014.

Cassie.

Three Years Later

“Cassie! The party of four just left. Go, go, go!” my manager, Eric, a kind middle-aged human with freckles and red hair, called after me, pointing towards the empty table with left-over food and some empty plates on it. 

I nodded and grabbed my cleaning spray and napkins, moving towards the table in question, swiftly.

Three years had passed since I made the bold decision to leave Red Hollow Pack, but the memories of that day still clung to me, so vivid in my mind as though it happened yesterday.

When morning came after the traumatic day, I had wasted no time in taking Jake’s advice. I took every back road and hitched rides with strangers until I reached the next state, all because I didn’t want the scouts to find me. The whole journey, I was fueled by one thing: survival. But survival hadn’t been easy.

At first, I holed up in a motel, still rich with the money I’d stolen. But on my third night there, two humans crept into my room while I was sleeping, demanding money or my life. 

They seemed quite drunk and seemed to know I had money with me. I’d barely managed to escape out the window before they closed in, and when I returned a few hours later, bloodied and shaken, my room was ransacked. The bag of money was gone, and my belongings were stripped down to just the clothes I’d taken with me. There was no question. I couldn’t stay there anymore. So I gathered what was left and ran.

After that, it was nights on the streets. Park benches, alleyways—wherever I could find cover. Days blurred together, each one colder and lonelier than the last. 

But just when I thought I’d lost all hope, a small, old café caught my eye. Desperation drove me to go inside and ask the elderly couple behind the counter if they needed help. They did, and when I told them about my situation, omitting only the werewolf details, they offered me a small storage room in the back of the café. 

That tiny space, with a single cot and a shelf for my belongings, became my home. And for the first time in months, I felt safe.

I worked at that café for nearly a year, earning their trust, and in time, they became like a family. But eventually, they convinced me to apply for something more stable—something with better pay. 

They had vouched for me, called in a favor with a friend, and got me a cleaning job at the restaurant of Magnolia Hotel, a prestigious towering building, with marble floors and gleaming chandeliers, full of wealthy clients who barely noticed the cleaning staff. For them, I was invisible. For me, it was a hiding place.

I still worked a few hours at the café when I could, more out of loyalty to the old couple than anything else.

Now, as I scrubbed down the table, looking at my own reflection in the glass, I noticed I had grown. I wasn’t as young and naive as I had been three years ago, but I felt the same. I was still grieving my son, and I hadn't found my mate yet.

I shook my head to rid myself of the thoughts about the past, wiping down the table and rearranging the chairs, humming a little song under my breath.

Then, voices reached my ears.

They were hushed, the kind of conversation intended to be private, but they weren’t counting on anyone with enhanced hearing nearby. 

I froze, straining to make out the words coming from the nearby booth. The men spoke with authority, voices rough with experience, and there was an unmistakable sharpness in their tone that made my skin prickle.

“About time the council finally made a decision about the rogues,” one of them muttered.

My stomach clenched. Rogues. They were talking about my kind. Even now, after all I’d been through, the word felt like a stain. I’d become a rogue the day I left Red Hollow—without a pack, without a family. A stray.

I listened closer, my hands tightening on the napkin I was holding.

“Purely Alpha Axel’s decision if you ask me,” another man chimed in. “He’s got the council in his pocket now, especially after…you know.”

The first man grunted, his voice lowering, “Well if anyone knows the danger of rogues, it’s him. Can’t blame him after what happened to his family.”

My heart pounded so hard I thought they might hear it.

Axel…

I remembered the last time I saw him. It was during Cam’s burial. His face twisted with grief and fury. Fury because of the argument we had when we returned from the warehouse. And now he was influencing the council. 

I’d tried my best to seem as much of a human as I could, which meant I didn’t mix with werewolves or act like I was one. And because Cy and I were still weak, it was difficult for anyone who wasn’t an Alpha to notice me. But I‘d heard things about Axel, even though I was in a different state. 

News about how vicious he’d become was hard to miss, especially because his construction company was doing really well, which put him in the limelight. He also became the most feared Alpha in the country. It’s no wonder he had the werewolf council in the palm of his hands.

“He’s a smart Alpha, I'll give it to him,” one of the men said, admiration thick in his voice, “If the council says all rogues should be killed unless they’re with a pack, I’d say it’s long overdue. Too many of ‘em running around, causing trouble.”

My breath hitched, a cold wave of terror washing over me. Kill all rogues? The council had decreed it, just like that? And Axel had been the one to push it forward? 

I knew he was angry when I left. I knew he could never forgive me for stealing from him and disappearing. But a law for every rogue to be killed? That was more than anger. That was a vendetta.

I took a step back, trying to get away from the booth without drawing attention. The napkins dropped from my hand as I staggered, and for a moment, the room spun. 

“This is because of me, isn’t it?" I whispered to Cy, who didn’t bother responding. 

In my daze, I stumbled back again, only to collide with something—or rather, someone. A firm hand gripped my shoulder, steadying me, and keeping me from tumbling to the floor. I turned, my pulse quickening, expecting to see another hotel guest or maybe a coworker.

But the moment my eyes connected with the person’s, my mind went blank, and I could barely breathe.