The next day I awake with my stomach growling. I need to hunt for something. Giving the air a sniff I catch the scent of a deer along with the tinge of blood.

Slinking off into the bushes I catch sight of it and make my move with the bitter sweet memories of the obstacle course as my guide. As I watch the doe I notice the cause of the scent of blood, it's leg was injured and bleeding strongly as thick blood plasters her fur to her skin in Scarlet clumps. The doe limps with flat ears, in obvious pain but I can't just let this opportunity go by. Before long I find myself within striking distance and I lunge for it, gripping the doe's windpipe till it became still, it's fight no more. I quickly thank the moon goddess for a quick and clean kill and start to eat but as I dig into the kill I hear the growl of another rouge, a tough looking brown wolf with a scared face and bristling fur. He approaches me and snaps his jaws, chasing me off of my hard earned meal. Soon rouges were pouring in like cockroaches, devouring every last bite. By the time the last rouge ran off and I gained the guts to inch my way towards it all that remained was the skull and ribcage with few bites of tough flesh clinging on.

I was once a proud wolf, the princess of my birth pack and a Luna, but now I'm the ant among wolves. A worthless scavenger. I have truly become worse than a piss poor Luna but a piss poor wolf. I wander back to where I had slept only to find the spot occupied by the same brown wolf who is chewing on one of the hind legs and I resort to sleeping under a tree with an empty stomach. I wonder if Lilac was ever found? No, I shouldn't linger on that. It doesn't matter to me anymore, they are not my pack, never were. I wonder if my mother and father are okay. I stupidly sent Jasper into their path to save my own skin. Or even my brother? Oh Moon Goddess why do you forsake me? Why have you turned your back on me like Hunter? Do you even exist at all or are you just a fairy tale, a load of nonsense to entertain children and the dumb. Well two can play at that game. You hear me Moon Goddess?! You are nothing to me! You are dead to me!

It's the same way for months, every kill I make gets stolen. I sneak what little food I could to stave off my hunger, sometimes successfully but other times I get caught by the brown wolf and I get attacked. I have fallen so low that I just wait for death to take me, to end my suffering and to end my memories that haunt me in my dreams and at every waking moment. I don't think I will be long now. My bones stick out so much, a vulture wouldn't find me appealing.

What's worse is the brown wolf has started clinging to me as my heat approaches and I don't think I would have the strength to fight back if I wanted to once that time comes. I can only hope I'm gone before then.

I hear a branch snap, sending the brown rouge skittering into the shadows and I don't even flinch like I used to, I just lay there and wait. Hoping for it to be my death to deliver me quickly.

"Oh, what a shame? I had finally caught wind of you and tracked your scent to finally kill you but you already look half died."

The voice, I should have known it was her. Always too nice and curious about my relationship with Hunter. Everytime his name comes to my mind I feel my heart ache and each memory plays like a bittersweet symphony as a low whine squeaks out of my throat.

"Already giving up on life, how pitiful? I'll make it quick to end your suffering. I guess now it is a mercy killing? I'll be doing you a favor."

"With the trouble you have caused me I would rather have my revenge on you for the lives you took and ruining mine. Only then will I finally lay down and die." I give the reddish brown wolf a growl as I find my remaining reserves of strength and I lunge at her but she barely flinches. My jaws grip her skin with what little strength I have left. The reddish wolf laughs.

"With your weakened state, do you really think you can win against me? Since you have been gone it has been easy to move in on Hunter. And once you are completely out of the picture I will finally get what I want. I guess you can say he has forgotten about you." She growls, sinking her teeth into my back and she tosses me like a ragdoll. I feel my flesh tear as I'm sent flying through the air and I feel myself collide with the trunk of a tree. She is right, I don't even have the strength to bite a flea but I refuse to give up after everything she's done. If I die, I will be taking her down with me. I try to lift myself to my paws but I fall, my found strength now faltering. Then I hear the sound of growling as a familiar wolf lunges at her from the shadows.

___________Hunter's P.O.V______________

I'm sitting in the office tracing the groves in the desk as I think about my mate, ignoring the pain in my stomach and the constant hunger. It's been three months since I've seen my sister or my mate and I have finally lost hope that I ever will. All I can see is my mate's beautiful brown eyes as she watched me leave, her look of betrayal which still stings my heart, and I wonder if I made the right choice.

Suddenly Jasper barges in. "Alpha, Aiden has regained his memory. He said he needed to talk to you urgently."

The two of us head to his hospital room and he lays a bombshell on us that makes us feel sick to our stomachs. Roxie is innocent. "Amber was the one who took Lilac and who has been setting Roxie up!"

I feel a pit well up in my stomach and Jasper turns white. We tortured her for something she didn't do. She was telling the truth.

"Jasper, where is Amber now?" I growl.

"She is on a territory patrol, Sir."

"Has anyone just seen Amber?" I ask through the link.

A single wolf's response gave me my first bit of hope that I have had in a while. "I just saw her heading east, she said she was going after a rouge that was on our territory."

"I'm going to get her and save lilac. Jasper let's go!"

"I'm coming too." Aiden moaned, lifting himself from the bed.

"You're still not well enough to leave the hospital now get your sorry ass back in bed." Jasper scorns.

We shift and I quickly pick up Amber's scent, following along the river. I'm finally going to save my sister and then I will find my mate. As her scent grows stronger we hear the sound of fighting. As we drew close I could see her toss a wolf to the ground and I feel the pain on my back and I knew it was Roxie, my mate. Blood pools from the gaping wound as she laid there, soaking the ground.

My anger quickly boils over and grab her by the back of the neck before she could do more harm and throw her to the ground. " You're trickery is over! I now know the truth!" I growl at her through the link. "All of your lies are useless now."

She snarls bitterly, her ruse discovered. "I still won either way. Your mate is now a broken shell of what she once was."

Jasper and Caleb come over to take her back to the pack for interrogation. I turn to where Roxie was thrown and see her limping away leaving a gushing trail of blood behind her. I walk over to her to help bring her back to the pack but she turns and snaps at me and then collapses, unable to stand any longer. What has this world done to her? No, what have I done to her? "Roxie, I am so sorry. This is all my fault. I should have believed you."

I shift and pick up her frail body and all she can do is give me a small, feeble growl as she shifts in my arms and then passes out. She's nothing but skin and bones with each rib clearly visible. It was like carrying a butterfly. As if I could crush her in my arms.