What would they be doing now had they been afforded the opportunity to grow? I run my fingers over the emerald green sash that both contrasts and coordinates with my black graduation robe.
A strange emptiness leaves me feeling hollow on a day that should be joyous. There are some wounds time won’t heal.
I let the moment pass as I swim through the current of what-ifs. No! I won’t linger on things I can’t change. Refocusing, I toy with the billowing sleeves of my gown as time drags.
Impatient to be out of the limelight, I tap my foot and cross my arms. Thinking lighter thoughts, I sweep the unfamiliar faces until I find my roommate. Keziah is the only person in the crowd celebrating my achievement.
Her pale hazel eyes lighten. She waves at me. Flashing the infectious white grin that spreads joy like sunshine, Kez chases away the gloomy musings encroaching on my mind.
The curly lilac-haired sculptor had been with me since our first year. I never intended to let anyone this close, but she wore me down. Her beautiful bronze skin, cat-shaped eyes, and giant afro puffs stand out.
Which is saying a lot at an art school full of creatives. I fade into the sea of women and men who have hair the color of the rainbow, unique styles, and many piercings. My plain dark brown hair and fresh face free of make-up are unremarkable by design.
I’m the last person anyone would take for a supernatural being. There are certain rules even I’m not willing to break. Allowing humans to learn about our existence is at the top of the what-not-to-do list.
“Ylva Bodil Eskildson.” Keziah’s voice rises above the polite applause as I walk across the stage. A hulking figure in the crowd draws my attention.
I meet the icy blue gaze of Cadoc, an elite enforcer for the pack, and one of my father’s closest friends. Sympathy softens the harsh planes of his diamond-shaped face.
His thick dark brows dip down as determination erases any trace of humility. No. His presence violates the agreement I brokered.
There was to be no contact other than my check-ins. The pack didn’t send their top enforcer to have a chat with me.
They’re going to try to take me back. Numbness spreads through my body as I disassociate. Suddenly, I’m a passenger in my body as I cross the stage.
I shake the dean’s hand, responding to his polite queries, as I plot an escape. Walking past him with my degree in hand, I rush down the stairs.
At the bottom, I take a sharp left, ignoring the usher waiting to guide me back toward my seat.
Blowing by him, I shout over my shoulder, “Sorry. Bathroom.”
Men pull away from the crowd as I fast walk through the crowded auditorium. On the opposite side of the room, I push open the double doors.
In the hallway, I break into a full sprint, clutching the scroll I sacrificed everything for. This is my ticket to freedom. It’s coming with me.
Deep down, I always expected this. Happiness has eluded me like a ghost since the fire burned away everything good in my life, trapping me behind a cage of fates’ making.
The campus is a ghost town. Storefronts are empty, sidewalks are free. I push my body to its limits.
Tapping into my wolf’s strength, I cover ground in a way no human could, blurring to the human eye. Using my power is a gamble I’ll take to procure the backpack that houses everything needed to start my new life off the grid.
Plans of an apartment and a fresh start with my best friend circle the drain like dirty water. Stupid girl, hoping when you know you’re cursed.
The voice in my head sounds a lot like Aunt Gerda. Shoving the shrill banshee to the back of my mind with my past, I round the corner and burst through the front door of the apartment building.
Sprinting up the two flights of stairs, I use my shoulder to break the door in. I have no time for keys and locks.
Inside, I dart through the hall and into my room. The sickening ammonia-laden stench of blockers assaults my senses, burning my nostrils and eyes.
Coughing, I lift my arm and try to breathe through the robe. The closet door flies open. Hangers clatter to the ground, and clothes drift to the floor.
A giant of a man emerges like a golem dressed head to toe in black steps forward out of the shadowy space. He moves forward in a dizzying blur, wraps a strong arm around my waist, and lifts me from the ground.
I kick my legs. Desperate, I sink my teeth into his arm, breaking the skin. Thick, salty, metallic liquid gushes into my mouth. He releases me to apply pressure to his wound.
“Little bitch,” the man yells.
I land on the floor with a thud and roll away. Clearing the doorframe, I abandon my paperwork and money.
Scrambling to my feet, I run down the hallway toward the front door. I have to reach my car. Cadoc strides in my exit, followed by a group of muscular men who smell of the Thostenson pack.
I’m no match for their combined strength, but I’m not going down without a fight.
“Why are you here? Alpha sanctioned my time here.” I throw the official words out like a shield. It’s been four and a half years, why are they showing up now?
Cadoc ignores my words. “And now your family is calling you back home, where you belong.”
“No.” I haven’t fit in since they found out I was a dud.
This must be a nightmare. The man I looked on fondly growing up, cannot be the one speaking to me like a stranger.
“As the only Eskildson able to reproduce and carry on the family legacy, you have a duty to uphold the traditions and continuation of the Thostenson pack,” he recites robotically.
“According to who? My uncle and aunt do not get to make that call. Cadoc, please.”
“No.” He drops his cerulean gaze to the floor. “But Alpha does.”
“You lie.”
