Chapter One

Storm's POV

"Is she ever going to shift?" My mother said to my father as they prepared for the day. They seemed to forget that just because I couldn't shift didn't mean that I didn't have my other werewolf senses.

"I don't know, we'll just have to keep praying to the moon goddess." He sighed and I could imagine him rubbing his temples, he always did that whenever he was stressed or tired.

" What about her mate, will she ever find her mate?" Mom asked, her voice cracking as she said the last word. My heart clenched, knowing that my mother was going through pain because of me.

"Hazel, please, let's not worry about that now. It's Storm's birthday, she's going to know if something is wrong with us, so put on a big smile and get ready to wish our daughter a happy birthday." Dad's voice rang loud and I could hear Mom shuffling around the kitchen.

"You're right, I shouldn't bother. Everything will be fine." Mom's fake cheery voice was so evident. I took deep breaths and then walk down the stairs, mentally preparing for their love assault.

"Good morning Mom, morning Dad." I pressed a kiss to each cheek.

" Happy birthday love! You're eighteen now, an adult." Mom beamed at me.

"Happy birthday, my little stormcloud. You're now an adult." Dad ruffled my hair as I sank into their embrace. I spent hours trying to make it perfect for today.

"Thanks, guys, I would love to stay and chat more but I'm already late for school. Bye, love you guys." I said as I leaned over the kitchen counter and grabbed an apple.

"Bye love, I love you," Mom yelled after me as I rushed out the door.

The walk to school was short and I wasn't late but I needed some time to gather my thoughts, today was the only chance to find my mate if he was part of my pack because it was the last day of high school. I needed to find my mate, it was the only hope I had of being a normal werewolf.

I stepped into the school building and the smell of fresh pine and mint hit me, my heart skipped a beat and I followed the smell but ended up losing it. I didn't bother searching for it because I knew it was going to come back to me.

********

I had not gotten a glimpse of Zachary all day and I just knew he was my mate, Zachary was the Alpha's son and he would be Alpha once he finds his mate, he was still unmated and I had liked him for years so it was obvious the moon goddess was keeping him for me. It was almost the end of the day and I still had not met my mate, I asked for permission to leave the class to use the bathroom and the teacher agreed.

As I walked down the hall, I heard laughter coming from the lockers, I stopped dead in my tracks and watched as the man I thought was my mate, fondled and kissed another girl. I saw red and approached them, ready to unleash my anger.

"Zachary, what the fuck?"My voice dripped with venom and they pulled apart and stared at me. I was too angry to notice Zachary's confused look.

"Um, can I help you? Do I know you?" He cocked a perfectly arched eyebrow at me. Damn, he was fine, if I wasn't so angry, I would have melted in my shoes.

"Do you know me? Why the hell do you mean by that? Of course, you know me, I'm your mate."

The silence lasted for only a minute before they burst into laughter, now I was the one who was confused, why the hell were they laughing.

"Look, lady, I don't know you and I sure as well I'm not your mate. This is Kayley, my mate." Zachary's voice was filled with humor and he looked at me like I was a clown. My chest started to constrict and it felt like I couldn't breathe. Something in my head told me to give up but I was too far gone to listen.

"No, that can't be, it's me, I'm your mate. You've been without a mate all this time, you've been waiting for me. Me, Storm, not this strange bitch." I spat out, Zachary's eyes flashed yellow and I could tell his wolf was struggling to surface. I took some cautious steps backward.

"What the hell did you just call my mate? Storm, I remember you now, you're the wolfless girl, I used to pity you and think that life must be hard for you but now that I know you're crazy and loony, I can't help but wish I joined them to bully you all those years. I've heard shit about redheads being crazy but this is next level." He snarled at me. Katie or Kylie rubbed her hands on his chest to calm him down and I saw red.

I smacked her hand away, " Get your hands off him." I yelled at her and Zachary grabbed me and threw me against the lockers, his fingers tightening around my throat, choking me.

"What the fuck is wrong with you? I'm going to kill you." His eyes were completely yellow and I knew his wolf had surfaced. I struggled and scratched his hand, trying to gasp for air as my legs tangled.

My eyes were closing, I could no longer breathe. I could see clouds and I was floating on them, I guess what they say about death is true, you only ever feel at peace when you're dead.

********

The erratic knocking on the door jolted me awake. I felt the burn on my neck as I tried to raise my head, I guess everything that happened wasn't a bad dream but a reality.

"Come in," I croaked out like a frog who had a ball stuck in its throat. Mom stuck her head in and came in with a glass of tea.

"Hey Baby, how are you feeling?" She sat beside me on the bed and ran her fingers through my hair. I've always loved it when she did that, it soothed me.

"Horrible, terrible, embarrassed, I never want to show my face in public again. I think I need to leave town." I said, groaning at the pain.

"Shush, don't talk that way. You'll be fine, I'm sorry about the pain. Can you tell me what happened?" She asked concerned. I turned to her in shock.

"Don't you know what happened? How did I get home?" I furrowed my brows in confusion. She scrunched up her nose as she thought.

"A young man brought you home, he said he found you unconscious and decided it was better to bring you home." A boy, my heart fluttered thinking it could be Zachary but I quickly killed the thought, I rather it be anyone else.

"This boy, what does he look like?" I knew it wasn't Zachary but I still needed to know who it was.

"Oh honey, he wasn't a boy, he was a young man, and he was beautiful. He had jet black hair, was very tall, like 6ft 4 or over, had the clearest pair of blue eyes I have ever seen and when he smiled, he had dimples. Storm, dimples." Her eyes glazed as she thought about him.

"Geez, mom, if I didn't know you any better, I would think you were in love with him." The guy she discovered was very unfamiliar and looked nothing like Zachary, even though I told myself I was happy he wasn't the one who brought me home, my heart still stung a little bit.

"There was something about him that I couldn't pinpoint, his strength was different, it was much stronger like that of an Alpha. I'm sure he's an Alpha's son and he was unmated." She was particularly giddy about the fact that he was unmated. I rolled my eyes at her words.

"Good for him."

"Storm, tell me what happened at school, I won't let you distract me anymore." She glared at me and I dropped my gaze to my hands and told her about what had happened.

"Oh, baby, I'm so sorry you went through that." Tears were rolling down Mom's face and I didn't even notice that I was crying as well.

"Mom, what's wrong with me? How could I have been so dumb as to attack the future Alpha and Luna of this pack?" I wiped my eyes trying to stop the tears but they kept pouring out.

"You did nothing wrong, you were just hurt." She pulled me in and I snuggled into her warm embrace.

"I really thought he would be my mate, I was so certain. I am a psychopath." I laughed bitterly. Mom caressed my back.

"No, you're not, stop calling yourself names." She reprimanded me softly, suddenly I was back at the school with my back slammed on the locker, gasping for air. I clawed at my throat and thrashed in my mother's arms as she tried to calm me down.

When I had calmed down, I knew I had to get out of my pack, "I need to leave. I can't stay here anymore."