I have three dads who love and spoil me for fifteen years.

Of the three, Maxim Ulfric is the high-ranking and authoritative Alpha of the Cinderhowl pack.

The second is Ethan Skoll, the pack's most valiant Beta warrior.

The third is Aidan Rafe, the most skilled healer of the whole pack.

They're the reason I am the happiest princess of the Cinderhowl pack before turning 15. Everything changes after Raeya Wargan appears.

Time and again, she accuses me of leading others to sideline and pick on her. Even my disappointed dads say I'm insensible and give everything I have to her as compensation.

From then on, no one believes a word I say. Even the pups of the pack call me a pathological liar.

Everything ends when Raeya throws me into a Rogue's den.

As a ferocious Rogue hunts me down, I reach out through the mind-link to my dads for help.

But none of them believes me. They call me devious and cunning. They say that I'm trying to frame Raeya on purpose.

While a wolf pack tears my limbs apart, and my mangled corpse is left abandoned in the forest, my dads are wholeheartedly presiding over Raeya's grand coming-of-age ceremony.

They once promised to give me the most unique coming-of-age ceremony, but it's a pity I'll never live to see that day.

I was tricked into leaving the pack by Raeya Wargan. She told me the Moonbeam Grass that one of my dads, Aidan Rafe, needed could only be found deep within the forest.

"If you pick the Moonbeam Grass yourself and give it to him, he'll surely love you again!"

I wanted Aidan's love so badly that, even knowing how dangerous the forest was, I followed her without hesitation. But I never expected her hatred for me to run that deep.

Using the cross my dad, Maxim Ulfric, had given me, she covered it with silver powder and drove it through my limbs and pierced the last strike straight through my throat. Then, she flung my battered body into a Rogue's den.

"Loveta Senka, why do our dads love you best?"

She held up my cross necklace and grinned wickedly as she continued, "My mom died saving them, so I should be the Cinderhowl pack's most precious little princess! Tell me… Will they still love you if you're tainted?"

She yanked me by the collar and threw me into the thicket before the Rogue's den. As she turned to leave, she didn't forget to mock me.

"The forest's loneliest Rogue King lives here. He hasn't seen a she-wolf in years, so I'm sure he'll be thrilled to meet you. Enjoy!"

The noise we made seemed to stir the Rogue in his den as a low, warning growl echoed faintly from within the dark cave.

I struggled to crawl out of the thicket. The silver had ruined my enhanced healing ability, so blood kept gushing out of my wounds.

The metallic smell of blood seemed to drive the creature within the den wild.

Panic seized me, and I mustered all my strength to flee toward the edge of the forest. The roar behind me told me that I'd been targeted by the brutal Rogue King. And I, an underage she-wolf with injured limbs, could never outrun him at the peak of his power.

Through the mind-link, I reached out to Ethan Skoll, my second dad, for help.

Ethan was the strongest Beta warrior of the pack and led the forest patrol. If he gave his order, his men would save me within minutes.

But when I told him what had happened, he scoffed in disdain. "You still haven't dropped this habit of lying, Loveta. No pup leaves the pack without reporting, and the gate guards would never let you out. How could you possibly be alone in the forest?"

I panicked and quickly explained, "It was Raeya who snuck me out! She fooled the guards! We snuck out here because we wanted to—"

"Enough, Loveta! Why are you framing Raeya? Today's her coming-of-age ceremony, and we're all preparing for it.

"She's been busy since dawn, so how would she have the time to take you to the forest?"

My steps faltered as I stumbled to the ground.

It struck me that today was Raeya's coming-of-age ceremony, and mine was supposed to be tomorrow, but my dads seemed to have forgotten about it.

The ache in my chest drowned out even the pain from my wounds.

I remembered how, every year, my dads would shower me with the most exquisite gifts on my birthday and promise me the most unique gift on my coming-of-age ceremony.

"You'll be the happiest young lady in the entire Cinderhowl pack!"

Their doting words still seemed to ring in my ears as Ethan's roar came through the mind-link. "I don't have time for your games, Loveta. We're about to begin the prayer ritual for Raeya, so stop bothering me."

