One Fateful Night

The following day, I snapped up in fear; I must have fallen asleep the night before. Opening my eyes was challenging since they were red and puffy from crying myself to sleep. I finally managed to get them open and decided to give Garnet some needed time out and give myself a needed break. Stripping my clothes off, I folded them, placed them in my bag, and shifted. Garnet began heading south, continuing in that direction until she smelled a rabbit lunch. Killing her prey quickly, she ate and allowed me to take her back over so we could continue our journey. We continued running until we found a clearing in the woods, which was an excellent place to take a break. Shifting back and dressing quickly, dusk was soon upon us. I placed my bag at my feet when I heard footsteps approaching me from behind. I turned around and locked eyes with four men glaring at me. I crossed my arms, and we stared at each other in a standoff until the silence finally broke.

“What are you doing here, Rogue?”

I quickly gained my nerve and glared at him. “Who are you calling a Rogue?” Once the last word was out of my mouth, he stormed up and tried to punch me. I immediately dodged and sent a roundhouse kick to his side, hearing his ribs cracking; I knew I had to act quickly. I attempted to follow up with a right hook that I managed to land on his jaw, followed by a loud snap as his jaw broke. As I tried to regain footing, a needle was jammed into my neck. “Well... shit,” I mutter as the wolfsbane concoction slowly causes me to crumple into the ground.

“Take her to the dungeon.” These were the last words I heard as I blacked out.

Waking up to a dark, stinky dungeon couldn’t get much worse. But of course, it did get worse with my luck, as I woke up to a dark, stinky, wet dungeon with silver cuffs on my wrists and ankles. I threw a defeated laugh as I thought that this time yesterday, I was happy in my pack and the vast difference 24 hours can make. Scenes from the party and the strange turn it took at the end crossed my head. Sadness overwhelmed me as I thought back to Matthews’s confession and then all of the bodies of my pack mates I woke up to. My pity party was soon disturbed by the click of keys in the door. I looked up and saw a man walking into the room. He was tall with a super-hot body. His brown eyes looked at me with a hint of power and annoyance, projecting that this was not the time or place to get cocky.

“My name is Alpha Alexander; I’m the leader of the Night Howlers Pack. What is your name, and why are you on my land, Rogue?” Glaring daggers at him, I felt my heart speed up, and my body tensed up as he was affiliating me with the group that destroyed my life.

“I AM NOT A ROGUE!” I screamed at him. “My name is Emily Thompson. I’m a tracker from the Blood Moon Pack” I took a deep breath and relaxed a bit as he replied.

“Any relation to the Beta Ben Thompson?”

I nodded, “he is my father.” He continued to stare at me, processing the information.

“Why are you so far from home and a Rogue?”

I took a deep breath and began to explain the events that changed my life. Starting with the party, my interaction with Matthew causing me to leave, my running back into the middle of a war, and I couldn’t find any survivors. I then explained that I was traveling south to find my Uncle John’s Pack. He nodded in acceptance of my tale and just left the room. I just shrunk back against the wall and closed my eyes. A short while later, I was startled from my nap by the sounds of keys in the door and my name being screamed. Coming into view, I recognized the man looking over me with remorse and pity.

“Get these cuffs off of her NOW!” my uncle demanded.

“Yes, Beta,” my guard quickly came over and removed the cuffs and ankle braces. I jumped up to the waiting arms of my uncle as I cried again.

“I’m so sorry you had to go through this, Princess. I’m here for you.” He hugged me a while longer and finally released his grip. “When you are ready, the Alpha wants to talk to us.