I'm fading fast. I can't run for much longer.
One of the wolves manages to catch up to me. It claws at my back, forcing me to scream. I turn around and gash it right in the eye before continuing.
I feel blood seeping out of the wound in my back. My body also tries to heal, but that ability is extra slow in this state of weakness.
My focus shifts to the tall trees around me. They're too steep to climb as a wolf, but maybe–just maybe–I might be able to scale them in my human form.
I begin the transformation, feeling my body tearing apart. The pain that shoots through me is just like what I've felt before, but somehow, it's not as terrible as I expect.
I keep trying to crawl as I return to my human form, making sure to never stop moving.
The second I'm fully transformed, I begin to climb up the closest tree. One wolf, the fastest of the pack, catches me just near the base of the trunk. He claws at my feet before jumping and latching onto my leg with its fangs.
I scream in pain before kicking it in the head as hard as I can. The fangs release me, and I continue climbing, seeking safety. Blood streams down my leg from the injury.
I perch on a branch, more than fifteen feet above the ground, hoping the limb beneath me doesn't give way.
One by one, the wolves all circle to the base of the tree, clawing at it and even trying to climb. Still, despite the number of close calls, none of them are able to lunge high enough to reach me.
My chest rises rapidly. There's no phone for me to call for help. I'm not even wearing clothes. All I have is the willpower to stay alive, and that's what I hold on to as much as possible.
I can feel the anger emanating from the wolves as they see what should be their meal. There's hardly any game in the forest right now, and there's no doubt the wolves are ferociously hungry. I am, too.
Our game of cat and mouse goes on until night falls. I hold on to my branch with everything I have, determined to live. The wolves hang around, knowing I can't wait forever.
My exhaustion starts to take over, and I begin falling asleep. My eyelids feel like they weigh more than my head. The struggle is one I'm losing badly.
A gunshot jolts me from that sleepy stupor. The wolves all stand alert at the sound. Another shot rings out, and they begin to scatter. I breathe easier for the first time that entire day, hoping now that I’ll live to see morning.
I still lie on my branch, unsure whether it’s safe to come out now. As I wait for whoever has shot the gun, I silently wish for Grant to show up.
My mate isn't the one who comes through the woods, though. Two heavily dressed people walk out into the open, holding hunting rifles that they point carefully around them. Their eyes remain on the ground close to them.
I stay silent, unsure of what to do next, but suddenly, there's a crack. The branch I'm on begins to give way. Both of the people below look up, and I hear their audible gasps.
“Jesus,” a male voice says. “What are you doing up there? Are you okay?”
“She's naked and in a tree,” a female voice points out. “Of course she's not okay.”
“I got chased by wolves,” I say in the weakest voice ever. My entire body aches. My leg hurts like hell, and my back isn't that much better either. It takes all my willpower to remain in the tree.
“Fuck,” the woman says. “I knew we were close. We've been chasing the damn creatures for miles now.”
“Did they run through here?” the man asks.
“That doesn't matter right now,” the woman replies. “We have to get her down from there. Look at her leg, it's bleeding.” She turns to me. “We're going to get you down, okay?”
I nod in response. “Thank you.”
“Don't move,” she says.
I stay as still as I can, trying not even to shake. The next thing I see is the barrels of their guns pointing at me.
“What the—”
They fire.
Chapter 20
