Chapter 1

Dawn. A time of day so many people think is beautiful, a time of day that poems are written about. Me? I hated it. For me, dawn meant that I was already halfway late for work and since I also hated work dawn was about the most overrated time of day ever.

The warehouse rose in front of me, its dull grey walls matching my mood perfectly. In fact this whole section of town reflected my early morning feelings. The slightly crumbling buildings were tired and in need of some love and care and the weeds fighting to grow through the cracks in the concrete were struggling to reach the sunlight. Sighing I pushed my depressing thoughts aside, straightened my shoulders and entered the building.

“You're late. Again.”

I winced at the grating voice of my supervisor, Mrs Fisher, who always seemed to hover right by the entrance. All the better to catch the latecomers.

"I'll be docking the time from your paycheck this week." The small woman glared at me for a moment longer before scurrying off to berate another employee.

I didn't even try to form a reply, it was a losing battle, instead, I made a beeline for my sewing machine, nodding as I passed my already hard-at-work co-workers. I settled into my familiar workstation, dreading the next ten hours stretching ahead of me. Who wouldn't dread being bent over a sewing machine in a windowless room as the light of the day faded outside? Still, I needed the paycheck for simple things, like food and rent.

"Late again, Ruby? It's like your superpower or something." Corrine's voice drifted over the clatter of 50 sewing machines.

“What can I say, it's my skill in life." Grinning, I twisted round to face my best friend.

"I thought you said dropping things was your life skill?" Her brows furrowed.

“That was last week. This week it's definitely not being on time for things.”

"Good to know. At least I know for sure that you're not a secret werewolf. With all their super speed and agility there's no way a wolf would have dropped an entire tray of food. It was such a waste of cake." Laughter sparkled in her warm brown eyes. Snorting I turned back to my machine, reaching for the first garment of the day.

"Please, what self-respecting wolf would live in this part of the city? I doubt they could live without 24/7 hot water." A familiar burn of anger settled in my chest at the thought of the unequal division of wealth that existed between shifters and humans.

"I guess." My friend's voice sounded slightly forlorn. Corrine firmly believed that the wolves weren't as bad as most humans thought they were, she was sure they were simply misunderstood. “Whatever, I need to talk to you during our lunch break.”

"Should I be worried?" Corrine was using her 'I've had a good idea' voice. Never comforting.

"No, I just need to talk to you about something is all.”

I gave her a thumbs up over my shoulder before turning my attention to the work in front of me. I might hate what I did for a living but that didn't mean I wouldn't do it well. It annoyed the hell out of me that I was making fine clothing for the werewolves, but I refused to do a bad job just because of that. I had my pride.

*************************

 The lunch bell rang and I breathed a sigh of relief as I raised my arms in a much-needed stretch. Sewing may not be hard physical labour but it still took its toll on my body as all my muscles screamed at me to move and give them a break. I was more than happy to comply.

“Quick, I want to grab the bench outside before someone else gets there.” Corrine grabbed my arm as she speed-walked past my workstation. I quickly grabbed my bag before she wrenched my arm for its socket, when Corrine was on a mission nothing would stop her – not even injuring her best friend.

“Okay, okay, I’m coming.” I shook free of her grip and let her rush ahead, knowing that she’d defend my spot on the bench from all comers.

Stepping outside into the weak sunlight I drew in a deep breath; these were the best thirty minutes of the working day. Spring hadn’t yet arrived but there was just enough sun to take the edge off the chill, though it could be snowing, and I’d still be outside. There was no way I’d spend a second longer inside that overcrowded warehouse.

“Ruby, over here.” Corrine sat on the single bench provided for the workers. Our employers were nothing if not generous.

“Where else did you think I was going to go? The other bench?” As I sat I pulled out my cheese sandwich, dull but cheap to make.

“Ha ha, are you sure your sense of humour isn’t your new life skill?” Somehow my friend managed to roll her eyes and take a bite of her lunch at the same time.  “Anyway, we have way more important things to talk about than your unfunniness.”

