Three.

The car ride home seemed longer than it normally does. The trees passed by slower than necessary, the wind causing them to slighty bend to its will.

The moon slowly followed our path, almost mocking me, making wish I was on a patrol. It was always easier to clear my mind when I was alone.

I let out a heavy sigh as I rest my head in my hand, staring out the window.

"What's on your mind, kiddo?" Damien's voice breaks through my current daze. I lift my head and glance over at him. He looks genuinely worried about me. Of course he would be, he's the closest thing to a father figure I've ever had.

Damien is the one who found me when I first got bitten. I was 17 at the time, almlost 18, and I was in and out of foster homes pretty much my entire life. I wasn't a very good kid growing up, which is why I got caught up in the trouble I did. I wanted to fit in with the "cool" kid crowd, so one night they gave me an initiation task.

They dropped me off in the middle of a camp ground, and I was suppose to find my way back to main road, on my own, before sunrise. I didn't even come close to making it.

I had no idea what time it was, because they took my phone when they dropped me off. I guess they didn't want me calling someone and "cheating". Well, I was trying to follow a trail that I had found, when I felt as if I was being watched. I started to worry for my safety, but I pushed onward.

The moon was high in the sky, and I found myself running instead of walking. I knew I was being followed, and I didn't want to stop and ask questions.

I don't know how long I was running, but I stopped when I saw lights coming into my view. I was relieved, thinking that I was getting close the main road.

I was very wrong, however, because as I approached the well lit house, I heard the most stomach turning howl I've ever heard. It was coming from behind me, acting as a warning, because not long after that first howl, I heard another. Soon after, I heard howling coming from all directions. I couldn't tell if it was the same animal, or multiple animals.

I froze where I was, unable to decide on what to do. Most animals enjoy the hunt, and love to chase, so I didn't run. Instead, I shook violently in fear as a wolf, almost the same height as me, padded towards me. It's eyes glowing yellow, it's head bigger than most of my own torso. It's paws looked about the size of dinner plates. It's body seemed thin for its size, but that didn't stop the muscle mass from being visible, showing how powerful this animal was. The dark grey fur was long enough to sway in the breeze, but short enough to keep it cool in the summer heat. Its teeth were massive, canines showing in a defensive manor.

My breath hitched as the beast stopped with its face not even 2 inches from my own, staring into my eyes. I didn't move, I didn't look away. I honestly didn't know what to do, until it growled. It rumbled through the wolf's chest, and I could feel the vibrations in my own body.

That's when I turned around and ran, faster than I ever had before. I didn't know what else to do, but I knew I was in that animals territory, and I wanted out of it.

My lungs ached as I pushed on. My feet hurt from running through the woods, my arms cut up from running into branches. My mind was on survival mode, and I wasn't about to stop and see if the wolf had stayed or followed.

I started to hear cars passing by, telling me I was close to a road. I'm wasn't sure if it was the main road or not, but I kept running. I was almost there, I could see the headlights of the vehicles on the road. I practically smiled as I ran towards the tree line.

Just as I was about there, my heart dropped. Standing in the tree line was the wolf. I stopped myself dead in my tracks and stood there, breathing heavy, watching the wolf watch me. I wanted to scream, I wanted to run, but I knew it wouldn't do any good.

That's when I felt the sharp pain of teeth sinking into my left shoulder. I let out a shriek of horror as the wolf in front of me lunged forward and joined its friend that grabbed me from behind. "Please," I begged as they tore at my clothes, shredding the fabric and my skin underneath, "stop."

Of course they didn't listen. They kept biting and clawing at me, their growls getting more and more primal.

The pain eventually stopped as my body went numb as I stared up at the moon. My senses were slowly disappearing as I lost more and more blood. I could barely hear the wolves as my sight went dark and I felt nothing.

Damien found me the next morning. My clothes were torn to shreds, and I was laying in a pool of my own blood. He carried me back to the Shadowdweller pack house, and cleaned me up. He took care of me the next several days, and trained me to be who I am today when I woke up. If it wasn't for Damien, I'd probably be a Rogue, and for that I owe him my life.

"Lilly," I jump as his voice breaks through my thoughts again, "are you okay?" I look over at him and notice how worried he is now.

I give him a small smile and nod. "Yeah, I'm okay," I reassured him, "just lost in my thoughts tonight."

He nods as we pull into the driveway of the pack house. "I see," he ponders in thought for a second as he shuts the car off, "does that have anything to do with Zeke Summers?"

I feel my face get hot as Damien starts to laugh. Granted, I wasn't really daydreaming about the guy, but he is the reason I've been so out of it since the meeting with the Alphas. "Damien," I retort, almost too defensively, "why would you think it has ANYTHING to do with HIM?!" He raises an eyebrow, looks me dead in the eye, smiles, and says, "I didn't, until just now."