Prologue

Clay’s P.O.V

Loss. It was one of the main reasons a wolf turned rogue.

A feral creature with no humanity…no emotions. A creature that hunts and kills the people they used to know. A creature to be hunted and killed for the sake of everyone’s safety.

Loss…it was one of the main reasons.

But what had I lost? Who was I moaning?

What was I running from? Who was I losing myself for?

The earth seemed to shake beneath my feet as I ran blindly. A red haze started to cover my vision from the corners, slowly moving in towards the centre.

No!

I couldn’t give in! I couldn’t become a rogue!

But I couldn’t seem to fight this unseen enemy as my mind began to clog, shrouding my memories in grey mist, forbidding me from accessing them. It was like everything I once knew was being erased, including my former existence.

I tried one last time to peek through the dark grey mist in my mind, to unlock the reason why I was driving myself mad, but came up with nothing. Something was blocking my mind, erasing my identity.

Clay…

Who is it? Whose voice is it? Why am I remembering this voice?

A piercing headache blinded me temporarily and I tripped on a fallen branch, tumbling down a slope at phenomenal speed. The stones on the ground tore through my skin, drawing blood. When I finally stopped rolling down the slope, my entire body felt like it was on fire. The pain was unimaginable but I didn’t seem to care. What I was worried about most was why was I turning? Why was I becoming rogue?

And I couldn’t find the answers anywhere.

Clay…

There it was! That voice again. A woman’s voice.

Did I know her? Was she the one I lost? Was she my mate?

I love you. Always and forever.

A scream tore through me as my head felt like it had split open. I clutched my head with my hands and closed my eyes to let it pass. I couldn’t recall where I was or how I got here. Who was I? Where had I come from? What was I doing here, in the middle of the forest? I couldn’t remember my name or anything other than the fact that I was a wolf who was turning rogue. Every time I tried to remember, my head pounded even harder, the pain unbearable.

I couldn’t remember anything at all…except for that woman’s voice. And ever her voice seemed to be fading in the darkness. No!

I clutched onto that memory with whatever remained of my mind, etching it in so I wouldn’t forget. I could lose my memories, I could lose my identity but I couldn’t erase her! I wouldn’t erase her. I don’t know what made me think this way but it felt like if I lost her, there would be no point in me staying alive anymore.

A second later, I heard howls from all around me…wolf howls.

Rogues.

I opened my eyes as the pain subsided and saw the red haze creep over my eyesight once again. This time, I didn’t fight it anymore. There was no point. Once the transformation started, there was no going back no matter how hard anyone tried.

I couldn’t understand how I had that knowledge but I guess I had no way of finding out now.

I looked up at the night sky as a cold wind began to blow. The moon was full in the sky, shining bright in all her beauty, but I didn’t see beauty. A sudden rage took over me as my vision turned full red, turning the once luminescent moon blood red.

A growl escaped my lips as I stared at the moon with hatred. Everything was her fault and I would make her pay.

My eyes snapped to the shrubs surrounding me as I heard a twig break not far from me. Getting up from the ground, I growled at the intruder, my lips pulled back over my teeth. But then I saw them, the rogues.

There were at least fifteen of them that emerged from the woods and I could see several more pairs of glowing eyes from the bushes behind them. One by one they all came forward on silent feet, surrounding me until they formed a circle with me at the centre and then, they all bowed, their heads touching the earth.

They weren’t my enemies anymore; they were my brethren…my soldiers. And I was their Alpha.