Prologue
648 Words
The first time the wolves came for Ava Bennett, she was only a baby.
Thunder rolled across the mountains as rain poured from the sky, soaking the forest floor and turning the narrow trails into rivers of mud. A woman with long dark hair stumbled through the trees, clutching an infant wrapped tightly in a gray blanket. Her breathing was ragged, but she never slowed down.
Behind her, distant howls echoed through the night.
"They're getting closer," a man whispered as he emerged from the shadows ahead. His clothes were torn from battle, and blood dripped from a cut above his eye. He reached for the baby, brushing a gentle hand across her tiny cheek.
The little girl giggled.
For just a moment, the fear on both adults' faces disappeared.
"We're almost there," the man said. "If the spell works, they'll never find her."
"If it doesn't?" the woman asked quietly.
He didn't answer.
They arrived at a clearing where ancient stones stood in a circle beneath the full moon. Strange symbols were carved into the rock, glowing faintly as if they had been waiting for this very moment.
The woman stepped into the center and knelt, holding the baby close.
"I'm so sorry," she whispered, tears mixing with the rain. "One day you'll wonder why we left you. I hope you'll forgive us."
The man placed his hand over the child's forehead and closed his eyes. A silver light spread from his fingertips, surrounding the baby in a soft glow.
"The wolf will sleep," he murmured. "Her scent will vanish. To every pack in existence, she will appear completely human until the magic breaks."
The light flared brighter.
Then, just as suddenly, it disappeared.
The baby's golden eyes blinked once before returning to their ordinary brown.
The spell was complete.
A deafening howl shattered the silence.
"They found us," the man said.
Without another word, the woman hurried toward the edge of the forest where an old country road cut through the trees. She gently placed the baby in a basket lined with blankets and tucked a folded note beneath her.
Her name is Ava. Please love her. Tell her she was wanted every single day of her life.
Headlights appeared in the distance.
A pickup truck slowed as it rounded the bend.
The woman kissed the baby's forehead one last time before disappearing into the darkness with the man.
Seconds later, the truck came to a stop.
An older couple climbed out, confused by the sound of crying. They looked around until they spotted the basket.
"Oh my goodness," the woman gasped as she lifted the baby into her arms. "Harold… someone left a child."
The man unfolded the note, his face softening.
"Looks like her name is Ava."
Before either of them could search for the parents, another howl echoed from deep within the woods. It was close enough to send chills down their spines.
"We need to go," Harold said. "Now."
They drove away with the baby, unaware that dozens of glowing eyes watched from between the trees.
By the time the wolves reached the roadside, the truck was gone.
The largest wolf shifted into a man with silver streaks in his black hair. He inhaled deeply, searching for the familiar scent he had tracked for miles.
Nothing.
No wolf.
No magic.
Only the fading smell of rain.
"Impossible," he muttered.
The child had vanished.
For twenty-three years, every pack believed the last descendant of an ancient bloodline was dead.
No one suspected she was growing up in a quiet little town, reading books, paying bills, worrying about work, and believing she was nothing more than an ordinary human.
But secrets have a way of revealing themselves.
And when the next full moon rises, the girl who never knew she was a werewolf will discover that destiny has been waiting for her all along.
- Writer
