"Rena, once we get through this forest, we can finally leave this hell-hole behind."
Katia slowed to catch her breath as she gently stroked the black wolf that had become her only friend.
Rena pressed tightly against her leg, its fur bristled with tension. Unlike Katia, Rena was only an ordinary wolf, not a shifter.
They had been running for their lives all night.
Katia steeled herself and pushed deeper into the forest.
Suddenly, her father's roar rang in her mind.
*Katia! You think you can run away like a coward?*
She stumbled as the mind-link lashed through her skull like a whip. Fear gripped her. They had discovered she was gone.
A howl rose in the distance.
Rena jerked her head up.
Another answered it.
The pursuers were coming for them! Among her pursuers were her brother Kaelen and Alpha Xandar, leading a dozen Snow Moon Pack warriors.
Katia broke into a sprint alongside Rena, tearing through the undergrowth. Branches whipped her face as she forced her way through the dense forest. Thorns clawed at her arms, ripping through her sleeve and exposing scars etched into her skin.
Her ankles screamed with pain as old injuries from countless beatings flared, blurring her vision at the edges.
Katia's chances of escape were slim. Yet she had to try.
Cold air scorched her lungs. Sweat soaked through her torn shirt. The metallic taste of blood filled her mouth where she'd bitten through her lip.
Behind her, predatory calls drew closer.
Faster. She needed to be faster.
*You murderer! You're going to pay for killing your sister!*
Beta Glen’s mind-link slammed into her head again. She tried to shut it down, but her father was too strong.
The moon vanished behind thick clouds, plunging the forest into darkness.
Adrenaline flooded her body, dulling the agony just enough to keep her moving.
*Please… Moon Goddess… just let me escape.*
Suddenly, her backpack snagged on a low branch.
The strap jerked hard. The bag ripped open, spilling everything across the dirt—old clothes, a wallet, the money she'd saved for her getaway.
Katia didn't hesitate. She abandoned everything.
Nothing mattered except crossing that border.
Unfortunately, Katia couldn't shift yet. Most shifters didn't get their wolves until eighteen, and she was still two days from her birthday.
But she couldn't stay here another second, not when they planned to throw her into the Mad King's fighting pits.
Behind her, heavy paws thundered as growls grew closer with each passing second.
Then moonlight burst through the canopy.
Katia's breath caught.
Ahead, silver water shimmered between the trees.
The river. Freedom.
Hope surged through her chest so powerfully her knees nearly buckled.
The river marked the border between Snow Moon Pack and Blood Meadow Pack. This stretch was barely guarded, which was exactly why she had chosen it.
"Rena!" Katia gasped. Her companion surged forward beside her.
They raced toward the riverbank.
Savage snarls erupted behind them. Dark shapes burst from the tree line.
*I found you, little kinslayer.* Alpha Xandar's voice boomed in her mind, thick with cruel amusement.
Rena skidded to a halt in front of Katia, hackles raised, a low growl rumbling from her chest.
"No!" Katia reached for her. "Rena, come with me!"
Rena turned to look at her. The pursuers had caught up to them, and only one of them could make it across.
Rena lunged, fangs flashing as she slammed into the pursuers.
"Rena!" Katia’s scream tore through the night.
But she understood. Her friend was buying precious seconds.
Vision blurred with tears, she staggered into the freezing current.
The icy water shocked her body so hard she almost collapsed. Sharp rocks cut into her feet as she stumbled across the riverbed, choking on ragged breaths.