She wiped her tears away with hands that were shaking. Three days. There were three days left for her to "fix the problem."
But she was not going to hurt her child. Never ever. She put her hand on her flat stomach. She told him, "I'll look out for you, little one. No matter what." She stopped moving when she heard footsteps.
Through the trees, someone was coming. Amara scrambled behind a large oak tree, her heart racing.
"Did you see her face?" Celina's voice drifted through the darkness. She was talking to someone. "The little omega actually thought she meant something to him."
"What do you want me to do about it?" another person asked. Amara recognized it as Marcus, one of Kade's soldiers.
"Nothing yet," Celina responded smoothly. "Let her think she has time. When she doesn't get rid of the baby, I'll handle it myself."
Amara's blood turned to ice. Celina knew about the baby!
"The Alpha won't like it if you hurt a pack member," Marcus warned.
Celina laughed coldly. "Kade won't care about one dead worker. Especially after I tell him she was going to run away with his secrets."
Amara covered her mouth to stop herself from screaming.
Celina was going to kill her and blame it on something else!
"What if she really does leave?" Marcus asked.
"She won't get far," Celina said firmly. "I've already talked to the border guards. They have orders to bring back any omega who tries to flee. Dead or alive."
The footsteps moved away, leaving Amara alone in the darkness. Her whole body shook with fear. She couldn't stay here. If she did, both she and her baby would die.
But fleeing wouldn't be easy. The pack area was huge, surrounded by dangerous forests and rival packs. And now the guards had been warned.
Amara crept back to the servant rooms. Most of the other girls were asleep. She gathered her few things - a spare dress, her mother's silver locket, and the small amount of money she'd saved.
"Where are you going?" Lina's sleepy voice made Amara jump.
"Nowhere," Amara lied, putting clothes into a cloth bag. Lina sat up in bed, suddenly wide awake.
"You're leaving, aren't you?" Amara's hands stilled. Lina had been her only friend here. She deserved the truth.
"I have to go," Amara whispered. "If I stay, they'll kill me."
"Who? Why?" Amara paused, then pulled Lina to the corner where they couldn't be overheard. "I'm pregnant with the Alpha's kid. Celina wants me dead."
Lina's eyes went wide. "Alpha Kade's baby? But he's marrying-"
"He told me to get rid of it," Amara interrupted. "When I refuse, Celina will make sure I disappear forever."
Lina grabbed her arm. "You can't leave! It's too dangerous out there!"
"It's more dangerous here," Amara said strongly. "At least out there, I have a chance."
Lina was quiet for a moment. Then she reached under her mattress and pulled out a small knife.
"Take this. And here-" She pressed some coins into Amara's hand. "It's not much, but it might help."
Tears filled Amara's eyes. "Thank you."
"There's a cave system about five miles north," Lina whispered. "My brother used to explore them when we were kids. You could hide there during the day and move at night."
Amara hugged her friend tightly. "I'll never forget your kindness."
"Be careful," Lina whispered back. "And may the Moon Goddess protect you both."
Amara slipped out of the servant rooms just before dawn. The sky was still dark, but she could see the first signs of light on the horizon. She had to move fast.
She made her way to the kitchen and grabbed some bread and dried meat. Every shadow made her jump. Every sound made her heart race. The back gate was watched, but Amara knew another way out. There was a hole in the fence near the old training grounds where she used to sneak out as a child to pick berries.
She crawled through the gap, thorns caught on her dress. Once she was outside the pack area, she started running. The forest was dark and full of strange sounds. Owls hooted overhead. Branches cracked in the distance.
But Amara kept going, driven by the need to protect the child in her belly. After what felt like hours, she found the caves Lina had mentioned. They were hidden behind a waterfall, just as Lina had explained.
Amara crawled inside and fell, exhausted. She was safe for now. But she knew this was just the beginning. Kade would send trackers after her. And Celina wouldn't give up easily.
Amara put her hand on her stomach again. "We made it through the first part," she whispered to her baby. "But we have a long way to go."
As she tried to rest, she didn't notice the pair of golden eyes watching her from the dark outside the cave. A massive wolf stood completely still, observing the exhausted young woman.
The wolf's nose twitched, catching her smell. Something about it seemed... familiar. Different. Special. After a few moments, the wolf turned and disappeared into the bush, leaving only paw prints in the soft earth.
Three days later, back at the Blackthorn pack house, Kade found that Amara was gone. "What do you mean she's missing?" he yelled at the head servant.
"She wasn't in her bed this morning, Alpha. No one has seen her since yesterday." Kade's hands clenched into fists.
The servant girl had actually run away. Part of him felt... relieved? No, that couldn't be right.
"Should we send trackers?" his second-in-command asked.
Kade started to say yes, then stopped. Why did he care? She was just a servant. Just a mistake he'd made. If she wanted to run off and get herself killed in the woods, that was her choice.
"No," he said finally. "She made her decision. Let the rogues deal with her."
But even as he said it, something twisted uncomfortably in his chest. And for the rest of the day, he found himself looking toward the trees, wondering if she was still alive.
What Kade didn't know was that Celina had already sent her own spies after Amara. And they had orders to make sure the omega never came back.
The hunt was on.
In her cave, Amara woke to the sound of howling in the distance. Her blood ran cold. Those weren't wild dogs. They were tracking howls. And they were getting closer.
Someone had found her tracks.