Prologue

I wake to the frantic shouting of voices. Footsteps sound through the house, both heavy and light. Snarls and growls come from my open window, cries and calls of our fighters drowned out by the furious growling of werewolves.

"Alpha! We're being attacked on the Northern side!" I recognise the sound of Charles, my dad's best friend. Attacked? The blaring of our sirens cut into my ears harshly and I cover them with my hands. What's happening?

I curl up under my covers, stuffing my face in the pillow. "Mommy!" I scream, too scared and confused to move; I can hear the crying of my baby sister, Theresa, mixed the calling of my big brother as he yells for Dad. "Mommy!"

My door suddenly bursts open and my mother stands there, a frantic look on her face. The sirens are still going off and other cries of other women are filling the house. "Cecily, I'm here." My mother is the most beautiful person I have ever seen: she has gorgeous blue eyes, bright and always shone of life, her luscious brown hair is thick and I always like to curl it around my fingers. I can see the worry and the fear she has on her face but she still smiles at me, instantly making it better. "Come on, baby. Hurry now."

She grabs my hand and pulls me from my bed. "Luke!" She yells through the house and I turn to the frantic footsteps of my older brother. He's slightly taller than me with the same coloured hair but has green eyes, like Dad. "Take Tessa, Sam and Alec to your father's office. I need to help the others," Mom says, pushing Sam and Alec into my chest. They've only just started to walk, Sam being two and Alec one and a half. Tessa is only a baby and she screams in Luke's arms.

"Mom, I don't want you to go," I beg her, eyes filling with tears as she kneels down in front of me, cupping my cheeks with her hands.

"Cecily, I have to help the others; I'm Luna. Don't worry, I'll be back. I promise." She says softly but even over the siren I can hear her clearly. "I need you to be brave for me, okay, baby?" I nod my head frantically before turning and struggling to pick up Alec.

"Come on, C," Luke says and I follow him to Dad's office. Sam stubbles on the step and begins to bubble in pain. I drop down next to my little brother, putting my arm around him as best I can.

"Sam, come on. We need to hurry. Mommy will be back," I promise him softly and his crying eases a little. Eventually we burst through the doors and into Dad's office. It's quite small but I don't take long to look around it. There's a chair next to the door, where I've sat and read so many times. Luke places Tessa on the chair and begins to try and stop her crying while Sam stands flush against my side, gripping me tightly and Alec gurgles fearfully against my shoulder.

I place the one year old next to our baby sister, sitting him up against the arm and attempt to calm Sam down. Tessa finally seems to quieten and I see Luke placing a dummy in her mouth. I tap his shoulder, remembering that he's deaf.

'Why are they attacking us?' I use my hands to speak to him. It's hard for a six year old to learn sign language but I manage well enough to talk to him.

'I don't know.' He replies, shaking his head along with his sign.

'Where's Dad?' I ask, wondering why he didn't help Mum. Luke frowns at me, shaking his head at me. I must've signed wrong. I screw my face up in concentration as I slow my hands.

'Fighting the borders. He's the Alpha.' What does that mean? At my questioning look, Luke continues. 'He's in charge of everyone here. Uncle Lewis and Uncle Charles are his second and third in command so they have to help him.'

'What about Mom?' The doors suddenly open fully, bashing against the wall and Tessa jolts, beginning to cry once more. I go to her as Luke rushes to close the door. She begins to suck my thumb as I coo to her, her small fingers gripping my hand. Alec whimpers, cuddling into my shoulder as I stand next to them.

'Mom's Luna- the female Alpha. She looks after the women and children.' Luke continues once the others have calmed down. He lifts Sam to his chest, wrapping the two year old in his arms. We huddle together at the chair, slightly hidden from the doorway in case anyone comes in. I don't know how long we stand here but I begin to tremble.

What's taking her so long? I wonder to myself. Tessa has managed to fall asleep again; the sirens no longer blaring. The office door creaks open someone stumbles inside. I let out a scream as Luke yells in shock.

"Mom!" I scream upon seeing her. She's now covered in blood, her face smeared with it and she's got a cut on her side which is leaking as she spies us out. "What happened to you?"

"There's no time to explain." Mom frantically begins to look around the office. She barely looks in our direction as she begins to sign. 'I need you to hide.'

Luke rushes, still holding Sam, over to the stairs that wind up over behind Dad's desk. He points up, unable to manage any sign since he's holding a baby. Mom releases a breath, smiling gratefully at her eldest child before she rushes to Dad's desk, opens the top drawer to take out a small key and slams the drawers shut again. She grabs Alec from the chair and beckons me to follow. With baby Tessa in my arms, I run after Mom as she leads Luke and I to the small cabinet that holds Mom and Dad's wedding photo. The cabinet is fixed against the wall, only just taller than Luke. Mom inserts the key into the hole at the back of the cabinet and it then pulls it forward causing the cabinet to open like a door, revealing a hole in the wall.

