Chapter 2

*Trigger Warning*

Ava's POV

"Happy Birthday to me" I said sarcastically to myself.

There was nothing happy about my birthday. It was just another reminder to remind me that I got to live and my mom didn't. I had no one to celebrate with. I had no friends or family. I was just a girl staying in a pack surrounded by people that wanted nothing to do with her.

My life was pathetic. I was pathetic. My life was so messed up. I felt broken and dead inside like there was nothing left for me in this world, and there truly was nothing left for me.

Sometimes I felt like I didn't deserve to be alive. I know that if she was here she would comfort me and tell me it wasn't my fault. No matter how many times I tried to reassure myself that it wasn't my fault because I wasn't the one who killed her, it never seemed to make me feel any less guilty.

I shook away my depressing thoughts and thought about something positive. 

I looked around the crappy space where I occupied. I had a single bed pushed up in one corner of the room. The walls were stripped from not being painted in a long time. I had a full length mirror over one side and my clothes were stored in boxes. 

I didn't have anything else up here, apart from all the other junk that everyone else stored up here. I was literally surrounded by old junk that gave me the creeps at night. I think they did it on purpose because most of the things up here didn't need to be stored.

As for showering, I used one of the bathrooms that everyone else used. I always tried to use it when no one was here. 

My life sucks.

I rolled out of bed and started my day as I usually did. Today was Saturday, so everyone was here. I quickly made breakfast and later cleaned the entire house. When I say the entire house, I do mean it. I had to clean all the rooms, which was pretty awkward on my part cleaning while they watched me.

I had finally completed all my chores. Dinner wasn't on my to-do list, so I had the rest of the day to myself.

I was walking back to my room now with my head down, careful not to make eye contact with anyone on the way. Just as I was about to pass my Caleb's room I heard someone mention my name.

I stopped outside his slightly ajar door to hear what they were saying. I went up to the door and listened intently. I know that it was rude to eavesdrop, but at the same time I was curious to know what they were saying about me.

"Tonight, I'm going to fuck her tonight and when I'm done, she's all yours." I heard Josh say.

"I don't mind tapping that ass," another voice says.

"We could make this even more interesting and each have our turn with her all at once" someone suggested.

"You watch way too much porn" another voice said laughing.

"Oh come one, let a dude live out his dreams" the voice from before complained.

"Your dream is to have a gangbang with one girl and all your friends?" a voice asked in disbelief.

"I don't see why the hell not?" he laughed.

"It could be fun," someone else suggested.

"Guys chill out. We'll all get our turn" Josh said. 

"If she won't give in willingly, then we'll have to take what we want," Josh continued with a laugh.

I covered my mouth in shock after I heard what they were planning. They were all planning to have their way with me. I knew I couldn't fight all of them off at once, nor could I fight off one of them.

I wasn't just going to let them take away the only precious thing I had left in my life. I was saving myself for my mate, for when I found him. I wasn't about to just sit and do nothing so that they could ruin me.

"Caleb, are you ok with this?" I heard Josh say a few moments later.

"Are you kidding me? That bitch is the reason my mother is dead. I don't give a fuck what you guys want to do with her" was Caleb's reply.

"Good" was the last thing I heard as I walked away.

I made my way to my room and grabbed an old duffel bag. I couldn't stay here anymore. I was old enough to be on my own, not that I haven't been on my own for a very long time now. I might live in a house full of people, but I was all alone.

I threw in only the necessary items that I would need, deciding to pack light so that I could move faster. I shoved the bag under my bed and decided to wait till nightfall, that way I could slip away easily without anyone catching a glimpse of me.

I sat in my room thrumming my fingers against my thighs nervously. It was now nightfall and I needed to leave before they executed their plan.

I got up and threw on an oversize hoodie. I pulled the hood up and took up my bag. I walked along the halls with my head down, not wanting anyone to recognize me. I wasn't taking any chances. Josh and his friends could be anywhere.

If they tried to take me away forcefully, no one would stop them, because no one cared about the loser, the loner. They wouldn't even bother to bat an eyelash in my direction.

I slipped outside without anyone noticing me. As I walked a little down the path to go into the woods I heard someone talking not too far from where I was.

I slipped behind a tree and peeked around to see who was there.

"What's taking him so long?" I heard an impatient voice say and then the person blew out a puff of smoke.

"Who knows?" another voice answered. Josh. He was here with his friends.

I heard footsteps approaching and then shouting. They were talking about me.

"Where is she?" Josh asked impatiently.

"We looked everywhere. She's not in the house" someone answered.

"She's around here somewhere. Split up and look for her. We'll meet back up at the cabin" Josh ordered and they all dispersed in different directions.

As soon as they were gone, I ran. I ran like my life depended on it and in this case it did. Because if they were to ever succeed with their plan I would be even deader inside than I already was.

I ran as fast as my legs could take me through the woods. I could hear the creatures of the night- the wolves howling, owls hooting and other noises that I couldn't make out. I was terrified of the woods, but even more terrified of getting caught and that was all the motivation I needed to not look back.

I have been running and walking for what must have been hours now. I had already passed the pack borders and was now running to god knows where. 

I've never been outside the pack's territory and I had no idea what was lurking in the shadows. I've heard stories about the type of wolves that lived on the unmarked territory. In fact, I've had my run in with them years ago when they killed my mother, the rogues.

I tried to be as quiet as I could, not wanting to draw any unwanted attention to myself. The rogues were viscous werewolves who'd kill for no reason. They were always causing trouble. They weren't loyal to anyone, hence the reason why they didn't have anyone to keep them in line. 

This was one of the many reasons why they were kicked out of their pack, because they couldn't follow orders, or they tried to overrule their alpha. 

I was now a rogue. I was now considered a threat and anyone who came across me would not hesitate to kill me despite the fact that I was completely harmless.

I ran and walked for a very long time. I knew that it was now morning as the darkness was slowly fading and being replaced by light.

"There's one over here" I heard a voice shout.

I stopped moving and looked for a hiding place. There was nowhere here for me to hide as I looked around and saw that I was standing in the middle of a field.

"Don't make any sudden movements" an authoritative voice of a man boomed in front of me, followed by a growl.

I stood completely frozen as my eyes widened in fear. There was a huge brown wolf walking towards me. I gripped the straps of my bag and followed its movements with my eyes.

It exuded power and authority as it circled around me. It suddenly stopped before me and bared its teeth at me. I looked into its ocean blue eyes and was completely mesmerized. 

It was like I was under a spell. The world around us faded as he too stared back into my brown ones. There was something echoing in my head as his stare got even more intense. I was unable to make out what my brain was trying to comprehend.

I felt all warm and fuzzy under his gaze. A shiver went up my spine as he continued to stare at me. The wolf tilted its head and I couldn't help but think how adorable that simple action was.

The wolf pounced on me and I fell backwards on the ground. In a blink of an eye the wolf had transformed into a man, a very naked man who was on top of me.

I blushed furiously as I trained my eyes on his face, too embarrassed to look anywhere else.

He was beautiful. His eyes reminded me of the ocean and if I stared long enough, it felt like I could get lost in them. His soft black hair was a mess on top of his head, with a few stray strands hanging on his forehead. 

His long lashes fanned against his cheek as he looked down on me with a cute frown. His lips were full; he had high cheekbones and a sharp jawline. All in all, he was perfect.

My hand has been itching to touch his hair so I brought it up to run in his hair and he closed his eyes for a second with a groan escaping his lips. When he reopened his eyes they had a gold rim in them.

He opened his mouth and uttered the one word, four letters that changed my life.

"MINE" he growled.