THE ROGUE QUEEN

Present Day – Bloodfang Pack Territory

They were celebrating.

The sound of drums, laughter, and cheers filled the air, seeping through the cracks of my small basement room. It was the night of the Moonrise Ceremony, the night when every eighteen-year-old got to shift for the first time, showing their strength and earning their place in the pack.

I sat quietly on the edge of my old mattress, staring down at my hands.

Ten years ago, my mother had told me something I never forgot. She said I wasn't wolfless like everyone believed-that there was power inside me, waiting for the right moment to wake up.

Ten years ago, I buried that truth and the pendant my mother gave me, because I was too scared to face what it meant.

For all those years, I kept believing the same lie everyone else believed: that I was nothing.

But tonight, on my eighteenth birthday, a small part of me still hoped she'd been right. That maybe my wolf would finally wake up and prove everyone wrong.

Instead, there was nothing. No spark, no pull, no sign of life from the creature that was supposed to be inside me.

Only silence.

"Selene!" Marcus's voice thundered from upstairs. "Get up here! Now!"

My stomach twisted.

They never called me during pack ceremonies. I was always left alone in the basement, forgotten, while everyone else celebrated their power.

I climbed the stairs slowly, my heart racing faster with every step.

When I reached the main hall, I stopped.

Everyone was there.

The whole pack, almost two hundred wolves stood in a wide circle around the center of the room. The ranked members were seated above the rest: Beta Kane and his family, the Gamma, the enforcers.

And at the front, sitting on a throne-like chair, was Alpha Victor.

He looked like a king, strong, proud, and full of authority.

And his golden eyes were fixed on me.

"Come here, Selene," Alpha Victor said, his deep voice echoing through the quiet hall.

I stepped forward on shaky legs, feeling every single stare burn into me.

Whispers broke out around the room.

"The wolfless girl..."

"Why is she even here?"

"This is embarrassing..."

I stopped a few feet from Victor's chair, keeping my head down and my hands tight together.

"Look at me," he ordered.

I lifted my eyes to his-

And everything changed.

It hit me like lightning, a sudden force slamming into my chest. My heart jumped, my body burning as something deep inside me stirred awake. My wolf, silent all these years let out a faint, desperate howl.

Mate.

Victor froze. His whole body went stiff, his jaw tight, his hands gripping the chair until the wood split.

He felt it too.

For one breathtaking moment, hope burst inside me. This had to be it-the reason I had suffered for so long. The Moon Goddess had chosen him for me. Not just anyone, but the Alpha himself. Maybe I wasn't useless after all. Maybe I was meant for something greater.

Maybe... he would save me.

The pack broke into a wave of shocked murmurs.

"Did you see that?"

"The Alpha and the wolfless girl?"

"No, that can't be true-"

"SILENCE!" Victor's voice thundered, and the room went still.

He stepped down from the platform, his face cold and hard to read, and began walking toward me. Each step echoed, heavy and slow, like time itself was holding its breath.

My heart hammered in my chest. My hands trembled.

When he finally stopped in front of me-so close I could feel his warmth-hope flickered again in my chest.

"Victor," I whispered, my voice shaking. "I felt it-the bond. You're my-"

"Don't." His voice cut through the air, deep and cold. "Don't say it."

I blinked, confused. "But... I thought-"

"You thought I'd accept this?" He motioned toward me, his eyes filled with disgust. "You thought I'd claim a wolfless, weak, useless girl like you?"

His words hit me like sharp knives, cutting deep.

The small spark of hope inside me died right there.

"You've been nothing but a weight on this pack," Victor said louder, making sure everyone could hear. "You eat our food, live under our roof, and give us nothing in return. You're not a wolf, Selene. You're barely human."

Tears burned in my eyes, but I held them back. I wouldn't cry. Not here. Not in front of them.

"Please," I begged softly. "Please, Victor, I-"

"Alpha Victor," he corrected, his tone sharp and cold. "And I won't let you shame this pack any longer."

He stepped back, his face unreadable, his eyes empty as he spoke the words that broke me apart.

"I, Alpha Victor Hartley of the Bloodfang Pack, reject you, Selene Hale, as my mate and Luna."

The bond snapped-like glass shattering inside my chest.

A searing pain tore through me, spreading fast, burning so deep I couldn't breathe. My knees gave out as I grabbed at my chest, desperate to stop the pain, to keep my heart from falling apart.

A scream echoed through the room.

