**Gaia**

The medicine Alpha Owen gave me is more powerful than I imagined.

By the time the sun sets, my wounds are completely healed.

Not just better. Not just scabbed over. Completely healed.

I twist carefully, running my fingers over my back. The skin is smooth, unmarred. No scars. No pain.

It's like I was never whipped at all.

But something else has changed too.

There's a presence in my mind. Warm. Alive. Separate from me but also part of me.

'Hello?'

"Hello, Gaia."

The voice is inside my head. Sweet, melodic, like bells or wind chimes. Elegant and almost ethereal.

'Who are you?'

"I'm Selene. Your wolf."

My breath catches.

My wolf.

She's here. She's really here.

I've been waiting for this since I was sixteen. Every Omega girl dreams of the day her wolf awakens—when you're no longer just human, when you become whole.

'Can I see you? What do you look like?'

A pause. "I... can't show you yet. My strength is still weak. I can speak with you, but I cannot fully manifest."

Disappointment settles in my chest.

'That's okay. We have time.'

Omega wolves are usually gray. Plain. Unremarkable. Nothing to get excited about.

But I don't care. Selene is mine. That's all that matters.

"There's something you should know," Selene says, her tone cautious. "Because my power is still developing, I cannot sense if your Mate is nearby. Usually when a wolf awakens, we can detect the bond immediately. But I'm too weak right now."

Relief floods through me so intense I nearly laugh.

'Good. That's perfect, actually.'

"Perfect?" She sounds confused.

'I don't want my Mate to be in Silver Wing Pack. If he's anything like Lucien—if he's someone who would hurt me—I'd rather never find him.'

"But what if he's kind? What if—"

'It doesn't matter.' I cut her off gently. 'Male wolves are stronger than females. If my Mate is here and he's cruel, he could force the bond. Track me. Keep me trapped.'

Understanding dawns in Selene's voice. "You want to leave before I'm strong enough to sense him."

'Exactly.'

"But Gaia—"

'I need to talk to Alpha Owen. Now.'

I find him in his office, reviewing papers.

"Alpha." I bow respectfully. "I need to ask something."

"Of course."

"My wolf awakened. The medicine—it accelerated the process." I take a breath. "But her power is still weak. She can't sense the mate bond yet."

Owen sets down his pen, understanding immediately. "And you want to leave before she can."

"Yes. I don't know when Selene—my wolf—will be fully strong. But I need to go before then. Before..." I can't finish.

"Before your Mate can find you first."

I nod.

Owen is quiet for a long moment. Then: "I understand. We'll leave tonight."

"Tonight?"

"The sooner you're gone, the safer you'll be." He stands. "Pack your things. I'll drive you and your mother myself. Through the back mountain route—it's hidden. No one will see us leave."

Hope and fear war in my chest. "Thank you."

"Be ready in an hour."

*****

An hour later, Mother and I sit in the back of Alpha Owen's car.

Everything we own fits in two small bags.

The car winds through narrow forest roads, climbing into the mountains. Owen drives in silence, his eyes on the road.

I turn to look out the back window.

Silver Wing Pack spreads below us—the Alphahouse lit against the darkness, the training grounds, the school.

Seventeen years. I lived there for seventeen years.

And in all that time, I was never safe. Never home.

'Good riddance.'

But even as I think it, something tugs at my heart.

Regret.

Because there's one person I never got to say goodbye to.

Lysander.

Is he back yet? Is he standing in the Alphahouse right now, laughing with his parents, introducing his beautiful girlfriend?

Does he even remember me?

The last time we spoke, he called me a coward. Said he wouldn't waste time on me anymore.

Maybe he meant it. Maybe he's relieved I'm gone.

'Is he still angry with me?'

The thought hurts more than I expected.

But it doesn't matter now.

We're leaving. Starting over. Finding a pack where Omegas are treated with dignity.

Lysander will never know I left.

And I'll never know if he forgave me.

*****

**Lysander**

The Alphahouse is exactly as I remember.

Grand. Imposing. Home.

Mother is in the main hall when Chloe and I enter. She's talking to Grace, her voice sharp with irritation.

"—just disappeared! Again! The moment he gets back from his business trip, he vanishes. I haven't seen him in weeks, and now—"

She's so absorbed in her complaint that she doesn't notice us.

I clear my throat.

Mother spins, and her expression transforms instantly. The anger, the bitterness—gone. Replaced by elegant composure.

"Lysander!" She crosses the room, kissing my cheek. Then Chloe's. "Darling, you're home! And Chloe, how lovely to see you. How was your journey? How is your pack?"

The false sweetness makes my stomach turn.

"Fine, Mother. Everything's fine." I glance around the hall. "Where's Father?"

"Who knows?" The mask slips for just a second—bitterness flashing in her eyes. "Off doing Goddess-knows-what."

"I'll find him."

"Lysander—"

"I'll bring him back. You two can catch up."

I leave before she can protest.

As I walk through the Alphahouse, I scan the rooms, the hallways. Looking for someone I shouldn't be looking for.

Gaia.

But she's nowhere.

'Is she avoiding me? Does she not want to see me at all?'

The thought stings more than it should.

I close my bedroom door and inhale deeply, using my Alpha-enhanced senses to track Father's scent.

There. Faint but unmistakable. Leading toward the back mountains.

'Ares. I need you.'

My wolf surges forward, eager. We shift, and I take off running.

The forest blurs past. The scent grows stronger as I climb higher into the mountains.

At the base of the final slope, I shift back, using my enhanced vision to scan the area.

There.

Father's car. Black SUV. Climbing the hidden mountain path.

But he's not alone.

In the back seat, illuminated by moonlight—

Two figures. Female. One older, blonde. One younger, dark-haired—

'Wait. Is that—'

Before I can process what I'm seeing, Ares roars in my mind.

Not a thought. Not a word.

A sound so powerful, so overwhelming, it nearly drives me to my knees.

"MATE!" Ares howls, his voice exploding through my consciousness. "Mate! I found our Mate!"