(BLUE’S POV)
(FLASHBACK CONTINUATION)
In seconds, he was gone.
Just… gone.
In his place stood this enormous wolf.
Not some regular forest wolf you might spot from a distance.
This thing was huge—nearly the size of a small horse, shoulders broad and powerful, dark gray fur thick and wild.
Golden eyes locked onto mine, smart and knowing, like he was still Jeremy in there, just wearing a different skin.
My mouth fell open.
“…No way.”
Behind me, Sofia let out a soft chuckle, warm and amused.
Then she stepped forward into the clearing.
Her change was quicker, smoother, like water flowing instead of bones breaking.
But I still heard the shifts—the soft cracks, the rustle of fur spreading.
Her body folded and reshaped until another massive wolf stood right beside him.
Her coat was silver, bright and almost shimmering under the first stars, like moonlight had been woven right into it.
I just sat there, frozen, staring in total disbelief.
“You’re… you’re…”
Jeremy’s voice suddenly filled my head, deep and steady, echoing like he was speaking right inside my skull.
“Werewolves.”
My jaw dropped even further.
“That’s real?!” I blurted out, the words tumbling out before I could stop them.
The two giant wolves swapped a look that looked way too much like they were rolling their eyes at me.
Then, without warning—
Jeremy lunged.
“HEY—!”
I jumped back just in time, his huge paws slamming into the spot where I’d been sitting, sending dirt and leaves flying.
His massive tail gave a little wag, playful and teasing.
He crouched low again, muscles coiled, golden eyes sparkling with mischief.
“…Are you serious right now?” I yelled, but I was already grinning like an idiot, heart pounding with a mix of fear and excitement.
He growled low, but it sounded more like laughter than anything threatening.
And just like that, the chase was on.
They were fast—scary fast.
One second Jeremy was right in front of me, the next he’d circled around behind, a blur of gray fur and muscle.
Sofia darted past like a silver streak, her paws barely brushing the ground as she cut me off between two trees.
I tapped into that vampire speed I was still getting used to, leaping over roots and weaving through the underbrush, the wind whipping past my face.
But it didn’t matter.
They were everywhere—leaping over fallen logs like they were nothing, sliding under low branches, always one step ahead.
I barely dodged when Jeremy’s massive paw swiped at me, claws retracted but still close enough to feel the whoosh of air.
“THIS IS NOT FAIR!” I shouted, laughing now despite myself.
Jeremy barked loud and deep, and yeah, it definitely sounded like he was cracking up.
We kept at it until my legs gave out from pure adrenaline and shock.
I collapsed back against a thick oak tree, chest heaving even though I didn’t really need the air.
The two giant wolves padded over slowly, tails still wagging.
Then, right there in front of me, they shifted back.
Fur melted away.
Bones cracked and popped again, reshaping.
And suddenly Jeremy and Sofia were standing there like nothing had happened—completely naked.
My face burned hot.
I spun around fast, staring hard at the trees while they grabbed their clothes from the ground and got dressed quick, muttering something about “sorry, kid” and “old habits.”
Jeremy stretched his arms overhead like he’d just woken up from a nap.
“So,” he said, casual as anything.
“What do you think?”
I turned back around, still a little wide-eyed.
“You’re gigantic.”
Sofia burst out laughing, bright and genuine.
“That’s your first reaction?”
“You were the size of a horse!” I shot back, gesturing wildly with my hands.
Jeremy just shrugged, a grin tugging at his mouth.
“Average size for our kind.”
“That’s terrifying!”
Once the laughter died down and the excitement settled, we all sat together near the fire pit outside the hideout.
The flames crackled softly, sending sparks dancing up into the dark sky.
The forest around us had gone quiet, just the occasional hoot of an owl or rustle of leaves in the breeze.
It felt peaceful, almost normal.
Jeremy cleared his throat after a while.
“Blue… there’s another reason we showed you tonight.”
I glanced between them, the firelight flickering across their faces.
“What reason?”
Sofia reached over and gave my shoulder a gentle squeeze, her hand warm and steady.
“We’ve been thinking about something for a while now.”
Jeremy nodded, his expression softening.
“We want to adopt you.”
For a second, my brain just… stopped.
The words hung there in the firelit air.
“…What?”
“We want you to become our son,” Sofia said, her voice soft and full of something warm I couldn’t quite name.
My chest tightened up, sharp and sudden.
Flashes of my real parents hit me hard—Mom’s gentle smile when she’d tuck me in, Dad’s deep laugh echoing through our old house, the way the kitchen always smelled like fresh bread on Sunday mornings.
The pain of missing them stabbed right through me, fresh as the night they’d died.
“I’ll never forget my parents,” I whispered, staring down at my hands.
Sofia nodded, understanding flickering in her eyes.
“You shouldn’t.”
“No one could replace them,” Jeremy added, his voice low and kind.
“But we’d like to take care of you,” Sofia went on, squeezing my shoulder again.
“Like family.
We have no children of our own, and you’re our best friends’ child.
We’ve always loved you as ours.
It just… fits perfectly.”
The clearing went quiet except for the fire popping.
I looked at them both—these two people who’d pulled me out of hell, fed me, trained me, put up with every stupid mistake I’d made.
They’d seen the worst of me and still wanted this.
Still wanted me.
My throat got thick, and I had to blink hard a couple times.
“I would like that,” I said finally, my voice barely above a whisper.
A warm smile spread across Sofia’s face, lighting her up from the inside.
