Ira has been trained her entire life to hunt and kill werewolves by her abusive father, the leader of the Hunter Clan. On her eighteenth birthday, she’s expected to kill her first werewolf and pledge herself to the clan, but instead she turns her back on everything she knows and runs away with the wolf she’s supposed to kill.
Now she’s surrounded by a whole pack of werewolves and at the mercy of their alpha, who won’t stop calling her “mate.”
Age Rating: 18+
Note: This story is the author’s original version and does not have sound.
The Great Escape by Anna Pope is now available to read on the Galatea app! Read the first two chapters below, or download Galatea for the full experience.
Read the full uncensored books on the Galatea iOS app!
1
Ira has been trained her entire life to hunt and kill werewolves by her abusive father, the leader of the Hunter Clan. On her eighteenth birthday, she’s expected to kill her first werewolf and pledge herself to the clan, but instead she turns her back on everything she knows and runs away with the wolf she’s supposed to kill. Now she’s surrounded by a whole pack of werewolves and at the mercy of their alpha, who won’t stop calling her “mate.”
Age Rating: 18+
Original Author: Anna Pope
Note: This story is the author’s original version and does not have sound.
“It is time, Ira,” Father said from the doorway of my little “room.”
I doubted that anyone would actually consider the broom closet I was currently sitting in a room, but it was all I ever knew. It was my safe haven, as much as it was a prison cell; the place I both hated and still sort of loved at the same time.
I felt dread starting to rise in my chest once I fully realized what I was about to do. I knew that this day was coming but I still hoped that something was going to happen to prevent it.
I didn’t want to do what they expected of me, but I knew what he would do if I dared to disobey his orders, so I quickly stood up, my eyes trained on the floor as I tried to avoid eye contact like I was thought to do.
“Yes, Father,” I whispered, and after a tense few minutes of him drilling holes into my skull and me trying not to cower in fear, knowing well that it would only provoke him further if I showed even an ounce of cowardice.
He finally turned around and led me down the hall.
I sighed in relief, since the last thing I wanted was for him unleash his anger on me right now.
I was nervous about my task and that would only add more stress to my already fraying nerves.
I felt a dozen pairs of eyes on us, watching and judging my every move as we tracked through the house, their stares making me uneasy.
I managed to keep my face devoid of any emotion as we passed them by and went outside.
Father stopped at the edge of the forest and I did the same, clenching my hands into fists as I tried to stop them from shaking.
A soft, pitiful whine drifted to my ears, and taking a peek through my lashes, I saw a big off-white wolf lying beneath Father’s legs in a cage a size too small for him.
His soft-looking fur was matted in blood and dirt, a gnarly-looking gash sitting over his right eye. His breathing was shallow and broken but his yellow eyes were alive, shining with hatred as he glared at me.
I shuddered under his gaze and took an unconscious step back, my heart breaking at the sight of the broken creature. Just the thought of what I was expected to do had me wanting to run far away.
“Ira,” I heard Father calling my name, his face a stone mask as his hand held a gun outstretched toward me.
I took a deep breath, willing my body to cooperate as I grabbed the gun with a shaking hand and pointed it at the wolf.
Our eyes locked, his hard and full of hatred, making mine fill with tears that I tried to shake away.
“Ira, today!” Father yelled, startling me, and I nodded.
The wolf continued to stare at me, his gaze almost curious now before he closed his eyes and lowered his head to the ground. I closed my eyes, too, unable to look at the poor creature any longer.
I tried to pull the trigger but a small voice inside my head stopped me.
“If you do this, you’ll regret it for the rest of your life!”
I tried to shake it off and ignore it but it only grew stronger with each passing minute until I was sure that I was going crazy.
“What are you waiting for!? Do it!” Father shouted at me, and at the sound of his harsh voice my jaw clenched in annoyance.
I looked at him to see an ugly sneer plastered on his face, and I realized how much I hated him.
He had tortured me my whole life; the memories of beatings and insults were overwhelming, and I felt anger boiling inside of me.
My body started to shake as I relived every single day of my miserable existence and something in me snapped.
“No!” I shouted and moved my hand so that the gun was now pointing in his direction.
“What the xxxx are you doing!?” he growled but kept his distance.
“What I should have done ages ago. Open the xxxxxxx cage!” I said in a strange, strong voice that sounded nothing like me, and by the look on Father’s face, I wasn’t the only one surprised by it.
He unlocked the cage although he was obviously not happy about it, a look of pure hatred on his face as he eyed the gun pointed at his head. He then quickly retreated as the wolf stepped out of the cage.
“Run!” I said to him, pointing to the woods behind us, but he just stood rooted to the ground looking at me with wide eyes.
“Come on, what are you waiting for? Run away!” I shouted at the stubborn creature, but he continued to stand there for a few more minutes and then lowered to the ground.
He shook his head at me and then toward the house from where we could see the rest of the clan coming out, probably wondering what was taking so long.
I stared at him in confusion until my mind registered what he was trying to say. He wanted me to go with him.
