The End of Everything

Evaline:

The forest was stretched endlessly before me, shrouded in an eerie silence. My breaths were coming in shallow gasps as I pushed forward, my legs trembling with exhaustion.

I was on my way to pack house. It might be a stupid idea knowing Damian would be there, but I couldn't run away bare hands. I just wanted to sneak in and grab the little saving I had secretly kept. It might not be a lot, but it could earn me bread for a few days.

The night air was damp against my skin, but I barely noticed. My mind was consumed by a single thought.

I have to get away.

Ethan had rejected me.

The man I had loved... the only hope in my life... had shattered me without a second thought. Just hours ago, he had held me, made me believe I was wanted. And then, in front of everyone, he had cast me aside like I was nothing.

"You mean nothing to me."

His voice echoed in my head, sounding venomous and final.

And Lillian - my perfect, cruel stepsister - had stood by his side with a victorious smirk on her lips as if mocking me - "Ethan was always mine, Eva. Did you really think he would choose you?"

I clenched my fists, digging my fingernails into my palms as I ran. I had spent my whole life enduring torment at the hands of my stepmother, my stepsiblings, even my own father. But this? This was the final betrayal.

I had nothing left.

No home. No mate. No future.

But at least I was free.

The thought barely had time to settle before a sharp, metallic scent invaded my senses. My steps faltered as dread coiled in my stomach.

Blood.

The air was thick with it.

I swallowed hard, my heart hammering against my ribs as I forced myself forward. The trees thinned ahead, opening into the clearing where the pack was located. And that's when I saw it.

Bodies.

My breath caught in my throat.

Dozens of them were scattered across the ground like discarded puppets. The warriors, the elders, the pack members who had once sneered at me, tormented me... were now nothing more than lifeless corpses.

The pack was in ruins. Houses were on fire in the distance, and the packhouse - the very place I had grown up in - was nothing but a smoldering husk.

I stumbled forward, my mind struggling to process what I was seeing.

Shadowfang Pack was gone.

Annihilated.

A numb sort of disbelief settled over me as I took another shaky step. My father... where was he? Step mother? Lillian? Damian?

I turned my head, searching for their faces among the dead, but it was hard. And then I saw it - a symbol, carved deep into the bark of a charred tree.

A crescent moon, slashed through by three claw marks. It was the mark of the Rogue Kings.

A shudder wracked my body as I realized who had done this - the four Alphas who ruled the rogue lands. The ones whispered about in hushed voices, feared by every pack.

River. Kieran. Draven. Oscar.

I had heard the stories. How they had once belonged to a noble pack, only for my father to attack them, slaughtering their people and seizing their lands. And how the four brothers had survived against all odds, vowing vengeance.

This was their revenge.

And I was the only one left alive.

A choked sob clawed its way up my throat, but I swallowed it down. There was only one thought in my head - I had to run.

If the Rogue Kings had wiped out my pack, they wouldn't leave loose ends. And I was the last one.

Panic surged through me as I turned and fled into the darkness, leaving the ruins of my past behind.

* * *

One Month Later~

The cold seeped into my bones as I crouched behind the abandoned shack. My heart was slamming against my ribs crazily. The night was thick with the scent of pine and damp earth, but beneath it, something more dangerous lingered.

Wolves.

And these were not just any wolves, but rogues.

I clenched my jaw, forcing myself to remain still. I had been running for weeks, barely stopping to rest, never staying in one place long enough to be found. But it had been getting harder.

I had no money, no change of clothes. No food. And no shelter. And no matter how far I ran, they were always behind me.

I had managed to stay ahead of them... until now.

A low growl rumbled through the air, sending a shiver down my spine.

They were close.

I pressed my back against the wooden wall while my mind raced. My body was aching with exhaustion, my limbs were weak from weeks of starvation, but I couldn't let them catch me.

I sucked in a sharp breath and prepared to run. But at that very moment, a voice cut through the silence.

"Enough."

The single word was calm, yet it carried a weight that sent an icy chill through my veins.

Slowly, I turned my head.

A man stood just beyond the trees, mostly hidden in the shadows which made it hard for me to see his face. But even then, he looked - Tall. Powerful. Lethal.

I took a step back as my instincts screamed at me to run. But before I could, the man stepped forward and his dark gaze pinned me in place.

"You are a hard one to catch, Ms. Greystone."

They had found me.

My chest tightened, and my mind scrambled for a way out. "Let me go," I forced out, though my voice was barely above a whisper.

He showed no change in his expression. "You need to come with us."

My pulse pounded. "I'm not part of Shadowfang anymore. The pack is gone."

His expression didn't change. "I know."

The weight of his words pressed down on me. He wasn't here for my pack. He was here for me.

Before I could react, he moved. And he was fast. Too fast.

I barely had time to gasp before his hand wrapped around my wrist, grounding me in place. I twisted, trying to break free, but his grip was iron.

"Let me go!" I struggled, but he didn't even flinch.

"The Rogue Kings are waiting for you. It's time you stop running." He said, once again barely showing any change in his expression.

And then everything went black.