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CHAPTER ONE

NATHAN

I woke up, momentarily disoriented, my head pounding like someone had taken a hammer to it.

The world around me spun in a dizzying blur, and I instinctively turned onto my side, hoping that a different position might help the headache subside.

As I moved, something cold and sticky brushed against my arm.

My eyes snapped open, and my breath caught in my throat as I stared at the still and lifeless body lying beside me.

Blood—so much blood—covered the sheets, the floor, and, worst of all, him.

Trevor.

Panic surged through me, tightening like a vice around my chest.

Trevor, the alpha my father had sold me to, lay motionless, his throat slashed open in a gruesome wound that gaped at me like a second mouth.

My heart hammered against my ribs as I struggled to breathe, my mind racing to make sense of the horror in front of me.

This had to be a nightmare, I thought, squeezing my eyes shut, hoping that when I opened them, I’d be somewhere else, anywhere else.

But when I blinked my eyes open, Trevor was still there, still dead, and the blood was still everywhere.

The memories came in fragments, murky and jumbled, like pieces of a puzzle that didn’t quite fit together.

I remembered the sharp scent of whiskey on Trevor’s breath, the weight of his gaze as he looked at me like I was nothing more than a piece of meat.

The heavy sense of dread that settled in my stomach when he mentioned his best friend Reece coming over.

But there was nothing after that. Just a void where the rest of the night should have been. Had I done this?

A wave of nausea rolled through me, and I stumbled out of bed, unable to tear my eyes away from Trevor’s lifeless form.

My hands trembled as I looked down at them, my stomach lurching when I saw the splotches of red staining my skin.

This time, I really did lose it. I bent over and vomited onto the cabin floor, my body shaking with each heave.

Desperate for some kind of clarity, I reached for the part of me that was my wolf, the beast that lived inside me, usually content to stay hidden away.

When I found it, it was curled up inside me, smug and satisfied, like a cat that had just caught a mouse.

“Did you—did we do this?” I asked, my voice trembling.

But my wolf gave no answer, only a low, rumbling growl that sent a shiver down my spine.

I couldn’t bring myself to look at the body anymore. I had to… I had to run.

Those three words pounded in my head like a drumbeat: I had to run.

I backed away from the bed, my movements jerky and uncoordinated, like a puppet whose strings had been cut.

The sound of a motorcycle engine rumbling in the distance startled me, and I froze, my breath catching in my throat.

Trevor had mentioned last night that Reece was coming over.

That he was going to introduce me to him. I remembered the way I’d distrusted his smile, the way my skin had crawled under his gaze.

I had to get out of here. I didn’t know how I’d managed to… deal with Trevor, but I knew I couldn’t stay here.

An omega wolf didn’t stand a chance in a real fight against an alpha shifter.

And if Reece found me here, there would be no mercy.

Realizing I was naked, I frantically looked around for my clothes, spotting them crumpled on the floor.

I yanked them on, my hands still shaking so badly that it took me longer than it should have.

Once dressed, I could hear the motorcycle getting closer, the engine’s growl turning into a roar.

I didn’t dare look back at Trevor’s body as I fled through the cabin’s back door.

The cool night air hit my face like a slap, but it did nothing to clear the fog in my mind.

I ran blindly into the woods, my breath coming in short, panicked gasps. I didn’t know where I was going, didn’t know where I was, period.

The cabin was deep in the forest, miles from the nearest town, and I hadn’t paid attention to which direction Trevor had driven.

Shifting would take too long.

I just ran, my heart pounding in my chest, my lungs burning as I pushed myself harder.

The forest was a tangle of trees and undergrowth, and I stumbled over roots and rocks, my sneakers slipping on the uneven terrain.

Sweat dripped down my back, soaking through my shirt, and my legs felt like they were on fire, but I couldn’t stop.

I couldn’t stop, not when I knew what was behind me.

A howl split the night, a sound so raw and full of fury that it sent a jolt of terror through me.

Trevor’s friend had found his body, and now he was coming for me.

I ran faster, the trees blurring into a dark, impenetrable wall around me.

My thoughts were a jumbled mess, fear and confusion warring for control.

I didn’t know how I’d killed Trevor, didn’t know if it was me or my wolf or some terrible combination of both.

All I knew was that if Reece caught me, I was dead.

The ground sloped upward, and I scrambled up the incline, my hands digging into the dirt for purchase.

My breath came in ragged gasps, and my legs screamed in protest, but I couldn’t slow down.

Every time I thought I couldn’t go any farther, that I’d have to stop and rest, the memory of Trevor’s lifeless eyes pushed me forward.

The howl came again, closer this time, and I knew with a sick certainty that Reece was gaining on me.

I reached the top of the incline and stumbled into a small clearing.

The moon hung low in the sky, casting an eerie light over the landscape.