Jeremy nodded, looking proud in that quiet way of his.
“Good.”
Then he leaned forward a bit, elbows on his knees.
“Because the next step… is introducing you to the rest of the werewolves.”
I blinked, caught off guard again.
“The rest?”
Jeremy’s smile grew into something bigger, a little mischievous.
“Right now, I’m their Alpha.”
I had zero idea what that really meant.
None.
But I nodded anyway, because what else was there to do?
“Okay.”
He chuckled, deep and knowing, leaning back against the log.
“You might regret agreeing so quickly.”
I frowned.
“Why?”
“Because meeting the pack…” He paused, grin widening.
“Is going to be one hell of a roller coaster.”
*******
The next morning, the hideout didn’t just wake up—it shifted.
The air felt tighter, sharper, like something big was about to break loose.
Sofia moved first.
She always did.
One second the place was quiet, the next she was everywhere at once—stuffing dried meat into a worn leather satchel, tying off water skins, sliding knives into place with the kind of ease that said she’d done this a hundred times before.
The blades caught the early light and flashed, quick and dangerous.
Outside, Jeremy was already in motion.
He crouched by his boots, tugging at the straps, checking them twice like he was heading into a fight, not just another run through the woods.
Nothing about this felt casual.
Not today.
My thoughts wouldn’t sit still.
They kept crashing into each other, loud and messy.
This was it.
They were actually taking me home.
Sofia glanced up and caught me staring.
That same calm smile spread across her face—the one that always steadied me, even when my head was a warzone.
“Blue,” she said, softer now, “don’t overthink it.
You’re ready.
We’ve seen it.
We’ve trained you.
It’s time.”
Time to leave.
Time to go back to the pack.
I just stood there for a second, trying to breathe through everything hitting me at once.
My heart didn’t beat—not really—but I still felt it.
Too much of it.
Excitement?
Yeah.
No point lying about that.
I’d been stuck in this cave so long it felt like I was rotting from the inside out.
Every shadow had teeth after what went down at Margaret’s place.
Every quiet moment felt like a trap.
And the worst part?
I didn’t trust myself out there anymore.
Not with the hunger still lurking under my skin, waiting for the wrong moment to snap.
But this?
This was different.
I wouldn’t be alone.
I’d meet people.
A whole pack.
Sure, they’d probably smell like wet dog and blood on a bad day—but that didn’t matter.
Not anymore.
They were my family now.
“Yeah,” I said, the word coming out rough, a grin breaking through before I could stop it.
“Yeah… I’m in.
Let’s go.”
Jeremy didn’t say much.
He just stepped in and dropped a heavy hand on my shoulder, solid and grounding.
His dark eyes creased at the edges, pride slipping through like he couldn’t quite hide it.
“That’s what I like to hear, son, ” he said.
“Pack’s about four hours out if we push it—you, me, Sofia.
Vampire legs, werewolf legs… we eat distance.”
He huffed a quiet laugh.
“Humans on horses?
That trip takes a day and a half.
Easy.”
My jaw just dropped.
“Four hours?
You’ve got to be kidding me.”
Sofia let out this low, easy laugh, already swinging the satchel over her shoulder like it weighed nothing.
“Not even close.”
I looked between them, my brain struggling to catch up.
“Wait—hold on.
Every time you came out here to check on me… it took that long?
You were tearing through the woods for four hours just to babysit me?”
They both nodded like it was nothing.
Jeremy’s expression shifted, something heavier slipping through the cracks.
His voice dropped, rougher than usual.
“We didn’t have a choice, kid.
You turned out of nowhere.
No control, no one to walk you through it.
You needed protection.” He paused, then added quietly, “And we knew it had to be us.
You’re our best friend’s son… which makes you ours.”
That hit harder than anything else.
It slammed straight into my chest—warm, sharp, overwhelming.
I actually flinched.
My throat tightened, and I blinked fast, even though I already knew tears weren’t coming anymore.
“Thank you,” I forced out, my voice cracking anyway.
“Seriously… I don’t know what I’d be without you guys.”
Sofia didn’t say anything.
She just pulled me into a quick, fierce hug—solid and grounding, smelling like pine, earth, and something wild I was starting to recognize as home.
And weirdly enough, the more time I spent with them, the better they smelled.
“You’ll never have to find out,” she said against my shoulder.
Then we moved.
And damn—we moved.
The pace was insane.
Trees stretched into green blurs, the forest warping into streaks of color as we tore through it at supernatural speed.
Wind lashed against my face, ripped through my hair—and for the first time in what felt like forever, I didn’t feel trapped.
I felt alive.
Like the world wasn’t closing in on me anymore… like it was finally opening up.
The silence didn’t last long.
Their voices slipped into my head—clear as day, smooth and effortless.
Mind-linking.
Jeremy had mentioned it before, but actually feeling it?
That was something else entirely.
“Our pack’s called Stormroot,” Jeremy’s voice echoed easily over the rush of movement.
“Old name.
Means we don’t break in storms—we grow through them.”
Sofia’s presence brushed in right after, her tone calm but strong.
“Hierarchy’s simple, but it’s not optional.
Alpha sits at the top—that’s Jeremy.
I’m the Luna.
Then Beta, Gamma, Delta… all the way down to Omegas.
Everyone has a place.
Everyone follows the chain.”
I nearly tripped mid-stride.
“Wait—hold up.
You’re the Alpha?
Like… the Alpha?”