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It didn’t matter how sweet and innocent she looked, or how delicious her crisp, clean scent was. She was a human, and while my clanmates had proven we could mate and breed them, I doubted there were many that dreamed of being claimed by a monster. Her father likely had an alpha arranged for her already, and she’d run screaming once she saw me.
Settling down opposite the fire, I dug a bottle of oil from my pack as I listened to the rain. It was impossible to keep my gaze on the fire instead of the omega as I oiled my horns, and when I caught the sound of her whimpering in her sleep, anger sparked in my chest. Whoever was responsible for her hadn’t done their job, and now she was lost in the woods, caught in a storm, and possibly sick. If I hadn’t happened across her, it could have been a bad night for the little female.
Grousing to myself, I realized Wulf hadn’t greeted me when I made it to my camp. Looking around for the infernal pup, I let out a low whistle, wondering where the thing could have gotten off to. The pup hadn’t wanted to follow me when I left to hunt, so I’d left the useless thing at the camp, and now he seemed to have disappeared.
Pushing to my feet, I looked out into the trees beyond my shelter. If he had wandered off after I left, he could have gotten caught out in the storm as well.
Letting out another sigh, I glanced at the female before whistling again. I couldn’t leave the pup to suffer in the wet any more than I could the omega. Though she gave a small jerk at the noise, she remained huddled under my bedding, eyes clenched shut, but a yelp from my right drew my attention back out into the rain. It didn’t sound too far away, yet I couldn’t see the animal.
Torn between wanting to go get the pup and not wanting to get drenched, I growled under my breath. Cursing the gods for their out-of-season storm, I left the shelter of my camp and stomped out into the rain.
Following the whines and excited yips as I got closer, I found Wulf not far away, hiding in a hollow under a tree. Sighing when muddy paws scratched at my legs, I lifted the wiggling bundle and tucked it under my arm, trying to keep the rain off the little thing as I followed the light of the fire back to my shelter.
I settled against the wall again, grumbling about the mud in my fur as the pup curled up in my lap. It didn’t seem as if the omega had moved while I was gone, and with the way she’d slept through everything so far, I doubted she would wake before morning.
Why was she so tired?
Lying down beside the fire with my back to the cliff, I tucked my pack beneath my head so my broken horn wouldn’t dig into the dirt beneath me. With Wulf sleeping against my belly, I closed my eyes to rest until the rain ended, or the female stirred.
Chapter Six
Ivy
The first thing I noticed as I awoke was the scent of violets and rain. Rolling onto my back, a smile spread on my face as I stretched out the kinks from sleeping curled up before the memory of the storm came back.
Snapping upright with a gasp, I stared at the area around me. I was lying on animal skins inside a shallow cave. There was a fire to my left, burning low, but still giving off heat. I was covered with another fur, but I didn’t know who the camp could belong to until I spotted motion on the other side of the fire.
Pulling my knees to my chest, my gaze stayed locked on the mountain of fur across the fire as whoever had brought me here slowly sat up. Piercing green eyes met mine, the flames giving them an eerie glow, as the light shone along two horns. One was broken off about a handspan from the side of the creature’s skull, but the other extended to a wicked point. The creature’s face resembled a wolf’s, but the snout was broader and blunter, the nose reminding me more of a cow’s. It was covered in fur, longer around the shoulders, but thinning further down its abdomen.
Hisabdomen.
I jerked my gaze away, heat rushing to my cheeks even as my mind stuttered over finding myself in a strange place with what was clearly a monster.
“How did I get here?”
The last thing I remembered was huddling against a tree to avoid the rain. I had no idea how I ended up in the primitive camp with this… creature.
His thick brows furrowed, his face taking on an intimidating glower. The scent of violets thickened, and I realized I could smell that distinct musk that marked an alpha.
“I found you alone in the woods. I couldn’t wake you, so I brought you back here to keep warm.”
His low voice sent a shiver through me that had nothing to do with the damp. It would have been a little more surprising to hear him speak if I hadn’t awoken in what was clearly a camp, with a pile of firewood off to the side, and a bed he’d apparently given up for me.
“I, uh, thank you.”
I wasn’t sure what else to say. If he spoke and acted like a man, it seemed natural to treat him like I would anyone else.
I glanced around again, noting the rain still dripping just beyond the overhang that protected the camp. The monster was across the fire from me, farther from the opening, but I doubted I could make it out into the trees before he caught me.
A huff pulled my attention back to my apparent rescuer as he ran a hand tipped with black claws down his face before standing. Even while sitting, I’d seen that he was massive, but I had to crane my neck back to be able to look up at him, his hulking form looming even from the other side of the small cave.
Nerves fluttering to life, I huddled under the fur that covered me. With no idea where I was, and no one close enough to help me if anything happened, I was acutely aware of what this intimidating male could do to me. The fact that he was an alpha and his obvious interest didn’t inspire any confidence in his civility.
He mumbled something under his breath that I didn’t catch as he rubbed the stump of his broken horn.
“Wait here.”
He didn’t bother to wait for an acknowledgment. As he turned and walked between the trees, disappearing from my view, I debated the wisdom of obeying. He was an unknown male, an alpha, amonster, and I was alone in the woods with nothing to protect myself.
