“We’ll have a rogue running freely in our territory—”
“Technically he won’t be a rogue,” I cut in. “He’ll be a wolf from Wolfsbane.”
“Not until he’s initiated!” Aiden grunted. “When he’s released, I don’t want you or Hannah in the woods by yourself. I don’t want you to go anywhere by yourself—”
“Aiden, that’s a bit ridiculous!” I told him. “He’s not going to do anything that would cost him his mate.”
Aiden said nothing as we exited the house and made our way to the field and I stared after him for a moment feeling completely flabbergasted. Why did he hate rogue wolves so much? He was happy to be allied with Alaska and they were built up from the backs of rogues… was Aiden so prejudice against a wolf that wasn’t in a pack? He was going to have to move on from this fast, especially since he was going to be working with that rogue. I was curious to lay eyes on him and see if he looked as terrifying as most rogues did.
Everyone was gathered in the field with expectant grins and Aiden visibly relaxed as we were surrounded by his friends. Trey was cracking his knuckles and winking at me, while Josh was stretching and flexing his biceps in front of Hannah, who was watching with a dazed look in her eyes.
“Alright,” Aiden clapped his hands together. “Same course as we’ve been practicing on, but obviously we all need new hiding positions. We’ll change positions throughout the course now as well; Evelyn can’t be expecting us because she’ll automatically start choosing how much strength she needs to face us.” Aiden turned to face me with a grin. “No magic either!”
“So unfair,” I muttered glumly.
“Okay we’re all going to hide, Evelyn, fifteen minutes and then I want you in those woods. Remember, take your time and think and don’t be scared about hurting us, alright?” Aiden squeezed my hand and brushed his lips across my forehead. “I love you.”
My cheeks warmed as he ran off with the boys and I faced the girls with a loud sigh. “This whole exercise is pointless.”
“I beg to differ,” Lucy scoffed. “You’ve made it further and further into the course the more you’ve done it. Think a little more positively Evie, you’ve been getting faster and stronger. Don’t limit yourself because you think you can only be great with your magic, okay?”
“Nice pep talk,” Grace slapped Lucy’s shoulder. “But she is right Evie, you can do this.”
“We’ll be cheering for you at the finish!” Hannah beamed at me. “Smash it!”
I nodded and swallowed the lump in my throat as I began stretching my limbs and praying that I didn’t break a leg out there. The best thing about doing this course was how clear my mind became of all the crap I had to put up with. I became so focused on what I had to do that I could hardly concentrate on anything else.
“It’s time Evelyn,” Lucy pulled out her stopwatch. “Let’s get moving.”
“Go Evie!” Grace cheered as I began to run.
“You’ve got this!” Hannah shouted after me.
Their clapping and cheering faded into nothing as I barreled straight into the thick of the forest crashing through branches and crunching through dried leaves on the floor. Breathing was the one thing I needed to focus on, I couldn’t afford to lose it and hyperventilate. If I focused on my breathing, then when one of the boys accosted me I’d still be able to think a little clearer.
I’d been jogging for about five minutes when I slowed to a walk to take a breath and gather myself. The adrenaline was rushing through me so quickly that I needed to regain control of myself. I stood still for a moment as I breathed in deeply and closed my eyes leaning over to rest my hands on my knees. No one had come at me yet and the not knowing of when they would made me extremely anxious.
Just as I was about to get up and moving again a sound caught my ears and I stilled as I listened. It was breathy as if someone was breathing right in my ear except no one was. The sound was coming from the left of me and I heard what sounded like feet shuffling…before they sprang into action and came all out running. I spun around to face my attacker and noted with surprise that Josh was still a fair way away from me…how had I heard him from that far away?
Before I could ponder too long on that, he sprang from tree to tree like an acrobat flying over me before landing on the ground breathing heavily. We wasted half a second before we flew at each other in the same moment. Bringing up my fist I thought I was going to hit him before he caught my arm and used my weight against me as he threw me down to the floor.
