I stumbled backward, clutching my wounded side as my father’s desperate plea echoed in my mind. “Run, Amarra! Go! Now!” But I couldn’t move. My legs refused to obey the command. Something in me screamed to stay, to fight. But the rational part knew I was no match for the numbers against us.

I turned, ready to flee, when a sharp gasp caught my attention. My breath hitched in my throat as I saw him, my father, sprawled on the dirt, blood soaking his clothes, struggling to drag himself to safety. His face was pale. His strength was already fading. And every fiber of my being screamed to go to him.

But before I could take a step, Lars moved in, towering over my father with a sneer twisting his face. His hands clamped down on my father’s shoulder, gripping him roughly as he hauled him to his knees. My heart stopped when I saw the blade gleaming in his hand.

“If you run, I’ll take his head,” Lars growled. He jerked my father closer, pressing the knife to his throat. “One wrong move… and he dies.”

I froze. My every instinct to flee was crushed by the sight of my father, helpless, bleeding, and at the mercy of a man I thought I could trust. My heart pounded painfully in my chest as I met Lars’ gaze. His eyes were filled with malice and satisfaction.

“Why, Lars?” I whispered. “Why are you doing this?”

Lars chuckled darkly as his eyes narrowed with disdain. “You really don’t understand, do you?” He shook his head, mocking me with every gesture. “You were never meant to lead, Amarra. You’re weak… just like your father.”

I clenched my fists as anger boiled beneath my skin. “I was raised for this, trained for this moment. I’ve done nothing to warrant your betrayal.”

He laughed, a harsh sound that cut through me like a blade. “Raised for it, sure. But that doesn’t make you fit to lead. You don’t have the strength, the ruthlessness that this pack needs. You’re soft.”

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. Lars had always been loyal. He was the last person I’d ever suspect of leading a coup. We had no bad blood between us. At least, none that I knew of. His words were venomous, each one cutting deeper than the physical wounds I bore.

“You’re making a mistake.” I firmed my voice despite the panic rising inside me. “Do you really think the pack will follow you after this? There will be consequences, Lars. You know this.”

His smile widened cruelly and cold. “Half the pack already doubts your ability to lead, Amarra. They’ve been waiting for someone strong enough to challenge you. And here I am.”

My mind raced.

Half the pack?

I had always been confident in my leadership, in the respect I had earned from my people.

How could I have been so blind?

Had they been planning this all along, waiting for the right moment to strike?

My father, too weak to speak, groaned beneath Lars’ grip. His blood-streaked face twisted in pain. And I knew that Lars had no intention of letting us leave alive, even if I yielded. He would take the pack by force, leaving nothing but ruin in his wake. I had to do something. I had to protect my father.

Suddenly, in one swift movement, my father’s hand darted out, grabbing Lars’ gun from his holster. Time seemed to slow as he raised it. His eyes blazed with the fierce determination I had known all my life.

He fired.

Lars jerked back, cursing in pain as the bullet grazed his arm. The shot echoed through the clearing. In the split second of distraction, my father turned to me. His voice was hoarse and he sounded so desperate. “Go, Amarra! Now! Don’t let them catch you again.”

For the second time, he ordered me to run. The gunfire had caused confusion among Lars’ men. But I knew it wouldn’t last. My father was buying me time. And this time, I couldn’t waste it. My chest tightened with grief, but I had no choice.

I turned and ran.

The pain in my side flared with every step. But I forced myself forward. My vision blurred with the tears I refused to let fall. Behind me, I could hear the shouts of Lars’ men scrambling after me. The distance between us was slim. And I knew they wouldn’t stop until I was caught.

The rain started to fall, a sudden downpour that mirrored the terror rising inside me. The ground became slick with mud. And the trees blurred as I raced through the forest. My every muscle was screaming in protest. My breath came in ragged gasps as I broke through the treeline and reached the car waiting at the edge of the forest.

I threw myself into the driver’s seat. My hands trembled as I started the engine. The tires screeched as I sped off. The narrow road barely visible through the torrent of rain now pounding against the windshield. The wipers fought to keep up, but the storm was relentless, making the road slick and dangerous.

The headlights of Lars’ pursuing cars glared in the rearview mirror, growing closer by the second. My fingers tightened on the steering wheel as I pressed harder on the gas, trying to push the car faster. My pulse raced in time with the storm outside.

The cliffside road was treacherous. Every turn was threatening to send me over the edge. But I couldn’t stop. I couldn’t let them take me. I had to survive. For my father and for my pack.

