Christy staggered, her limbs protesting from every movement. She couldn’t stop. She had to keep moving. The moment she stopped, Alec’s men would grab her and drag her back to him. She forced herself to move on, stumbling over tree branches, twigs catching on her clothes and hair.

Had she crossed the border? She couldn’t remember.

The first rays of dawn washed through the blanket of clouds.

She glanced back, thought she heard the sound of running feet behind her. She tried to scent what direction they were coming from, but her senses felt weak, numb, just like the rest of her body.

Christy tripped, felt herself falling, stifled a cry of pain. She rolled over, feeling the sticky blood the Imperious wolves had attacked her. Exhaustion threatened to overwhelm her as she pulled herself up into a sitting position. She rested her head against a tree trunk, the blood wouldn’t stop flowing and the pack strapped to her back dragged her down like dead weight.

Stretching her arms, she tore through the straps and let her pack fall. The few meagre possessions and clothes she’d brought with her no longer mattered. The movement sent another rush of pain shooting down her arms, but it didn’t register. Nothing mattered anymore.

Memories of Alec’s wolves ripping into her father, and seeing her brother go down flashed through her mind as the numbness started to fade. She closed her eyes, trying to block it out. She loved her brother – even her father – despite their strained relationship. Alec – the man she’d been promised to – had done this. She had said no to marrying him and he’d taken her family and her clan from her because of it.

This was all her fault.

Magda had probably died too in the effort to help her escape, and Ronan...

Where was Ronan?

Could she even remember how to shift? She hadn’t done so in over a decade. Muscles popped and bones creaked making her cry out from the agony as her body tried to change forms but couldn’t.

Had she done something wrong? She wondered if she’d forgotten how to do it right.

Christy gritted her teeth. She couldn’t give up, not now. Not yet. Instead she started to crawl inch by inch. She didn’t have the strength to stand let alone walk, but a new emotion filled her now.

Rage.

Alec had done this, and one way or another he would pay for it.

Twigs and stones cut into her hands as she crawled along the forest floor, blood seeped from her palms but she refused to stop moving. She had to reach the outsider’s camp. Ronan had promised to meet her there. He would be waiting for her. She would not consider the possibility of losing him.

Hours seemed to pass; she made a way forward, not knowing where or how far her destination was. With the sun high in the sky, Christy finally felt the blackness closing in and gave into it.

“Christy?” She thought she heard someone calling her name, dragging her along but it faded away.

When Christy opened her eyes again, she expected to find herself somewhere else. The clans didn’t believe in heaven or hell, just that their souls moved on and became part of the earth. Instead, she found herself inside a dark room. The walls were made from wood and the only light came from a small window.

“Good, you’re awake.”

She looked up to see her best friend, Lola, staring down at her. “How do you feel?”

“Like crap!” she groaned, stretched, feeling her body protest every movement.

“You lost a lot of blood. I was worried I wouldn’t find you in time.”

Memories came flashing back, she wanted to weep, to close her eyes and give into oblivion again.

“You’re going to be okay,” Lola assured her. “Listen, I’m sorry...”

“Where’s Ronan?” She had to know. “What happened?”

Lola hesitated.

“No!” Christy moaned. He couldn’t be dead too. She couldn’t lose him.

“He didn’t turn up here,” Lola admitted. “I saw them catching him before I got away. I don’t know what happened to him.”

A ray of light came through the depths of her despair. “He’s alive – I’d know if he were dead.” Christy forced herself to sit up. “Where are we?”

“The outsider’s camp. Listen, I don’t think you should tell them who you really are,” Lola said. “I’m a mongrel, too – like Ronan. Not everyone here will be welcoming. I told them you worked at the mansion, but I don’t know if they believed me.”

“Everyone’s dead, aren’t they? My family, my clan...” Tears filled Christy’s eyes. “Magda – did you see what happened to her? She helped me escape.”

Lola shook her head. “No, but it will take more than a pack of shifters to kill that old girl.”

Christy let herself break down, cried until no more tears flowed. She lay there, unmoving, refusing to eat or drink anything Lola offered.

Sleep finally took over.

First, she saw Magda standing next to her.

Alpha. The word swirled around her mind.

Echoes of her brother’s screams and being covered in her father’s blood haunted her until she found herself swallowed by darkness.

Christy blinked, found herself sitting inside a cell. She shivered as cold seeped into her bones, water dripped from the wall. Was this punishment for her family’s deaths? Had she ended up in the hell humans referred to?

“Christy?”

At the sound of her name, she turned to see the man she loved. His dark curly hair looked matted, he had dark circles under his eyes.

“Ronan!” She threw herself at him but her arms failed to connect with solid flesh. “Ro, what’s going on? Where are we? Did you...” She couldn’t bring herself to say the last word.

“No, I’m not dead, but you can’t be here. Go!”

All happiness faded. Why was he pushing her away?

“What...” she started to ask.

“Christy, listen. You can’t be here. It’s not safe. Go!” His blue eyes flashed.

She shook her head. “No, I won’t leave you. I’m safe, I’m with...”

“Go, but be careful who you trust there.”

Christy opened her eyes. All sadness faded, replaced by anger. She hadn’t killed her family – Alec had. Now he’d imprisoned Ronan too.

One thing she knew for certain. Ronan had survived.

After a couple of days more rest, Christy felt strong enough and more than ready to get out of bed. “I want to meet the other outsiders,” she told Lola.

“That’s not a good idea, Chris. If they find out...”

“Lola, take me to the mongrel leader. I’m healed, and we have work to do.”

Lola’s eyes widened. “Work? Christy, Alec either killed or imprisoned your clan. You can’t expect the mongrels to stand and fight with you.”

“I don’t – at least not yet.”

“Listen to me. You’re a Stargaza princess in a camp full of people who hate the clans. I’ve made plans to get us off the island,” Lola told her. “You can leave. Get away from Alec and start a new life somewhere safe.”

Christy stared at her friend in disbelief. “Lola, Ronan is alive. I won’t leave him there to die. Take me to your leader.”

“It can never work between you and Ronan. Alec is the alpha of both clans now.”

“Now, Lola,” she snapped.

Lola opened the door and Christy stepped out into the unknown.

“Don’t say I didn’t warn you,” Lola muttered. “And don’t call them mongrels to their faces either.”