I kept running, as my ribs burned. My throat ached. My wolf, Helena, tried to push forward and help, but she didn’t know how to comfort me. ‘We’re alive’, she whispered. Her voice sounded thin.“Yes,” I said aloud, though my voice cracked. “For now.”I switched back into human form slowly, and let myself cry hard, messy tears. I didn’t cry because I was weak. I cried because everything had finally happened. Everything I feared. Everything I had hoped would never be real.Greg’s voice still rang in my ears.You bring ruin.I reject you.The pack cheering after he hit me. The way Kaida smiled, holding his arm like she had earned him. The way everyone looked at me as if I wasn’t supposed to exist.I don’t know how long I stayed there before my stomach twisted with hunger. It reminded me I couldn’t stay on the ground forever. Beyond the trees, I saw the border between wolf territory and the forgotten human areas of Luneria.I hesitated since it was dangerous for wolves to wander too close to humans but staying in the forest felt worse. Wolves could smell me there. Someone from Eden might track me. Darius had eyes everywhere and Kaida had connections. I pulled the torn piece of my dress tighter around my shoulders and walked toward the buildings.Human noise always felt strange to me. Cars, machines, and electricity. Wolves tried to stay away from these old industrial zones because humans built things made of metal, smoke, and bright lights. But the place was empty now. Half the windows were broken. Most of the old factories had been abandoned when humans realized how dangerous it was to build too close to pack borders.I stepped inside one of the buildings quietly, not sure if someone else lived there.  A cold wind moved through the broken windows.I sat on the ground and allowed myself to breathe normally for a minute. My heart slowed and my dirty hands stopped shaking.“I’m alone now,” I whispered.Helena didn’t respond. She was quiet, curled up deep inside me. I didn’t blame her.I stayed there until the sky turned pale blue and my stomach growled again, louder this time.I had to move.I left and followed a narrow road toward the deeper part of the city outskirts. I stood near an air vent, letting the warmth consume me . It felt good, almost gentle.But safety never lasted long.I smelled them before I saw them, three human men. Their scents were covered in beer and smoke. They walked out of a nearby alley, laughing loudly until they saw me.“Hey,” one of them said. “You lost or something?”I kept walking.“Hey, girl, I’m talking to you.”His footsteps followed mine. I stopped. Turned slowly. My heart started pounding again. Humans were more dangerous when drunk. And humans who wandered these areas were the type who didn’t care about consequences.“Leave me alone,” I said softly.He snorted. “You’re the one wandering around half-dressed. You need help or what?”The second man stepped closer. His eyes scanned me too slowly, too eagerly. I stepped back instinctively.Helena rose immediately, her growl shaking inside my skull.‘Shift?’ she asked.“No,” I whispered inside my mind. “Not yet.”But when the first man tried to grab my wrist, I didn’t have a choice. Helena surged up before I could stop her. My fingers curled, claws pushing through. My teeth lengthened. My eyes must have glowed because the men froze.“What the..”“She’s…she’s one of them”“A wolf!”I let Helena push just enough. I didn’t fully shift, but my voice came out deeper, with a growl that wasn’t human.“Run.”They didn’t need to be told twice as all three scrambled back and disappeared into the street as if fire chased them.I leaned against a brick wall once they left, shaking from the adrenaline. Helena retreated slowly.‘They would’ve hurt us,’ she said.“I know,” I whispered. “I know.”I hated how fragile I felt. I hated that it took fear and pain for Helena and me to work together. I wanted to control her, to guide her, but that would take practice. And time.I didn’t have much of either.When the sun rose, I walked past old houses and avoided the main roads. I searched trash bins for food. I hated doing it, but hunger pushed pride aside.I walked for hours until I heard water running somewhere. I followed the sound to a narrow stream that ran behind an abandoned shop. The water was cold, but I used it to clean my arms, legs, and face.My body ached with every breath. But the air smelled different here, cleaner, softer. There was a faint trace of herbs. A faint trace of wolf scent, too, but not Eden’s scent. Different. Older.That’s when I heard a twig snap behind me.I turned sharply. My muscles tensed. Helena rose again. But the figure standing among the trees was not a hostile human or a wolf ready to attack.It was an old woman with silver hair tied back into a loose braid. Her clothes were simple, a long coat, a scarf, and boots. Her eyes were sharp and dark brown. They watched me carefully, not frightened, just… watchful.“You’re far from home,” she said.I didn’t answer.She stepped closer, not too close, just close enough that I could smell her scent: wolf, yes, but old wolf, with traces of pine and dried herbs. A former scout, maybe. Or a healer.“You’re injured,” she added. “And hungry.”I said nothing. My hands curled slightly.“I won’t hurt you,” she said. “If I wanted to, I would’ve done it already.”Helena whispered inside me, ‘She’s not lying.’I didn’t lower my guard, but I didn’t run either.The woman tilted her head. “There’s an old cabin nearby. Warm fire. Clean water. But you don’t have to follow me.” She shrugged slightly. “You can stay here in the cold and bleed.”It was said gently, not cruelly.I swallowed. My throat felt thick.“Why help me?” I asked.She gave me a small, tired smile. “Because I know what it looks like when someone has nowhere left to go.”My chest tightened.I didn’t trust her. But I trusted her more than I trusted the forest, or the abandoned buildings, or the humans.“Come,” she said softly, turning away. “If you want.”I hesitated only a moment before following her.Helena sighed with relief.‘Maybe… maybe this is okay,’ she whispered.Maybe it was.