with it!” He snapped, canines emerging from under his lips and nails lengthening into claws. “It doesn’t even faze her anymore. She’s not putting up a fight.”
I narrowed my eyes at him. Did he want me to put up a fight with him? Is that why he assigned me as a stupid nurse?
Cayden shook his head and walked toward the packhouse. “Why do you always find reasons to get pissed at her?” He turned around and walked backward, his arms outstretched. “You get mad that she hates the hospital. You get mad that she likes the hospital. Next you’ll be mad that she’s hot. It’s like you find reasons to confront her.”
Roman growled and bared his teeth at his beta, but Cayden didn’t back down. “You wanted her at the hospital. She’s at the hospital. Maybe you should leave her alone.”
Thank you, Cayden. Someone was actually talking some sense into him for once. Maybe he would listen. Maybe he would leave me alone.
No. We don’t want that.
Roman clenched his jaw and stormed toward him. “I did what I had to do.”
Cayden snorted. “You had to assign our best warrior to the hospital.” He nodded. “Makes sense.”
Roman snatched him by the collar and shoved him against a tree. After whispering something quietly to him, in that threatening alpha tone, he stormed away. I clutched my keychain to my chest. Something wasn’t right, but I didn’t have time to deal with it right now.
When they had departed from the forest and the other warrior wolves were taking their posts, I took a deep breath and bolted toward Ryker—staying quiet and out of sight.
Chapter 20
Isabella
After almost an hour of running, Ryker and I approached Lycan territory. The trees were bent in every direction, not one of them standing straight, roots crawled along the forest floor, and eerie fog laid heavy around us.
Ryker shifted into his human and handed me some clothes that were hidden inside a tree stump. I pulled the shirt over my head and followed him through the fog, listening to the hoots and howls deeper in the woods.
When the trees cleared and the fog suddenly dissipated, I gaped at the hundreds—if not thousands—of houses built into the mountainside. We stood atop a mountain with the community of Lycans below us. Though it was 1am, every cabin had a light on. At the very bottom was a plateau where Lycans were training in an open field that stretched on for miles.
The grandest home was near the bottom of the hill. White brick, towering windows, and firewood stacked along its side; the view was more amazing than anything I had ever seen.
A bonfire was lit in front of the cabin, and some warriors sat around it. Each one had scars, Moonflower tattoos, and a look in his eyes that promised me death if I got on their bad side.
My heart pounded against my chest, just taking in everything. Though any other wolf would’ve been terrified by the Lycans, I was excited. So damn excited.
Ryker led me to the fire. As we passed the Lycans, they gazed at me, some looking like they wanted to kill, others giving me that oh-so-seductive stare that Roman always gave me.
It felt weird to have that attention from them instead of Roman. Sure, they were hot and were infamous for their feral manners in bed, for both fucking and loving with so much passion because they didn’t know if they’d survive the next day with all the rogues and terror they faced. But it wasn’t Roman.
I sat down on a log near the fire, letting it warm my face, and Ryker sat next to me. Though I didn’t mind those seductive looks and though I wanted to love with as much passion as the next Lycan, my mind kept wandering back to Roman.
His stupid lopsided grin. That stupid glow in his eyes. The stupid way I felt when I was with him. I didn’t want to think about how I lied to him so easily or how this wasn’t some white lie. This was the lie. The lie that would destroy any type of relationship that I had with him. The lie that would pluck me right out of my dreaded hospital life. The lie that would make me.
Ryker placed his forearms on his knees and leaned closer to me. “These are my warriors. We usually hunt at night, which is when rogues are most active. As you can see, we like to train in the type of environment that we fight in.” He smiled at me and placed a hand on my knee. “Follow me. We will watch practice.”
We walked toward the open field where warriors were stretching. When they saw Ryker, they bowed their heads, as if he were their alpha. We stood at the edge of the field, gaze shifting and analyzing the Lycans as they fought against each other. Muscle against muscle. Brain against brain. Heart against heart.
“Raj,” he said to a man, arms crossed. “You’re not finishing through with your throw.”
Raj gazed at me, pushing a hand through his strong black hair, and winked. “I always finish,” he said, a slight accent in his voice.
“Finish the throw,” Ryker said, a familiar authority aura to him. I looked at him to see his jaw clenched just slightly. He reminded me of Roman. “I bet Isabella would finish the throw on you.”
“Me?” I said with wide eyes.
His eyes glowed like the moon. “If you don’t want to fight tonight, I can—”
“No!” I jogged over to Raj. “I want to fight.” I was born to fight.
Raj gestured down to his body. “I don’t know if you want a piece of—”
I grabbed his wrist in one hand, turned on my heel, pushing my hips in front of his, and tossed him over my shoulder, completing one of the hundreds of judo throws I had memorized over the last ten years.
He landed on the dirt with a hard thud, then hopped up. “Okay then, she’s good.”
Ryker smirked, fingers brushing against his stubble. “I know.”
Raj shook out his arms and leaned down into a fighting stance. “Well, get ready, Killer. You haven’t seen anything yet.”
Punches, kicks, takedowns, and throws—he tried them all on me. Landing about half of his moves, he came at me for almost an hour, giving me everything that he had.
Training with Cayden made me aware of my weaknesses and had prepared me for this moment. Every night after tryouts, I analyzed the positions I had gotten myself into and understood how to get out of them. I was ready for anything he could throw at me.
For the rest of the night, Ryker watched me and nodded in approval when I took Raj to the ground. It felt good to have someone to believe in me and to think I was as good as these Lycans.
Every time I caught him staring, I pushed myself harder. This was my only chance to impress him, and I wasn’t going to give it up.
