Chapter 3

Several hours later, while Ellie and her mom were asleep on the couch, Melody ducked out into the darkness and worked her way slowly home. She couldn’t hear anything out of the ordinary from the usual sounds of the woods at night. It took her twice as long to get to her parents’ home, but when it finally came into sight she didn’t feel any relief.

The front porch light was off and the door was ajar.

With her heart in her throat, she walked silently around to the back of the house and opened the door that led into the laundry room. When she was inside, she held her breath and listened intently, worry for her parents making her wolf rumble in her head.

She didn’t hear anything, so she moved forward through the dark house.

She could smell that other people had been there recently. Even with the lights off, she could see the house was in disarray. Furniture was turned over and a lamp was broken on the floor. Her heart was heavy in her chest as she made her way to her parents’ room and found it empty, the blankets on the floor and the door hanging off one hinge.

Someone had come for her parents and taken them in the middle of the night, along with however many of the high-ranked males.

It seemed that Ellie’s mom was right—someone had brought a coup to their sleepy little town—and now…what the hell was she going to do?

As she fought tears and wondered if her parents were still alive, she heard something that made her suck in a sharp breath.

Someone was coming.

Moving fast and silently, she hurried through the house, checked that the coast was clear at the back door, and crept through the darkness to the root cellar. As she ducked down the steps formed out of hard-packed dirt, she pulled the old wooden door shut and peered through the cracks between the slats that formed the door.

She could see males in dark clothing moving through the house, flashlights bouncing off the walls and ceiling. Someone came outside and flashed their spotlight around.

As it passed over the root cellar, which was covered in vines and looked unused, the male turned and went back into the house.

She let out the breath she’d been holding.

Holy shit, they’d come looking for her.

I’m safe but hiding. People took my parents, she texted Ellie. Knowing that someone could check her phone for messages from Melody, she continued, I got out of town. I don’t know what to do, but I’m scared to be in town. Be careful. Love you.

She turned off the ringer and notifications, then tucked the phone into the pocket of her pajama shorts.

As she ducked down farther into the old root cellar, she decided to wait out the day and try to get to her parents once the sun set. She just hoped to hell she didn’t get caught.

Melody had learned at a young age how to track game. Back when her father had assumed she’d be able to shift, he’d taught her valuable tracking skills so she’d be ready to take on the forest when her wolf came out. Even though she didn’t have a furry beast to call to her aid, she still knew how to track, and she used those skills now to watch the patrols as they moved through town once the sun set.

The patrols were made up of males she didn’t recognize. They kept to a pattern of trailing around the perimeter of the town once an hour and circling the prison every half hour.

She’d taken a tour of the prison once as part of their pack’s school, so they could see what happened to wolves who didn’t abide by the rules of the pack. She’d never wanted to know what it felt like to be locked in the small rooms, so she’d promised to always follow the laws.

It took an hour for her to traverse to the other side of town without being caught and make her way to the prison. Now here she was, unsure of who was in charge or what would happen to the pack members in the cells.

There was a guard posted at the entrance to the prison. The cells were at the back of the concrete building, and each had a barred window to let in fresh air.

The windows were a good foot over her five-five frame, so she couldn’t see inside. She inhaled silently and listened for the murmuring of the people inside.

She picked out six of the high-ranked males, the ones that had been most loyal to Alpha Grimes. Then she finally heard her mom’s quiet sobbing.

Melody backed up a bit and then ran toward the concrete wall, using her foot to propel herself up so she could grip the ledge of the window. As she grasped one of the bars to hold herself up, she whispered, “Mom?”

“Melody? What are you doing here? Run away!”

“What’s going on? I’m scared. I was hiding out all day. People were in the house.”

There was the scrape of something being moved and her dad’s hand, rough with callouses, covered hers. “Honey, a male named Ludo Stallard killed Alpha Grimes and his mate and their son in a coup. While we were sleeping, his people stole into the homes of the high-ranked males and grabbed our mates, threatening to kill us if we didn’t come along quietly. I fought but was overpowered, and they hurt your mom. She’s okay now, but we’re in danger.”

“What should I do?”

“You need to get Jasper. He can help set us free and fight with us.”

She nearly let go of the bar in her surprise. “What? Jasper? My Jasper?” she whispered harshly.

“Yes, honey.”

“No way! He’s an asshole and disloyal. No way would he help.”

Her dad sighed. “You don’t understand, Melody. He left to protect you. He will come here, I know it.”

No way would the male who broke her heart and disappeared without a trace come back to the pack to help her and her family.

“Trust me,” he whispered. “He’s at the Amazing Adventures Safari Park in New Jersey. Go to the front gate and ask for him.”

“If you’re sure…?”

“He’s the only one who can help. Tell him to help free us, and then we’ll all fight together to take out Ludo and his pack.”

“I do trust you,” she said. “I’ll be back as soon as I can. Mom?”

“Honey?”

“I love you, be strong. I love you too, Dad.”

Her arm started to shake as her grip lost strength.

“We love you, honey,” her mom whispered.

Dropping from the window, she hurried back to her parents’ house. She knew she couldn’t start up her car because she’d get busted for sure, so she had to get to a main road and call for a car service. It would be an expensive trip to New Jersey from Pennsylvania, but it was worth it if Jasper could help her.

If he could.

She wasn’t so sure she believed that he’d left to protect her, or that he’d come help her family against the usurper, but if her dad thought he would, then she’d at least try.

You better not let me down, Jasper .