She was utterly breathtaking, the way she had held her ground with an unshakeable force as she stared down her enemies. In her eyes I had seen my future, the release from all of my past demons—a chance at redemption. I wanted her more than I had ever thought I could want anything but I knew that if I were to take her it would eventually destroy her. Our worlds were too different and my family would not stop until she was buried six feet under.

For once in my life I would do the selfless thing, I would let her go. I couldn't—wouldn't reject her but I could ensure that she lived a happy and full life like she deserved by not marking her as mine.

My wolf rose within me at that though snarling like the ravenous beast that he was,

My body trembled as he pushed against the mental block I had built to keep him at bay. He was no wolf in my mind but a monster far too destructive to be released into the world, nothing good had ever come from him. My father had told me I was blessed by the moon goddess. That she had gifted me with the spirit of the great wolf god. Gifted? Blessed? More like cursed to share my mind and body with a demon from the pits of hell itself.

My brothers had all been jealous the way that our father had treated me growing up. They knew that my father would have given me his crown if he could have but I was not first born and I was also his bastard child. My mother had not been his chosen mate, just a common pureblood who had bewitched the king with her beauty as the story went. Years later I had discovered the truth of my birth, the king had been bewitched by her beauty and he had taken what was meant for another man.

My mother fell pregnant and tried to rip me from her womb but was unsuccessful in her attempt to kill me. The king had her locked up until it came time to birth me because he knew would be the last of his bloodline since his mate was now barren. The woman who helped my mother bring me into the world said that my mother had held me with tears in her eyes and repented her attempt to harm me. When the king came for us she said that I would be her vengeance for what he'd done to her—that I would destroy him and named me Silver, rightfully so.

Vengeance was exactly what I would call the beast that lived within me. He had made his presence known at a young age. I had shifted for the first time when I was five, even for a pureblood that quite the feat. My wolf was violent and the urges he gave me were violent—except when I saw her. Grace. Somehow the beast had stilled at the sight of her and that had shocked me because he'd never stilled not once since the he made himself known to me.

The sound of a twig snapping in the distance pulled me from my thoughts. I let my sensitive hearing become more attuned to the world around me as I searched for the cause of the sound. A strange prickling feeling crawled over my skin, a sign that something was wrong. I knew that I was not alone anymore, something or someone was stalking through the shadows of the trees.

To confirm this belief the someone in question decided to launch a silver tipped dagger at me. I dodged it as it embedded itself with accuracy into the tree a couple of feet behind me. The sound the impact shuddered through the silence of the darkening woods. I turned my attention towards the shadows it had materialized out of slitting my eyes. A feminine giggle carried itself to me on the evening breeze, "Come on wolfie—let's play..."

I made no attempt to move from my spot as I tried to stretch my senses out. If there was one hunter out here than there had to be others—Grace had told me that it had been hunters that had attacked her not just one.

"You're no fun—" I could hear the pout in her tone, "My sister told me your girlfriend was a lot of fun—guess I'll just have to wait until they catch her to play." My wolf battered against the block in my mind causing a sweat to break out of my forehead. I let out a low growl, "You touch her and I'll make you wish you were dead by the time I'm done with you hunter."

The female let out another eruption of giggles, sounded like she had more than a few screws loose, "What if I already touched her mr. wolf?" She teased before another dagger materialized out of the darkness, flying towards me. I ducked down quickly as it whizzed by over my head and embed itself into the same tree as its twin.

My skin burned as my wolf tried to force the shift on me but I held him back trying to siphon some of his power so that could strengthen myself and release him enough without shifting. I felt his bloodlust as if it were my own, clouding my mind. The hunter had threatened our mates life, she had to die—slowly. An angry snarl crashed through my clenched teeth. I charged forward toward the hunter with every intention to kill her when I caught her.

She giggled with excitement as I heard her scurry off through trees not trying to conceal her movements, "Come on! Hurry it up mr. Wolf!" She taunts through her crazed giggles.

I pumped my limbs harder causing my body to pick up momentum. I could now make out the outline of the hunter I was chasing. She was tall and lithe, her movements seemed graceful like a dancer. She looked back over her shoulder and I caught the smile on her lips. She spun her body around to face, running backwards as if it was something she did all the time.

"If you want to catch me you're going to have to try harder than that—why not shift?" She asked me not even the slightest bit out of breath. I growled at her in frustration pulling on more of my wolfs strength, knowing I was dangerously close to shifting just as she seemed to desire. She waited for a moment before shrugging her shoulders, "Well suit yourself. Don't say I didn't try to warn you mr. wolf." She turns her back to me.

I see her pull her arm to her side and grip something that is holstered to her side. In a quick movement her arm shoot up into the air and I hear the subtle click of a trigger. There is a high pitch whistle that grates against my sensitive ears as something rockets into the sky above. I turn my attention upwards as a light explodes across the darkened evening sky. I squint at the flash but it's in that quick flash that I notice that in the trees overhead there are silhouettes of people.

Trap! Ambush! My mind screams but its too late.

They plummeted towards me from there perches as a something fell down on top of me. It was heavy and it burned where it touched any of my skin—even through my clothes I could feel the warmth. I struggled within the silver chained net, trying to free myself but the silver only continued to weaken me. I sagged to the earth, falling to my knees.

"I told you mr. Wolf..." The female I had been chasing approached me. I glared at her through the holes in the chain linked net, a low growl emanating from my chest. She smiled at me her blue eyes standing out like frost against her tanned skin, "I guess now we'll get two alphas for the price of one—"

Another female hunter pushed toward the front of the group that come to gather around me there weapons drawn, "What are you guys doing? You're wasting time—stake him down, now!"

Two large males pushed through the group one was carrying large silver stakes and the other a sledge hammer. I thrashed under the netting calling upon the beast within me to free us but even the demon had his weaknesses, though he snarled viciously within my mind.

"Once the net is removed you'll have to move quick before he regains his strength." The new female orders the men before focusing her attention on me, "If he seems like he's going to attack, feel free to shoot him." She smirks at me wickedly.

Two hunter pull away from the group moving towards me, grabbing a hold of the net. I watched them carefully as they began to pull it free from my body. I clenched my teeth together as I felt pieces of the chains peeling away strips of my skin that they had burned themselves into. Once I was free I tried to pull myself up off the ground but I received a hard kick to my chest that caused me to fall onto my back.

I groaned and moved once again to right myself only to have someone holding me down. I turn my head snapping my teeth at whoever though they it was smart to touch me. Something pricked the skin of my shoulder and I threw my gaze upward to see a hunter had a stake poised against my shoulder as the other hunter had his sledge hammer in an upward swing. My eyes widened in horror and I thrashed widely to free myself.

A roar of pain ripped from me as I threw my head back as the stake as driven through my flesh and muscle. The silver scorched my body and sent fire through my veins. They moved to my other shoulder and repeated the same actions. I lay fastened to the earth being tortured by the wild fire burning within my body as I was surrounded by the enemy. The hunter drove two more stakes into my thighs making sure that I was completely at their mercy. It didn't stop me from snapping and snarling like rabid beast.

The female who order the staking approached me and crouched down, "If everything goes the way I want—then your female will come looking for you. You see she's the one I really want—" My beast roared to life and I arched up as if possessed as he tried to tear his way through my skin. Frustration and rage poured out of me as I thought of being used as trap to catch Grace—I was completely useless to protect her.

I prayed she wouldn't come for me, but it was a pointless prayer. I knew she would and so did the hunter.

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Song: 'California Dreamin' -Sia