I had to return.

As the rain pounded down and the wind howled through the trees, I made a promise, a vow whispered only to myself but echoing in my heart.

“I will return.”

Ian’s POV

The moon hung high in the sky, casting a silver glow over the forest as I crouched low. My eyes were trained on the deer just a few yards ahead. The thrill of the hunt was something I couldn’t shake. No matter how hard I tried to leave it behind. Once a week, I ventured out to the woods, taking what I needed and giving the rest to the orphanage on the outskirts of town. They didn’t know where the fresh meat came from. But that’s how I liked it. Quiet. Disconnected. I didn’t care for socialization, not anymore.

I stayed perfectly still, waiting for the right moment to strike. But something felt…off tonight. The forest was unusually silent. The only sound was the faint rustling of leaves in the gentle breeze. The deer hadn’t sensed me yet. Its head was bent low, oblivious to the predator nearby. But despite the perfect setup, I couldn’t bring myself to move. Something tugged at the edges of my mind, pulling me away from the hunt.

My gaze drifted eastward, toward the seaside cliffs that bordered the edge of the forest. I didn’t usually venture that way since it was too close to town, too close to people. But tonight, for some reason, I felt drawn there. I abandoned the hunt. My feet already moved before I even made the decision.

By the time I reached the cliffs, the moon had fully risen, illuminating the dark waters below. That’s when I saw it. The car, tumbling from the edge of the cliff like a stone cast into the sea. I froze as I watched as the vehicle disappeared beneath the waves. It all happened so fast that I barely registered the other cars that had pulled up behind it. Their headlights illuminated the scene briefly before they sped off, leaving nothing but silence in their wake.

I stared after them with my jaw clenched. Whoever had been in that car, whoever had watched it fall…they didn’t care. They’d left as if it was nothing, a mere inconvenience to their night.

I shook my head, trying to push the scene out of my mind. It wasn’t my business. I had left civilization for a reason… to stay out of other people’s messes. I didn’t leave my solitary life to get involved in things like this. Whoever had been inside that car…well, maybe they’d deserved what happened. Or maybe not. It didn’t matter.

Turning back toward the woods, I forced myself to focus on the path home. I had more important things to do than worry about what went on by the cliffs. The deer, the forest, my solitude. Those were all I needed.

Yet, when I got back to my cabin, I couldn’t sleep. I tossed and turned. My mind refused to quiet. Every time I closed my eyes, the image of that car falling from the cliff flashed behind my eyelids. Something bothered me, an uneasy feeling that I couldn’t shake.

“Damn it!”

I sat up in bed, scrubbing a hand over my face. This was ridiculous.

What good would it do to go back?

But the nagging pull wouldn’t stop. A force stronger than my rational mind was telling me to return to the seaside. Maybe I was losing it, but I knew I wouldn’t find peace unless I did.

With a frustrated sigh, I pulled on my boots and stepped out into the cool night air. The wind carried the faint scent of saltwater as I made my way back to the cliffs, cursing myself with every step. I didn’t even know what I was hoping to find. Nothing, most likely. But something told me I needed to be there.

When I reached the cliffs again, the scene was eerily quiet. The ocean lapped gently against the rocks below, as if nothing had happened. No sign of the car, no sign of anyone. I sighed, feeling foolish for coming all the way back. I turned to leave, shaking my head at my own stupidity.

Until I saw her.

At first, I thought she was a trick of the moonlight, a shadow cast by the jagged rocks. But as I moved closer, the figure became clearer. A woman, lying crumpled near the shore, her body was as still as dead. My breath caught in my throat.

She must have been the driver of the car. She’d somehow survived the fall.

But how?

I approached her cautiously, crouching down beside her. My heart pounded as I gently turned her over, revealing her face. My breath left me in a rush. She looked…exactly like her. My late wife. The same dark hair. The same delicate features.

No. It couldn’t be. She was gone. Dead. I knew that. And yet, here was this woman, lying in front of me, barely alive. And she looked so much like her that my hands trembled.

I should have left her there. I should have walked away and gone back to my cabin, back to the life I had built far from all this madness. But I couldn’t. Not after seeing her face.

Without another thought, I scooped her into my arms. Her body limped and cold against mine. She was still breathing, but barely. She needed help. And I wasn’t about to let her die out here alone.

I turned and made my way back through the forest, carrying her to my cabin. My heart was heavy with questions I didn’t know how to answer.