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Chapter 7
The edgesof my mind frayed, and I kept telling myself Oryn was a shifter. Inside him lay his humanity, yet staring at the wolf growling at me, trepidation shook me at the core. He lowered his head, and the breeze fluffed the black fur across his shoulderbones.
“L-Listen, I’m not a danger to you,” I said. “You’re the one with long teeth. And pointy ears so you’d hear me if I tried to sneak up on you to hurt you. Please.” I slid along the outside wooden wall of the cabin, but he snapped at the air between us, and I coiled in on myself. “I just want to gohome.”
But he wasn’t backing away, and showing weakness drove wolves to attack, right? I wasn’t a helpless bunny in shock. I straightened myself and swallowed the rock in mythroat.
“Now, look here,” I began, my words shaky and the opposite of assertiveness. Wolves were all about dominance and Nero had said the three of them were alphas, so I wouldn’t back down. Or was it I should never stare them in the eyes? I couldn’t remember when I had zero control over eventrembling.
Oryn’s ears perked and swiveled toward the side of the house as if he’d heardsomething.
“I didn’t mean to enter your territory, but I was running for my life. And then I fell off this cliff.” I was rambling and my pulse sped as a deep guttural snarl boomed from hischest.
“If I had any other option, trust me, this would be the last place I’d visit.” I hugged myself, scanning the woodland behind Oryn. No sign of a track, just endless pines. Though the gurgle of the river reached me. I had to find a way back up the sharp cliff I’d fallen and backhome.
He watched me with intelligence behind his gaze. Was he remembering Nero and me doing the vertical dance in his kitchen? I burned from the inside out at turning into a nympho, but I didn’t need anyone else judging me. I did a good enough jobmyself.
“What you saw in the kitchen… Well…” My mouth parched. “Nero is a very handsome man, and you know, things happen.” Heavens, how would I ever explain the birds and bees to my kids when I burned up with embarrassment talking about thetopic?
Oryn’s head jerked sideways, and he charged in that direction, kicking dirt in his wake, vanishing into theforest.
Okay, he didn’t like the conversation, and I wasn’t waiting for him to return, so I spun in the opposite direction. Away from thehouse.
The ground flew beneath my steps as I ran in and out around trees, leaping over shrubs and dead branches. Evergreens tugged on my trousers, but I didn’t care. Not when the sloshing of water grew louder. What if I found a way down the cascade…? There might be an easier way to cross the river and get back up the terrain toward home. Santos would worry about me, and that was if the priestess hadn’t locked him up because of me. Those thoughts had me runningfaster.
Ahead, light pierced the thick canopy, and I charged, bursting from the stranglehold of trees to a ledge that overlooked the stream at least thirty feet below. Catching my breath, I gawked at the roaring waterfall, a fine mist suspended over thewater.
Sharp stones flanked the cliffs with no easy way to scale down, and considering I’d barely survived the first fall, I wasn’t tempting fateagain.
Multiple howls ricocheted through the woods, and I flinched. Were Oryn and Nero now hunting me? As much as part of me craved more of Nero, was I being foolish in believing anything was possible? He was a shifter and his kind had killed my parents. Grandma had confirmed she’d witnessed the whole attack. So what would stop them from butchering me after I healed Dagen? Was that Oryn’s intention? Or Nero would use me as his sex slave? The latter should have terrified me, but it flooded my gut with tingles. Geez, what was wrong withme?
I raced alongside the cliff’s edge. The land sloped, meaning it might bring me down to the rapids. From there, I’d swim across and dilute my scent so I’d lose mypursuers.
My feet slid out from under me. I screamed and fell to my side, groaning as my hip hit a boulder. I winced from the sharp pain shooting up myback.
A repetitive tapping of paws against soil grew closer, louder. I scrambled to myfeet.
The forest blurred past as I sprinteddownhill.
Another howl had me glancing over my shoulder. Behind me, four wolves charged afterme.
Wait.Four?
My head spun and every inch of me froze. My breath wouldn’tcome.
It wasn’t Oryn. These hounds werebrown.
I dashed down the hill, a cry flying from my throat. Were these real wolves or shifters? Why were they chasing me? Of course, I knew… to eatme.
Swinging away, I spotted the fiends closing in from either side ofme.
Leaving the cabin had been dumb. How I hated hindsight because I seemed to be the queen of makingmistakes.
Footfalls closedin.
My heart galloped, and I scanned the area for any trees toscale.
One wolf lunged from my left, and I ducked. Something blurred and crashed into the attacking animal, both rollingaround.