It took me a moment to realize it was mine.

"Accept it," Victor said quietly, no hint of feeling in his voice. "Now."

Through the pain and the tears streaming down my face. I somehow managed to whisper the words

"I... I accept... your rejection."

The bond snapped completely, and I fell to the ground, unable to move.

The room filled with gasps, whispers, and cruel laughter.

"Oh my God, did you see her face?"

"She actually thought he'd want her."

"Pathetic."

Victor's voice rose above them all, cold and final.

"Selene Hale, you are banished from the bloodfang pack. You have until sunrise to leave our land. If you are still here after that, you will be killed on sight."

I looked up at him through my tears, my whole body shaking. "You're... sending me away?"

"You don't belong here." He turned his back on me like i was nothing. "You never did."

"But I have nowhere else to go-"

He didn't even glance my way. "That's not my concern."

Marcus stepped forward, grabbed my arm and yanked me to my feet. "You heard the Alpha. Move."

He pulled me through the crowd. They moved aside as if touching me might curse them. Some laughed, some whispered. Others just stared like i didn't exist.

Cassidy's voice rang out behind me, filled with mockery. "Bye, freak! Don't come back!"

Marcus pushed me through the doors and into the cold night. I stumbled down the steps, almost falling.

"By sunrise," he said, his voice cold. "If you're still here, I'll end you myself."

The door slammed shut behind him.

I stood there in the dark, the sounds of laughter and music fading behind the walls.

My mate had rejected me.

My pack had thrown me out.

Now I had nothing, no home, no family, no future.

I looked up at the full moon, shining bright above me like it was laughing at my pain. The last bit of hope in me slipped away.

Then I turned and walked into the forest.

---

I had no idea where I was going.

All I knew was that I couldn't stay there.

The forest closed around me fast, the tall trees standing like walls on every side. The deeper I went, the colder it got. My thin sweater was useless against the wind, and soon I was shaking all over.

But I kept walking.

I had to.

If I stopped, I knew I'd fall apart completely.

I don't know how long I walked-minutes, hours-it all blurred together.

At some point, my legs gave out, and I fell against a tree, struggling to breathe. My chest burned where the bond used to be, a sharp, endless pain that reminded me of everything I'd lost.

No.

Of what I'd **never had**.

"Why?" I whispered to the empty forest, to the moon, to the Goddess who'd cursed me with this life. "Why did you make me like this? Why did you let me hope?"

Silence.

Always silence.

I pulled my knees to my chest and buried my face in my arms.

Maybe I should just stay here. Let the cold take me. Let the forest claim me.

It would be easier than whatever came next.

I was so tired.

So tired of fighting, of surviving, of pretending I was strong enough to endure this.

I wasn't.

I never had been.

A twig cracked somewhere close.

I froze, my head snapping up as my heart raced.

Voices. Human voices.

"Over here! I found her tracks!"

"Don't let her cross the border. Alpha's orders."

Hunters.

Pack enforcers, making sure I stayed gone. Or maybe making sure I didn't survive the night.

Three men emerged from the trees, crossbows loaded, silver-tipped arrows gleaming in the moonlight. I recognized them-Marcus, Jace, and Cole. All of them had participated in my "training sessions." All of them had enjoyed it.

Marcus smirked when his eyes landed on me. "Well, look at that. The wolfless freak didn't even make it past the line."

I pressed myself against the tree, shaking. "I'm leaving. Just let me go."

"Can't do that," Jace said, moving to block my path. "Alpha said you were banished until sunrise. But he also said if you happened to... not make it through the night... well, that wouldn't be a problem."

My blood went cold. "He sent you to kill me?"

"He sent us to make sure you don't become a problem." Marcus raised his crossbow, aiming it at my chest. "Consider this a mercy. You won't have to suffer anymore."

The arrow flew.

And something inside me snapped.

Time seemed to move in slow motion.

I saw the arrow cutting through the air, heading straight for my chest, its silver tip shining and for a split second, I thought, So this is how it ends.

Thrown away. Hunted. Left to die in the woods like an animal.

Maybe that was how it was supposed to be.

But my body refused to give up.

Before I could even think, my hand lifted on its own and suddenly, darkness appeared between me and the arrow. Not just a shadow. Real, solid darkness that looked like smoke turned alive.

The arrow struck it and crumbled to dust.

Everything stopped.

Marcus slowly lowered his crossbow, eyes wide. "What the hell..."