The air was knocked out of me and I wheezed loudly as I struggled to gain control of my breathing. Josh was on me in a second, pinning me to the floor as he aimed punches at my head, each one I managed to avoid before I hurriedly grabbed him by the neck and rolled my hips hoisting him up and over me. Scrambling quickly to my feet Josh was already on his, bringing up his fists.
One.
Two.
Three.
We ran at each other again and I brought up my elbow, enjoying the impact it made with his face and feeling brief satisfaction at his grunt before I brought it down hard on his back. Josh fell face first into the earth and I dove on him, wrapping my arms tightly around his neck. He would tap out; I was not going to be cut off this early. He put up a fair fight, but I had the upper hand on him and there was no way out for him. The moment he tapped I was off and running again, trying not to feel bad about his pained groans I left behind.
My legs felt stronger and I was running faster…I felt stronger all over and I felt like I could hear everything right now. When I found myself near the river I ran in the other direction keeping well away from the water. When we had first started training Trey had shoved me in not knowing how truly badly I couldn’t swim—he’d felt bad about it for a while.
Jumping on a giant root I aimed the distance between the river and dry land before I hurled my body across it, making sure I landed carefully as I rolled across the floor before springing up and continuing running. I knew Trey or Aiden had to be close to jumping out on me and as I ran I made sure to listen carefully, taking advantage of my newfound hearing.
On your left! A voice shrieked in my head and I had the air knocked out of me again when someone hit my side hard and dragged me down to the floor.
I felt my arm graze along the rough dirt and I hit the side of my cheek roughly on the ground and I tasted blood in my mouth after I accidently bit my tongue from the impact. Trying not to focus on all that pain at once I leapt to my feet and realized I couldn’t see anyone who had attacked me. The confusion stumped me as I limped forward trying to hear if anyone was still around.
What…
Strong arms suddenly squeezed hard around my middle sucking the air out of me and in shock I flailed my legs out in front of me and tore at the hands that belonged to Trey. Realizing I was being stupid I stiffened my right leg and hooked my left around the back of his before I grit my teeth and drew my head back, slamming it into Trey’s face.
“Fuck!” he cursed as he dropped me and I spun instantly and brought my leg up, kicking him in the upside of the head to finish the job.
I didn’t hang around to see if he was okay they’d all get angry if I did that, so I took to running again, although I had definitely pulled something in my leg, so I was half limping half running. They had upped the ante with how hard they came at me and I knew that would have been from Aiden’s instructions. It made me nervous to think of what I’d be faced with when he came after me.
He was the last person I had to make it through and the longer I ran the louder and closer the girl’s cheers became.
Look out!
The voice threw me just as Aiden appeared in front of me and his hand went straight for my throat. I could see his wolf battling with him to let me go and the way his eyes flickered from amber to brown I knew he was struggling to keep hold of me, but he had to. How was I ever going to learn if he got soft and let me go? It was always hard fighting against Aiden, it went against the grain of mates to be
aggressive to each other and having Aiden hand tightening on my throat sent bolts of panic through me.
I began clawing at his arm as all my training seemed to fly out of my head. I couldn’t focus on what I was supposed to do if I was ever faced with this situation.
“Think Evelyn!” Aiden growled at me. “Think or tap out!”
I didn’t want to tap out…I had come so close! My airways were tightening though and my vision began getting spotty as my face began to feel like it was burning. I wanted to scream in frustration as I tapped out on Aiden’s arm and he released me instantly. My throat burnt as I coughed violently and tried to suck in large amount of air as I rested weakly on my hands and knees.
“You need to stop seeing me as me when we’re training Evelyn,” Aiden told me as he rubbed my back.
“It’s hard!” I rasped as tears of frustration welled in my eyes.
“You did really well,” he told me as he helped me to my feet. “Your aim and quick thinking is really improving.”
“How did it go?” Lucy burst through the trees with Hannah and Lucy close on her feet. “Ugh, same spot again.”
Hannah shoved her before rolling her eyes. “I saw your fight with Josh Evie it was excellent!”
