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Niev’s gaze fell back on Julius. “Julius, what…”
“They promised not to hurt you,” he said pleadingly as his eyes filled with guilt.
“Oh Julius. From what you’ve told us, we could torture that woman and she would still be alive and well in time for us to bring her home.”
Niev fixed her eyes on Julius who had started to shiver. “Julius,” she begged, not knowing what else to say. He was part of her pack. He was supposed to be on her side. He wasn’t supposed to be the enemy anymore.
“They forced me, Niev. They wanted to kill my mother. I had to protect her.”
“Enough of the talking now, Julius.”
With a dangerous spark in his eyes that Julius couldn’t see, the bald man grabbed his face from behind and ripped his head around. With a loudcrackJulius’s neck broke, the life fading from his eyes. At first, Niev couldn’t–and didn’t want to–believe what she’d witnessed, then reality slowly hit her as the man dropped his lifeless body to the ground and stepped over it to get closer to her. The two wolves lowered their heads, one gripping Julius’s head while the other sunk his canines into his torso, ripping him apart.
She stumbled backwards trying to escape them. A horrific scream escaped her lungs and tears ran down her cheeks. Her eyes glued to Julius’s torn body, she started to shake, her legs stumbling as she moved faster. Julius’s blood spread over the ground as the two wolves and the man came closer. Agonizingly slow, they moved as if they were stalking prey. They knew she couldn’t escape from them.
Out of nowhere, an auburn-tinged wolf appeared next to her, his teeth bare, a threatening growl lingering in his chest. He moved in front of her, placing himself between her and her enemies.
The bald man laughed. “As if you, little wolf, could do anything to stop us.”
He gave a quick motion with his head and the other wolves launched forward, sinking their teeth into his shoulders, clawing at him and ripping his skin. He had no chance–not in a million years. Niev screamed, stumbling away from the fight unknowingly into the arms of the bald man who had quickly rounded to her other side. His large arm wrapped around her neck, cutting off her airway and depriving her brain of oxygen.
His chest vibrated as he held her close to him. “Look at him trying to be a hero and throwing away his life for nothing.”
She started to feel dizzy and her limbs became numb as her brain could no longer compensate for the missing oxygen. With blurry vision she watched as the two wolves tore up the wolf that was trying to protect her. He fell to the ground, his flesh ripped open, blood gushing from his wounds, his body lifeless. She tried to claw at the arm that was holding her hostage, but she was barely able to lift her own arm, let alone drag her fingernails over his skin.
The man dragged her over the ground, past the dead wolf, and to a van that drove toward them. Her brain became fuzzy, and a darkness crept up on her that she knew would make her lose consciousness. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the two wolves shift and one of them open the van door. She was pulled inside and the hold around her neck tightened, darkness wrapping around her completely.
The darkness faded slowly as she gradually regained sensation in her limbs. The ground she was laying on felt cold and hard, vibrating as if it was moving. The memories of what she’d seen before darkness wrapped around her reappeared. Vivid pictures of a blood drenched wolf who’d been ripped to pieces and Julius’s dead body filled her mind.
Trying to escape those pictures, she opened her eyes. She was still in the van. The bald man sat across from her, leaning against the back of the passenger’s seat smirking down at her. He clearly enjoyed the power he had over her. She slowly sat up and looked around, trying to see where they were heading but the van had no windows except the three in the front.
The back of the van had no seats and seemed to be used as a work truck of some kind. They were moving fast and by what Niev could see, they were heading down the highway. At least, that’s what it looked like. The trees of the surrounding woods were lighting up already and she knew they were heading south toward Clemont.
She leaned against the side wall and stared out the window. She knew she couldn’t do anything else in that moment and asking questions might only anger them. She didn’t want to give them a reason to hurt her. She’d seen what they were capable of doing and didn’t want to risk her babies. She’d learned from her previous experiences and didn’t want to test her luck even more.
Her heart started to ache, and a lonely feeling spread in her soul accompanied with painful grief. She’d barely known Julius, yet his death was no less tragic. On top of that, the brave wolf that had come to her rescue hadn’t deserved such a violent death. Tears started running down her cheeks, tears of a hurt and lonely soul and tears that were grieving her dead pack members. She didn’t even know the name of the wolf and it only intensified that pain.
The van started to slow down and Niev could see buildings forming around them. Even though she hadn’t lived on the Timber Territory for very long, these buildings seemed as if they were from another world. She’d gotten so used to the peaceful life out in the woods that this all seemed grotesque.
The van turned right and entered what seemed like a gas station. The bald man leaned forward, his face hard and his eyes dark.
“If you make a sound, I won’t hesitate to cut your throat. After all, I could do whatever I want to you, and you wouldn’t even bare a scratch.”
His own words seemed to tempt him as his eyes lit up, liking the idea of hurting her. She quickly nodded and pulled her knees to her chest, wrapping her arms around them, wanting to protect her babies. One of the two passengers got out and she heard him fill up the gas tank and return just a few moments later.
The driver quickly drove off again and got back onto the highway. Niev gazed past the three heads and out the window. The further they drove from the Timber Territory, the more her heart ached and the lonelier she felt. At some point the ache turned into a pain that spread from her heart, through her veins, eventually poisoning her whole body.
She closed her eyes, trying to picture herself anywhere but the van. Her mind started to form a picture of Blake. How he was coming for her, rescuing and holding her in his strong, soothing arms. The thought of him only increased her hurt, yet it also calmed her to know that he would move heaven and earth to find her and bring her back home.
She opened her eyes and saw that the sun was already setting and the buildings had been replaced by dark skies. She hated the feeling of not knowing where she was and what would happen to her.
Unable to hold back her questions any longer, she quietly asked, “Where are you taking me?”
The bald man smirked. “Why would I tell you that? Don’t you like surprises?”
“Why did you kill those two wolves?”
“We couldn’t let Julius fall into the hands of his alpha–he would’ve spoiled everything. The other wolf was just a pesky little fly that needed to be taken care of.”