I looked down at my hand. Black strands twisted around my fingers, moving like they had a mind of their own. They pulsed with heat, not pain, familiar somehow. Like they'd been part of me all along, just waiting to wake up.

"She just used magic," Cole said, his voice trembling as he stepped back. "Dark magic-"

"That's not possible," Jace argued, though his voice shook too. "She doesn't have a wolf. She can't-"

But the shadows around me pulsed, alive, and something deep inside me stirred.

Ancient. Wild. Waiting.

At last, a low voice growled in the back of my mind. You finally let me out.

My heart froze.

That voice-I knew it. It was the same one I'd heard the night my mother died. The same one that haunted my dreams for years.

"Who..." I tried to speak, but the words stuck in my throat.

Because I already knew.

It was my wolf.

She hadn't been gone. She hadn't been sleeping.

She'd been locked away.

My mind flashed to the pendant, my mother's pendant, the one I'd buried years ago, terrified of what it meant. It had kept her hidden, quiet, sealed inside me.

And now, there was nothing stopping her.

Run, she commanded. Now.

"Shoot her!" Marcus yelled, lifting his crossbow. "Before she-"

I didn't wait.

My body moved before I could think, sprinting into the forest. Arrows whistled past my ears, cutting through the night, but none of them touched me.

The shadows ran with me.

They swirled around my body, forming a shield, pushing me forward faster than I'd ever moved. Trees blurred past, the ground vanished beneath my feet and for the first time in years, I felt free.

I wasn't running.

I was flying.

"She's heading for the border!" Jace yelled. "Cut her off!"

More voices joined the hunt. More footsteps. The pack enforcers were calling for backup, and I could hear howls in the distance as wolves joined the chase.

They were going to kill me.

All of them. Every single of them.

Let me out, my wolf growled again, fighting inside me. Let me fight!

"I don't know how!"

Stop thinking and just feel!

An arrow scraped across my shoulder, tearing through my sweater and slicing into my skin. I screamed, stumbling forward as warmth spread down my arm.

The pain was hot and sharp and real.

I pressed my hand to the wound, feeling blood run between my fingers.

Another arrow flew past

This one hit a tree next to my head, so close I felt the wind from it.

"Got her cornered!" Marcus shouted. "She's trapped!"

I looked up and realized he was right.

I'd run straight into a ravine. Jagged cliffs surrounded me on three sides, too high to climb. The only way out was back the way I came.

Where a dozen armed hunters were closing in.

"Nowhere to run now, freak," Marcus said, emerging from the trees with his crossbow aimed straight at my heart. The rest of them spreading out around him, surrounding me completely.

My back hit a stone.

This was it.

The end.

"Any last words?" Marcus asked, his finger resting on the trigger.

I looked at him, at all of them and I felt something inside me shattered.

Not my spirit.

Not hope

My restraint.

Every humiliation. Every beating. Every cruel word and mocking laugh and moment they made me feel worthless.

It all came rushing back in a wave of pure, burning rage.

"Yes," I said quietly, and my voice didn't sound like my own anymore. It was deeper, darker. "I have last words."

Marcus frowned. "What-"

"I'm done being your victim."

The shadows burst from me.

They erupted from my skin in a violent wave, slamming into the hunters with enough force to send them flying backward. Marcus hit a tree with a sickening crack. Jace and Cole went down screaming as darkness wrapped around their throats.

I fell to my knees, gasping, my entire body burning from the inside out.

And then the pain hit.

Not the arrow wound. Not the bruises or exhaustion.

The shift.

It began deep in my back, a sharp, twisting ache that felt like my bones were trying to shift into new places. Then the pain spread to my ribs, my shoulders, every joint in my body pulling apart and snapping back together in the wrong way.

I screamed.

"Stop please stop-"

I can't stop it, my wolf's voice echoed inside me, soft and almost sorry. We've been apart too long. It's going to hurt.

"I can't-I can't do this-"

You don't have a choice.

My fingers curled into claws, actual claws, black and sharp, digging into the dirt. My jaw stretched, bones cracking as my face elongated into something else. Fur erupted across my skin, not growing but spreading from my pores like liquid shadow.

The pain was indescribable.

It felt like dying and being reborn at the same time.

I wanted to pass out. I wanted it to stop. I wanted-

Suddenly, it was over.

The world looked different.

