Dionne
The cell was darker than that room had been three years ago. At least then there had been carpeting, furniture, the sense that the space was meant for human occupation. Here there was only stone and the slow drip of water from somewhere I couldn't see.
I had no idea how long I had been here. Hours certainly, maybe even a full day. No one had come except once, when a different guard had shoved a tin cup of water through the bars and left without speaking.
My daughter. The thought of Nora waking up without me, searching for me, crying for me, was worse than any physical torture they could inflict. Callum had promised to care for her, but what did that mean? Would they even let him keep her, or would they send her to the orphanage where I had grown up? Would they hurt her as punishment for my supposed crime?
The sound of footsteps in the corridor outside made me sit up, my heart racing. The lock turned with a heavy click, and the door swung open.
Two guards entered, followed by the silver-haired woman from before. She wore the formal robes of a pack elder, held a notebook in her hand, and her cold gray eyes examined me with the detachment of someone looking at an insect.
"Stand up," she commanded.
I got to my feet on shaking legs. I had not eaten since yesterday morning, and my head felt light and disconnected from my body.
"My name is Elder Miriam," the woman said. "I oversee judicial matters for this pack. You have been accused of attempting to murder Alpha Thorne through the use of poison. How do you plead?"
"Innocent," I said immediately. "I've never even been near the Alpha's private chambers. I don't know how my bracelet ended up there, but I must have lost it doing laundry. It's not the first time, I usually just have to search the…"
"Our witness states that she saw you entering the Alpha's wing at approximately six in the morning yesterday. She recognized you by your distinctive hair." She opened the notebook and began scribbling rapidly onto one of the pages.
My hair. My mass of dark curls that I had inherited from whichever parent had abandoned me. It was distinctive, impossible to hide even when I tied it back.
"I was in the laundry facility at six yesterday morning," I insisted. "Other omegas were there. They can confirm—"
"We have interviewed the other omegas. None of them specifically recall seeing you at that time." Elder Miriam's expression didn't change. "The laundry facility is large and chaotic. It would be easy for someone to slip away unnoticed."
"But I did not! I was there the entire time, I swear it!"
"You swear it on what? You have no honor to pledge. You are an omega who disgraced herself with a visiting wolf, produced a bastard child, and has been living off pack charity ever since." Elder Miriam closed the notebook with a snap. "You had motive. The Alpha has made no secret of his desire to expel you from pack lands. You had opportunity. And we have physical evidence placing you at the scene."
"I didn't do this!" My voice cracked with desperation. "Please, you have to believe me. I have no reason to poison the Alpha. Even if I hated him, I would never risk my daughter's safety by—"
"Your daughter," Elder Miriam repeated coldly. "Yes, about her. The council has decided that regardless of the outcome of your trial, the child cannot remain in pack lands. She is unregistered, unclaimed, and the product of an unsanctioned union. She will be remanded to a state orphanage."
The words hit me like a physical blow. "No. No, you can't take her from me. She is all I have, she needs me—"
"She needs a proper family. Not a disgraced omega who can't even keep herself out of a cell." Elder Miriam nodded to the guards. "I came here to see if you would confess and spare us the trouble of a formal trial. Clearly, you intend to maintain your lies. So be it."
"Wait, please!" I stumbled forward, but the guards blocked my path. "At least let me see her! Let me explain to her what is happening! She's only three years old, if you just take her without letting me say goodbye—"
"Criminals don't get to make demands," Elder Miriam said flatly. She turned and walked out of the cell, her robes swishing behind her.
The guards followed, and the door slammed shut with a finality that echoed through my bones.
I collapsed against the wall, my body shaking with sobs I could no longer contain. They were going to take Nora. They were going to rip her away from me and put her in one of those horrible orphanages where I had spent my own childhood. Where children were starved and beaten and taught that they were worthless.
And there was nothing I could do to stop it.
Time became meaningless after that. I drifted in and out of a restless sleep, plagued by nightmares of Nora calling for me while I was trapped behind bars. When I was awake, I paced the small cell, my mind racing through impossible scenarios where I somehow escaped and took my daughter far from this place.
But I knew they were fantasies. Even if I could somehow break out of this cell, I had no money, no supplies, no allies. And they would hunt us down within days. Rogues were killed on sight by most packs, and a rogue with a small child would not last a week in the wilderness.
I was still pacing the cell when I heard something that made my blood freeze.
Screaming.
"Nora?" I whispered, scrambling to my feet. I pressed myself against the door, straining to hear more.
