Page 34 of Big Bad Wolf

His eyes flash in the morning sunlight. “The huntsman saves the girl from the big, bad wolf. And, in her gratitude, he gets to keep her. You, little mouse… you’re meant to be mine.”

Tough shit.

“No.”

He goes still again. “What did you say?”

“I said⁠—”

No!

The huntsman is definitely a part of Blackmoor. Only one of the mythical monsters that lives among these trees can move as inhumanly fast as he does as he lunges at me again. Only, this time, he doesn’t grab my arm.

Instead, he uses the haft of the axe to brain me on the side of my head, and for the second time this week, I’m down.

CHAPTER 12

MY MATE

Luckily for me, I’m down but I’m not out.

For a few seconds, I do see stars. My head screams with pain from his hit, but whether he didn’t want to do too much damage to his ‘little mouse’ or I just got real fucking fortunate, I’m still conscious. It sucks to have to push past the sudden throbbing in my head, but I do it because the alternative… yeah. I’m not about to let this huntsman prick get a hold of me again.

Only it’s too late, damn it.

While I’m trying not to puke, strong hands haul me up before I can fully recover, dragging me against him once more as I struggle to stay upright.

“Let me go,” I snap.

“Don’t fight me,” he orders. “You’ll like me more if you don’t fight, mäuschen.”

Ugh. I might just hurl after all. “Stop touching me, dickhead!”

Where’s a lunch tray when you need one? Hell, I’d take his axe, but the huntsman dropped it to the ground so that he can grab me. So though I twist, wriggle, and kick, doing anything and everything I can to break free of his hold, I’m trapped. He’s too damn strong.

“Stay calm,” he growls, shifting his grip, hugging me to him as he starts to lift me up.

“No!”

Breaking through the pain in my head, I tap into enough adrenaline to give me the nerve to fight back some more. I slam the heel of my boot down on his foot as hard as I can, and because he wasn’t expecting it, it was enough.

The huntsman swears, though I can’t tell if he’s cursing because I actually did any damage to him, or because he released me just long enough that I’m able to wrench free of his hold, catching myself in time so that I don’t fall flat on my ass.

Instead, alarm bells clanging in my head—or maybe that’s my new concussion—I turn and run.

I couldn’t outrun Wolf. Maybe, with a little luck on my side, I can run to him and far, far away from the huntsman⁠—

Oof.

A heavy hand slams into my back, sending me crashing face-first to the ground. All of the air in my lungs rushes out upon impact as I just manage to break my fall by throwing out my hands.

As quick as I can, I try to push up, but it’s pointless. The huntsman has grabbed me again, using the back of my cloak to drag me so that I’m sprawled at his feet.

“I told you. You will listen to me, little mouse, and you will give me what I’m owed. For so long, I waited for you to arrive in Blackmoor. Now you’re here, and I won’t be denied.”

Yes the fuck he will.

I tug the cloak. “Get off me!”