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Artemis stepped out of the forest with her wolves beside her, all of them still in their wolf forms. She carried herself like a fearless ruler, moving through the darkness with powerful beasts at her side.

“He refused to let us follow him,” she muttered as she sat near the fire.

Cassius gave a calm nod. “That sounds like Rowan. He works better alone. No one can track him when he wants to disappear.”

“He vanished before we even realized it,” one of the wolves said after shifting back into human form.

I quickly looked away while the young man dressed himself. “I still don’t understand how he slipped away so fast.”

“He’s trained for this,” Cassius replied. “A hunter knows how to stay unseen until the perfect moment.”

Artemis gently stroked the fur of a smaller wolf that stayed in animal form beside her.

“You hear that, Ria?” she whispered softly. “Rowan will end that rogue for good.”

My chest tightened as I glanced at the small wolf. “Is she hurt?” I asked carefully.

“She’s healing,” Artemis answered quietly.

The little wolf wandered away with the others, and Artemis moved closer to me.

“A few weeks ago, the rogue attacked Ria,” she said, pain filling her voice. “He forced himself on her. I don’t know what will truly help her recover… but seeing him dead might ease some of her pain.”

I placed my hand over hers gently. “At least she has her pack standing beside her.”

Artemis lowered her eyes. “I keep wishing I had been there to stop it.”

Cassius sighed heavily. “You’re still learning to shift. If you had faced him alone, he could’ve killed you too. Don’t carry blame that isn’t yours. Even alphas have limits. Sometimes the best thing we can do is stay strong for our people.”

“I hate feeling useless,” Artemis admitted, her voice shaking. “And then I feel guilty for even saying it when she suffered so much more.”

“You’re not useless,” I told her gently. “Be there when she needs someone to listen. Help her when the memories become too painful. Remind her she’s not alone. That’s real strength.”

Tears filled Artemis’s eyes, but she nodded. She had already survived the destruction of her former pack and the cruelty that followed. Yet despite everything, she was still fighting to protect those who depended on her. She was becoming the kind of alpha her people needed.

After a moment, she cleared her throat and forced a small smile. “Since we’ll be waiting for a while, does anyone want something to drink?”

Cassius and I both declined.

Then Cassius turned toward Hank. “Tell us more about the Odinswolves.”

Hank leaned back before continuing. “From what I’ve heard, your kind possesses abilities beyond shifting. Things like resisting alpha commands.” He gave a dry laugh. “Though it didn’t save many of them.”

That explained more than I expected.

“What other abilities?” I asked curiously.

Hank scratched his chin. “Stories mention wolves who can see the future or twist fate itself. Some can create illusions or cast curses. Others heal wounds, protect people with magic, or even speak to the dead.” He paused. “And there are rumors about wolves who can charm and control other shifters.”

“That sounds a lot like witchcraft,” I murmured.

He nodded slowly. “Maybe that’s why people confuse the two.”

Before he could continue, a deep growl ripped through the forest.

Every muscle in my body tightened instantly.

Artemis, Cassius, and I jumped to our feet as the sound grew louder. Branches snapped. Heavy paws pounded against the earth. Something massive was racing straight toward us.

My heart slammed painfully against my ribs.

Then I saw it.

A huge gray-brown wolf burst through the trees, charging directly at the camp.

The beast inside me reacted before my mind could catch up. My fists clenched and suddenly, I shifted. Fur exploded across my skin as snarls tore from my throat.

The rogue crashed into the clearing, sending a table flying. Plates shattered across the ground while chaos erupted around us.

The weaker wolves scattered in fear, but Artemis stepped in front of me without hesitation. A savage growl thundered from her chest, far bigger than someone her size should’ve been capable of.

The hatred blazing in her eyes sent chills down my spine.

The rogue ignored everyone else the moment he spotted me. He inhaled deeply, then stalked closer like a predator claiming its prey.

Cassius lunged forward, growling inches from the rogue’s face.

But the rogue didn’t retreat.

Not even against two alphas.

Blood dripped from the rogue’s mouth, but what froze me wasn’t the violence it was his eyes. They were blue. Just like mine.

A sharp realization hit me like lightning.

“Cassius!” I cried through the pack link. “He’s an Odinswolf too!”

Cassius didn’t hesitate. “Yield, or I end you here.”

Hank’s voice cut in fast. “Alpha commands won’t work on Odinswolves.”

My heart tightened. “We need answers from him, don't kill him!” I begged as Cassius shifted to block the rogue from everyone else.

“He’s past words now, moonbeam,” Cassius replied, but I felt his hesitation through the bond. If I pushed, he would try to spare the rogue… even if it wasn’t wise.

Before I could say another word, the rogue exploded into motion.

He sprang over Cassius in a single leap and crashed straight into me.

Pain and shock ripped through me as I hit the ground. His weight pinned me down instantly.

For a second, I couldn’t move.

Fear swallowed me whole.

Everything I had buried from my past in Bloodfang came flooding back like a broken dam every memory, every nightmare. I whimpered helplessly beneath him, bracing for something worse.

Then the forest itself seemed to tear open.

A massive black blur slammed into the rogue with bone-breaking force. The sound of impact was sickening.

Rowan.

He didn’t hesitate. He didn’t hold back. He fought like something untamed, something beyond reason.

Snarls ripped through the clearing, louder than anything else in the forest. Blood sprayed through the air as Rowan tore into the rogue’s throat.

The rogue struggled, but Rowan didn’t stop, not even for a second. He ripped, shredded, and struck again and again until flesh gave way and resistance faded.

The clearing went silent except for him.

Every wolf kept their distance, none willing to challenge the fury in him.

Rowan had lost himself completely in the kill.

Even after the rogue stopped moving, he kept going tearing into the body as if rage itself was driving him.