“That’s not a word.”

“And yet you know exactly what I mean. Stop distracting me, Ruby, we don’t have that long.” She carefully placed her sandwich on her lap and leaned towards me, eyes alight with mischief. “So, it’s the big two-oh this Saturday, huh? Are you excited?”

I wasn’t. Not at all. Birthdays really weren’t a big deal since I had no family to celebrate them with. I didn’t feel sorry for myself, but it was hard to get excited about blowing out a candle in an empty room.

“Nope. It just means another year has passed the same way as the last one. Dull, difficult and draining.” I tried to smile to soften my words, but it was hard to keep some of the bitterness from my voice. I couldn’t remember ever having a birthday with a real family member and the staff at the orphanage certainly didn’t count.

I felt a soft hand on my shoulder. “Well this year will be different. I can feel it in my bones.”

Corrine was practically vibrating with excitement. She was definitely one of life’s glass-half-full people.

“Like the time your bones were convinced we were going to get a pay rise?” I arched a brow.

“How was I to know they were going to reduce our hours?” She shrugged, dismissing her unreliable bones. “Anyway, this time I have a plan.” She clapped her hands together in sheer excitement.

“No. No plans, Corrine. Your plans are more like emergencies in waiting. I love you, but your planning skills are terrible.”

            “You’re just jealous of my superior abilities. Anyway, the point is that I have the perfect birthday celebration plan. Honestly, it is possibly the best idea I’ve ever had.”

This from the girl who thought getting a cat was a good idea. We lived in a city of werewolves for heaven’s sake. No self-respecting cat would live within ten miles of them. Still, Corrine’s smile was infectious, all she wanted was to try and give me a special day. It was why I loved her.

“Uh-huh. Tell me the plan and then we’ll decide how good it is.” I was already pretty sure I knew the answer to that, but I wouldn’t ruin my friend’s fun.

“The Dirty Den.” She said in a reverent tone, letting the words hang in the air for added effect.

“No.”

“Come on Ruby, don’t just say no. Think about it.”

“Why on earth would I think about illegally sneaking into the wolf section of the city just to go to a dive bar with a reputation for trouble?” My words came out more harshly than I intended, but I didn’t want Corrine to think she had any chance of convincing me. There was no way I was going to risk breaking one of the cardinal rules of our society: Humans must not cross into wolf territory without permission and permission was near impossible to come by unless you were a member of the human council, the rest of us were forbidden from setting foot on such hallowed ground.

“Because you need to actually have some fun, live your life. I love you to pieces but all you do is work and go home. Doing your food shopping is the highlight of your week.” For once Corrine’s voice was firm, this really mattered to her.

She was right, my life was definitely limited, but it was safe and predictable. Living in the capital city of werewolf society meant that we humans always had to be on our best behaviour. Sure, we had food and houses and the illusion of freedom but it was a fact that wolves ruled the world and we were second-class citizens. Add in the fact that this was the city where the king of the world rulers made his home, and it meant that the rules were harsher and enforced more thoroughly. The king of all wolves made sure his capital was an example to all.

“It’s a bad idea, Corrine. Thank you for trying to make my birthday special, but I’d rather just go out for a meal or something. A birthday celebration isn’t an excuse to make bad decisions.”

“It’s exactly the time to make bad decisions. We have our whole lives to be sensible. Besides, I know a guy who can get us through the fence and into the bar. Loads of people do it, I promise that it’s completely safe.” The pleading in her voice matched the hope in her eyes. “Just say you’ll think about it.”

I was powerless to crush her hopes completely.

“Fine. I’ll think about it.” Tomorrow I’d tell her I’d thought about it overnight and it was still a bad idea.

“Yay, you’re the best.” She reached across and hugged me.

“I know I am. Now come on, I don’t want to be late back or Mrs Fisher is just going to stop paying me entirely.”