Rumpel's Wolf

RUMPEL’S WOLF KENZIE GRAVES Copyright © 2023 by Kenzie Graves All rights reserved. This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. No part of this book may be used to reproduce, scan, or be distributed in any printed or electronic form in any manner whatsoever without written permission of the author, except in the case of brief quotations for articles or reviews. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials. Cover: Manuela Serra Cover Design Editing: Randomoscity Copy and Line Editing Formatting: Owlsome Author Services CONTENTS Prologue Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15 Chapter 16 Chapter 17 Chapter 18 Chapter 19 Chapter 20 Chapter 21 Chapter 22 Chapter 23 Chapter 24 Chapter 25 Chapter 26 Chapter 27 Chapter 28 Chapter 29 Chapter 30 Chapter 31 Epilogue Afterword Acknowledgments About the Author Books by Kenzie Graves The waning moon hung overhead as Emira stood underneath a beam of its light. On top of a cliff, looking down at the forest below, Emira waited for the clock to turn midnight. It was the eve of her twenty-first birthday, the moment she had been thinking about since she was young, and the day she could finally meet her wolf. There were times when Emira would watch the pack runoff on the full moon runs and hated that she had to stay behind. When she was little, her parents would allow her to ride on their backs so she could be a part of the run. After she became a teenager, they stopped that and told her she was too old for that. The wait had been torture, but at least it was finally here. The air was warming as Spring pushed out the last of the Winter days. Emira could see the buds at the ends of branches on the trees below. Finally, some green inside the valley instead of the dreary gray and brown, she thought to herself. Emira hated winters where her pack lived. The territory was near a lake, so the snow and cold seemed worse than in any other area within the Eastern region. A faint howl rang in the air, followed by several others. Soon after, Emira could hear a chorus of cries echoing throughout the valley. Each howl called out to her soul as she felt a tingling sensation run over every inch of her body. She felt her heart race as she realized what was happening. My wolf! She is emerging! I’m going to shift for the first time! Her body vibrated with anxious jitters as Emira waited for the next part of the process. She was there when her older sister’s wolf emerged, and it was not a pretty sight to watch Terry go through. If anyone knew that Emira had been there that night, she would have been in trouble. Their pack’s tradition is that the first shift happens alone under the moonlight. They were banished if a wolf couldn’t control their wolf after their first shift and had direct animosity toward the pack for the first run. The rule never made sense to Terry or Emira, but they knew better than to question it. They were the Gamma’s daughters, and since their parents were high-ranking wolves, it wouldn’t look good on them that their daughters broke pack traditions. Emira knew the pain would start at any moment and wished she wasn’t alone. Maybe that’s why they ensure everyone is alone during the first shift. It’s so no one is anxious about the process, so it is easier to go through. Just as a thought of her sister making the shift appear worse than it was to scare her, realizing Emira had broken the rule, the pain erupted inside her. Emira fell to her knees and cried out as wave after wave of cracking bones moved into place. A film of sweat broke out on her skin, and she could feel the heat coming off her as she curled into a ball. I can’t do this. This needs to stop! I can’t take it anymore! Breathe, Emira. The process is almost complete. Are you… Emira cried out in pain once more, and then it disappeared. Are you my wolf? Emira felt her eyes roll to the back of her head as another wave of pain raked through her body. When that subsided, she took deep breaths, held them, and slowly let them out. A husky, feminine voice chuckled softly inside of her mind. Yes. I am Amethyst. I am here now, and the pain will start to fade. Amethyst? Yes. You may call me Amie. Emira no longer felt any pain. Even the dizziness subsided, and she managed to get her breathing regulated again. When she tried to focus on standing up, Emira noticed she couldn’t control her legs. She managed to realize she did not have hands anymore but paws. Her wolf’s fur was snow white with a glimmer of purple. What’s happening? I am in control of my body, Emira. Oh. Well, we have to get to the pack. I know. I can hear them calling for us. Amethyst shook out her fur after she got to her feet and trotted down the cliff toward the pack. It felt weird to be able to see everything her wolf saw but have no control of the movements. She tried not to freak out at the thought, but it was difficult to brush off. This may be why the pack has that rule. It is a superstition. The only way a person loses control of their wolf is by becoming Moon Crazed, Emira. You don’t have to worry about that. You can call me Emmy.