POV: Chloe

Being Rogue isn't romantic. It's exposure.

I sat on a park bench in the city center, shivering in the damp air. 2:00 AM.

A growl from the alley. Rotting meat. Unwashed fur.

Three men stepped out. Eyes glowing sickly yellow. Low-levels. Scavengers.

"Fresh stray," one hissed. "Smells like house pet."

I stood, gripping my suitcase. "Back off." My voice trembled. I couldn't shift. I'd never been able to. My wolf was a ghost in my own body.

"Soft," another laughed. "Unclaimed."

One lunged.

I swung my suitcase. It bounced off his chest like a pillow. He grabbed my arm, claws tearing through my sweater.

"Hey!"

A beam of light. A human security guard, flashlight raised.

"Leave the lady alone!"

The Rogues hissed. Police meant Council attention. They scattered like roaches.

I collapsed onto the bench. My arm stung. My pride stung more.

I pulled out my phone. One number.

Sarah.

Sarah was a high-ranking Beta at Obsidian Moon. My college roommate before I dropped out to play housewife.

"Chloe?" Her voice was thick with sleep.

"I left him. 5th and Main. Rogues."

"Stay put." Her tone shifted instantly. Beta Command. It grounded me. "I'm coming."

Twenty minutes later, a black SUV screeched up. Sarah jumped out, looking ready to murder someone.

She hugged me until my ribs popped. Then she pulled back, sniffing.

"Goddess, Chloe. You smell like wet dog and bad decisions. And him."

"I have nowhere to go."

"Get in. Grand Hotel. Neutral ground. High thread count. No ex-boyfriends allowed."

In the hotel suite, Sarah cleaned my scratches.

"You look terrible," she said bluntly. "Malnourished. Dull coat. Being his Omega drained you."

"I'm not an Omega," I whispered. "I just... don't work right."

"Your wolf is fine, she's just bored," Sarah said. "You have a brain. That's more than Ethan has."

She tucked me in.

"Rest. Tomorrow, we fix this."

"How?"

Sarah smiled, sharp and dangerous. "The Obsidian Moon Gala is tomorrow. The Lycan King is in town. Ethan will be there."

"So?"

"So, you're going too. And you're not going to be serving the drinks."

POV: Chloe

I woke up to my phone vibrating off the nightstand.

15 Missed Calls: Ethan.

I played the voicemail.

"Chloe, pick up. I can't access the offshore accounts. What's the password for the Cayman shell company? The contractors are threatening to walk."

"Stop playing games. Ashley wants to know where the hell you filed the blueprints."

"This is an Alpha Command! Answer me!"

My stomach cramped. Not fear. Disgust. He didn't miss me. He missed his admin.

"Pathetic," Sarah said, handing me coffee. "Delete it."

"I can't just-"

"He is nothing. You severed the link. His command is just noise now."

She tossed a bag onto the bed.

"Get up. It's war paint time."

The afternoon was a blur of exfoliation and hair dye. They chopped my mousy hair into a sharp, architectural bob. Dark chocolate. Severe.

"You were hiding," Sarah said. "Today, you hunt."

The dress wasn't grey. It was red. Blood red. Velvet. Backless.

"It's too much," I said.

"It's a power move. Every Alpha is going to be there kissing the Lycan King's ring. Ethan will be there trying to look important."

We walked into the convention center. The air was heavy with Alpha auras, a pressure cooker of testosterone.

I saw him immediately. Ethan, near the bar, nursing a whiskey. Ashley clung to him like a barnacle, wearing white, trying too hard to look virginal.

My phone buzzed. Text from Ethan.

If you aren't back by midnight to unlock the server, I'm calling the Council to report you as a runaway.

I looked at him across the room. He was texting threats while smiling at a donor.

"Ready?" Sarah asked.

"No," I said. "But let's ruin his night anyway."

POV: Chloe

We moved through the crowd. Head high. Shoulders back. Fake it 'til you make it.

"Look who cleaned up," a voice sneered.

Brad. Ethan's Gamma. Drunk on cheap champagne and entitlement.

"Brad."

"Does the Alpha know you're playing dress-up?" He looked me up and down. "Nice dress. Shame about the wolf inside it."

"Excuse me."

He blocked my path. "Don't walk away from a ranked wolf, Omega."

"She's with me," Sarah stepped in, her Beta aura flaring like a riot shield. "Back off, Brad. Unless you want to explain to the Council why you're harassing an Obsidian Moon guest."

Brad paled and stumbled away.

My heart hammered. "I need a drink."

I grabbed a glass from a waiter. Downed it.

Fire. Liquid razor blades.

"Chloe, stop! That's Wolfsbane Liquor!" Sarah cried.

For a shifter with a dormant wolf, Wolfsbane isn't a buzz. It's poison.

The room tilted. My vision tunneled. My legs felt like they were made of lead.

"I need... air," I gasped.

"I'll get water. Don't move."

I couldn't stay. The noise was a physical weight. I stumbled toward the exit, pushing into the cool night air of the parking lot.

I leaned against a silver sedan, gasping.

"Get off my car!"

Ashley.

She and Ethan were walking toward me.

"Chloe?" Ethan looked shocked. "You look... cheap."

"I'm... leaving," I slurred. My tongue felt thick.

"You're drunk," Ashley laughed. "Came to spy on us? Pathetic."

"Get in the car," Ethan commanded. "I'm taking you home. You're embarrassing me."

"No."

Ashley shoved me. "He said get in the car!"

My balance was gone. I hit the asphalt hard. My palms skidded, skin tearing against the grit.

"Look at you," Ethan sneered. "And you thought you could be a Luna?"

I lay there, the poison pulsing in my veins.

Then, the air changed. Static electricity. Ozone. The smell of a storm about to break.

Heavy footsteps. Leather on pavement.

Ethan stopped talking.

A man stepped out of the shadows. Tall. Broad. A suit that cost more than Ethan's life.

His eyes were liquid gold.

He looked at me. A jolt went through me, sharper than the Wolfsbane.

"Mine," a voice rumbled in my head. Not spoken. Projected.

He extended a hand.

"Get up," he said. His voice was gravel and velvet. "A Queen does not kneel in the dirt."