Sharper. Clearer. Colors I'd never seen before bled into my vision, silvery blues and deep purples and shimmering golds. I could hear everything: the panicked breathing of the hunters trying to crawl away, the flutter of moth wings fifty feet above, the rushing of a stream half a mile to the east.

And I could smell everything. The sharp tang of fear. The thick scent of blood. The bitter trace of silver in the air. The musk of wolves coming from the packhouse.

I glanced down at myself and froze.

I was huge.

At least twice the size of any normal wolf, maybe even more. My fur was so dark it seemed to swallow the moonlight, and shadows slid through it like smoke coming alive. My paws were enormous, claws digging into the soil, leaving faintly glowing prints that vanished after a moment.

Slowly, I lifted my head and saw my reflection in a puddle nearby.

Silver eyes stared back at me. My mother's eyes.

But when anger rose inside me, something shifted. The silver darkened, swirling with black until my eyes looked like twin eclipsed moons glowing in the night.

"There," my wolf purred, her voice filled with pride. Now do you see? Now do you understand?

And I did.

I wasn't wolfless like everyone believed.

I was a Shadow Wolf-the last of a bloodline wiped out long ago, haunted to extinction. The kind of creature from legends, whispered about in old stories, the kind parents used to scare their children.

But I wasn't a story. I was real. And for the first time in my life, I was free.

Marcus pushed himself up against the tree, his face white with terror. "Monster," he whispered. "You're a fucking monster-"

I turned to face him, and he flinched.

Good.

Let him be afraid.

Let them all be afraid.

I took a step toward him, my massive paws silent on the forest floor despite my size. The shadows moved with me, coiling through the air.

"Please," Marcus begged, his voice shaking. "Please, I'm sorry-"

Kill him, my wolf urged. He hurt us. They all hurt us. Make them PAY.

I wanted to.

God, I wanted to.

But as I stood there, staring down at the man who'd tormented me for years, who had made my life hell, I realized something:

Killing him wouldn't change anything.

It wouldn't take away the rejection. It wouldn't undo the pain or make the pack see me differently.

It would only prove them right that I was the monster they always said I was.

I leaned in close, until my muzzle was inches from his face, and growled:

"Tell your Alpha that Selene Hale is no longer his problem. But if he ever comes after me again..." My voice came out deeper, darker and heavy. "I'll show him what a real monster looks like."

Then I turned and ran.

Not back to the packhouse. Not toward safety.

I ran deeper into the forest, into the dark, into freedom.

I ran for hours.

Time didn't matter in this new body, with the shadows wrapping around me and the forest opening up like it had been waiting for me all along.

Eventually, exhaustion caught up with me, my body gave out.

My legs trembled. The shift had drained everything I had, and I was running on fumes.

I stumbled into a clearing and collapsed, my massive body hitting the ground hard.

The world blurred and swayed.

I tried to shift back to return to my human form but I didn't know how. My wolf was in control now, and she wouldn't let go.

Rest, she murmured, her voice softer now. We're safe here. Rest.

"Where... where are we?" I managed to ask her.

Far from them. Far from the pack. We crossed the border an hour ago.

The border.

I was in No Man's Land now. The stretch of forest between pack territories where rogues lived. Wolves without homes, without rules.

Dangerous.

But no more dangerous than the pack that wanted me dead.

My eyes drifted closed, too heavy to keep open.

Just before sleep claimed me, I heard something.

Footsteps.

Human footsteps.

And a voice-male, rough, cautious:

"Holy shit... is that a Shadow Wolf?"

I should have run.

Every part of me screamed to move, to get up, to disappear into the shadows before whoever found me decided I was a threat.

But I couldn't.

My body refused to respond. The shift had drained everything, every bit of strength, every drop of energy I didn't know I had. Even breathing felt like dragging air with struggle.

Get up, my wolf whispered. Her voice weak but urgent. We need to move.

"I... can't..."

*Try.*

I did. I tried with everything.

My legs trembled as I tried to stand myself, but they gave out immediately. I fell back to the ground with a small , broken, pathetic whimper that sounded nothing like the powerful creature I'd been not so long ago.

The footsteps came closer.

Slow, careful, cautious. Like whoever it was clearly didn't want to startle a dangerous animal.

Smart.

"Easy," the voice said again, it was a man's voice, definitely male, with a rough edge that spoke of someone who'd lived hard. "I'm not going to hurt you."

A laugh wanted to bubble up in my throat. Not hurt me? I was a massive wolf made of literal shadows. the same creature who had terrified a pack of armed hunters only hours ago.

