With that, she turned and disappeared into the shadows, leaving me frozen in place, her words echoing in my mind.
Calla's POV
I couldn’t sleep. The weight of it all churned in my mind—the lies, the betrayal, the overwhelming scent of the werewolf realm clinging to me. This wasn’t my life. It wasn’t my world. I didn’t belong here.
While the mansion slept, I slipped out of bed, the cold stone floor biting at my feet. The path through the forest stretched ahead, dark and unfamiliar, but anything was better than staying. I wasn’t the daughter they claimed. I wasn’t their future Luna. I wasn’t anyone but Calla, the girl desperate to escape.
I hadn’t gone far when a voice cut through the stillness. “Running away already?”
I spun around to see Hera leaning casually against a tree, her smirk as sharp as the moonlight on her cheekbones.
“I’m leaving,” I snapped, fists clenched. “You can have it all—the pack, the parents, even Jacob. I don’t care.”
Hera tilted her head, amusement dancing in her eyes. “And go where? The humans don’t want you anymore, Calla. You don’t belong here, but you certainly don’t belong there.”