Chapter 1
Portland was a place for different people. It was a place for outsiders. People who didn’t fit in where they were from…and that’s me. My father is the Alpha of the Washington pack and my mother is their Luna. And then there’s me… Athena Samuelson. A girl, who doesn’t have a real purpose in the pack nor has felt close to anyone there except for a select few. Unlike my brother, Poseidon, who would inherit the Alpha title and be the next leader, I was told my purpose was to marry and to become a Luna. What a purpose.
So, I left the pack after years of resisting the pack’s archaic ways. I have been avoiding my pack and their outdated rituals for years---until now. That brings me here, to why I took a job in Portland as a nurse after I finished school. Now I’m 22, 3 years away from being legally ‘emancipated’ from the pack and their laws if I choose. 3 more years I’d go, to a normal life. A lot of wolves don’t want to risk leaving their pack, leaving it almost impossible to find their fated mate but I wasn’t sure what would be in it for me as a mate. I would have to be stuck in a pack, who may view me as an outsider or better yet stuck in my pack, who already views me as an outsider. That’s why I liked the human world— it was ok to be different, especially in Portland.
Besides, I met someone here, he wasn’t a wolf but he was a doctor. And in the human world that was a big deal, like being an alpha in the wolf world. He was a sweet, patient, and kind and didn’t physically try to assault me during heat like most of the men did. Nor did he pick on me for my bright blonde hair, pale skin, or eyes. In our pack, I was different, mainly because of my wolf: she was an all-white wolf, and her eyes changed to amber when mine were naturally blue. No one ever seen anything like it, besides for my mother. But no one ever batted an eye at my mother since she was the Luna. Even my brother was different compared to me, he was a golden colored wolf and when his eyes shifted, they were a paler version mixed with green and amber. It was normal for your wolfs’ eyes to change during the shift but no one besides my mother and I shared the distinct color of amber. Nevertheless, the girls picked on me and the boys wanted me to like them, I didn’t appreciate either type of attention. Unfortunately, until I reached 25- I was at the whim of the pack still. So, I still had to abide by their requests. The first request of a year was to travel home to the pack.