And yet here I was, helpless, too weak to even lift my head.

"You're injured," the voice continued, closer now. "That arrow wound on your shoulder it's still bleeding."

I blinked slowly, confusion mixing with exhaustion.

Was it really still bleeding?

I tried to look, but moving my head sent waves of dizziness crashing through me. Every part of me throbbed with pain. My bones felt broken, like they'd been crushed and then pieced back together the wrong way.

"I've got supplies. Medicine. Let me help." The man said.

*Don't trust him,* my wolf warned, but even she sounded exhausted. *Humans lie. Wolves lie. Everyone lies.*

But what choice did I have?

If I stayed here, bleeding, helpless, and weak, I'd be dead before sunrise-either from the wound or from whatever creature found me first.

At least if this stranger killed me, it would be quick.

I let my head drop back to the ground, too tired to fight anymore.

The footsteps stopped just a few feet away.

"Alright," the man said quietly. "I'm coming closer now. Don't bite me, okay?"

A shadow fell across my vision, and I forced my eyes open.

A man knelt beside me.

He was young, maybe in his early twenties, maybe. Sun-browned skin, amber eyes that glowed faintly in the darkness, dark hair pulled back in a messy knot. A jagged scar cut across his jawline, pale and raised. He wore simple clothes, dark pants, a worn jacket, boots that looked like they'd walked too many miles.

A rogue.

It showed in everything about him, the way he moved, careful and ready for anything. The scars along his arms and neck told stories of fights he'd lived through. The guarded look in his eyes said he'd been broken before and somehow kept going.

He'd been through hell.

"You're beautiful," he said softly, his eyes moving over my huge wolf body. "Scary as hell, but still beautiful."

If I could have laughed, I would have.

Beautiful? No. I was nothing close to that. I was a monster wearing a pretty disguise.

He pulled a pack off his shoulder and started digging through it until he pulled out some bandages, herbs, and a small bottle of clear liquid. "This will hurt," he said, pulling the cork out. "But it'll clean the wound."

He reached for my shoulder slowly, watching for any sign that I might attack him.

I didn't move.

When his fingers brushed against my fur, I flinched, not from pain, but from the shock of it.

Touch.

Gentle touch.

I couldn't remember the last time someone had touched me without the intent to hurt.

He poured the clear liquid over the wound, and pain tore through me like fire. I growled, snapping my teeth together as the burn spread down my shoulder.

"I know, I know," he said softly, his voice calm but steady. "Almost finished."

He moved quickly, cleaning and wrapping the wound with skill that came from experience. When he was done, he sat back and looked at me closely.

"You're not from here," he said, not asking but stating it like a fact. "Shadow Wolves have been gone for centuries. Or at least, that's what people believe."

I watched him carefully, unsure what he wanted.

Was he planning to hand me over? Sell me to the highest bidder? The Council would pay a huge reward for a Shadow Wolf, especially a living one.

"Relax," he said, like he could read my mind. "Don't worry, your secret's safe with me. I'm not exactly on good terms with the Council myself."

He stood and swung his pack over his shoulder. "There's a camp about a mile east," he said. "Rogues stay there. Wolves without packs. You can come if you want."

Then he turned and started walking away.

Wait, my wolf's voice echoed in my head.

"Wait," I tried to say, but it came out as a low whine.

He stopped and looked back at me.

I tried to shift, to change back into my human form, but my body wouldn't obey. My wolf held tight, protective, stubborn.

Let me take control, I told her. I need to speak to him.

You're not strong enough. It'll hurt.

I don't care.

For a moment, she was silent. Then she let go.

The world started spinning. My body grew smaller. Bones cracked and shifted back into place. My fur sank into my skin, and my claws turned into fingers. The pain was sharp and nonstop, and I bit my tongue to stop myself from screaming until it was finally over.

When it was over, I was human again.

Naked.

Shivering.

Bleeding.

I curled into myself immediately, trying to cover as much as I could with my arms and legs, my cheeks burning with humiliation.

The man's eyes widened, but he didn't stare. Instead, he quickly took off his leather jacket and tossed it toward me.

"Here."

I caught it with trembling hands and pulled it on quickly. It was huge on me, falling almost to my knees, but it was warm and it smelled like pine and smoke and safety.

"Thank you," I whispered, my voice dry and weak.

"Don't mention it." He kept his gaze carefully averted, looking at the trees instead of me. "You got a name?"

