I shook my coat, sending a spray of water into the air, and let out a howl. It wasn't a cry for help. It was a declaration of war. Every bird in the valley took flight, and for miles, the forest went silent in respect of its new sovereign.
But being free didn't mean being safe.
As I began to hunt, I realized that my "White Origin" scent was like a beacon. By noon, I could feel the shift in the wind. The University's drones were buzzing overhead, silent silver gnats in the blue sky. And behind them, I could smell the heavy, sandalwood-and-rain scent of Malachi.
He was tracking me. Not as a predator, but as a man who was terrified of losing his last chance at redemption.
I ducked into a deep cavern beneath a waterfall, shifting back into my human form. I was naked, shivering as the adrenaline began to wear off, but my skin was no longer pale and sickly. It pulsed with a faint, pearlescent light.
"You can't hide forever, Elara."
I spun around, grabbing a sharp piece of slate from the cave floor. But it wasn't Malachi.
It was Silas.
He looked terrible. His golden hair was matted with dirt, and his Alpha leather was torn to shreds. He looked like a man who had been running through the woods for days without sleep.
"Silas?" I hissed, my eyes flashing white. "If you've come to take me back to the pack, I will kill you where you stand."
"The pack is gone, Elara," Silas said, his voice cracking. He didn't move toward me; he stayed at the mouth of the cave, looking at me with a mixture of awe and absolute regret. "After you left with the King, the 'Rejection Curse' hit us like a plague. The crops died in a single night. The elders went mad. Tanya… Tanya sold the rest of our warriors to the University just to save her own skin."
I felt a cold prickle of satisfaction, but it was quickly replaced by disgust. "And you? Why are you here?"
"Because I realized the truth too late," Silas whispered, taking a trembling step forward. "The University approached me months ago. They told me that if I rejected you, they would make me the High Alpha of the North. They promised me power I couldn't imagine. I thought I was being a 'strong leader.' I didn't realize I was being a pawn."
He fell to his knees, his head bowing low.
"I don't want the throne, Elara. I want your forgiveness. The University is moving their 'Phase Three' unit into the valley. They aren't looking for a specimen anymore. They are looking for a corpse. They've decided that if they can't harvest you alive, they'll study your remains."
"And Malachi?" I asked, my heart betraying me by skipping a beat.
"The King is fighting them off at the border," Silas said. "But he's dying, Elara. The silver mist from the ceremony... it entered his bloodstream. He's refusing the cure because he says he doesn't deserve to live if you hate him."
I looked at the piece of slate in my hand. My old mate was a coward, and my new mate was a liar. And yet, the world was closing in on all of us.
"Phase Three," I murmured. "What is it?"
"They call it 'The Chimera,'" Silas said, his eyes wide with terror. "It's a wolf built in a lab. It has no soul, no scent, and no mercy. And it's already in the cave with us."
As if on cue, the shadows at the back of the cavern began to move. A creature emerged ten feet tall, its skin a patchwork of gray fur and exposed muscle, its eyes glowing with a cold, mechanical red.
It didn't growl. It didn't br
eathe. It just lunged