Marked As Theirs

Chapter 3

Marked As Theirs

Chapter 3

Aaron's POV

**IN CRESTLINE PACK, NORTH DAKOTA**

If someone had told me this would happen days ago, I’d have laughed. Called them crazy. But it was happening.

Now, I wish someone had warned me. Maybe I wouldn’t feel so damn unprepared.

We never saw it coming.

“Beta Aaron!”

A soldier ran toward me, breathing heavy, his eyes wild with fear. His uniform was torn and bloody, but he kept going.

“They broke through the eastern gate!” he rushed. “Alpha Xavier needs you, Sir.”

I stiffened. The eastern gate was supposed to be the strongest. It was reinforced with silver and guarded at all hours.

If they got through… someone let them in.

Betrayal.

I pushed the thought aside. I didn’t have time to think about that now.

“Where’s he?” I asked, already moving, my sword dripping with blood.

“In the stronghold, Sir,” the soldier said. “He sent the women and kids through the tunnels, but…it looks like they knew because they were already there.”

“Exactly what I thought,” I murmured.

We had routes for escape, back up plans, but if the enemy knew about them, that meant they wanted to wipe us out completely.

An arrow whistled through the air and hit the soldier's throat. He collapsed, and I turned quickly, my hands on my sword.

They were here.

The Jaktus warriors.

Assassins. Greatly feared across the region. They never came unless it was for blood.

Twelve. No—thirteen.

I met Orson, their leader’s gaze. A tall man with silver hair and cold eyes. He appeared bored, but I wasn't fooled.

He smirked. “Beta Aaron.”

I didn’t respond.

A second warrior stepped beside him. He was a little bit shorter. The semi-boss. He titled his head, his eyes shinning with excitement.

Bastards.

They knew me. That means they knew what I could do.

“Kill him!” he roared and they rushed forward.

I moved faster than they could cover, ducking low, and slashing them with my sword.

They came at me, shifting mid-attack, with their claws, blades, teeth, name it.

I threw my short dagger at one's throat as I whipped my long hair. That was a dangerous move because a sharp pain hit my side. I winced and turned, dealing with the one who dared get close.

I had to get to Xavier.

An arrow hit me and sliced my arm.

Damn it.

I was fast, but they were too many. And I was losing time.

“Where the hell are you, Xavier?”

A roar rang in my ears and I turned to see Alpha Xavier in his wolf form. His black fur shone in the setting sun, his eyes filled with fury.

The assassins hesitated. Even they knew what it meant to face an Alpha at full strength.

Then the silver-haired leader raised a hand. “Do it.”

Time stopped.

No—

It was a trap. Xavier growled and the gates…exploded.

My back slammed against the ground, knocking the breath from my lungs. I struggled to stand, blinking and searching for my Alpha.

As Beta, I had one job. Protect my Alpha. Protect my pack. No matter what.

I saw him, fighting. His wolf was surrounded.

Suddenly, sliver chains wrapped around his legs, dragging him down to his knees.

I ran, my body aching with pain.

“XAVIER!”

He had been stabbed in his chest. His wolf snarled painfully before shifting back.

The Alpha of Crestline Pack was dead.

I stared, frozen. This couldn’t be happening.

The pack's scream filled everywhere. They were gone.

I had failed my people.

*************************************************

We ran.

Not because we were cowards. Not because we wanted to. But because there was no one left to fight for.

The once-proud Crestline Pack was nothing but ashes.

My mother held my hand tightly as we made our way through the woods like rogues.

If the Jaktus assassins caught us, we were dead.

I was bleeding from the wounds I'd suffered earlier and my body was just managing to heal.

“Come on, Ma,” I whispered.

She nodded, and wiped at her face.

Thinking or even talking about him, everything…hurt too much. So, I didn't.

I refused to die tonight.

I'll survive and return for revenge.

*************************************************

**IN GEORGIA**

Josh sat across from me in the worn-out armchair. It had been years since I'd last seen him, but this place hadn't changed. He looked at peace though.

Something I didn’t have the luxury of feeling.

“You’re lucky you made it out, kid.”

I scoffed. “If you call watching your entire pack get slaughtered lucky, then yeah. I’m real lucky.”

Josh didn’t flinch at my bitterness. He just nodded. “I heard what happened.”

“Bad news travels fast.”

“In our world, it always does.”

I clenched my jaw. I didn't want to talk about it. The way they dragged Xavier down like a beast.

Josh must have noticed, because he didn’t push. Instead, he leaned forward. “What’s your plan?”

I took a deep breath, and ran a hand through my hair. “Lay low. Keep moving. I can’t afford to be found.”

Josh studied me for some second, then shook his head. “That won’t work.”

I frowned. “What?”

“You can’t just run. You try to live like a rogue, someone’s gonna notice. A lone wolf with no pack? That makes you more suspicious.”

I narrowed my eyes. “So what, then? I just waltz into a new pack and pretend like I belong?”

“No.” He rubbed his jaw. “You blend in.”

I laughed dryly. “And how exactly do I do that?”

“You ever think about school?”

I blinked. “What?”

“There’s a neutral college in Georgia. Wolves from different packs attend. You enroll, keep your head down, and no one questions why you’re here.”

I stared at him. That was the last thing I expected him to say.

“School?” I repeated flatly.

Josh shrugged. “You need a cover. A reason to be here that doesn’t involve running for your life.”

I laughed now. “You really think I can just sit in a classroom like nothing happened? Like my entire world didn’t just burn?”

“No,” he said simply. “But I think it’s your best shot at survival.”

I looked away.

“You don’t have to like it, kid,” Josh said, calmly. “You just have to stay alive.”

I stared at the fireplace, the flames swallowing up the woods.

Blending in. Lying low.

It went against every instinct I had. But at this point, what choice did I have? It was far better than being hunted.

“Fine,” I muttered. “Tell me about this college.”

*************************************************

**IN ARCADIA COLLEGE**

I had been here less than three minutes, and I already hated it.

I could smell different scents and packs, as I walked through the crowd, ignoring their curious gazes.

Josh had set up fake records but wolves could sense when someone was out of place, especially when you were new.

Territorial assholes.

Too bad. They wouldn’t recognize me. Crestline was too far north, and besides, no one expected a Beta from a dead pack to be walking through the halls of some damn school.

Still, instincts were instincts.

My first class was Pack history.

An entire hour of listening to old wars while pretending I wasn't a survivor of one, recently.

I entered the hall, and took a seat at the back, adjusting my headphones.

Minutes later, during a lull in the song, everywhere was quiet. Someone with great authority had walked in.

I lifted my head expecting to see the teacher. Instead, it was someone else. Alpha Adnam.

The only Alpha in this damn school, according to Josh.

Some students bowed their heads as he passed. I didn't, though.

He stopped right in front of me and looked straight into my eyes.

Does he know?

He knew.

I held his gaze and few seconds later, he moved past me.

It was either I was imagining things or Alpha Adnam knew exactly who I was.

And it's going to be a huge problem.