Adriel's POV
I ran to the human world, confused and heartbroken.
Not with purpose. Not with direction.
I ran because stopping meant feeling everything and I wasn't ready to break yet.
Branches tore at my skin as I tore through the forest, roots snagging my feet, thorns clawing at my clothes. My lungs burned, each breath sharp and ragged, but I didn't slow. Pain was easier than memory. Fear was easier than grief.
Behind me lay the pack lands.
Behind me lay my death.
The night was thick and restless, alive with sounds that made my wolf bristle. Every snapped twig felt like pursuit. Every shadow looked like a hunter. My heart pounded violently in my chest, half terror, half fury.
Run, my wolf urged.
Survive.
I didn't know how long I ran—only that my legs eventually gave out.
I stumbled into a clearing and collapsed to my knees, palms sinking into damp earth. My body shook uncontrollably as sobs finally tore free, raw and broken.
I pressed my forehead to the ground.
This wasn't how my life was supposed to be.
I had imagined my mating ceremony a thousand times. The moon is glowing softly. The bond hums warm and steady. Belonging.
Instead, I had been stripped of everything in front of everyone I had ever known.
Rejected.
Shunned.
Erased.
Alex's face rose in my mind without mercy—cold eyes, rigid posture, the way he hadn't even fought for me.
Yes.
The word echoed again, cruel and final.
A sound clawed its way out of my chest, half sob, half snarl. My wolf surged, pushing against my skin, desperate for release. For a moment, I might shift right there, bones breaking, fur spilling free.
But I stopped myself.
If I shifted, I would leave tracks.
And if I left tracks, they would find me.
I forced myself back to my feet and kept moving.
The forest thinned as dawn crept closer, the sky bleeding from black to bruised purple. My body ached, exhaustion dragging at me, but something new pulled me forward—something unfamiliar.
The boundary.
I felt it before I saw it.
The air changed, magic thinning, the pull of the pack land weakening until it was nothing more than a dull echo. My steps slowed as I reached the edge of the trees.
Beyond them lay a narrow road.
Asphalt.
Metal signs.
The human world.
I stared at it like it was another realm entirely.
I had been taught to fear this place. Humans were fragile. Dangerous in numbers. Ignorant of our laws. The elders warned us never to cross over unless sent on official business.
If you leave, they used to say, you may never come back.
I laughed softly.
There was nothing left to return to.
With one last glance at the forest, I stepped onto the road.
The sensation was strange—like shedding a skin. The magic around me dulled, my senses dimming just slightly. My hearing wasn't as sharp. The scents blurred together.
But the pain in my chest eased.
Not gone.
Just quieter.
I walked until my legs trembled again, until the sun was fully risen and cars began to pass me by. Humans stared openly now—some curious, some wary. I must have looked wild, hair tangled, dress torn, bare feet dirty and bleeding.
A woman slowed her car, rolling down the window. "Miss? Are you okay?"
I stepped back instinctively, heart racing.
She frowned. "Do you need help?"
The kindness in her voice nearly broke me.
"No," I said quickly. "I'm fine."
The word tasted like a lie.
She hesitated, then drove off.
I didn't blame her.
By the time I reached the city, my body was numb with exhaustion. Buildings towered above me, cold and unyielding. Noise crashed over me in waves—voices, horns, footsteps, life moving too fast and too loud.
I pressed my hands to my ears, dizzy.
This world didn't feel me.
Didn't see me.
Didn't care.
I sank against the side of an alley, hugging my knees to my chest as the weight of everything finally crushed me. Tears spilled freely now, unstoppable.
I had no pack.
No mate.
No home.
I didn't even know who I was supposed to be without them.
Weak.
Abomination.
Mistake.
The words followed me across worlds.
A sharp pain flared in my chest, sudden and intense. I gasped, fingers clutching my shirt as heat spread through my veins. For a terrifying moment, I thought the bond was tearing open again but this felt different.
Stronger.
Unfamiliar.
The alley lights flickered.
I sucked in a breath, panic rising. "No," I whispered. "Not now. Please."
The sensation faded as quickly as it came, leaving me trembling.
I stayed there until night fell.
When I finally stood, hunger gnawed at me, sharp and relentless. I had no money, no identification, no idea how this world worked beyond the basics. Every instinct screamed at me to hide.
So I did.
I found shelter where I could—abandoned stairwells, quiet parks, the shadows between buildings. I learned quickly how invisible humans could make you if you looked poor enough, broken enough.
Days blurred together.
At night, I dreamed of the pack.
Of the moon.
Of Alex standing just out of reach, his face twisted with regret—or fury—I couldn't tell which.
I woke each time with my heart racing, my pillow damp with tears.
On the fourth night, everything changed.
I was cutting through a quiet street, head down, when I heard it.
A shout.
Then another.
Fear sharpened my senses instantly.
I ducked behind a parked car, peering out just as three men cornered someone near the entrance of a building. A tall man in an expensive coat stood rigid, hands raised slightly.
"Wallet," one of the men snarled. "Phone. Now."
Something in me snapped.
I didn't think.
I didn't plan.
I moved.
My body surged forward, faster than any human eye could track. I grabbed the first man and slammed him into the wall, strength pouring through me like fire. The second lunged, knife flashing—but I twisted, disarming him with ease.
The third ran.
The man they had cornered stared at me in shock, chest heaving. His dark eyes met mine, sharp and assessing.
"Are you hurt?" I asked, my voice steady despite my racing heart.
He shook his head slowly. "No. But you...what the hell was that?"
I looked down at my hands, trembling slightly.
I had done that.
Without shifting.
Without calling my wolf.
Power hummed beneath my skin, alive and waiting.
"I'm fine," I said quickly, stepping back. "You should go."
He studied me for a long moment, something like fascination crossing his face.
"You just saved my life," he said. "The least I can do is offer you help."
I hesitated.
Trust was dangerous.
But so was being alone.
"My name is Mason," he added. "Mason Sharp."
The name meant nothing to me then.
But as I took his outstretched hand, a strange certainty settled deep in my chest.
Running had kept me alive.
But staying… staying might change everything.
As sirens wailed in the distance and Mason's grip tightened protectively around my hand, a single chilling thought cut through me, If I could do that without trying… what else was I capable of now?