“Run.” I used our intertwined hands to pull her forward.
“But–” she whined.
I used my body as a barrier between him and her. “Go!”
She whimpered, but ran full speed up the path.
He went down on all fours and leapt to go around me, but I followed his movement. I wasn’t sure how long I could fight him off, but I’d give her the best headstart I could. He tackled me to the hard ground, knocking the wind out of me, and sending a shot of pain up my spine.
He leaped over me like I was nothing. His clawed foot scratched me in the process when it landed near my hand. I rolled to my stomach, making a last ditch effort, and locking my arms around his hind leg.
He dragged me behind him like I was nothing. Rock and plants slapped and hurled at me, but I refused to let go. My arms shook, begging me to release him, but I held on.
Shannon deserved to live.
All I cared about was if she survived. She was a good woman. She still gave enough fucks to fight all the battles that needed to be fought.
I fought to survive. She fought because it was right and true.
If anyone could save this swamp and make a difference in this world, it was her.
He stopped in his tracks as if I’d demanded he stop and looked back at me like I was something he understood. I remembered too late that he could hear my internal monologue, and I blushed with embarrassment.
He twisted and leaned down, grabbed my torso and yanked up hard enough to force me to release my hold, so my spine wouldn’t pay the price of my insolence.
He tossed me over his shoulder as he stood.
“Wait!” Professor Gale yelled, waving his arms much like I had on my first interaction with Rot. “Not her!”
This motherfucker.I rolled my eyes. Talk about a delayed reaction.
The monster grunted. His tail flicked with annoyance. “The woman is mine.”
“Do something!” I screamed at Gale as the monster stepped off the side of the road into a pond. Water filled my mouth and nose, soaking my lungs.
I kicked and fought, desperate to get some air. I wouldn’t survive the trip back to my cage if he didn’t give me a chance to take a breath.
The edges of my eyesight turned black, and I knew if I passed out so would he. Then we’d both die.
Maybe that was how this was meant to end.
Chapter 19:
Iwokeupina daze. Everything blurred, and it took three long blinks for my vision to focus.
I laid in the center of the nest I’d found on the first day. Pelts were added to the bottom, making it more comfortable than I could have imagined. The energy of the nest cocooned me in a way that was right and foreign at the same time.
The sensation seeded into the core of who I was, and I found myself wanting to run away from the pleasant feeling.
“I made it softer for your human flesh,” the monster snarled the words like an insult.
He sat beside me, dropping a dead mink.
I gracelessly clambered to my feet and walked to the edge of the nest. His arm came around my center, pulling me back to him. “Where do you think you’re going?”
“You wanted me out of your way, right? I’m leaving.”
He plopped me down on my ass, like I was a fussy toddler beside the mink. “You didn’t eat.”