After practice, I sat on the ground, leaning back onto my hands and breathing deeply. Sweat dripped down my forehead, rolled down my neck, drenched my shirt. Everyone walked back to their homes up the mountain.
Ryker gazed down at me and took off his shirt, his muscles flexing. Scars were etched into his taut chest, tattoos covered his forearms, the light from the bonfire bounced off of his body so damn perfectly. “You ready?”
“Ready for what?” I asked, standing.
He cocked a smirk. “For me.” He lowered into a fighting stance. “Did you hope that you were done?”
I smiled at him, butterflies in my stomach. “Never,” I said, imitating his stance. Roman never fought against me, wouldn’t even think about it. He never gave me a chance, but Ryker did.
Unlike with Raj, I couldn’t keep up with Ryker. He would fake me out with one move, then switch to another one. Fake a takedown, finish a leg-pick. Fake a jab-cross combination, land a kick to the side.
Adrenaline pumped through my system. Pure excitement. Pure exhilaration. Pure power.
Ryker shot in for a takedown, grabbed my wrist instead, and threw me over his hip. I landed on the ground—hard—and he landed on top of me. His body on mine, his chest against my breasts, his lips near my neck. I took a deep breath.
After a couple long moments, he hopped up and pulled me off of the ground. “Let’s get you cleaned up before the run back to your pack.” He tossed his shirt over his shoulder, leading me toward the packhouse. “You did good today.”
“Just good?” I asked, brows furrowing together.
“Yes,” he said. “Just good.” He opened the door to the packhouse for me. “You shouldn’t expect me to compliment you or go easy on you when you begin with us.”
I smiled, stomach filling with excitement. “When I begin with you?”
“Isabella,” he said, giving me a breathtaking smile. “You’re going to be a Lycan.”
Chapter 21
Isabella
I walked through the hospital, clipboard in one hand and Mr. Beck’s blood samples in another. My thoughts hadn’t stopped racing since this morning.
After Ryker told me I was going to be a Lycan, I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him into a tight hug. I couldn’t fucking believe that any of this was happening. All of my life I trained for this moment, and I thought Roman had taken this opportunity away from me. But now, I was going to be one of the most respected warriors—ever. A goddamn Lycan!
After placing the blood sample in a cart to be examined by Dr. Jakkobs, I skipped back to Mr. Beck’s room with a big smile on my face. Instead of sitting in his room where I left him, he had rolled all the way to the end of the hallway. He sat in his wheelchair, swaying back and forth and staring out the window at the cardinals.
“You should break me out of here,” he said. “I need to get those whipper-snappers in shape.”
I raised a brow at him. “Whipper-snappers?”
“Those warriors. I seen them run past here every morning… Back in my day, we’d be running for hours, not just one time around the property.”
Oh, Moon Goddess. Here we go with another one of his stories.
He turned to me. “I bet Roman’s training you real good.” He elbowed me and gave me a toothless grin. “You know what I mean.”
“I told you I’m not a warrior,” I said. If I was, I wouldn’t be here with him.
He slapped the armrest on his wheelchair and burst out in chuckles. “I ain’t talking about fightin’. I’m talking in the bedroom.”
I blinked a few times. Did he just… did he just really say… “Mr. Beck, we’re not—”
Suddenly, he stopped laughing and looked at me with a serious expression. “Isabella.”
My brows furrowed together, taking his hand in mine. “What’s wrong? Does anything hurt? Are you okay?”
“He’s here.”
“Who’s here?”
“Isabella,” Roman said, walking through the front doors of the hospital with a to-die-for smile on his face. Mr. Beck burst out in laughter again, and I silently cursed at him for nearly giving me a heart attack.
Roman walked all the way toward me, eyes landing on my chin, and furrowed his eyebrows. “What happened to you?”
I arched a brow. “What?”
“You look… tired, hurt? What happened?” His soft eyes searched mi
ne.
I pulled away from him, Mr. Beck’s laughter still sharp in my ear, and gazed down at the clipboard, pretending to be busy. “Nothing happened. I slept fine last night without you barging in like usual.”
He growled and grabbed my face in his hand, tilting it to the side. “Why is there a bruise on your jaw?”
Almost immediately, I placed a hand over the bruise, wanting to cover it, if there was one. It ached slightly, but not enough for me to have noticed it this morning. And I got back so late that I didn’t even bothering looking in the mirror before I had to rush out. Ryker must’ve given it to me.
I pulled myself away from him and leaned close. “I don’t know. Maybe you gave it to me at the party,” I whisper-yelled so Mr. Beck wouldn’t hear. He was hard of hearing… hopefully.
“It’s not a hickey,” Roman said, black specks appearing in his golden eyes. “What did you do?”
“I didn’t do anything.”
He stepped closer to me, eyes intensifying. “What did you do, Isabella?”
I pressed my lips together. “Why don’t you ever believe me?”
He stepped even closer, and I pulled the papers to my chest and stepped back, afraid that he would see right through me. “What happened?”
“Nothing.”
“Did you go out last night and kill a rogue?”
“Alpha Roman let a rogue on his property?” I asked, faking surprise.
He shoved me against the wall, clenching my jaw in his hand. “Don’t play stupid.” His lips brushed against my ear. “I smelt you out in those woods this morning when I was training with the warriors.” His fingers dug into my skin. “Now, what were you doing?”
I clenched my jaw. He wasn’t going to let this go. “Like I said before… nothing.”
When his eyes turned pure black, he growled. “All I want is to keep people in this pack safe, but you are set on putting yourself in danger.”
I growled in return, pushing him off of me and stepping forward. “I can take care of myself. I’m strong. I’m smart. And…” I crossed my arms. “I think you’re intimidated by me.”