With that, he brutally severed our mind-link. No matter how many times I reached out with cries of help, I was met with no response.

The howls behind me grew louder. I was nearly overcome with despair when I spotted a patrol passing the distant forest's edge. I could even make out the patrollers' faint voices.

I tried to call out for help, but the silver had damaged my vocal cords and only allowed me to make weak, kitten-like noises.

Out of desperation, I sent another message to Ethan through the mind-link. "Please send your patrol into the forest, Ethan! I'm just 600 feet away from them!

"A Rogue is trying to hunt me down, so please tell them to save me!"

As I ran, I frantically waved my hands, knowing that I could be saved if just one of them looked my way. But that was when I heard the patrol leader answer a call.

"The Beta said to end patrol and head to the pack house to find his lying daughter.

"What a headache. Ms. Wargan's so gentle and well-behaved, so why can't that little liar learn from her?"

No! I was right here, not at the pack house!

My silent screams were to no avail. I could only watch as the patrol turned away and disappeared from my sight.

I desperately ran in the direction the patrol had gone in and made as much noise as possible, just to capture their attention.

Not only did my actions fail to catch their notice, but they also allowed the Rogue behind me to accurately pinpoint my location.

As a terrifying howl came from behind me, a sharp pain tore through my back, and I nearly fell.

Three deep gashes burned where his claws had raked me, and fresh blood gushed out of the wounds to soak into the leaf-strewn muddy earth.

Out of the corner of my eye, I caught a pair of green, vertical pupils glinting in the thicket as I ran for my life.

I was being targeted, but the other party clearly didn't want to kill me outright. Instead, he was slowly toying with me like a cat playing with a mouse.

That bought me time to call for help. A beam of hope for survival surged within me, and I sent another desperate plea to Ethan through the mind-link. But no matter how many cries for help I sent, they all vanished without a trace.

That was when realization hit me—Ethan had blocked me.

In that brief second of hesitation, something clamped around my ankle and flung me into the air.

A broken scream tore from my throat as I slammed into a tree so hard it could snap the trunk in two. The tree was even thick enough to be embraced by three pairs of arms.

After hitting the ground and spitting out a mouthful of blood, I barely had time to wipe the blood from my lips. Instead, I pushed myself back up and continued fleeing.

Behind me came a low, rasping chuckle. Clearly, the Rogue found this "game" very entertaining.

I continued sending help signals through the mind-link, but this time, I chose Maxim.

He was the Alpha of the Cinderhowl pack with the most skilled personal guards by his side. If he sent his guards, I could be saved.

But Maxim rejected my request. Instead, a series of cold, clipped messages followed.

"The ceremony's in progress, so stop causing trouble. Raeya has told us the truth.

"You went out early to play with the good-for-nothings from the Dawson family. When Raeya caught you, you warned her not to tell anyone, or you'd pick on her.

"You're such a disappointment, Loveta. Don't contact me again. You are no daughter of mine."

I quickly replied, "No! Raeya lied to you! I didn't make friends or pick on her!

"A Rogue is after me, so please send your guards to save me!"

But all my messages went unanswered. Maxim had clearly blocked me, too.

Despair washed over me as I listened to the sound of heavy footsteps behind me draw closer. The Rogue was getting impatient, and his attacks grew harsher and faster.

With more wounds covering my body, my movements were slowing down. I believed that I would die under the Rogue's claws in the next second.

Just as I was about to give up struggling, I spotted a small slope ahead out of the corner of my eye. Without a second thought, I threw myself down.

Below the slope was a raging river, and I hit the water with a heavy splash.

Seemingly afraid of water, the Rogue stopped short at the bank and snarled furiously. Instead of following, he threw his head back and let out a long, guttural howl that alarmed the birds in the forest.

For a while, he paced along the edge. After realizing that he couldn't get his claws on me, he let out one last unwilling growl before shifting back into his wolf and disappearing into the forest.

I'd passed out the moment I hit the water. The swift current carried me downstream before washing me up onto a rocky shore hundreds of yards away.

When I finally woke up, dusk had fallen. I was sprawled on the damp stones and could barely move a finger.