At the mention of the boys they walked in at the right moment with their injuries already healed. If it weren’t for the dried blood on their skin you’d think I hadn’t even managed to poke them with a stick. Josh gave me a thumbs up as Hannah began inspecting him and Trey cracked his neck with a smirk.
“Nice aim Evie,” he said. “I wouldn’t want to come up against her in an alley.”
“Time?” Aiden asked Lucy.
“Eighteen minutes and thirty—” Lucy stopped talking as she inhaled deeply and her eyes went amber instantly as her lip curled. “What is that?”
Everyone breathed in and follow suit cringing when the hint of Wolfsbane and wet dog mixed together hit my nose. It was sour and it didn’t belong…it was a rogue…what was it doing so close?
Aiden suddenly shoved me behind him when two people approached us. The woman had chocolate brown hair and pale skin. She was dressed in workout gear just like us and she had an intimidating form and she wore a lot of scars up and down her arms, claw marks mostly. I squinted at the man beside her. He was as tall and almost as pale as she was. His hair was a vibrant red and he had thick stubble around his cheek and chin.
“What is this Karla?” Aiden asked tersely as he tightened his grip on my arm.
“I’m going for a walk with my free mate,” she told him simply. “Your father said you were out here training.”
“Karla, I respect you and everything you have done for the pack…but this…” Aiden couldn’t finish his sentence and I looked back at the red-haired wolf, noting his intense blue-eyed stare on me. I frowned in confusion as I looked at him more closely before realization hit me like a ton of bricks…it couldn’t be.
The memory hit me as if it had only happened yesterday.
“Do you know if this border goes to an ally pack or neutral?” The pale red-haired man asked me, his eyes frantic as his wounds slowly healed before my eyes. I’m sure my reflection mirrored his and he stepped towards me, his arms outstretched. I stepped back and got ready to run. “Please!” He cried frantically. “They will kill me.”
My hands tremored nervously and I looked at where I was standing. If he went North he’d reach the Montana border, and Idaho were on neutral terms with them right now, however if they caught him…I grimaced. To the East was Wyoming but the packs main base was Casper so he had a better chance of sneaking through and then going South to unoccupied lands.
I hesitantly relayed the information and he nodded frantically as he listened. “Thank you. Thank you so much…” He squinted at me and I licked my dry lips nervously.
“Evelyn,” I uttered.
“Thank you, Evelyn. I’m Sam. I’m never going to forget this.”
I stepped out from behind Aiden as I shook my head in wonder.
“Sam?” I gasped.
Chapter Five
“Evelyn?” Sam’s voice held shock as he stared at me wide eyed. “You’re—you’re the Evelyn everyone talks about?”
“I guess so,” I murmured. “How are you here?”
“I was on the move again I guess,” he said. “I’ve been pack drifting…trying to settle somewhere. It hasn’t been easy let me tell you.”
“Idaho never caught up with you then?” I smiled.
“Thanks to you,” he grinned as he brought Karla forward. “This is the girl I was telling you about…I just didn’t think she’d be this Evelyn. Never in a million years! The girl I met that day in the forest was terrified of her own shadow. I did not think you and the famous Evelyn had anything in common.”
“It’s a small world,” Karla laughed. “I’ve seen Evelyn in action and let me tell you she doesn’t look afraid of her shadow anymore.”
“You know this rogue?” Aiden asked in a tone I couldn’t quite pick.
I bit my lip as I tugged at the end of my ponytail. “I helped him escape Idaho.”
There was a space of silence and I looked at Grace who shrugged while giving me discreet thumbs up. Aiden was the only person here who looked ready to burst into his wolf. He needed to get over this prejudice and quickly and stop piling all rogues into the same bad egg basket. Sam was a victim and a wolf that had been born into that life, he wasn’t some pack defect or exiled creature for crying out loud. He hadn’t chosen this life.
