Chapter Ninety-Seven

Rayne

When I reach my father’s pack, I’m bleeding and naked.

A woman sees me and recognizes me, and she immediately grabs a sheet from her hanging line and covers my body with it. I don’t have the strength to thank her. I only nod at her. She doesn’t even see this gesture because she’s staring at the main house and starts racing toward it, no doubt to call my father.

I lie on my side in the grass with the sheet wrapped around my sore body, breathing slowly. I ran the whole way here, ignoring aches and pains. In my wolf form, it’s a lot easier, but I’m still tired and exhausted, and my disappointment clouds everything, leaving little space to think about anything else.

One thing I know for sure is that I didn’t want to come here. I felt too ashamed. I still do. When I left, it was because I genuinely thought I’d be happy. I told my father how much I loved him, and he encouraged me to pursue this.

And now, I’m returning only a week later; heartbroken, perhaps beyond repair. I feel b