Chapter 2 Bad night

Aurora.

I waited until the packhouse was quiet before I began packing.

I didn't have much to take with me. A few pairs of jeans, some shirts, my old hoodie and the little money I had managed to save from helping at the pack's supply store.

I also packed my hockey gear, including the old sports bag I had used for years. It was already labelled with my name, ARI BENNETT, something I had done back when I first started practising with the boys. I couldn't risk anyone discovering that the bag belonged to a girl.

Once everything was ready, I stood in front of my wardrobe and pulled out the oversized sweatshirt I had hidden at the back.

My father had bought it years ago, hoping for the son he never got. He had never known what to do with it after I was born, so it had remained in my room, untouched.

I slipped it over my head and pulled on a pair of loose jeans. Then I gathered my hair into a tight bun and tucked it beneath my cap.

Next came the compression garment I used to flatten my chest. I adjusted it carefully before reaching for the small bottle of scent-neutralizing spray.

There wasn't much left in the bottle, but luckily, I had three more untouched ones. They would be enough to keep me going until I figured something out.

I sprayed it around my neck, wrists and the inside of my clothes, then waited a moment before checking myself in the mirror.

Ari Bennett stared back at me.

I smiled faintly.

I had been playing the part of a boy for years. The difference was that, until now, I had always returned home as Aurora after practice.

This time, I wasn't coming back.

I checked my bag one last time, slipped the academy application into an inside pocket and looked around my bedroom. There were photographs on the wall, clothes in the wardrobe and little things I had collected over the years.

It was strange knowing I might never see any of them again.

I didn't leave a note. My parents would only use it to find me, and I didn't want to give them a reason to start looking before I had enough distance between us.

I opened my bedroom door and stepped into the hallway.

The packhouse was silent. I moved carefully down the stairs, avoiding the loose step that always creaked, then slipped through the back entrance.

The night air was refreshing and calm, a complete opposite of how I was feeling inside.

For a moment, I stood there looking at the house I had spent eighteen years calling home. I wondered if my parents would notice I was gone before morning. I wondered if they would be worried.

Then I remembered the wedding.

They would probably be more concerned about losing the agreement with Alpha Victor than losing me.

I turned away and started walking.

I had no car, no travelling companion and no proper plan beyond reaching Blackthorn Academy. I knew the journey would be difficult, but staying behind would be worse.

The first few hours passed slowly. I kept to the quieter roads, occasionally stopping to rest and drink from the bottle of water in my bag.

My feet began to hurt, but I refused to turn back.

Every now and then, I checked the map on my phone. Blackthorn was still a long way away, and the thought of arriving there with nothing but a bag and an application made my stomach twist.

What if they refused me?

What if someone discovered I was a girl?

What if the triplets found out and sent me away?

I pushed the questions aside. I would deal with them when they came.

By the time the sky began to darken, I had reached a stretch of road surrounded by thick trees. There were no houses nearby, and the occasional passing vehicle was becoming less frequent.

I stopped beneath a tree to rest my aching feet.

That was when I noticed the forest had gone dead silent.

The wind died in the branches. The crickets stopped chirping, almost as though someone had flipped a switch.

My skin prickled. Before I could even call out a quiet hello, a stench hit the back of my throat. It was foul, metallic and heavy with the sour rot of unwashed fur and blood.

Wolf scent.

But not like the clean, woodsy scent of pack wolves. This was wild, decayed and unstable.

Rogues.

I pressed my back against the tree, my heart hammering against my ribs.

Three men emerged from the shadows between the trunks. Their clothes were torn and caked in dried mud, and their hair was matted. But it was their eyes that made my blood run cold. Their yellowish, blown-out pupils were fixed on me with raw, animal hunger.

“Look what walked right into our lap,” the middle one rasped. His voice sounded like dry leaves scraping across pavement.

I tightened my grip on the strap of my bag, forcing myself to breathe steadily.

“Good evening.”

The lead rogue took a step closer, testing the air. He flared his nostrils, his jaw working as though he were trying to catch something beneath the heavy layer of my scent-neutralizing spray.

“Where are you headed, little boy?”

“Just passing through,” I replied, backing up an inch until my spine pressed against the rough bark.

“All by yourself?”

I nodded once, praying my voice wouldn't betray me.

Behind me, dry twigs snapped. one of the rogues emerged from the brush, effectively blocking the road to my left.

The sharp, iron scent of fresh blood drifted from his hands.

My chest tightened. Don't panic. Don't sweat. Sweat would break the spray's chemical barrier, and if my omega scent leaked through, I wouldn't just be a target for a mugging.

“What's in the bag?” the lead rogue asked, taking two slow steps towards me.

“Nothing of value. Just clothes.”

“Then you won't mind tossing it over.”

I shook my head, shifting my weight to my back foot.

His lips pulled back, revealing slightly elongated canines, sharp enough to tear through skin.

A low, vibrating growl echoed from his chest, making the air around us feel heavy.

“Don't make this difficult, kid.”

I glanced to my right, but the third man was already stepping into the light, blocking the ditch. They had me surrounded, three feral wolves against one girl with a hockey stick buried in her backpack.

And the terror rising inside me was starting to push heat through my skin.

I tightened my grip on my bag, silently praying that I wouldn't sweat.

Because if they discovered who I really was, I had a feeling losing my belongings would be the least of my problems.