1
Artemis looked at the card in her hand while holding the steering wheel from the other hand, driving steadily. On both sides of the road were woods, an unclaimed territory by both races, vampires and werewolves.
Suddenly, her car shook like a turbulent wave hit it before it stopped in the middle of the woods. She tried to start it again but failed twice. She pressed her lips together then opened the door, stepping out. It was eerily quiet, no birds chippering or any animal’s howl.
Her icy blue eyes gazed toward her left side and instantly knew this side of wood was no longer unclaimed. There was a pack’s border nearby and she could feel the patrol wolves’ presence. She opened the car’s hood and checked the engine. She wanted nothing more than her car to start and get out of these woods, away from those lingered gazes.
On the faraway, near the border, two patrol werewolves lingered, looking at the distant. Their eyes constantly looked at her in alertness, ready to fight any second they found if it was a trap to attack them.
“I sent signals to the team leader. He will be here any second.” One of the patrol wolves with blonde hair, Kylo said to his fellow.
“It’s unlikely that a lone wolf attack us…” Other patrol wolf with brown hair, Ian mumbled.
“Rogues are dangerous, dude. They can attack anyone anywhere.” Kylo reminded him.
“A lone wolf.” Ian looked at him, pointing at Artemis.
Kylo gave him a bored look and clearly looked like a person who couldn’t understand what his fellow was talking.
“Don’t tell me you missed the entire history class in werewolf academy!” Ian threw his hands up in frustration.
How Kylo became a patrol wolf was beyond luck and something Ian didn’t want to dwell on. Both were freshly graduated but Kylo was a wolf with zero experience, no prior internship or placement experience.
They both were paired with an experienced patrol wolf but his mate was going to give birth so he took a leave, leaving them alone to fetch. Unfortunately there wasn’t any senior available to fill a substitute seat.
“She is a lone wolf. Smell her scent. Though carrying some of a rogue’s smell. She can also be dangerous. A spy… But there’s no presence or scent of any other wolf within 15 kilometers. So it’s unlikely that a lone wolf attack us,” Ian explained this to Kylo.
Suddenly, sounds of clapping came from behind them, startling them. They both turned around in defensive posture but froze, letting out sighs of relief. It was their team leader, Zion who stood beside them and looked at the burgundy hair girl repairing the car engine.
“Very good. You are learning very well.” He appreciated Ian.
Soon he narrowed his eyes at her and held his breath. There was something familiar about her but he couldn’t place his finger exactly what it was. The wolf inside Zion was yelling powerful.
“What?” He asked his wolf in the subconscious.
“A powerful she-wolf.” His wolf told him.
He breathed sharply, feeling oppressed under the sudden emitted aura of Artemis. Ian and Kylo were no different.
“She was defenseless before.” Kylo said, his eyes changing and ready to shift anytime to attack her.
Zion had his wolf send signals to his superiors in case she was to attack them.
“Alpha isn’t in territory at the moment and if anything happens in his absence, we will be dead even if we come out alive.” He told both of them.
Soon a small team gathered at the border, patrolling every second.
Artemis looked coldly at her car and subconsciously released a powerful aura filled with frustration. She quickly realized what a bigger mistake she made by losing control of herself. She ran her hand in her hair then began to change the car’s battery, feeling more patrol wolves presence.
Her identity was very suspicious, risky and fragile to roam around in the middle of the woods and near a pack. Her wolf, Lyra tried to come out from her unconscious but held it at bay, mentally blocking it further.
Meanwhile on the east side of the pack border, a car entered, earning a short greeting bow.
“Alpha.”
Zarek, the Alpha of Blood Moon Pack, felt his wolf Nyx paced restlessly in his subconscious.
“Hurry! Hurry! To the southwest. Hurry!” Nyx yelled restlessly, causing a brief headache to Zerek before he sniffed a soft Lavender scent coming from distance.
Zerek opened his car door and jumped out, shifting midair in a grey color wolf and running toward the source of the smell. His Beta, Lucius put his foot on the brake quickly, stopping the car. He and the other wolves looked at his Alpha, running in his wolf form madly.
“Your brother’s calling you in a hurry to the southwest border.” Lucius’s wolf told him.
Lucius also abandoned the car and ran toward the southwest while shifting.
“Beta Lucius!” Delta Kael called him behind and thought something serious happened.
Delta Kael also abandoned the car and ran after him. Behind him the escorts also followed them while the patrol wolves tightened the security and surveillance.
Lucius rushed and sped up but fell behind Alpha Zerek. The loud thuds of paw hitting the ground echoed in the woods.
Artemis, who had just fixed her car, paused, feeling a powerful presence near her with her wolf getting excited in her unconscious, trying to break barriers and come into her subconscious. She turned around right on cue Zerek stopped a step away, shifting back to his human form.
They both stared into each other’s eyes, blurring everyone in the background. It was like only two of them just existed in this world.
In the background, Lucius stared at Artemis with wide eyes in disbelief and shock. A part of his brain excited and wanted to rush to her, pulling her in a hug.
But everyone’s bubble burst soon when she opened her mouth at the same time as Zerek.
“...mate…”
“Reject.” Her voice was cold, just as her cold eyes which looked grey in shadows and icy blue in light.
