Page 2 of The Alpha's Broken Oath

“You are still infatuated with Deacon? And you say you are not a kid?”

“What if I am? Infatuated with Deacon, I mean?” I’m more than infatuated. I’ve been in love with him since I first saw him.

“Go home. Right now, Winter.”

“I like Deacon, Jake. We could be— “

“Could be what? Goddess, Winter! You are eighteen. You have no wolf, no sense of direction, and he’s the Alpha’s son. He’ll lead the pack one day, and you think you’ll be by his side when he does that? You are too young for him. You are too weak for him, and this crush you’ve got for Deacon will end in one way—you hurt. I’m only trying to protect you, Win.”

He means well. I know he does. But that doesn’t stop the tears that spring from my eyes and burn the back of my throat.

“Maybe I don’t need protection. Maybe I’m sick of you, Dad, and Mom coddling me like I don’t know what I want.”

I sound like a petulant child.

“Go home. We’ll talk about this when I get home.”

It’s Jake’s final word or nothing.

I blink away tears, turn around, and leave with my best friend in tow.

A few minutes later, Crystal has looked at me with piteous eyes, and I hated it.

“Winter I— “

“I’m going to take a short walk. Thanks for today.”

The short walk turns into a run. The tears I had held back from my talk with Jake came flowing down my cheeks like water from a broken dam. I swipe away the branches blocking my way while every sound on my feet makes echoes in the silent woods.

I don’t know how long I’ve been running, but everything comes to a standstill when pain shoots from the base of my spine, climbing up my limbs and paralyzing my entire body. I try to breathe, but that only makes the burn in my lungs turn fiercer and more painful.

The pounding in my chest brings me to my knees as the word “help” rests on my tongue and tries to fight its way out of my lips. Every thought in my mind jumps into the possibility that I might be dying. That would explain my complete loss of strength and the pain that gnaws my body like the fury of the Goddess herself.

“Winter.” A voice in my head calls out. It’s a voice that sounds like me but, at the same time, doesn’t feel like me.

“Let me in.”

The voice continues, and the realization of what is happening almost knocks the remaining air from my throbbing lungs. The voice, is it my wolf?

Jake said it would hurt the first time I felt my wolf, but I didn’t imagine it would hurt this much. He also said I would hear her talk to me when the time was right, but the feeling of listening to my wolf doesn’t compare to anything I’ve experienced in my entire life.

My hands slap the ground, and pain shoots through every muscle in my body. I look at the skies and let my wolf in.

The pain surges up through my limbs, wrapping around my bones as I change. Fur, the same shade as my hair, sprouts from my arms and legs, and in no time, my paws are sinking into the chilled grass.

I breathe in like I’m tasting how air feels for the first time, and everything feels different. Every sound from the woods crashes into my ears, and the urge to run while in my wolf form overwhelms me.

I run until I can barely hear the sound of my wolf howling. When the adrenaline rush wears off and my wolf decides that’s enough for the night, I shift back to my human form. The pain is nowhere as crippling as before.

My hands tremble against the grass, and the smile on my face wobbles as I try to keep up with what has just happened.

I’ve barely gathered enough strength to stand up when Deacon’s voice hits me out of nowhere.

“Winter.”

His voice is deep and gritty, thick and dark like rich melted chocolate.

I raise my head, my eyes meeting his dark, onyx ones.

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