DA'S

freeze in my tracks a

s, boxes, blankets, and even kitchen ut

n the w

n her knees, sobbing. Max clung to her, his small frame trembling. Mia

ward. "Mom! Wh

rcers turned. "

d, breathless.

eta Nathan Porter. did not die in the ro

ncomprehend

d that day-the crushing grief, the hollow void it left in our lives. He'd

d been my rock through it all. Mom told me to hold my head high, that my father had di

true. if he was aliv

ward, shattering that fragile h

He fled the battlefield and j

ged first, hot and immediate. "Tha

"The Alpha has passed judgment. Former Beta or not, your father

ent?" I

ngs. "Your family is stripped of all privileges. Your Beta rank i

g too merciful. Traitors like you should be strip

o that! We're not traitors

always idolized. But a young girl was no match for a grown wolf. Without thinking

eamed.

toward me

le of blood from the corner of my mouth. "I'm okay,"

yes brimming with tears. She was never a girl who cried easi

smile. "Really

the officials. "How dare you treat children like this! The Al

th the Alpha?" the cruel one spat. "Stop stalling. If you're n

further. "It's no use. Arguing with them won't help. We ne

rating sound. "Now you're tal

ld, steady stare until he began to falter. "W

but clear. "But if the day ever comes when I prove my father's i

s hand as if to strike

"Don't waste your time on trash. The

n was complete, they sealed the

. Mom wept softly. Our lives w

y hands curling int

I would find the truth. I w

-

ling our meager belongings int

dow in the corridor was haphazardly patched with yellowing tape. Eyes followed us from cracked doorways-some held a flicker of pi

he stress had triggered her old ailment, and she curled in on herself with a soft, pained sound. Max

on the floor, her knees drawn to her chest. "We can't stay here,"

spacious bedroom, the bookshelf my father built, sunlit breakfast nooks-

her eyes. "Donovan will help us. You're his best frien

oy who used to wipe my tears and fight my battles now looked at me like I was something rotten. Maybe he'

est of them, born to look down f

ip tightening on my wrist. "You have to. As the

nd Max tried to tuck the thin blanket tighter around her. Pale moonlight filtered t

ceiling, at my mother's

dn't want to see him. I couldn't bear to wa

ks, stirring my mother's graying hair. I closed m

heard my

-

and pointed stares followed me the entire way, and I had to concentrate to keep my chin raised. The path was decorated wit

who'd shattered me on the field. Would he help at all? What if he refused? What

official start of my eighteenth birthday. The distant sounds of celebration felt li

forcing myself to remember my purpo

en I s

actured all

ped on his arm, laughing up at him as if they'd just left the dance floor. He leaned down, pressing a t

ery next second, his eyes snap

ething.

t-really his scent, deep and wild like a storm-lashed forest-wrapped around me. The rhythm of his heart

, a realization, torn from my

ng like a vice around my wrist. He dragged me into the shadowed alco

ord!" he snarled, his

ng in his eyes was a

for life was killi