Chapter 3 - Rissa
A Few Hours Ago
It’s been exactly twenty-four hours since I learned that I’m meant to be mated to Alpha Brooks, my biggest bully and the one werewolf whom I hate the most.
This is my worst nightmare, even in the face of the unknown—it’s not the only thing I’d learned.
According to Yvonne's prophecy, I’m supposed to be a witch, yet I feel no inclination toward the mystic arts. Sure, I’ve been a healer ever since I can remember, experimenting with a range of plants that already had healing properties. I was gifted in instinctively knowing what to mix to serve up a cocktail for all kinds of ailments, except for chronic illnesses. But it never meant that I was gifted with magic.
Worse, the women I thought were my closest friends deceived me. The weight of their betrayal looms over me like a dark cloud, even as I sit at my desk in the clinic and stare out the window at the afternoon sun casting a warm glow over Girdwood.
How could Luna Aurora and Luna Yvonne betray me like this? I’ve been a loyal ally to both the Lunas, and if Yvonne’s vision was correct, why didn’t they tell me about it before the Elders pounced on me unexpectedly?
Luna Aurora was being evasive yesterday when she called me to the meeting. As the head luna of this pack, she would have known about Yvonne’s vision. I’d been by her side throughout her pregnancy with Alpha Elias’s child, yet she couldn’t be honest with me at the most crucial point in my life.
The emptiness of not being able to trust anyone in Snehvolk is a gaping hole in my chest that grows and consumes me in its void. There’s only one thing left for me to do, and that’s to leave Girdwood, so I don’t have to suffer this fate or the pretenses they’ve been putting up.
Neither luna can be trusted, and they’ve proven that they’re not my friends. Thanks to Alpha Brooks and his constant bullying when we were younger, friends are few and far between. Now I’m forced to accept a fate that’s worse than anything I’ve ever suffered, and I’m not willing to deal with it.
So what if they believe I’m a powerful witch whose gifts will emerge after mating with Alpha Brooks? It’s a responsibility that I don’t want, especially now when they’ve shown me their true colors. None of them deserves my loyalty.
It’s a heavy blow to know that they didn’t care enough about me to tell me about this when Yvonne knew for two months already. All the memories of the past few months come crashing in, as if counting down the seconds before it’s time to be relieved from my job at the clinic.
I can’t get out of there fast enough, with only an hour to spare before I’m supposed to meet with Alpha Brooks to discuss the “contract.” The only reason I agreed to ask for something in exchange for being his mate was to buy myself time.
Now that the clearance certificates for the soldiers have all been stamped, I can leave Girdwood with a clear conscience, knowing that I completed all of my tasks.
Well, not all of them, considering that I’m supposed to mate with the alpha and unearth mystical powers that I wasn’t aware of. No one in my family was a witch—they were all werewolves.
Yvonne was probably wrong, anyway, I think with a disgruntled sigh as soon as I reach my cabin near the south end of the village. I’ve been keeping my head down, steering clear of those who I thought were my friends. I can’t face them now.
I can’t face anyone in this pack, which is why I feel no remorse when I pull out a duffel bag from my closet and stuff it with as many of my personal belongings as can fit inside.
I know it isn’t safe out there with the demon still at large, but I’m willing to take my chances. The sun hasn’t set yet, thanks to the warmer weather, and I’ll still have some light during my escape.
Lifting the strap over my shoulder, I flinch at how heavy it is, but it’s not a reason enough to change my mind. It isn’t as heavy as the burden of being deceived and tricked into something I don’t want. I’ve already suffered twenty-four hours of restlessness considering my fate; I know I’ll never manage a lifetime of conflicted feelings about becoming the alpha’s mate for the greater good of the pack. As a healer, it goes against the principles of my practice. I’m supposed to be compassionate, putting the needs of others before my own.
But I can’t be subjected to the lifetime of torture that I’m bound to face because of Alpha Brooks. He’d caused enough pain and suffering in my life, and it was only because I always saw the bright side of things that I was able to ignore how hostile everyone had been toward me for years. The snide remarks, the crude side-eyes I would get when I walked by the members of the pack…
I let it slide for too long.
Being mated to my persecutor?
Now that’s something I can’t accept.
With my chin held up defiantly, I sneak out of the cabin and slip into the woods in the direction of the river. Beyond it lies the Knik Arm, a small stream that needs to be crossed to get to Houston, a human town where I can easily disappear.
I would have traveled in the opposite direction toward Hope, the village where Snehvolk wolves find jobs to keep themselves occupied throughout the day, but I don’t want to associate myself with anyone from the pack. I need to begin a new life with a clean slate, pushing aside the possibility of magic powers that make me a witch.
I’ve seen the trouble both Aurora and Yvonne faced when they first emerged as witches, and it’s not a responsibility I want for myself. Perhaps it’s one of the reasons I want to escape this place—those supposed powers would emerge if I were ever to mate with the alpha. Apart from not being able to stand his presence, I must escape so I can stay sane.
Slipping through the forest, I stick to each tree trunk as if my life depends on it, not wanting to be caught by the patrolling wolves who guard the boundary of Snehvolk territory. Luckily, I’m well-aware of the rotations and routes because of my work as the pack’s healer, which makes it easier to dodge any Snehvolk wolves on my way out.
I let out the breath I didn’t realize I was holding as soon as I’m beyond the border of the Forest that surrounds Girdwood. I readjust the strap on my shoulder, pull my duffle bag tighter toward me, then scan my surroundings just as the dusky orange glow on the horizon paints the sky with the signal that nightfall will come soon.
I only have about half an hour of light to make it from the outskirts of Girdwood to the Knik Arm, which has to be crossed to get to Houston. Pursing my lips, I wonder if it’s a good idea toutilize my wolf. No one will suspect that I’ve fled Girdwood, so it doesn’t matter if I leave a scent trail behind. Once I reach the arm of the river, I’ll shift into human form and cross over into Houston, where no one will ever find me.
A pang of sadness grips my chest, keeping me frozen to the spot and prompting me to glance over my shoulder, my bottom lip trembling forlornly. I’m about to leave behind my old life, and where there should have been regrets, there’s only sadness; everyone I’ve ever cared about has only hurt me.
