The Outcast and the Alpha

Chapter Nine – Through the Wilds

The forest stretched endlessly before us untamed, whispering secrets through the rustle of leaves. For the first time since I’d arrived, Kian left the camp, and I went with him.

We were headed north to meet an old ally of his a Seer who might know more about the strange power inside me.

The rogues stayed behind, the two of us moving quietly beneath the trees, the dawn mist curling around our boots.

“Do you ever miss it?” I asked as we walked.

He glanced at me. “What?”

“The pack life. The structure. The laws. The… safety of belonging.”

He snorted softly. “Safety? Packs aren’t safe, little wolf. You know that better than anyone.”

I smiled without humor. “Fair.”

We walked in silence for a while. Birds called overhead, and sunlight broke through the canopy in gold slivers. Despite the danger that always seemed to follow us, the forest felt almost peaceful.

When we stopped to rest, Kian knelt by the stream, refilling his waterskin. I watched him how even when he was still, his presence filled the space like fire waiting to catch.

“You keep watching me,” he said without looking up.

Heat rose to my face. “I wasn’t”

He chuckled. “You were. But I don’t mind.”

I turned away quickly, pretending to study the treeline. “You’re impossible.”

“Only to people who try to understand me.”

“Then what should I do?”

His voice softened. “Just see me.”

When I looked back, he was watching me too. The air between us hummed, heavy with something unspoken.

Then the moment broke the snap of a twig, the scent of strangers on the wind.

Kian was on his feet instantly, his eyes flashing red. “Hunters,” he muttered. “Silverfang patrol.”

I felt my pulse quicken. “They’re tracking us.”

He nodded. “They’ll follow the trail to the old ruins by nightfall. That’s where we’ll make our stand.”

“You sound very sure.”

“I’ve spent my life fighting in forests like this. I know how to make ghosts of my enemies.”

I met his gaze. “And if they bring Damian?”

Something cold flickered in his eyes. “Then the ghost I make will be his.”

I should have been afraid but instead, I felt a strange surge of strength.

For the first time, we weren’t running from anyone. We were heading toward something answers, maybe destiny.

And as the wind stirred the leaves above us, I felt the bond between us tighten not the forced kind the Moon had given me before, but one built on fire, blood, and choice.