I glance down to try to figure out where to put my paws and how to…
White fur.
I stare at it.
Why do I have white fur?
It should be black. All Nantahala Wolves have black fur. Santeetlah Wolves have brown fur.
The Black Mountain Pack is home to the Carnage Wolves.
And Carnage Wolves have white fur.
White fur, like snow.
White fur, like…
Likemy paws.
Oh, moon… I’m in trouble.
2
CLOVE
“Explain yourself!” Alpha Bryson shouts.
I shiver, my focus instantly going to the male I’ve revered all my life. But he’s not looking at me. He’s looking at my father.
And my father… is glowering at my cowering mother.
“I… I…” she stutters, her skin as pale as my fur. “I didn’t know… I…”
“You didn’t know?” my father repeats, his tone holding an edge of fury that I’ve never heard from him before. “How could younotfucking know?” He points in my direction. “She’s a goddamn mutt!”
“I thought she was yours,” my mother whispers. “I… You have to believe me. It… He found me… I tried to fight… But I…”
Her statements are all garbled. Maybe because I can’t hear beyond the pounding in my ears. Maybe because she can’t seem to explain herself.
“I swear, I had no idea,” my father says, his words for Alpha Bryson. “I’ll take whatever punishment you require. This is not a reflection on our pack, it’s a reflection on me and my whore of a wife.”
“He raped me!” my mother shouts. “I tried to fight him! I… I thought… I prayed and hoped she was yours. I…”
“They are known for their savagery,” Canton mutters. “It’s possible.”
Alpha Crane snorts. “You’re naive and young and have a lot to learn.”
“I’m thirty,” Canton points out. “And I’ve faced those beasts in battle, father.”
“That doesn’t explain her not reporting it.” Alpha Crane utters the words with authority and a hint of disgust. “We wanted your best female, and this is what you give us? A mutt of unknown origin?” Alpha Crane spits on the ground near Alpha Bryson’s feet. “I’ve never been more insulted than I am right now.”
Alpha Bryson says nothing, his eyes wandering to me before settling on my trembling mother. “What will fix this?” he asks. “I can offer them as slaves.”
My heart stutters.What?
“You can kill them,” my father adds. “Do whatever you desire. I reject them both.”
“Gafton—”