I hesitated.

Giving my name meant making myself real. Making this real.

But what did I have to lose?

"Selene," I said finally. "My name is Selene."

"Kael," he replied. "Kael Draven."

A long silence stretched between us, awkward and uncertain.

Then he spoke again, his tone careful. "So... Selene. What's a Shadow Wolf doing bleeding out in the middle of No Man's Land?"

I didn't know where to begin.

Where did I even start?

The rejection? The banishment? The hunters who'd tried to kill me?

"I..." My throat tightened. "I don't have anywhere else to go."

His expression softened. "Yeah. I know that feeling."

He crouched down to my level, keeping a respectful distance. "Listen. The camp I mentioned it's not much. Just a bunch of outcasts trying to survive. But it's safe. And we don't ask questions about where people come from or what they're running from."

"Why are you helping me?" I asked quietly. "You don't know me. For all you know, I could be dangerous."

"You are dangerous," he said bluntly. "I saw what you did to those hunters. Heard them screaming from half a mile away." He met my eyes, and there was no judgment there. Only understanding. "But dangerous doesn't mean evil. Sometimes it just means you've been hurt enough to fight back."

His words hit me harder than I expected.

I'd spent my whole life being told I was worthless, weak, nothing.

And now this stranger, this rogue who owed me nothing was telling me I was dangerous.

Like it was a good thing.

"I won't hurt anyone," I said quickly. "I don't want to hurt anyone. I just want-"

"To be left alone?" Kael finished. "To find somewhere you can breathe without constantly looking over your shoulder?"

"Yes."

He nodded slowly. "Then come to the camp. Stay as long as you need. And when you're ready to leave, you leave. No strings attached."

I wanted to believe him.

I wanted to trust that someone, somewhere in this cruel world, might actually help me without expecting something in return.

But trust was dangerous.

"How do I know this isn't a trap?" I asked, my voice small.

Kael stood and extended his hand to me. "You don't. But you're hurt, you're exhausted, and you're in the middle of territory you don't know. You need help whether you want to admit it or not."

He was right.

I hated that he was right.

I stared at his hand for a long moment, weighing my options.

I could refuse. Try to survive on my own. Keep running until my body gave out completely.

Or I could take a chance.

Slowly, I reached out and placed my hand in his.

His grip was warm. Steady. Strong.

He pulled me to my feet, and I swayed immediately, my legs threatening to give out.

He helped me up, and my knees gave out immediately. Kael caught me before I fell. "Easy. When's the last time you ate?"

I tried to think. Yesterday? The day before?

"I don't know."

He muttered something under his breath that sounded like a curse. "Okay. New plan. We get you to camp, get food in you, and let you sleep for about twelve hours. Sound good?"

It sounded like heaven.

"Okay," I whispered.

We started walking, Kael keeping pace with my stumbling steps. The forest was dark and unfamiliar, but he seemed to know exactly where he was going, navigating through the trees with practiced ease.

"So," he said after a few minutes of silence. "Shadow Wolf, huh? That's got to be a hell of a story."

"It's... complicated."

He smirked faintly. "The best stories usually are."

I glanced at him. "What about you? What's your story?"

His jaw tightened. "Also complicated."

"But you're a rogue."

"Yeah."

"By choice?"

"No." The word was sharp. Final. "No one chooses this life, Selene. We end up here because everywhere else rejected us first."

The bitterness in his voice was familiar. I'd felt it myself less than twelve hours ago.

"What happened?" I asked quietly.

He was silent for so long I thought he wasn't going to answer.

Then he said, "My pack was wiped out when I was sixteen. The Council's enforcers destroyed us for refusing to swear loyalty to the Alpha King."

My breath caught. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be. It was a long time ago." But the pain in his eyes said otherwise. "I've been wandering ever since. Doing odd jobs, staying out of Council territory, trying not to get killed."

"Sounds lonely."

"It is." He glanced at me, something unreadable in his expression. "But maybe it doesn't have to be."

Before I could respond, the trees opened up into a clearing.

And I froze.

The camp was huge, rows of makeshift tents and shelters built from scraps. Fires flickered across the space, casting warm light on faces that looked tired, but alive. And everywhere I looked, there were wolves.

Not in wolf form. In human form, talking, laughing, cooking, repairing weapons.

Rogues.

All of them.

"Welcome," Kael said softly, "to the last place on earth that'll take us in."