Black as Coal

11

**Read Chapter 10 first**

Growing up, I would wonder if, like Reed, I was adopted too. It was a stupid curiosity given that I looked undoubtedly like our parents, but that was where the similarities stopped.

My parents believed in one thing: power. To them, that was all that mattered in this world. Power could get you anything. Strength was a form of power and they were determined to be the strongest force around. Given the alpha blood running through my mother's veins, they genuinely did believe they could reach the top of the food chain based on raw strength alone, but when she challenged my aunt to a dual and failed, they realized they still hadn't reached the top of the chain as they desired.

That was where Reed and I came in. From a young age, we were raised to train and pick up where our parents left off. We were told our goal was to become alpha and beta. When we were young, I never questioned it, but the older I got, the more I realized I didn't want to be alpha. I didn't want to live the life they pushed onto me. It didn't help that I didn't fit into their cookie-cutter mold of what a powerful werewolf acted like—something that became painfully apparent when I reached the age where I started dating.

I knew Reed didn't share the same sentiments when it came to our parents, but part of that was because he was adopted. Of course, they held him to high standards, but they weren't the same as mine. They could brush off his mistakes as a result of him being adopted. They couldn't do that with me. Any issue they had with me they viewed as a reflection of themselves; a sign they had failed in some way.

When the first opportunity for me to escape their suffocating grasp appeared, I took it without a second thought. If it were up to me and only me, I would've taken Reed as well and we would've gotten as far away as possible from them. He didn't want to go though and I couldn't bear the idea of moving too far away from him, so Oakwood was the compromise. Oakwood was the first time I felt truly free. I didn't have to worry about looking over my shoulder and seeing my parents' disapproving gazes or the extensive training sessions. I promised myself I wouldn't go back unless absolutely necessary and I'd done a good job of keeping that promise—until now.

I set my bag down against a tree and while I prepared to shift, I thought about the conversation Reed and I had. I wanted to believe him when he said the pack had changed—I did—but I couldn't. Still, I wanted to support my brother.

I sighed and shook my head, not wanting to think about my pack anymore, and closed my eyes to shift. I pictured my blue-eyed, dark-furred wolf in my mind, and minutes later, my body began to reshape itself and fur sprouted. When I opened my eyes all my senses seemed to improve. It was easier to see in through darkness, I could smell much more, and hear from further away.

I took a few moments to stretch and allow myself to fully adjust before beginning a slow trot through the woods. I took my time maneuvering around since I wasn't in any rush to return home. Reed was already asleep so it was just me. I briefly considered reaching out to Callie before I left but decided against it. I knew she would be more than willing, but with Callie being human, I likely would've stayed in my human form and tonight it wasn't what I wanted. It was freeing to run as a wolf; to temporarily be able to forget about everything happening around me.

I knew the woods of Oakwood like the back of my hand. I knew what parts to avoid, what parts were best for a quick jog, and which were better for a longer one. I typically took shorter runs to limit the risk of accidentally running into anyone, but tonight I decided to take the longer path. It consisted of lots of trees littering the path and twisting around every other corner. I used to run the path a lot more often when I was still with Arlo since he liked the area, but I stopped doing so when we broke up because I didn't want to make it more awkward than it had to be.

We would come across another wolf every once in a while, however, there was a silent agreement between the werewolves in Oakwood that we'd all share the woods. There was no need for territorial disputes when our main goal was to not draw attention to ourselves. I usually overlooked these wolves whenever I saw them as a normality, but what was abnormal was the soft, glowing light coming from the inside of the abandoned cabin in the woods.

Curiosity flooded through me. I'd been inside the cabin before and it was pretty obvious it'd been abandoned. The place was quite literally one bad storm away from falling apart. Nobody who had a sense of self-preservation would have gone inside of it with the ever-changing weather we'd been having, especially at this time of night.

I moved closer, hyperaware of the houses not too far away from me, and walked around the outside of the building. I sniffed around and a feeling of dread filled me. I stopped at the window and peeked inside where my thoughts were confirmed.

Standing inside as if he was about to go to bed wad Fen. The way he moved around the house comfortably and without worry told me this wasn't just a one-night thing. He'd been sleeping here likely since he left Reuben's house. The thought had crossed my mind a few times, but I always pushed it away. Now that he was standing a few feet away from me, I couldn't.

I started to move away from the window. To moved before he could see me, but before I could, his head snapped around and his eyes met mine. His brows knitted together and he walked toward the window, staring down at me with a mixture of emotions swimming in his dark eyes.

"Cronan?"