---
Prologue: Twelve Years Ago
"Momma! Daddy! Jakee! Can we play hide and seek?" the little girl beamed, clutching her parents' hands. "Daddy, can I be the seeker this time? Jake found me too fast last time. Pleaaseee," she asked with her biggest puppy dog eyes.
Her father chuckled, ruffling her hair. "Okay, princess. Anything you want."
"Yay!" she cheered. "One... two... twenty! Ready or not, here I come!"
She giggled as she ran, searching behind trees and around rocks. Minutes passed. Then…
"Momma? Daddy? Jakee? Where are you?" she called, her voice trembling. "I'm hungry…"
She wandered deeper into the forest—until she froze.
There, before her, were her parents and older brother… kneeling. Surrounded by monstrous creatures with glowing yellow eyes. Wolves. No—not wolves. Beasts.
Her eyes widened in horror as they tore her family apart, ripping flesh from bone. Blood soaked the leaves.
"No…" she whispered, voice cracking.
The creatures paused.
One turned.
"RUN, IVORA!" her father shouted.
But before he could say more, claws pierced his chest. Her mother's scream was cut short. Her brother's lifeless eyes stared right at her.
She screamed—a sound so broken the forest itself seemed to fall silent.
The beasts shifted, morphing into… people. Men and women. Human.
"She saw us," growled one.
"Go get her," barked the largest one.
She ran. Her legs burned, her heart pounded. Twigs tore at her skin. But then—something strange happened. Her body shimmered and blended into the forest. She vanished.
"What the hell?! Where is she?!"
"She couldn't have gone far!"
"Sir, she's just a girl…"
"She won't make it out."
But they were wrong.
That girl would become the storm that haunted their world.
---
Twelve Years Later
Twelve years.
Twelve years of crying herself to sleep. Of hiding the pain behind a cold, hardened shell.
Twelve years of revenge.
Now, she was the most feared hunter in the world. Swift, deadly, silent.
But even the strongest warriors have scars.
Every time I see happy families, laughing children... I feel the pain all over again.
She had no childhood.
No bedtime stories.
No warm hugs.
Only memories of blood.
And vengeance.
She swore she'd make every one of them pay.
Until one mission changed everything.
---
She had found him—Xander. Just a baby, cradled in his dying mother's arms.
"Please," the woman had begged through tears. "We did everything… for him. Please… take care of him."
Ivy had hesitated. "I'm not a mother. I don't even have a heart."
"You do," the woman whispered. "You just don't see it. Not yet."
And then, the light faded from her eyes.
From that day, Ivy never let Xander out of her sight.
He became her reason to breathe.
Her little angel.
He was four now. Bright. Curious. Full of love Ivy didn't think she deserved.
"I'm proud of you," she often whispered when he slept. "So, so proud."
---
Now
Her new mission: A rogue in L.A.
Her cover: A college student.
Her goal: Eliminate the threat. Quietly.
Ugh. She hated going undercover.
She already had a degree—homeschooled through it all. She didn't need this act. But it gave her access. Eyes and ears close to the rogue.
And now, as always, she worked alone. She answered to no one.
No boss.
No orders.
Just her and her blade.
"Mommy, why are we leaving again?" Xander asked, hugging his plush toy tightly.
"I'm sorry, baby," she said, kneeling in front of him. "But we have to. Just for a little while, okay?"
He nodded slowly. "Okay, Momma."
She smiled, though her heart ached.
This wasn't a story of a hero.
This was a story of survival. Of vengeance. Of a broken girl who became something the monsters feared.
But what she didn't know was that in L.A., fate had plans for her.
Because Ivy wasn't just hunting a rogue.
She was about to uncover the truth behind her past, and a bond stronger than blood… one that could change everything.
--