For a moment, I was frozen, unsure of which way to go.

My mind raced, trying to remember anything useful, anything that might give me a chance to escape.

But all I could think about was the pounding of my heart, the burning in my lungs, and the blood on my hands.

The rumble of the motorcycle engine echoed through the trees, louder now, and I knew I didn’t have much time.

I had to keep moving, had to find some way to lose him. I plunged back into the forest, my body moving on autopilot.

The trees closed in around me, the branches clawing at my clothes and skin, but I ignored the pain.

My only focus was on getting away, on putting as much distance as I could between me and the cabin.

But no matter how fast I ran, the sound of the motorcycle only grew louder, the engine’s growl a constant reminder that Reece was closing in on me.

I pushed myself harder, ignoring the way my legs shook, the way my vision blurred at the edges.

I couldn’t afford to stop, not even for a second.

I had to keep going, had to find some way to lose him. But the forest was a maze, and I was hopelessly lost.

Every turn I made, every direction I chose, seemed to lead me deeper into the woods, farther away from any chance of escape.

My breath was coming in harsh, ragged gasps now, each inhale a struggle. My heart felt like it was going to explode out of my chest.

Every muscle in my body screamed in protest. But I didn’t stop. I couldn’t stop. Not when I knew what was behind me.

The motorcycle was so close now that I could hear the crunch of tires on gravel, the roar of the engine deafening in the quiet of the night.

I could feel the vibrations in the ground, each one sending a fresh wave of panic through me.

I stumbled over a root and went sprawling, my hands scraping against the rough ground as I caught myself.

Pain shot through my palms, but I ignored it, scrambling back to my feet and forcing myself to keep moving.

The howl came again, this time so close that it felt like it was right behind me.

I choked back a sob, the sound catching in my throat as I pushed myself harder.

I didn’t know how much longer I could keep this up, didn’t know how much farther I could run.

My body was screaming at me to stop, to rest, but I couldn’t. I couldn’t stop, not when the alternative was certain death.

The trees thinned out suddenly, and I found myself at the edge of a steep drop.

Below me, the ground fell away into a deep ravine, the sheer cliffs disappearing into darkness.

For a moment, I was paralyzed, unsure of what to do.

I could hear the motorcycle closing in behind me, the roar of the engine growing louder with each passing second.

If I stayed where I was, Reece would find me, and there was no way I could fight him off. But if I jumped…

I looked down at the ravine, my heart pounding in my chest. It was a long way down, and there was no telling what was at the bottom.

I could break a leg, or worse, and if that happened, I’d be as good as dead. But if I stayed, if I let Reece catch up to me…

I made my decision in a split second, my mind clearing in a moment of cold, hard clarity.

I couldn’t fight him, couldn’t outrun him. But I could jump. I could take my chances with the ravine.

Taking a deep breath, I backed up a few steps, bracing myself for what I was about to do.

The sound of the motorcycle was deafening now, the engine’s roar filling the air, and I knew I only had seconds before Reece reached me.

Without giving myself time to second-guess, I sprinted toward the edge of the cliff, my heart in my throat.

The ground fell away beneath me, and for a moment, I was weightless, suspended in midair.

Then I was falling, the air rushing past me in a blur of sound and sensation.

The ground came up to meet me faster than I expected, and I hit the slope hard, the impact jarring every bone in my body.

Pain exploded through me, but I didn’t stop moving, letting the momentum carry me down the incline.

I tumbled and rolled, my body bouncing off rocks and trees as I plummeted down the ravine.

The world spun around me, a dizzying blur of dark shapes and shadows, and all I could do was hang on, my mind focused on one thing: survival.

Finally, the ground leveled out, and I came to a stop in a tangle of limbs and leaves.

I lay there for a moment, gasping for breath, my body trembling with pain and exhaustion.

Every inch of me hurt, but I was alive. I was alive, and I was still free.

I forced myself to sit up, my vision swimming as I took in my surroundings.

The ravine was dark and shadowed, the thick canopy of trees above blocking out most of the moonlight. But it was quiet, and there was no sign of Reece.

The sound of the motorcycle had faded, and for the first time since I’d woken up, I felt a flicker of hope.

I’d made it. I’d gotten away.

But I knew I couldn’t stay here. Reece might have lost me for now, but he wouldn’t stop looking.

He’d keep searching until he found me, and when he did…

I couldn’t think about that now. All I could do was focus on putting as much distance as I could between me and the cabin.

My body protested as I forced myself to my feet, but I gritted my teeth and ignored the pain.

I had to keep moving. I had to keep running.

With one last look up at the cliff, I turned and limped deeper into the ravine, disappearing into the shadows of the forest.

The night closed in around me, and I let it swallow me whole, my only thought on finding a place to hide, a place where I could finally be safe.

But deep down, I knew there was no such place. Not anymore. Not after what I’d done.