•Dahlia•
I once heard that divorce was a long and arduous procedure. Mine was rather swift and pleasant in contrast to the common perception of a divorce process.
Just like that, I was no longer River Everett's wife and Luna of Night Garden Pack.
I was myself again: Dahlia Morgan, only child of the former beta of Night Garden Pack, business admin graduate, and all-round perfectionist.
I told no one about the divorce. As soon as everything was finalized, I packed my things, shoved them into my car, then set off for the human continent.
I wasn't going to pretend like I could start a new life for myself with someone else from the pack or another pack. There was nothing for me on this continent.
Nothing but fetters and suffocation. If I remained here, my father would set me up with another alpha.
The option of finding my mate and staying with him was out of the question. So far, I'd met with all the eligible betas and alphas in the Werewolf Continent. I wasn't mates with any of them, not even the female ones.
Which interpreted to the fact that my mate was a person without power and influence.
My father would sooner see me wed a man who was twice my age with an enormous amount of power over the continent than see me be with an average soulmate.
I wasn't comfortable with either option.
And the only way that my personal opinion on the matter would hold was if I wasn't around my parents and the toxic society who viewed people like me as a pawn for strong alliances.
The road ahead was lonely and paved with creepy tall trees. Sparse stars dotted the night sky with a dim half-moon hanging on it.
My hands on the wheel tensed. I've been driving all morning and I was still so far away from the Human Continent.
I should take a break at the next pack I drove past. My current location was—
Bam!
"Gah!" I flinched as something landed on the roof of the car. I swerved out of the road without thinking.
Wrong move.
"No, no, no, no, no!" I was headed for a tree. I tried to turn the wheels around but it didn't work. I ended up crashing against a thick tree.
Bang!
The impact of the airbag erupting as the car hit the tree, my back being pressed against the chair, my life flashing before my eyes, everything happened at once.
"Ouch…" I groaned, trying to get myself after the harsh momentum died.
What the hell had jumped on the roof of my car, leading to the accident? I tried to look up through my windshield but obviously, I couldn't see anything.
Everywhere was covered in smoke from my damaged car. My precious car that Dad had gifted me for my wedding. I gritted my teeth as I thought of how much money it was going to cost to fix the car without insurance.
"Aaaaaawuuuuuuoooooooo!!!"
A loud howl disrupted my thoughts. It sounded like a wolf's, but not completely. There was something odd about the howl that I couldn't place my finger on.
I deflated the airbag, then undid my seatbelt so I could unlock the car and check out the source of the howl. Unfortunately, as I jumped out of the car, I landed on the muddy ground. The landing set off my aching limbs.
"It hurts…" I complained to the night, coughing.
I tried to fan away the smoke while using my other hand to rub my eyes. The smoke around me dispersed pretty fast, granting me the allowance to see what was in front of me—
A pair of glowing red orbs.
My body froze in an instant. My mouth and hands hung midair as I stopped fanning the air.
It was a small wolf-like creature that sat on the roof of my car. The outline of the creature was slowly revealed as the smoke cleared away.
Its red eyes were just the beginning. The foamy mouth that was stained with blood and the black fur covered in multiple red patches, alongside a long, scaly tail were the end.
I couldn't process what kind of being I was staring at. Was it a mutated rogue or something else?
Like it could hear my thoughts, it responded with a growl. A low one that was filled with murderous intent.
'Run.'
All my senses screamed at me. As though the universe wanted to emphasize that instinct, the creature growled once again and lunged for me, I finally broke into a run. The creature took chase quickly.
I went at my fastest pace, crossing the road to get to the other side that was shrouded in tall trees. It was like a forest labyrinth, branches and twigs colliding with me at every turn.
One creature became five creatures along the line.
"Fuck." I cussed when I glanced back and realized this.
I could have shifted into my wolf form too and outrun them, but my wolf couldn't run under pressure. All it could do was look majestic and pretty while standing next to powerful wolves.
This was going to be a very painful way to die. The creatures looked like they were going to rip me apart. Their canines were too long and sharp to be real.
I glanced back again to check how close they were. When I saw that they were right on my tail, I yelped in fear and I ended up tripping on a twig that sent me tumbling to the ground.
By the time I came to, I found myself on a clearing with five creatures circling me.
I was done for now.
One of them pounced on me. It was the same one that had landed on my car.
"Argh!" I screamed in fear and pain. Its paws were pressing down on my shoulders, pinning me to the ground.
I couldn't move. I could not move as bloody foam dripped down from its mouth and landed on my face. I could not move as it widened its mouth to tear off my face.
I could only close my eyes shut as I said a silent prayer to the moon goddess, asking her not to let it hurt too much.
One second.
Two seconds.
Three seconds.
The pain of my limbs being chewed off didn't come. Instead—
"Round them up and burn them! They fear fire! Quickly!" I heard a masculine bellow dishing out a command.
Then came the sounds of many urgent footsteps, shouting, screaming, snarling, growling. It was all followed up by the smell of roast meat.
The weight on top of my body suddenly vanished, and my shoulders no longer felt like there were boulders placed over them.
I still felt fear. So instead of opening my eyes to check what was going on, I kept them shut, choosing to play dead.
Then I heard it, a mellow baritone amidst the mixture of several sounds and smells.
"Alive?"
I couldn't understand why my stomach flipped at the question. I knew it was directed at me, maybe that was why I slowly pried my eyes open.
"Huh…" I sucked in a deep breath as an influx of emotions overwhelmed me when I saw the owner of the baritone.
Irises the color of blades with a symmetrical face that I never thought existed; this man was simply the most breathtaking being that I had ever set my eyes on.
I was transfixed by him. I watched as he bent down to check me. The expression on his gorgeous features became clear. He was frowning. At me.
He held my gaze like he was peering into my soul from my eyes. Suddenly, I felt a shift within me. It was an unnatural pull that made me want to press my body against his so that we could mold into one.
What was this urge? Could it be, no, it couldn't. He couldn't be my—
"Mate."