The screaming continued, growing closer. I heard voices shouting, the sounds of a struggle. Then suddenly, shockingly, the corridor outside my cell erupted into chaos.
The sound of metal clashing against metal. Snarls and growls. Something heavy hit the wall hard enough to shake dust from the ceiling.
Then suddenly, the lock on my cell door turned. The door swung open, and Callum stood there, breathing hard, blood running from a cut I couldn't see. Behind him, the corridor was in complete disarray. Two guards lay unconscious on the floor.
"What are you doing?" I gasped. "Callum, you cannot—"
"Shut up and run," he said urgently, grabbing my arm. "They were going to kill Nora. Garrett gave the order."
The world tilted. "What?"
"I'll explain later. Right now, we run." He pulled me out of the cell and down the corridor, away from the main entrance. "There's a service tunnel that leads to the outer walls. It's our only chance."
I ran, my bare feet slapping against the cold stone, my mind unable to process what was happening. Behind us, I heard shouts as someone discovered the unconscious guards.
Callum led me through a maze of passages, moving with the confidence of someone who had planned this route carefully. We emerged in a storage area filled with old furniture and supplies. He led me to a heavy wooden panel in the wall and pulled it aside, revealing a narrow tunnel beyond.
"This goes under the wall and comes out about a quarter mile into the forest," he said, pushing me toward the opening. "Go. Run as far and as fast as you can. Do not stop for anything."
I turned to face him, realization dawning. "You are not coming with me."
"Someone has to stay behind and buy you time. I need to make sure they don't track you immediately." He pressed something into my hands. A small bag. "There is some money in there, not much. And some supplies. It's not enough, but it's all I could gather."
"Callum, you will be executed for this. You just attacked pack guards and freed a prisoner. They will kill you."
"Maybe. Or maybe I'll say you overpowered me." He smiled, though it did not reach his eyes. "I'm a pretty good liar when I need to be."
"Where is Nora?" The question came out as a sob.
"She is already in the tunnel. I sent her ahead with instructions to wait for you at the exit." He glanced over his shoulder, hearing voices growing closer. "Go, Dionne. Go now. Do not let what I'm doing be for nothing."
I wanted to argue. Wanted to refuse to leave him behind. But the sound of approaching guards left no room for debate.
I grabbed his face with both hands and kissed his forehead quickly. "Thank you. For everything. I'll never forget this."
Then I turned and crawled into the tunnel, the bag clutched in one hand, leaving behind the only person who had shown me kindness in three years.
The tunnel was narrow and dark, forcing me to crawl on my hands and knees through thick mud. I could hear sounds echoing behind me, distorted by distance and stone, but I couldn't tell if they were following.
After what felt like an eternity, I saw light ahead. I crawled faster, emerging into the forest as the sun was beginning to set, painting the sky in shades of orange and red.
And there, sitting on a fallen log and clutching her ragged stuffed wolf, was Nora.
"Mama!" She launched herself at me, and I caught her, holding her so tightly she squeaked in protest.
"I'm here, baby. I'm here." I buried my face in her hair, breathing in her familiar scent. I could tell she had been crying for a long time, but it didn't matter now. She was alive, that was enough for now.
I pulled back to look at her face. "Are you hurt? Did anyone hurt you?"
She shook her head. "Callum said we were going on an adventure. He said you would meet me here and we would go see new places." Her lower lip trembled. "But I was scared, Mama. I did not know where you were."
"I know, sweetheart. I am so sorry." I stood, lifting her into my arms despite my exhaustion. "But Callum was right. We are going on an adventure. A long one. And we cannot come back here, do you understand? We have to go far away."
"But why?"
"Because some people here are very bad. And we are not safe anymore." I adjusted her weight, looking around to get my bearings. The sun was setting in the west, which meant the eastern border was behind me. If we traveled north, we would eventually reach neutral territory where rogues were not immediately killed on sight.
It would take days. Maybe weeks. And we had almost no supplies, no warm clothes, no real plan.
But we were alive. And we were together.
That would have to be enough.
I kissed Nora's forehead and began walking, the moment I took a step, I felt my link to the pack cut off and a sharp, burning pain seared through my body. Settling in my chest and neck.
The rogue severing hit like lightning.
It felt like there was a snap in my bones and a tear in my mind.
Blood poured from my nose. My wolf whimpered in agony. Enid screamed as the bond between her and the pack was severed.
We collapsed together, gasping, clawing at the dirt. I held her tight through the convulsions.
Behind us, in the distance, I heard howls rise into the evening air. The pack had discovered our escape, we had to keep moving.