Page 1 of Wulf's Pack
Prologue
Skyler
Blackness threatensto pull me under, but I can’t pass out. This is the first chance I’ve ever had to escape since Victor bought me from my asshole parents, as if I were some kind of pet. I just have to find the will to move. There’s a reason they didn’t put me in the silver chains that normally keep me locked up when they leave. I’m too weak, too broken this time. The silver would kill me.
I need to move. With me unchained, they won’t be gone long. “Get up, Skyler.” I will my body to obey. “Get up!”
My arm is broken, I’ve got a side full of fractured ribs, and a concussion has me nauseated and seeing double out of the one eye that isn’t swollen shut. Every square inch of my body hurts, but if I don’t get out before they come back, they’ll let me heal before beating me all over again. I might not live next time.
“Come on, Sky. You can do it.”
I pick myself up off the floor, sucking in a sharp breath through gritted teeth, and push the pain to the back of my mind. I’ve gotten pretty good at learning to ignore it for the last eightyears. Pain and fear are all I’ve known since coming to the Vail pack.
I get to my feet, grateful that my legs aren’t broken and that I can walk. After painstakingly pulling on some loose sweats and flip-flops, I head for the hidden wall safe. Victor never thought of me as anything but a possession and therefore never bothered to hide anything from me. I’ve seen him punch in the code many times. He’s going to be pissed when he realizes I’ve robbed him.
My heart pounds as I enter the code. Victor will kill me if he catches me. Hopefully there’s not some kind of alert system that lets him know when the safe is accessed, but I hurry just in case. Inside the safe, I find a stack of cash and the silver knife he’s used on me more times than I can count. I wish I could stab him with it. Taking the money and the knife, I find a small backpack in the closet and grab one simple change of clothes before I hurry out the door.
My body screams in protest, but I can’t stop. The pack is out on a run for the full moon. It’s the only time they’re ever all gone at once. I slip down the stairs, and when I hear no sounds of wolves in the house, I make a run for it. I wish I could shift, but I’m wearing a magical collar that prevents me from doing so. Victor makes me wear it so that I can’t shift and heal faster. The man is a sick bastard.
Tears slip down my cheeks, but I don’t make a sound as I push my broken body to its limits. It’s over two miles to the highway. I have to get there before the pack realizes I’m gone.
As I enter the small town of Vail, Colorado, I stay in the shadows and try to make it to the truck stop without being seen by anyone. It’s not just that I’m bruised and bleeding, but the people of this town know me. They know who owns me. The Vail pack has about one hundred wolves, and they’re all strong alphas. They’re also rich and powerful. They own the ski resort, and their money buys the town’s allegiance. My only chance isto find a traveler passing through who might be willing to give me a ride. There’s a truck stop off the highway on the edge of town. Even at this time of night, it’ll be full of truckers. I know hitchhiking is dangerous, but it’s my only option.
By some small miracle, I reach the fuel stop unseen. There’re several trucks parked. I stand around the corner of the convenience store, waiting for someone who looks like they’re leaving. I nearly cry with relief when a female heads for a semitrailer rig. I make my way to her and stop her just as she’s climbing into her truck. “Please,” I croak. My voice is scratchy. I don’t use it much. Victor doesn’t like to hear me unless it’s my screams or cries. “Are you leaving?”
The woman jumps, startled, then gasps when she sees me. Her eyes widen. “Please,” I say again. “I need a ride.”
The woman stares at me in shock for a moment. I know what she’s seeing. My face is black and blue, swollen and bleeding. My hair is a tangled, bloody mess, and my clothes are a pair of Victor’s sweats nearly a dozen sizes too big.
The woman shakes herself from her shock and asks, “Can I take you to the police? Or the hospital? Does this town have an urgent care?”
“No!” I shout in a panic. I take a breath and try to stay calm. “No police. No hospital. Just escape.” My eyes fill with tears. I’m so close to freedom. “Please.”
The woman’s face fills with compassion and also determination. “Get in,” she says. She walks me around to the passenger side of her rig and then helps me up into the front seat. I don’t start to relax until we’re on the highway heading away from Vail.
My savior steals glances at me while I settle back into my seat. “Are you sure I can’t take you to a hospital?”
“I’ll be okay.”
“Is there someone I can call for you?”
I think of the parents who never wanted me and who were so worried about where they would get their next fix that they sold me to a monster. I swallow hard and shake my head. “There’s no one.”
The woman is quiet for a long minute. “Where can I take you?” she finally asks.
I close my eyes. Now that I’m away, the adrenaline is leaving my system, and the pain is returning with a vengeance. “Where are you headed?”
“Detroit.”
That’s probably over a thousand miles away. And wolves don’t love big cities since there aren’t a lot of places to run in shifted form. “Sounds perfect.”
Chapter
One
Wulf
I noticeher the moment she enters the club. It’s early on a Wednesday, so the place is still pretty empty, but I would have spotted her through the crowd even if it was the busiest Saturday night. I feel a tug when she walks through the door, and I can’t take my eyes off her. She’s beautiful, but it’s more than just the halo of pale blonde hair falling halfway down her back and her porcelain skin practically glowing beneath the lights of the club as if she’s the moon goddess herself. She has a sort of wide-eyed expression. It’s innocent, yet somehow haunted. She’s intriguing.
