Cassie's POV
I hadn't slept properly in days.
Ever since Asher and I got engaged, my life had been in a whirlwind.
Rumours were flying around the pack about the banished brother claiming the omega girl were something else entirely, but that was the least of my concerns asI refused to give up on the one person who mattered most to me.
My father.
He was still lying unconscious, clinging to life by some fragile thread none of us could see.
Every healer we called, every potion brewed, every ancient ritual recited… nothing worked. The doctors said it was a miracle he hadn't passed yet.
They claimed he had no will in him to live.
I knew why, he was waiting for something.
Maybe for justice, maybe he was tired of the responsibilities that bore him down.
And I intended to get them.
I gripped the worn leather strap of my satchel as I pushed deeper into the woods, ignoring the uneasy whisper of the wind threading through the trees.
The evening sun had dipped low, staining the sky a hazy orange, casting long shadows that stretched like reaching fingers across the forest floor.
"Asher would kill me if he knew I was out here alone," I muttered under my breath, brushing aside a low-hanging branch.
Not that I cared. I was tired of waiting, tired of dead ends and half-truths.
Every lead I chased about the night my father was attacked led nowhere.
Witnesses claimed they saw nothing. Guards swore there was no breach. And the rogues we captured died before they could utter a word.
I wasn't naive enough to believe it was all coincidence.
Someone was covering this up.
And if I had to chase rogue prints through the cursed woods myself, so be it.
I bent low, examining the muddy imprint on the ground. A rogue wolf print — unmistakable, even half-faded as it was.
The claw marks were deeper than usual, the spacing wide. Whoever it was, they were large. Heavy.
"Got you," I whispered.
I didn't stop to think why a rogue would be foolish enough to linger so close to pack territory.
I didn't pause to consider why the tracks were so conveniently visible, perfectly spaced out, leading deeper and deeper into the forest like a trail of breadcrumbs.
I just followed.
Foolish, in hindsight.
But grief makes you reckless. Desperation makes you blind.
I was so focused on the next print, and the next, that I didn't realize the subtle shift in the air until it was too late. The oppressive weight of a predator's gaze prickled against the back of my neck. The hairs on my arms rose.
I froze.
Slowly, I straightened, eyes scanning the trees.
That's when they emerged.
One by one. From behind thick tree trunks, from the brush, from the shadows. Rogues. At least eight of them. Ragged, snarling, their matted fur and glowing yellow eyes gleaming with hunger and something else… bloodlust.
For me.
I took a cautious step back, heart pounding so hard it felt like it might burst through my chest.
"Looking for something, princess?" one of them sneered, shifting to his half-human form, jagged teeth exposed in a grin.
I didn't recognize him — but I didn't need to.
They weren't here by accident.
And then I saw him.
My stepbrother.
Kelvin.
Leaning against a tree, arms crossed, expression smug as ever. The last time I saw him, he was pretending to grieve by my father's bedside. Now, there wasn't a hint of remorse in his cold blue eyes.
"Surprised to see me, Cassie?" he drawled.
"You bastard," I spat, rage boiling up, momentarily overriding the terror clawing at my insides.
"Oh, don't look so shocked," John chuckled darkly, pushing off the tree.
"Did you really think you'd dig into our business and live to tell the tale? Stupid, just like your mother."
My breath caught. A fresh, sharp ache pierced through my chest at the mention of her.
"You planned this…" I managed, voice hoarse.
"Of course I did," he grinned, gesturing at the rogues.
"A little incentive to clean up loose ends. And maybe… make dear old Alpha finally let go, hmm? Can't have him clinging to life forever."
My stomach twisted. I'd suspected betrayal… but hearing it, seeing it, made my blood run cold.
I backed up another step, eyes darting for an opening. There wasn't one. They had me surrounded.
"Don't bother," Kevin smirked, reading my thoughts.
"Say your goodbyes, sis."
The rogues lunged.
I barely had time to react before a massive, dark blur crashed into the first rogue mid-leap, sending him hurtling into a tree with a sickening crack.
A deep, feral snarl ripped through the clearing, so loud, so bone-shakingly fierce, it froze everyone in place.
It smelled like him!
Asher.
His wolf form was a towering, midnight-black beast — larger than any normal wolf should be. Muscles rippled beneath his sleek fur, his silver eyes glinting murderously as he moved like a phantom, silent and lethal.
Before the rogues could recover, he was on them.
One by one, he took them down with terrifying efficiency — claws raking, teeth tearing, his movements a blur of shadow and blood. The rogues fought back, but it was futile. Asher didn't just fight to win; he fought to destroy.
And gods, he made it look effortless.
I stumbled back, watching in a mixture of horror and awe as he tore through them, his snarls vibrating through the air.
Within minutes, the rogues lay broken and bleeding, the survivors fleeing in terror into the woods.
Only Kevin remained.
Coward that he was, he tried to run.
But Asher was faster.
In a flash, he had Kevin pinned to the ground, one massive paw on his chest, snarls rumbling deep in his throat. Kevin whimpered, face ashen.
"Asher, stop!" I choked out, running forward.
He paused, those wild silver eyes snapping to me. For a heartbeat, there was only raw, primal rage in his gaze. Then recognition flickered. He let out a low, reluctant growl but eased off, stepping back.
Kevin scrambled away, coughing, blood on his lips.
"This isn't over," he spat at me before disappearing into the trees.
I didn't chase him.
I collapsed to my knees, trembling as Asher shifted back to human form beside me, his bare chest heaving, blood streaked across his skin.
"I told you not to go off alone," he said, voice rough but laced with desperate concern.
I let out a shuddering breath, leaning into him.
"You always show up just in time," I whispered.
He held me tightly, pressing a kiss to my hair.
"Always." he muttered, still breathing heavily.
And in that moment, I knew this wasn't just about my father anymore.
This was war.
Mila and her son wants me dead!