“Well the two of you would have a lot to catch up on I’m sure,” Karla said. “The Luna has invited us both to dinner tonight so I’m sure we’ll have plenty of time to regale that story—”
“She what?” Aiden asked through clenched teeth.
“Aiden,” I said softly as I put my hand on his back.
“Okay,” Grace piped up. “We all need to head back to the training hall…we’ll uh, see you at dinner.”
“Yeah,” Karla said airily before as she bowed her head in respect quickly, before dragging Sam away with her.
When they disappeared, silence surrounded all of us and I looked at Hannah who had an awful pinched look on her face as she glanced around at everyone else. Everyone knew Aiden’s stance on rogues and I wondered if it was ever going to be possible to convince him otherwise. Maybe he should speak to Alpha Hudson… it was a little frustrating that he could accept an alliance with Alaska, a pack that was built on the lives of rogues, but he couldn’t accept a wolf who’d had a much harder life than he’d ever had.
“So, Evie,” Trey started. “Yeah that was some great defensive attacking you had going there. I guess my only critique would be to focus less on panicking.”
“Yeah,” Lucy piped up. “That’s uh, where your only downfall is and probably why you struggle completing the course.”
“The day you make it past Aiden is the day no one will ever mess with you,” Hannah said with a genuine smile. “If you can get past hurting your mate then you can defend yourself against anyone.”
“Alright time to head back,” Grace announced as she grabbed my arm and began pulling me away. “Come on girls we still have training with Blair and if we’re late we’ll have our asses handed to us.”
I didn’t know if Aiden was following us or not, but he hadn’t said two words and it was making me uneasy. Grace was walking faster than usual and at the sound of ripping I looked over my shoulder to find Aiden launching himself into his wolf and taking off into the forest. Josh visibly sighed before taking off after him followed by an irritated looking Trey.
“Goddess,” Hannah muttered. “He really needs to stop being so prejudice.”
“Everyone has their flaws,” Lucy chided. “Aiden has always been a pack wolf and he always will be. He can’t wrap his head around the idea of rogues and I can relate. How many rogues a week does he fight when he’s on patrol? You can understand why he gets shitty about them.”
“He can’t treat them like they’re all
the same though,” Grace said. “He’ll never be a good Alpha if he see’s everyone the same.”
“I think it’s worse that you know him Evie,” Hannah murmured.
“Why?” I asked in shock.
“You’re his mate and male wolves are territorial. Aiden’s never had to worry about anyone sharing a history with you—”
I cut Grace off with a snort. “I don’t share a history. I met Sam for five seconds and pointed him in the safe direction, that’s it.” We kept walking and I mulled over Lucy’s words and knew she had some truth in there. I guess when you thought about it from that perspective it made sense why Aiden didn’t like rogues. He faced them constantly and not nice ones either. Sam wasn’t like that though and I knew that eventually Aiden would see that he would just need to be more open to it.
By the time we made it to the training hall they had already started the warm-up and Blair shot us all with a look of disapproval. We joined in quickly but I could feel heavy fatigue hitting me fast. I had thrown a lot of my energy into the course and I was not only exhausted, but I was starving, and it was becoming very obvious how slow I was this afternoon.
“Get a move on!” Blair roared into the room. “This is only the warm up!”
With that thought in mind I wondered if I could fake passing out to get out of this. My stomach was growling so loudly I thought it was going to tear open. Blair instructed us all to set up our weights as he began going through his file and I doubled over on my hands and knees as a wave of dizziness hit me hard.
Look alive Evelyn, the voice curled its way into my mind and I cringed. People are staring at you…do you want that attention?
“Evie, you alright?” Lucy asked as she dropped a stack of weights to the floor. “You look pale.”
“I’m fine,” I lied as I stood up. My head was swimming and the urge to throw up hit me hard. “I need some water.”
Stumbling over to the fountain I leant over and tried drinking only to miss the water altogether and fall sideways into the wall. I hit the floor with a clatter and I heard my name get called frantically as feet thundered over toward me. My head felt weighted and I put it between my knees as I tried to take clearing breaths. What was happening?
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