My right leg had snapped when I tumbled down the slope. The silver was still eroding my body, so the wounds from the Rogue's claws were healing extremely slowly. Blood had stained all the nearby rocks red.

I needed an antidote and a healing potion right now, or I wouldn't last long.

After a long moment of hesitation, I reached out through the mind-link to the healer of the pack, Aidan.

He was the gentlest among my dads. Whenever Raeya slandered me, he never raised his voice like the others did and would only look at me with quiet disappointment.

But that calm, distant disappointment hurt the most.

"You're too selfish, Loveta. I wish I didn't have a daughter like you.

"If you ever pick on Raeya again, I won't hesitate to make you feel exactly what you did to her."

When Raeya accused me of scalding her with hot water, Aidan forced my hand into boiling water.

When she claimed I'd pricked her with silver needles, he drove them into each of my ten fingers.

"You're still young, Loveta. I have to teach you with the harshest methods, or you'd end up in a werewolf prison if you stay this way when you're all grown up."

I was terrified of him, but this time, I had no choice but to reach out to him.

To my surprise, he accepted my mind-link almost immediately. "Why aren't you home this late, Loveta?"

His tone was calm, but I could hear the simmering anger underneath.

Shuddering, I forced my weak voice to remain steady as I explained, "I'm badly hurt and by the rocky shore near the forest, Aidan. Could you please bring me an antidote and a healing potion?"

Like Maxim and Ethan, Aidan fell into the same silence. Despair began to spread inside me.

Did he not believe me either? Was I really going to die here?

But Aidan didn't refuse. Instead, he gave a deep sigh, and even his voice seemed to age with the sound. "I know you're lying, but as a healer, I don't turn away anyone in need of a potion."

I was stunned for a moment before a spark of hope lit up inside me. "I'm telling the truth, Aidan! I'm not lying! Thank you for trusting me, and please bring me the potion…"

"I'll have my men bring the potion over. Raeya told me you're spending the night with the Dawsons, so I'm not sure why you'd want me to bring it to the rocky shore.

"But I'll tell you this—I don't approve of you staying with the Dawsons, so come home at once!"

I was about to explain when Aidan severed the mind-link.

My heart sank with immense dejection. They still didn't trust me, but it was fine. Once I was rescued and made it back alive, I could slowly explain to them.

I wouldn't let Raeya fool my dads any longer!

While I anxiously waited, I suddenly caught a whiff of a foul, metallic stench in the wind. Every hair on my body stood on end.

I raised my head with great difficulty and looked toward the thickets in the forest. In the darkness, dozens of eerie green eyes glimmered and were fixed intently on me.

A wolf pack!

I nearly screamed. They had me in their sights, so I probably wouldn't live long enough for my dads to save me before they tore me into pieces!

"Aidan! I'm surrounded by a wolf pack! Are you on your way?"

I desperately sent pleas through a mind-link, only to hear Raeya's sinister and cold voice coming through the mind-link.

"A wolf pack? Let them tear you apart, then. I never knew you had such tricks up your sleeve, Loveta. Our dads clearly despise you, so why did Aidan still bother to send you a potion?"

A terrible gut feeling rose within me.

"Raeya? Are you…"

"That's right. I tricked the patroller delivering the potion to take it myself. Are you surprised?"

As Raeya laughed, I could even hear the sound of the potion being poured down the drain.

"Did you pour out the potion? No! You can't do that!" I screamed. "I'm seriously injured and surrounded by wolves, so I'll die!"

As I watched the wolf pack draw closer, I trembled in fear with tears streaming down my face. "Please just let me go! I don't want their love anymore! I'll give it all to you! Please tell the patrol to come right now—"

"You brought this upon yourself, Loveta. If you hadn't constantly bothered our dads and coaxed Aidan into sending you the potion, I was going to fetch you back myself.

"But now, it's too late. You can just spend another day in the forest!"

Raeya severed the mind-link and cut off my last hope of escape.

Dozens of wolves lunged at once. They tore at my limbs and ripped out my internal organs. Amid the excruciating pain, my consciousness gradually faded as the smiling faces of my three dads flashed through my mind.

"Dads… Will you regret it when I die?"