Legacy Wolves

Chapter 2: Aftermath in the Shadows

Cassian awoke with a start, the cold bite of morning air prickling his skin. His body was sore, every muscle aching as though he had been torn apart and reassembled, and in a way, he had. The memories from the night before crashed back in a chaotic rush—his transformation, the car wreck, the blood. His parents...

A sharp pain stabbed his chest, an ache deeper than the physical pain.

He couldn't bring himself to relive that moment—seeing his mother's lifeless eyes, the mangled body of his father.

And the worst part, the part that made his stomach churn and his heart shatter - it had been his fault.

Cassian blinked, trying to force himself to focus. His surroundings were unfamiliar. The trees loomed tall and thick around him, the dense forest canopy shielding the early morning sunlight. A fog had settled over the forest floor and the crumpled leaves under his hands were wet with dew.

He was somewhere deep in the woods, far from the road. His parents. And his life.

He looked at his clothes, half shredded and clinging to his body. They were torn beyond repair, and his body was covered in dirt and dried blood.

Was it even his?

The thought made him gag.

He stumbled to his feet, his legs trembling beneath him. He didn't know where to go or what to do. His instincts screamed at him to run, to hide, to escape before anyone found him. He was a fugitive now—he'd attacked police officers, for God's sake. And worse, he had killed.

Cassian staggered forward, leaning on a tree for support. His body was still weak from the transformation, his limbs heavy and sluggish. The beast inside him had gone quiet, but its presence lingered, like a shadow waiting just beneath the surface. He didn't understand what was happening to him, why his body had changed so violently. All he knew was that he had to stay away from people—he was too dangerous.

But what about Addy, his sister?

He'd left her without her parents and her big brother. She was only ten. Where would she go? She couldn't be around him. What if he changed and killed her?

No, she was definitely better off without him.

He breathed heavily. The woods were eerily silent, the usual sounds of birds and rustling leaves absent in the fog. It was as if the entire forest had been holding its breath, waiting for something.

Cassian stumbled deeper into the woods, his mind racing. He needed to get away, find somewhere to think, to figure out what the hell he was going to do next.

Hours passed in a blur. He didn't know how far he'd traveled or where he was going. His body was running on autopilot, driven by the singular need to get away. Every so often, the distant echo of sirens drifted through the trees.

Eventually, he collapsed by a small creek, his legs giving out beneath him. The cold water lapped gently at his feet, the sound soothing in the otherwise oppressive silence. Cassian dropped to his knees, staring at his reflection in the water.

The face that looked back at him was unfamiliar. His eyes were bloodshot, wild, rimmed with a red against the icy blue of his human eyes. His skin was pale, and caked with dirt and dried blood. He pulled the scraps of fabric off his skin. His mouth still tasted like iron—like blood. He dipped his hands into the cold stream, scrubbing at his face.

But it wasn't enough. No matter how hard he scrubbed, he couldn't erase the blood. He couldn't change what he had done.

A sound, soft but unmistakable, cut through the stillness—a rustle of leaves, a twig snapping. Cassian's head shot up, his heart pounding.