Chapter 1

Ashley.

“And that's a wrap!” I called out as I took the final set of pictures. I watched my client; a tall blonde model let out a string of sighs the moment the flash from my camera disappeared. She was tired, I could easily tell from the way she slumped onto the huge water fountain that sat in the middle of the park. Fairy lights streaked across and around the stone sculpture, so carefully that no amount of water could interrupt the beautiful lights from staying up all night. It was a beautiful sight and the perfect background for my photo project, that's why we were both here in the middle of the night.

“Great job.” I gave her a thumbs up and she returned the gesture with a smile. “ You did really great.”

“I hope so.” My client sighed again as she got up on her feet. She sashayed towards me and didn't say a word till she was standing a couple of inches away from me. “Did they come out okay?”

“Okay?” I chorused incredulously. “ They're more than okay. In fact, they're perfection itself, all because you're in them.”

“Now you're just flattering me.” She grinned with a wave of her hand. Even with the pitch-black sky and a few dimly lit streetlights scattered around, I could still see her cheeks redden under the stars twinkling above. “ We both know who the real star is here.”

“You, obviously.” I drawled. “ All I need to do is edit them tonight and I'll send you some copies by morning. Will that be okay?”

“Perfect.” She chimed. “ I'll be on my way now.”

“Me too.” I hunched down to work immediately. “Once I pack up all of my gear, I'll head home too. Text me when you've arrived home, okay?”

“Sure thing.” She nodded before turning in the opposite direction. “ Goodnight.”

“Night.” I called after her. The moment she was out of sight, I shifted my focus to my camera, tripod and a couple of other things that were scattered about. If there was one thing I wasn't particularly fond of, it was packing up after every photoshoot.

I was halfway through packing all of my stuff, when loud noises reached my ears. They sounded distant, but loud nonetheless.

“What the?” I trailed off as the noise got louder. A low rumble resounded around me, like an earthquake had hit nearby. It took me a while to realize it was actually people running around and away from the source of the commotion. Confusion flicked across my face as I headed towards the far end of the park.

With each step I took, people whizzed past me, fear and a million other emotions on their faces. They scuffled about, like they wanted nothing more than to be anywhere but here, but did that stop my curious mind? Hell no. If anything, I wanted to get to the bottom of this once and for all.

Low growls reached my ears as I finally got to the end of the park. By the time I'd arrived at my destination, it was as good as empty, with not a single soul in sight. For a moment, I even thought I'd imagined the whole thing, until another low growl reached my ears.

Quickly, I ducked behind one of the huge bushes that bordered around the edge of the park. I still couldn't see properly, but I was sure about one thing; whatever it was, was on the other side of the park.

Whilst still perched behind the bushes, I peered into the dark night, hoping and praying that I would catch the source of the noise. A sinking feeling in my stomach caught my attention, but I ignored it immediately. I'd already come too far just to back out because I was suddenly feeling uneasy.

An even louder growl pulled me from my monologue. From my spot behind the bushes, I peered upwards, just to receive the biggest shock of my life. Just a few miles away from me, were two wolves, wrestling and hurling each other around to the death.

I blinked once, twice, hoping that somehow I was drunk and maybe imagining things. The night was chilly, so maybe the cold was making me delusional, right? I thought. But with each minute that passed, I realized this wasn't a dream. It was reality. Immediately, I felt around my neck for the strap of my camera and luckily for me, it was still there. I had no idea what I would have done if I'd dropped it behind.

It was a rare occurrence to see wolves in the city. Hell, it was next to impossible and here I'd been blessed with the opportunity of seeing not just one, but two wolves wrestling with each other.

Without any more hesitation, I raised the camera to my face and took a picture. In my excitement, I forgot to turn off my camera's flash. The moment I clicked a picture, it caught the wolves' attention. I froze as they both turned to me, obviously searching for the direction the light came from. My breath hitched in my throat as I anticipated their next move. If they decided to chase me, there was no way I would be able to outrun them.

I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding as one of the wolves dashed in the other direction, heading deeper into the woods. It took me a while, but the moment the first wolf was out of sight, I watched the other one crumple to the ground, obviously injured, but that wasn't the weird part. A gasp slid past my lips as slowly, the wolf morphed into a man, right in front of my beady eyes.

No, no, no. This couldn't be happening. I was obviously seeing things. I'd seen enough and I needed to get out of here now. With my heart pounding wildly in my chest, I slowly backed away from the scene.

Maybe if I'd done so sooner, I wouldn't have picked up on the mystery man's voice.

“Help me, please.” His voice was barely a whisper. “ Please.”