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CHAPTER 17
LILY
A whisper. A promise. A lie. I’d heard it all, right before he tried to kill me.
Terror, raw and wild clamped down on me, teeth digging into flesh. My body locked up, frozen in fear. I stared at the mud beneath me, the dirt under my fingernails. I didn’t want to look up, and even if I did, I knew what I’d find. I sat motionless, waiting, praying it had been my mind. The flimsy wet material of my haphazard dress clung to my skin and water dripped from my hair. I frowned. Hair that seemed much longer today than the previous day.
“We had an agreement, remember?”
It was him. Goosebumps immediately covered my skin, pulling at the base of each hair follicle while a spindly critter scuttled over the curve of my shoulders, crawling down my back. I swallowed. The sensation had been too vivid, too real to be conjured by my imagination. He was there. He’d found me.
Everything around me stilled, even the water in the background had stopped running. Slowly and without breathing, I lifted my face.
“There you are,” it said, its voice a lover’s purr.
As something’s breath fanned my cheek, the wolf inside of me spurred to life, jolting under its wicked touch. Unable to shift, she pushed us off the slippery floor and into the forest. I cried out, but for some reason my unstable legs held firm. A small victory.
Pain sliced through me so deep, reverberating in marrow and bone. There was no time to think or let any of it sink in. It was a fight for survival, and I was the prey, my hunter an unseen enemy.
I didn’t know which way I was going, if he was still behind me or if it was even possible to outrun something without a form. The ferns, moss and trees around me turned into a massive blur of greens. Twigs snapped beneath my feet and branches scratched against bare skin, but my legs didn’t falter. I fought my way through the dense undergrowth, not letting my eyes linger on any of the dark shadows.
“I can give you all you’ve ever dreamed of,” the whisper sounded in my ear again, “riches, fame, eternal youth.”
I shook my head, whimpering with fresh hot tears clouding my vision.
“Love,” it said. “I could give you love.”
It was lying. I should have known it all along.
“I’ll be the magic story you’ve been told, the answer to your riddles. I’ll be the air in your lungs, the blood in your veins.”
“Get away from me,” I yelled, clamping my hands over my ears.
“You need me, more than I need you.”
“Is there anybody out there?” I screamed, rushing blindly through the forest. “Please help me!”
“Just let me in.”
Somebody help, I yelled through the mind-link to anybody who might listen. It was useless, of course, an act of desperation. I was too far away from home, the trees and smells around me foreign and exotic.
“Follow me where I go, and you’ll be safe.” My lungs burned, the soles of my feet bloody and raw. Behind me, it said, “Just let me in and I’ll be gentle with you.”
Glancing back, I stumbled, my foot hooking onto something rough and solid. The ground greeted me fast. Hard. Even though I held my arms out, the impact vibrated in my jaw, smacking teeth against teeth. I was dizzy, the world around me spinning as I stumbled to my feet, crying out for help. I could have sworn shadows danced beside me.
He was there, I could feel him whispering against my skin. Strong hands grabbed onto me, around my waist and I wasn’t sure if I was yelling or sobbing, but sounds came out of me.
My arms flailed, legs kicking out. Bloody, broken hands clawed at the constraints around me. Slender hands with mud underneath its fingernails. Mine, I realised.
“Ma’am, calm down,” a new voice said, repeating it over and over again.
It took more than a few moments to register, but when it did, I looked up and found human eyes staring back at me. Human.
I didn’t know who this person was or where he’d come from, but I grabbed onto him with the last bit of strength I had and buried my face in the fabric of his shirt. For some unknown reason, he’d let me. The arms around my waist eased slightly. He smelled of sweat and earth. A wolf’s scent.
ALPHA MATHEW
Sighing, I leaned back into a brand-new office chair and let go of the papers in my hand, letting it fall to the desk. It’s been a quiet morning in Blade Rock. Nothing new except for the chair. I shifted, looking down so I could inspect the arms and back. A fine piece of furniture. Black to match the drapes and fabric that weren’t too scratchy. Plus, it moved with me, bending to the shape of my ass, unlike the previous one which had cut into my thighs every time I leaned forward.