I couldn’t look away.

The dead wolf’s blue eyes stared back at me.

Why would one of my own kind come after me like that?

Hank’s words echoed in my mind. Odinswolves were supposed to be rare… maybe even hunted. But this one hadn’t been a victim. He was a predator just like any rogue.

Just as cruel.

Cassius moved closer, stepping into Rowan’s field of view. But Rowan didn’t stop. He tore through the body again until Cassius finally lifted his head and let out a long, commanding howl.

Despite everything, my wolf answered instinctively.

Her voice joined his.

Rowan planted a paw on the fallen wolf and threw his head back, howling with us.

Then suddenly, his attention snapped to me.

His golden eyes swept over me carefully, cautious now instead of wild. He lowered his massive head slightly, as if trying not to overwhelm me.

My wolf stepped forward without thinking and pressed against him gently.

The tension in him broke.

A heavy breath left his lungs.

“I shouldn’t have let him get that close,” Rowan’s voice came through the bond, rough with lingering anger.

I wanted to respond, to say something, but my thoughts felt distant, numb, like I was still stuck inside the moment of attack.

“The Bloody Dawn thanks you,” Artemis declared in her alpha voice, inspecting the remains with grim certainty. She lifted her head so her voice carried across the clearing. “The threat is gone. He will not return.”

Rowan didn’t stay.

“I need to clean up,” he muttered through the bond.

And just like that, he slipped back into the forest vanishing like he had never been there at all.

Cassius stepped in close and gently pressed his forehead to mine. The contact settled something inside me calming both my wolf and my racing thoughts. His scent, warm and familiar like burning wood, wrapped around me and made everything feel briefly safe again… like I finally had somewhere I belonged.

“Are you alright?” he asked.

“Not really,” I admitted, my voice unsteady. “But I’ll manage.”

Artemis bounced over in wolf form, full of energy despite everything that had just happened.

“Your mates are something else,” she teased.

That earned a faint smile from me. “Yeah… they are.”

For a moment, I watched her and felt something bittersweet. She had endured so much, yet she still carried a brightness I wished I could’ve had after my own first shift. If I had a sister, I thought quietly, I hoped she would’ve been like Artemis.

“Your white fur with all that blood actually looks kind of impressive,” she added with a laugh. “You fit right in with the Bloody Dawn.”

“I appreciate it,” I said softly. “But I’m Howling Evergreen. That won’t change.”

Artemis let out a playful wolfish huff. “It’s strange… I can hear your thoughts so clearly, even in this form. And I don’t feel any pull to challenge you or submit.”

I tilted my head toward Cassius. “Even with him?”

“No chance,” she replied immediately. “Neither of your mates are someone I’d ever try to challenge.”

Cassius studied her for a moment before speaking calmly. “Your strength is enough if your pack works together. That’s what matters.”

Artemis lowered her head slightly, listening closely.

“If you patrol in pairs,” he continued, “one can warn the others if a rogue alpha appears. Even the presence of another alpha is often enough to drive them off.”

“Except him,” she said, glancing toward what was left of the rogue.

Hank nodded grimly. “As an Odinswolf, he wouldn’t react to normal alpha pressure.”

Cassius’s jaw tightened. “He was drawn here… likely because of Selena’s scent during her heat.”

The words made my stomach twist.

Hank added quietly, “He must have recognized her bloodline. Even in that state… he still knew what she was.”

Cassius turned back to Artemis, his tone softening. “You don’t need to fear that happening to you. Your first heat won’t come until you meet your mate. And as an alpha, your partner will be strong too. You’ll protect each other.”

Artemis gave a small nod, absorbing his words.

“Just make sure you patrol your borders when you settle,” Cassius added. “Your scent alone can keep most rogues away.”

Hank shook his head. “The Bloody Dawn doesn’t even have proper land yet.”

I frowned. “So what are you suggesting?”

He hesitated. “Maybe my pack would be willing to follow your path.”

Cassius and I exchanged a look through our bond.

“We don’t really need new work right now,” Cassius said privately, “but some of our old clients are still reaching out.”

“Maybe we could train them,” I suggested.

The idea settled in me differently than I expected, like something rebuilding after destruction. The Bloody Dawn didn’t have to become what it once was. It could grow into something new.

Cassius finally spoke aloud. “We may be stepping away from certain jobs. If you’re interested…”

Hank didn’t wait for him to finish shifting. He changed back quickly, pulled out his phone, and smiled. “Just give me your number. We’ve got a deal.”

Cassius followed, shifting and exchanging details with him and Artemis. Then he used clothes from the rogue’s bag to help clean the blood from me.

“Ready to head back?” he asked with a small smile.

I was still in wolf form, but I nudged his hand with my nose. He laughed and shifted again so he could walk beside me, towering even in human form.

A thought lingered in my mind.

“Was that Odinswolf really an alpha?” I asked.

Cassius glanced toward the blood-stained clearing. “I can’t say for sure… but I don’t think so. He didn’t feel like one. Still, he was feral, something we usually only see in alphas.”

Hank promised he’d reach out if he remembered anything useful about my kind.

Soon after, we said our goodbyes beneath the looming shadow of the mountains.

“Let’s run back,” I said through the bond.

Cassius’s warmth came through instantly. “Anytime, moonbeam. I’ll always be beside you.”

We started through the forest together.

But I wasn’t the only one moving through the trees.

A third presence followed silently behind us.

Rowan.

I glanced back with no blood, no trace of what he had just done.

“Thank you,” I whispered through the bond.

His voice came rough and low. “No need.” A pause. Then, quieter, “I’m sorry I ruined your chance to question him. I lost control when I saw you in danger.”

A soft sound left me, half laugh, half breath. “Don’t ever apologize for that, my dangerous wolf.”