I didn’t know what to do. On one hand if I stayed I’d probably be dead by this time tomorrow, but on the other if I went with him I didn’t know what was waiting for me out there.
I didn’t know anyone outside of the clan; xxxx, I never even set foot off of our land.
It took me a minute to make a decision before I jumped on his back, my arms wrapping around his neck and my fingers tangling in his fur.
The voices from the house grew stronger as he started to run through the forest with an inhuman speed.
I cast one last look toward the place I had called home for as long as I could remember and then turned around feeling not at all ready to face the unknown future.
What have I done?
Read the full uncensored books on the Galatea iOS app!
2
“Milo…baby…,” the voice said, followed by soft lips trailing down my back, her hot breath warming my skin and making me shiver.
“I know that you are awake, baby, don’t make me bite you,” she teased and it made me laugh out loud, which further proved that she was right.
I turned around coming face-to-face with the love of my life, her blue eyes shining with amusement even though her mouth was in a fake pout.
“And what if I want you to bite me?” I asked, a smirk playing around my mouth. I wrapped my hands around her slim waist and pulled her over me.
“Well, I am kind of hungry,” she whispered into my ear before she leaned down to kiss me.
***
The alarm clock went off next to my head, waking me up from my dream.
I blindly palmed around the bedside table until I heard a loud crash telling me that I had managed to break another clock, but on the bright side, the xxxx thing had stopped ringing.
I didn’t want to open my eyes just yet and face reality.
The image of her was still so vivid in my mind; the way her skin felt under my hands, the incredible feeling of her lips over mine, and the sight of those beautiful eyes that always held a hint of mischief in them made me want to never get out of bed.
She was real at that moment and I actually found myself reaching with my hand to touch her but all I felt were cold sheets instead.
I opened my eyes and looked at her side of the bed and my heart clenched painfully in my chest. I quickly got up before the tears came, since I knew that they were going to if I continued down that path of thought again.
This whole thing was too depressing, me waking up alone yet again, and it was the exact reason why I rarely slept in this room.
I made a mistake in coming here, but I was too exhausted yesterday to sleep in my office like I normally did lately as the soft bed called my name in the early hours of the morning.
I made my way toward the bathroom to take a quick shower and brush my teeth.
Once I was finished with my morning routine I pulled on some cargo shorts, not even bothering with a shirt since I planned to spend most of the day in wolf form after all.
I made my way down to the kitchen, which was bustling with activity even though it was barely six in the morning.
As soon as I entered they all stopped talking and looked at me with their heads bowed, which just made me feel annoyed.
Yes, I was their alpha, but the way they acted around me made me feel like an outcast.
“It’s your xxxx fault,” Igor, my wolf, piped up, making me internally glare at him.
I knew that it was my fault, since I was the one who changed, but it still hurt to see the fear in the eyes of those who used to be my friends.
“Good morning, Alpha,” Megan, little omega and the main cook, approached me and said.
“Morning,” I grunted and glared at the rest of them until they averted their eyes and went back to what they were doing before I came in.
“Would you like some breakfast?”
“No, thank you, Megan. Where is Lucas? Is he still asleep?” I asked, not seeing my beta anywhere. We were both out last night searching for his little brother until I made him return to the pack house and rest.
When his brother, Rafa, hadn’t shown up at the pack house after his classes were finished, Lucas went out to find him.
The only thing he managed to find was the boy’s car. It was parked at the side of the road just outside of our pack line with no boy in sight.
The entire pack was brought out to help with the search but his scent got lost at the edge of the town, making it impossible for us to track him.
“No, he’s in the backyard,” Megan said, her eyes downcast and a frown marring her lovely face.
She knew just like the rest of us that Rafa was most likely never going to come back. This entire thing stank of hunters and they were not the type to let werewolves go once they managed to catch them.
I took a deep breath and went outside, my legs taking me to the big oak tree at the corner of the yard.
Lucas was there. He was sitting on the ground with his back to the tree and his head in his hands. He was gripping his hair tightly and shaking from side to side, his breathing erratic and broken.
“Lucas?” I said, trying to get his attention, but he either hadn’t heard me or chose to ignore me.
“Lu?” I tried again, this time using the nickname I hadn’t uttered for a long time. It managed to catch his attention and he untangled the fingers from his hair and turned his head to face me.
I felt my heart break a little at the immense pain and sorrow that was painted across his face for the whole world to see. His little brother was the only family he had left and now he had lost him too.
“Why did they take him, Milo? He is just a boy, not even eighteen yet! He never hurt a fly! Why!?” Lucas shouted, his voice breaking as a sob escaped his mouth.
I moved closer to him and wrapped my arms around him. He gripped my back harshly, breaking my bare skin in the process, but I didn’t comment and just continued to hold him while he cried in my arms.
My eyes filled with tears as I thought about the little off-white wolf with yellow eyes that we’ll probably never see again.
Where are you, Rafa?
Read the full uncensored books on the Galatea iOS app!