"Go in." She waves towards the hole so Luke can understand; he ducks inside and I follow afterwards. Inside is a small cave type of room, a little cold but it has a table and two chairs in the middle. "Stay in here," Mom says after allowing me to take Alec from her.

"What about you?" I ask and she opens her mouth but there's suddenly a crash. I know it's the front doors opening forcefully.

"They've broken in." She whispers, turning back to me and Luke. 'Take care of each other. Don't come out until your dad comes back. Take this.' Mom hands Luke the key she had used and Luke wraps his fingers around it. 'I love you. Watch over each other, your baby brothers and sister needs you.'

"Mommy? What's going on?" I ask, tears spilling down my cheeks. Mom kisses my head before straightening.

"Be brave, Cecily. Take care of your father for me." What did she mean?

"Where are you, bitch?" An unfamiliar male voice shouts and I know it's no one we know. Mom gasps, closing the door as much as she can before rushing down the steps. There's a crack of light, which gives me enough gap to watch as Mom reaches the ground floor just as two men burst through the office doors. "There you are. Trying to call reinforcements?"

"Get out, filth. My mate will kill you swiftly," Mom says, her voice strengthening into something that makes the men shake slightly.

"We have some unfinished business, Luna. You left too early from our meeting in the courtyard," the other man says and Mom growls. "Hiding your little puppies?"

"Keep them out of this, filth." She replies, fists tightening. What's happening?

"Cecily. Cecily, help me calm them down," Luke whispers, pulling me away from the door as our little brothers and sister begin to cry once more. We reach them just as growling and crashing is heard from the office. I look to Luke frantically, despite the fact he can't hear anything; the noises make my limbs tremble in fear.

What are they doing to her?

With Tessa and Alex finally silenced and Sam fixed with sucking his thumb, Luke and I race to the door again. Two wolves are attacking Mom fiercely, tearing and slicing at her flesh like rabid animals. Luke wraps his arms around my shoulders when I slam my hand to my mouth to snuffle my scream of horror. He holds me close, knowing we should move away but neither of us able to.

One of them latches onto her legs, pulling them from beneath her. She cries out but no matter how much blood she spills onto the floor of the office, no matter how much pain she's in, Mom doesn't stop fighting. She doesn't shift but she uses her claws to cut open the wolves legs and sides. As one of them bites down on her thigh, Mom screams. My body tightens.

No.

Her blue eyes meet mine. The second wolf latches his jaws around her neck and rips it open. I cry out and Luke turns us away from the door.

She's dead. They killed her.

I can hear the gruff breathing of the wolves as they begin to move around the office. What are they doing? Then I hear a heart-stopping howl; it's angry and heartbroken.

Dad.

The wolves leave the office quickly but we don't move from our place in the cave room. I open the door slightly, revealing the mess of the office: Mom's motionless body lies in the centre, the wreckage of the chairs surrounding her pool of blood. Dad suddenly runs through the room, closely followed by Charles and Lewis. They all freeze upon seeing Mom's body.

"No!" Dad yells, dropping the ground next to her. Tessa begins to cry again, making our presence known. Dad looks up, meeting mine and Luke's stricken faces and his expression drops. He knows we saw the whole thing. Lewis and Charles race up to us, bundling up Tessa, Alec and Sam in their large arms before Lewis reaches to pick me up.

They take us from our house and to the pack house where the pack members rush towards us from the bunkers. My friend, Oliver, beams towards seeing me, remaining clutched in his mother's grasp but I don't smile back. Lewis and Charles remain with the five of us, not letting anyone else come near us.

"Who were they?" I ask against Lewis' neck as he holds me tightly. Tessa is sleeping soundly in the crib that is kept for our family while Alec leans against Luke who is leaning against Charles. Sam is on Lewis' other side, sniffing his tears.

"A pack called Red Blood. They've wanted to overthrow our pack for years," Lewis answers.

"Lewis. They're just kids," Charles warns and Lewis looks down at my tearstained face.

"He's right. I shouldn't be telling you this," Lewis says, pulling me into his side more. I nod, letting the protectiveness of his hold comfort me. My tears still pour from my cheeks, matching the broken look on Luke's face.

We'd just watched our mother be murdered in front of our eyes.

Something inside me hardened. My grief turned to anger. Lewis said it was a pack called 'Red Blood'.

I will get them for this.