AllFreeNovel
Share Us
It’s not so bad at first. Truth be told, it’s almost relaxing. The forest is calm, and the tranquil waterfall is a soothing soundtrack to this leg of my initiation. I slip into almost a meditative state, keeping a steady pace and regulating my breathing so that I don’t get too winded.
I seriously underestimated how difficult it would be to keep this up for thirty minutes, though.
By the time Archer calls out that I’m at the twenty-minute mark, my muscles are screaming for relief, my lungs burning. The last ten minutes are hell, and when Arch finally declares that my time’s up, my muscles slacken with relief and I forget to keep my head above water, slipping under.
I sputter as I resurface, pushing my body to cooperate and swim toward the bank. I manage to make it to a shallower spot and get my feet underneath me, then wade through the water on wobbly legs, dragging myself out of the swimming hole and onto the bank. My wet clothes cling to my skin as I make my way over to Archer, panting as I approach him with my hand out, palm up.
“Key, please.”
“You earned it,” Arch declares proudly, depositing it in my waiting hand.
I slip the elastic over my wrist, the second key joining the first with a metallic clink. “Please tell me the next part is easier?”
He chuckles, shaking his head as I stoop down to pull on my socks and shoes.
“What?” I ask nervously, straightening.
“You’ve gotta run to Pike’s Point.”
“You’re kidding me, right?” I deadpan. “That’s like four miles!”
“Yeah, and one more thing…” Archer trails off, throwing a thumb over his shoulder and glancing toward the forest behind him.
I draw a short gasp at the sight of a sleek tricolor wolf slinking out from the foliage, baring its teeth in a snarl.
A smirk curls Archer’s lips as he adds, “Don’t get caught.”
I want to curse at him, beg for a five-minute reprieve to rest my aching muscles and catch my breath, but the wolf starts advancing and my fight or flight instincts kick in. I spin around, taking off into the forest at a dead sprint.
The soles of my shoes pound the dirt, my heart slamming against my ribcage as I tear through the woods with the animal in hot pursuit. I’d recognize Lo’s wolf anywhere, and I wonder if she’s deriving some sick sense of satisfaction from chasing me like this.
Honestly, if she really wanted to catch me, she could. It’s impossible for me to outrun her in human form. As I continue to flee, though, it becomes clear that the purpose of this exercise is for her to toy with me more than anything.
At first, she’s right behind me, snapping at my heels while my adrenaline spikes. Then she seemingly backs off- or at least I think she does, until I’m startled to see her coming up on my left, closing in. I weave through the trees, trying my best to evade her advance, and just when I think I’ve finally lost her, she’s coming up on my right side instead. For the whole four-mile run, she varies her pursuit just enough to keep me unnerved the entire time, my heart racing, lungs burning.
By the time I finally reach Pike’s Point, I’m so exhausted that I feel like I could pass out at any moment. The wolf emerges from the forest behind me and the air shimmers as Lo shifts to her human form, rising up on two legs with a satisfied smile on her face.
“What the fuck, Lo?!” I demand, doubling over and pressing my hands to my knees, struggling to catch my breath.
“Fear of being chased,” she says flippantly, barely even winded. I eye her warily as she steps over to a downed tree where a folded stack of clothes are waiting for her, along with a pair of water bottles. She tosses one to me and I snatch it out of the air, moaning in relief as I twist off the cap.
While I suck the water down greedily, Lo tugs on a t-shirt and a pair of sweats, reaching into the pocket and producing a key. Water dribbles from the corners of my lips and down my chin as I gulp the entire contents of the bottle, watching Lo warily out of the corner of my eye as she approaches and offers it to me.
“Thanks,” I breathe, trading her the empty water bottle for the key and adding it to the others on my wrist. I’m almost afraid to ask, but… “Now what?”
She winces. “You’re not gonna like it.”
My stomach sinks like a stone and Lo turns around, pointing to the mouth of a nearby cave.
My blood runs cold.
I know exactly whose fear this is, and I could kill him for leaving it out of his warning.
40
“Good luck,” Lo sing-songs, tossing me a wave as she retreats.
I throw her the middle finger in return as she leaves me to tackle my next challenge, mentally cursing every one of my so-called ‘friends’ that put me up to this.
