Aurelia POV:
I found a room in a crumbling tenement in the Rogue district. It was a place where the law didn't reach, a place for wolves who had been exiled or forgotten.
The room smelled of mold and despair, but it had a heavy steel door.
I spent three days there, eating canned beans and planning. I needed a new identity. I needed a way to get out of the city.
On the fourth night, a knock came at the door.
I froze. I hadn't told anyone where I was. I hadn't used magic. I hadn't shifted.
"Aurelia," a soft voice called. *"Open up. You really shouldn't have used your old library card to check into the internet café downstairs. Rookie mistake."*
It was Kaleigh.
*I cursed myself. I had been so careful with the money, but I had needed a map.*
I opened the door, leaving the security chain on. She stood in the dim hallway, wearing a trench coat. *Two massive enforcers stood behind her, their arms crossed. She hadn't come alone. She wasn't stupid.*
"How did you find me?" I asked, though I already knew.
She smiled, tapping her nose. *"Money, darling. Private investigators are cheap. And you leave a trail."*
"What do you want?"
"I want to make a deal," she said. "Jacob is going crazy. He's tearing the city apart. But... we both know he doesn't want *you*."
She held up *a sleek, black briefcase.* "This is a settlement. Five million dollars. Cash."
"And what happens to me?"
"You give birth," Kaleigh said, her voice dropping to a whisper. "And then you leave. You start over in Europe. You'll be young, rich, and free."
"And you get my son."
"He needs a mother who can give him power," Kaleigh said. "My body... it's frail. I can't carry an Alpha. But I can raise one."
Her mask slipped then. I saw the greed in her eyes. It wasn't maternal love. It was hunger. She wanted my son as a trophy. A shield to protect her position as Luna.
"You're going to kill me," I said. It was a realization, sharp and cold. "Once he's born, you won't let me leave. You can't have the real mother walking around."
Kaleigh sighed. *"It would be cleaner. A tragic complication during childbirth. Jacob would mourn for a week, and then he would move on. But take the money, Aurelia. Don't make the boys break down this door."*
*She gestured to the enforcers. One of them stepped forward, reaching for the chain.*
*I needed a distraction. I looked at the old gas stove in the corner. The pilot light had been flickering all day.*
*"Wait," I said. "I'll sign."*
*"Smart girl," Kaleigh smirked.*
*I backed away, reaching into my bag. I didn't pull out a pen. I pulled out a lighter.*
*I kicked the valve on the gas line. The hiss was immediate.*
*"What are you doing?" Kaleigh shrieked, backing up.*
*"If you come in here," I said, holding the lighter up, "we all burn. The gas concentration in this small room... it'll blow the façade off the building."*
*The enforcers hesitated. Fire was the one thing wolves universally feared. It dulled the senses, burned the fur, and killed the regeneration factor.*
*"She's bluffing!" Kaleigh yelled.*
*"Am I?" I flicked the lighter. The flame danced.*
*"Let's go," one of the enforcers grunted, grabbing Kaleigh's arm. "This place is a tinderbox, Miss. We can't grab her if we're on fire."*
*Kaleigh glared at me, her face twisted in hate. "You're insane."*
*"I am a mother," I corrected.*
*They retreated down the hall. I slammed the door and locked it.* My hands were shaking. *That bought me maybe ten minutes before they found a way to cut the gas or shoot through the window.*
I looked around the room. *I couldn't run. They had the building surrounded.*
Kaleigh was right about one thing. Aurelia Flynn had to die.
If I was dead, they would stop hunting. If I was dead, my son would be safe.
I went to the stove *and fully severed the line.* The hiss of gas filled the small room.
I reached into my bag and pulled out a small vial I had bought from a Rogue chemist. It was a mixture of Wolfsbane and pufferfish toxin. It would stop my heart for ten minutes. Long enough to look like a corpse.
I checked the fire escape window. It was open. *I needed to time this perfectly.*
I took a deep breath.
"Goodbye, Jacob," I whispered.
I struck a match and dropped it on the curtains.
As the flames roared to life, licking up the walls, I drank the poison and lay down on the floor, waiting for the darkness to take me.
