Chapter 2 2

CHAPTER TWO

NANCY

By the time I stepped out of the washroom, Mother was already buried deep under the furs of her bed. She had pulled a dark cloth over her eyes and stuffed soft moss into her ears to block out the world.

I stared at her, wondering what it felt like to live in a completely different reality. She hadn't spoken a single word to me since she walked through the door.

“I am going down to the pack tavern to get some hot morning tea and take a walk,” I whispered into the quiet room. “Lucy and Lily are asleep near the hearth.”

Either she could not hear me through the moss, or she was simply pretending I wasn't there.

The twins were fast asleep, snuggled tightly against each other like two little wolf pups in a winter den. I knew they would stay like that for at least another hour or two. It was barely six o’clock in the morning.

The main kitchen in the grand pack lodge opened at six. I would be able to get some hot herbs and dried meat, charging the cost of our temporary room tokens, just like we did for everything else.

But as I walked out, a cold feeling washed over me. How were we actually paying for all of this? What were we doing in this grand, central pack territory if we couldn't even afford our own basic cabin?

This wasn't just any regular pack land. This was the Ashthorn territory—the home of the elite, wealthy Silver Fang pack. I hadn’t traveled to many places in my life, but I knew this place was incredibly luxurious. The grand stone lodge didn't just have rooms; it had a massive training arena, a natural hot spring for healing, two large dining halls, and a bustling morning tavern.

Even at this early hour on a Monday, the tavern was filled with high-ranking wolves. A few powerful warriors in fine armor were standing by the counter, waiting for their morning meals. I guessed they were preparing for a high-level meeting with the Alpha.

Who is paying for our stay here?

I could not shake the terrifying question.

Maybe I was paranoid because I knew exactly what it felt like to have your whole life ripped away in a single second. One day, we had our own cabin in our old, humble pack. It wasn't much, but it was home. It was the only home the twins could remember. The very next day, the pack elders forced us out because Mother couldn't pay her share. We had to throw our few belongings into rough burlap sacks while the rest of our things were left out in the rain.

Nobody could blame me for constantly looking over my shoulder, waiting for the next terrible disaster to strike.

As I stood in line at the tavern counter, I knew I stood out completely compared to the proud, powerful warriors around me. The air-cooling stones in the tavern made the room chilly. I crossed my arms tightly over my chest, wishing I had worn a thicker tunic that covered me more. I could feel the intense weight of their eyes on me.

“A large cup of hot morning tea, please,” I told the pack servant behind the counter. “With some sweet honey if you have it.”

I handed over our room token to register the cost, then stepped to the side to wait.

Suddenly, an older male wolf stepped closer to me. He was high-ranking, judging by the silver fur trim on his cloak. He was old enough to be my grandfather, but he moved far too close for comfort. My inner wolf tensed, sensing a predator.

“Aren’t you a little young to be wandering around the central lodge by yourself, little pup?” he asked, his voice low and raspy.

I looked up at him, my muscles locking. He wasn't looking at my eyes. His gaze was traveling slowly down the front of my low-cut tunic, and he wasn't even trying to hide it.

“Excuse me?” I asked, playing dumb to see what he would do.

“You are too young to be unescorted,” he said, stepping even closer into my personal space. “Are you staying here alone without a male guardian?”

“And what if I am?” I challenged, tilting my chin up.

“It just seems like a shame for a pretty little thing to be running around with no one to protect her.” He smiled, and I swear, he almost licked his lips.

He reminded me of the cruel, hungry rogue wolves from the scary stories elders told young pups around the campfire to keep them from wandering into the dark woods. This male looked exactly like the monster in those nightmares.

“Which is it?” I asked loudly, making sure my voice carried across the room. “Am I a helpless little pup, or am I just a female whose boobs you can't stop staring at?”

A younger warrior standing nearby let out a sharp snicker.

I didn't look at the crowd. I kept my eyes locked on the old wolf. I watched with pure satisfaction as his face turned a deep, angry purple. The collar of his leather armor suddenly looked much too tight for his thick neck. He growled softly under his breath, completely embarrassed that a weak, young female had called him out in public.

It wasn't the first time an older male wolf had looked at me that way, but I refused to be an easy target.

When I was a younger pup, dealing with some of Mother's random male companions, I never knew what to do. Back then, I would just hide in the corner and tremble.

Now? All it does is make me tired.

The old wolf hurried away with his plate, and I finally let out a breath, relaxing my tense shoulders. Usually, I am the type of she-wolf who wouldn't say boo to a ghost. But it has been a long, exhausting summer.

I have spent almost all of it locked, taking care of my twin sisters while my mother stays out until all hours of the night doing who-knows-what. I am simply not in the mood to be preyed upon by some old wolf who probably has daughters older than me.

Once the servant handed me my hot tea, it felt good to step outside into the crisp morning air. The lower-ranking pack servants were already hard at work, trimming the sacred bushes and sweeping the stone pathways. I nodded to a couple of them as I passed, turning my boots toward the abandoned bridge that crossed the rushing North Woods River.

I loved coming here early in the morning. It was incredibly peaceful. Out here, nobody needed anything from me, and nobody was demanding a single thing. I liked to sit on the large rocks near the edge, watching the early sunlight sparkle on the moving water. Sometimes, I would close my eyes and pretend I was a completely different wolf, living in a completely different pack. It was much easier than being me most days.

But today, there was something new. No—someone new.

I spotted a male sitting right on the old bridge, his long legs dangling carelessly over the side. Even I never stepped foot on that rotting wood, choosing instead to stay on the safe rocks. The wood looked so decayed that if an enforcement wagon tried to cross it, the whole thing would probably collapse into the river.

I had wondered more than once why the Alpha’s council didn't just tear it down, but it was probably cheaper to leave it here and let the warning signs keep people away.

Everything about this stranger screamed leave me alone. It was in the sharp hunch of his broad shoulders and the way he stared down at the rushing water like the river had personally offended him. 

Why would anyone choose the one place every wolf avoided?

He was wearing a dark, sleeveless tunic and light combat trousers that ended at his calves. He looked like he had just finished a brutal morning workout or a long run through the woods.

My instincts screamed at me to turn around and go another way. I should head straight back to our lodge room. Lucy and Lily would get fidgety once they fully woke up, not to mention how hungry their little stomachs would be. I shuddered to think what Mother would do if their crying woke her up from her deep sleep. I hated the thought of my sweet little sisters sitting there with their stomachs growling, anxiously waiting for me to return.

Yet, I could not tear my eyes away from him.

He had short, dark brown curls that caught the morning light. His jawline was so sharp and chiseled it looked like it had been carved from stone. He was built like an elite athlete. He couldn't be much older than me, so I guessed he belonged to the high-tier academy around here. Coming from a poor, distant territory on the other side of the woods, I wouldn't know for sure.

I didn't even know why I was still standing there, holding my hot tea, staring at him like a fool. Something about him simply wouldn't let me go. The raw energy radiating off his body was so powerful I could feel it vibrating against my own inner wolf from a distance. 

The boy stood perfectly still on the bridge. Every wolf in the territory knew that bridge had been abandoned after three pack members disappeared there. He shouldn't have been there. Neither should I.

I had two choices: walk away... or risk getting close enough to stop whatever he was about to do.