AS A ZODIAC WOLF, my fate was tied to the stars. Too bad my stars were more crossed than aligned. Being the outcast of the Cancer Pack had taught me that lesson over and over again, like the tide endlessly returning to shore no matter how much you wished it wouldn't.
The sea crept up to meet my bare feet like an eager puppy searching for affection. I dug my toes deeper into the cool sand, letting the grains slip between them, grounding myself in the sensation. The night breeze tasted faintly of salt, brushing my hair back from my face as I stared out across the water. It was beautiful—I could admit that much. The moon hung low and swollen near the horizon, its pale reflection rippling across the surface like liquid silver.
But it wasn't beautiful in the way the rest of my pack claimed it was.
Members of the Cancer Pack talked about the ocean like it was alive, like it whispered their names and answered something buried deep in their souls. They described a pull in their chests, a magnetic yearning that drew them to the shoreline no matter where they were. I had listened to their stories my entire life, nodding along, pretending I understood.
I never did.
For me, the sea was just a pretty picture—something I could frame through a lens, something I could admire from a distance. No voice. No calling. No connection. I could photograph it a hundred times and still fail to capture whatever essence they swore existed within the waves.
My only hope was the upcoming Convergence. That was when my wolf would finally awaken. Everyone said the bond came naturally after that—like a door opening inside you that you never knew was there. If I could just feel what they felt, maybe they would start to feel like my people instead of strangers I happened to live among. Sometimes they felt less like strangers and more like enemies.
Loneliness threatened to settle over me like a heavy cloak. I shoved it aside before it could fully take hold. If I let it linger, it would swallow me whole. Instead, I lifted my camera and focused on the dark ocean once more, adjusting the lens. The moonlight shifted with every breath of the sea, each ripple changing the reflection into something new. Peaceful. Endless. Untouchable.
Even if I didn't feel drawn to the water, I did feel something when I looked at the moon. A quiet pull. A sense of belonging that warmed my chest in a way nothing else did. That alone should have been enough proof that I belonged in the Cancer Pack… even if no one else agreed.
I should have been home packing for the Convergence. Everyone else was. Instead, I was here, stealing moments with my camera like they were forbidden treasures. Any excuse to get out of that house—even for an hour—felt worth it.
I held my breath and pressed the shutter. The soft click echoed louder in my ears than it should have. I snapped another shot immediately, just in case, then lowered the camera to inspect the tiny screen. The second photo was sharper, the moon's reflection clearer.
A rustle from the bushes shattered the quiet.
I turned sharply, heart thudding. For a second, nothing moved. Probably just a rabbit or stray dog, I told myself. The woods always sounded bigger at night.
Then something dark burst from the brush.
I stumbled back as a large gray wolf bounded toward me, sand spraying beneath its paws. Three more shapes followed, their eyes glinting in the moonlight. My pulse spiked. Running wasn't an option—not barefoot, not with the jagged rocks between me and the safety of the path. I'd never make it without shredding my feet.
The wolves circled me like I was prey. Then, one by one, they shifted back into their human forms.
Charles stood at the center, broad-shouldered and imposing even without fur and fangs. His blond hair fell carelessly over sharp blue eyes that always looked like they were searching for a fight. Liam and Podrick flanked him, their expressions already twisted into smug sneers. Hayley, Charles's mate clung to Charles's side, her strawberry-blond curls cascading over her shoulders, her hand possessively gripping his arm.
They were all naked from the shift, completely unbothered by it. Their Zodiac marks gleamed faintly in the moonlight—Cancer symbols etched into skin like living tattoos. Charles bore his on his chest, the others on their arms.
I had none.
"Lilah." Charles said my name like it tasted bitter. "What are you doing out here alone?"
Anxiety tightened in my stomach. Charles never spoke to me without a reason, and that reason was never good. As the beta's son, he carried authority like a weapon. Technically, my rank outranked his—I was the alpha's daughter—but that title meant nothing when human blood ran through my veins. In this pack, bloodlines mattered more than birthrights.
Hayley giggled, tossing her perfect hair. Liam and Podrick looked me over like vultures circling roadkill.
"I asked you a question, mutt." Charles kicked sand toward me.
I jerked my camera up to shield the lens. Ramsay had bought it for me on his last visit—the one person who'd ever supported my photography. I wasn't about to let them ruin it.
"I'm sorry," I shot back. "I didn't realize your stupidity required answering. Anyone with two eyes and basic brain function can see what I'm doing. But you're obviously missing one of those."
He moved before I could blink.
His shove knocked me flat. Pain shot up my elbow as it hit the ground, but I kept my camera raised, protecting it instinctively. I tried to roll away—straight into Podrick's foot.
The kick to my stomach stole the air from my lungs. I curled inward, gasping.
"Where's your Cancer armor?" Podrick sneered, kicking again. "Oh right. You don't have any."
"Thanks for the reminder," I wheezed.
Blows rained down. I folded around my camera, shielding it and the most vulnerable parts of myself. It wasn't the first beating, and I doubted it would be the last. I closed my eyes and focused on breathing. They wouldn't kill me. For better or worse, I was still pack.
Then the camera was ripped from my hands.
My eyes snapped open. Hayley dangled it just out of reach, a cruel smile curving her lips.
"You like taking pictures, don't you, little mutt?"
"No!" I scrambled up, reaching for it. "You can do whatever you want to me—just give it back."
She dropped it into the sand.
"I don't think so."
Charles's fist drove into my back, forcing me to my knees. I watched helplessly as Hayley stomped on the camera. Plastic cracked. Glass shattered. The sound was worse than the kicks, worse than the insults. It felt like something inside me splintered along with it.
That camera had been my escape—my proof that there was a world beyond pack politics and whispered insults. A world where I wasn't "half-breed" or "wrong star." Just… me.
A snarl tore from my throat before I realized it was mine.