Chapter One

Sullen "I met a man." Sullen stopped her assault on the punching bag hanging in the spare room of her two-bedroom apartment. Wiping the sweat from her forehead, she turned up the volume on her Bluetooth headset. Because she was adamant that she heard her mother incorrectly. A man? As in another werewolf? Sullen cleared her throat. "You met a man?" she repeated, feeling a bit like a parrot. "As in a wolf?" Her mother's excitement transferred into a squeal. It reminded Sullen of a sixteen-year-old girl which had been her mother's age when she first met her fated mate, Sullen's father. He died several years before in a pack war. It was fair that her mother moved on, but Sullen was skeptical. "What pack is he from, Mom?" "Oh, honey. You and your politics," she sighed. "I want you to come down this weekend to meet him." She didn't miss that her mother skipped over that question. However, she'd let it slide for now. Sullen didn't get down to The Crescent Moon Pack lands very often anymore. She had better things to do with her life than find a place in her pack as a nurse or a birthing coach. Her accounting dream was coming true; she only had one more semester left before she graduated. Her internship would turn into a full-time position, and she'd marry her long-term boyfriend, Duke. She was lucky enough to have found out at a young age, by a witch doctor, that her true mate would die before she met him. Which was fine by her. Sullen liked being in control and picking who she'd spend the rest of her life with. "He wants us to come to his house for dinner. He makes a killer steak. I promised him that I would drag you away from the city. Please, Sullen. I'm your only mother." Oh, the guilt trip. Sullen walked toward her shower and loosened her raven-colored hair from its tie. "Duke is out of town this weekend. I guess it wouldn't hurt to come to visit for the night." Her mother squealed again. "I'm so excited. Come Friday night, and we'll spend Saturday thrift store shopping like the old days." Sullen smiled into the mirror, swiping a drop of sweat from her olive-colored skin that she got from her father. "Sounds good, Momma. I'll see you then, okay?" "Love you, Baby Girl." "Love you, too." Sullen hung up the phone and tugged out of her clothes, tossing them into the hamper in the far corner. Duke would be excited that she wasn't spending her weekend studying and holed up like a hermit. She tossed her Bluetooth and phone onto the sink and reached back to unclasp her necklace. It shimmered in the fluorescent lighting of her bathroom, a forever reminder of her father. He'd given her the emerald jewel after her eye color that matched her grandmother's. She'd cherished it for years and promised to wear it every day in honor of them both. Not that she needed a reminder of her father's absence. She thought about him all the time. She promised herself she would excel at everything she could to make him proud. Because she knew he watched from the stars. *** Her mother stood by her car when Sullen pulled up that Friday afternoon. She looked pretty and more attentive to her outfit and hair. Her flaming red hair had dulled over the years. Sullen always envied her mother's hair. Her ebony locks came from her father's side of the family. She hopped when Sullen got out and wrapped her into a tight hug. She smelled like home, and for a brief moment, Sullen felt sad that she didn't make it home more often to visit. "Baby Girl," she said, pulling back to cup her face. "You look beautiful! You've grown." Sullen narrowed her eyes to slits. "Mother. I have not. I'm twenty-two. Girls stop growing at eighteen unless you're talking about my weight, and I'm assuming you want to fight then." Her mother chuckled. The lighthearted aura around her made Sullen excited to meet her mom's new boyfriend. It tasted weird to say it, but Sullen knew she was lonely. Those late-night texts proved it. "Are we ready to go?" Sullen asked. "I'll follow you there—" "No," her mother said, waving her off. "You can ride with me unless you change your mind about staying the night." "Nope, I'm here for the weekend actually." "Duke is out of town again?" her mother asked. Sullen hid her irritation. Her mom didn't love Duke. She didn't hate him because she had no sound reason. But she didn't like Sullen not trying to find her fated mate. "Mom. My mate is dead," Sullen said. She put her hands out in surrender. "Okay. Okay. You're right. I just don't know about that witch doctor," she said sarcastically. "You know how I feel about magic." Sullen chuckled as she slid into the passenger seat. "Says the werewolf shifter. Funny." She huffed. "It doesn't matter," she said, hitting the steering wheel playfully. "It's your life. If Duke makes you happy, then so be it. I just need to be around him more often. I'm sure he'll grow on me." Smiling, she watched as her mother pulled out of the driveway and drove them toward the highway. Her humming under her breath and the excitement rolling off her had Sullen's body vibrating with eagerness. Until it wasn't. Sullen glanced at the small population sign that read ‘Beacon Hills,’ and her stomach dropped to her butt crack. There was only one pack in the Legend Parish, and they caused pain that resided in her chest. They were the pack that killed her father. "Mom," Sullen said softly, trying to swallow the painful lump in her throat. "Are you going the right way?" Her mother smiled. "Of course. We take turns visiting one another. I know the way—" "Is there a new pack in Beacon Hills?" Her mother looked confused, as if she didn't understand why Sullen's wolf skimmed the surface or why her bottom lip trembled in suppressed aggression. "Sullen, what's the—" It clicked. Finally. "Honey," her mother sighed. "I didn't realize you were still so angry. I understand your pain. I do, but you have to let it go—" "Let me out," she said quietly, tightening her hand around the edge of the seat. "Sullen. Our alpha started that war, and your father was a faithful Beta. You can't blame the other pack for everything. They were doing just what he was doing, fighting for their alpha." Her throat began to tighten, and she felt like she would drown in the rhythm of her own heartbeat. "Stop. The. Car. Let. Me. Out." "No," her mother said sharply. "I've already promised Kevin that you were coming. Now, stop being dramatic and calm down. If you shift in this car, you're paying for a new one. Unfortunately, insurance doesn't cover werewolf damage, Sullen."