“Just speak to me!” Faye pleaded, following me into the bedroom as I threw a few things into a bag. “Your dad called me. He told me everything.”

“Then all I have to say is goodbye.”

She sighed and ran in front of me.

“Listen, okay? I was wrong. I was just trying to protect you.”

I looked at her puffy face and realized she’d been crying. For us as wolves, crying was almost out of the question. The energy it produced could make us change almost instantly.

“Faye….”

“I’m sorry,” she whispered again, holding onto my arm. “You know where I’m coming from though, don’t you? You know what I’ve been through. I can’t go through it again. I can’t lose all of you too.”

“We’re not going to disappear. I just… I can’t be what you want me to be. I can’t give you what you want.”

“I want you,” she said taking a step towards me. “I want the Lewis that was dedicated to taking over this town one day. I want the Lewis who used to be a solid Alpha. You’ve changed. And you know what the wise ones say. You know what will happen if you have sex with that Omega and mate.”

“I know it will be the end of my bloodline,” I said, stepping out of her hold, “Think about it, I have a brother and cousins. It’s not over for my kind.”

I walked past her, but she shouted from behind me.

“If you sleep with another man, you’ll lose your ability to shift. You’ll never be a wolf again! You’ll be finished!”

I sighed. It wasn’t true. It was just another myth the wise ones had spread to ensure we only mated with female wolves to continue our kind.

We’d grown up being told that we couldn’t have sex for pleasure with men, especially the Omegas that other Alphas loved to ruin themselves with, as it would only result in breeding which would be dangerous for our kind and mean the end of us as a community. It was all lies, and the more they all told it to me, the more I resented them. I wanted to go. I wanted to be free from all the crap.

“I have to go,” I said, throwing the bag over my shoulder. “I’m sorry.”

“Then that’s it. You’ve turned your back on all of us. You’re a traitor, and you’ll have single handedly destroyed us!”

I slammed the door behind me and made my way to the car.

My cousin Samuel was waiting beside it, his arms folded, looking at me.

“My dad send you here?”

He shook his head.

“Nope, I just wanted to see for myself. I wanted to make sure you were making the right choice, for you.”

I put my bag down and rested back against the wall.

Samuel and I had grown up together like cousins. We’d been through it all, and part of me felt bad that I’d given him any reason to be disappointed in me, but he knew where I was coming from. He’d harbored similar feelings towards another guy when we were younger.

“I have to do this,” I said quietly. “I’ve spent so many years thinking about this that now I have to follow what I feel inside.”

He nodded.

“I get that. Just make sure that you know what you’re getting yourself into. Make sure you’re confident he can make you happy.”

“He can.”

Samuel nodded and patted the roof of my car.

“I know a place a little far out, just on the edge of town. The Bayland’s place.”

“Doesn’t…?”

He nodded.

“It’ll be okay. I’ll let him know you’re coming.”

Evan Bayland was one of us, a wolf whose ancestors had also helped to found Grayson.

Five years ago, his family had been ripped to pieces, and my father had made damned sure to ostracize him from the pack. He hated my family, so why the hell would he help me?

“I can’t go to him. How do I know he won’t betray me when the time comes for it.”

Samuel rested a firm hand on my shoulder.

“Honestly, don’t worry. I’ll make sure nothing happens. He owes me.”

Both our ears pricked up at the scent of someone nearby.

“You should go!” he said quickly, gesturing to the bedroom window where Faye was watching us. “It won’t be long until word gets out to the others. You don’t want Max to be here when it does!”

He was right. The sooner we got the hell out of the centre of town, the safer he’d be.

I thanked him and got into the car, hitting the steering wheel several times in anger.

Why the hell was it so hard to just be with the man I loved? Why did being happy mean that I had to hurt all of those that I cared about?

I pulled away from the curb and sped along the road. The sooner I saw Max, the sooner I could be reassured that I was doing the right thing, and then once we were out, that would be it. We’d be free. That was all I’d ever wanted.

Fire. That was the first thing I noticed as I pulled onto Main Street. I saw the flames, and I saw the flashing lights of the fire truck. There were crowds of people lining the streets, and I felt a sick feeling washing over me.

Max!

I stopped the car right in the middle of the road and ran as fast as I could. My chest swelled as I gasped for air, and I knew the extra energy would be too much for me to control, but I couldn’t stop the panic that consumed me. I saw his room and saw the flames rising high out the window, but as I neared it a fireman held me back.

“Can’t go there, sir. It’s dangerous.”

“My partner’s in there!” I shouted, trying to break free, but the sheriff came over to me.

“You’re not going in there Lewis. It’s over,” he said sternly, and I got the distinct feeling that he knew more than he was letting on.

“If you’ve done anything to him,” I spat, “I’ll have all your jobs!”

He laughed.

“You don’t know what you’re talking about, son. Better run along now. We have this under control.”

I tried to run past them again, but he grabbed hold of my arm.

“I’m not joking, Lewis. I’ll haul your ass into jail tonight if you don’t let us do our job.”

“What do you think my dad will have to say about that?” I asked, knowing that my family were supposed to be untouchable.

He shook his head.

“This isn’t about entitlement, Lewis. It’s the law. These guys are trained to save lives. Leave it to the professionals before you get yourself killed!”

I shook myself out of his grip, turned, and ran. I ran so fast that it was impossible to contain the wolf, and it exploded so large and powerful that it even surprised me.

I was going back to the motel, and if anyone got in my path or tried to stop me, I wouldn’t be held accountable for my actions.

I just had to save Max.