Marie squeezes my hand and tugs me away from the window, silently making her way away from the pack house. When we are far enough away, I stop. “You need to leave,” I whisper.
“No way, I can’t.”
“Yes, you can. If they find us, you will be dead. I could not forgive myself if you lost your life now.”
“I covered my scent,” she points out.
I shake my head. “Maybe, but they will be able to sense me nevertheless. Either I make it, or I don’t. If I do, it’s only thanks to you, and I won’t forget. If I don’t, it’s not your fault, but theirs.”
“But—“
“Like I said, they will be able to track me,” I reason. “Realistically, we are both safer on our own.”
Marie looks at me, then squeezes my hand. “Don’t die, Luna,” she whispers.
I nod at her, waiting for her to disappear into the darkness of the night. With newfound resolve, I make my own way through the pack, relieved that it’s a dark, cloudy night and that the pack itself is still buzzing. All those scents and voices will make it difficult to track me.
Once past the pack houses, the forest opens up, giving me more room to run, but also more danger to be detected. Now I’ll need to be quick.Alora, they will soon catch up on our scent. Now it’s on you.
Finally!she snarls.
Remember, our goal is to survive. Only shift when we absolutely have to, so we won’t lose our clothes and the small bag.
With that, I hand over the reins to my body. Alora takes over with ease, her presence filling me as she pushes my body forward. There are voices behind me. Someone must have detected us, as expected. I can make out the warriors’, but most prominent of all is Clemmens’ voice.
As the beta, he is a strong and fast wolf.
I will have to shift!Alora warns.
Do it,I say.Clemmens is dangerous. We’ll find some clothes somewhere else.
With that, Alora shifts into our wolf form, dashing through the darkness of the night with newfound strength and power.We might have just lost our mate, and she should be weakened, but I believe part of her is finally feeling liberated. The rush of endorphins pushes her forward now.
“There she is!” someone yells.
“Luna, stop running!”
I can hear their bones crack while they shift into their own wolf forms, but none of them are strong enough to keep up with us, none but one. Suddenly, it’s only Clemmens and me, with me running through the night to reach the pack borders, and him chasing me to kill me.
The path to the pack borders is blocked by more warriors, so Alora and I have to take a swift detour to where a torrential river splits the pack. It’s our only chance. Before we can make it, though, Clemmens finally catches up to us, his wolf ramming its head into our side and knocking us over. Alora scrambles to her feet again, panting while she stares at Clemmens’ wolf angrily.
Let me handle this,I say.
But—
You can still fight if it doesn’t work,I say.
Reluctantly, she hands me back the reins, and I shift back, not minding that I am standing in front of Clemmens all naked now. “And now?” I ask him coldly. “You were Rory’s best friend and his closest ally. He trusted you.”
Through his wolf’s eyes, Clemmens keeps staring at me.
“I am your luna,” I say, staring at his wolf. “Alora and I are your luna.”
At that, his wolf tilts his head slightly, but it’s not proof enough that he is giving up.
“So, tell me, Clemmens, are you finally getting rid of me and the last part of your conscience?”
For a moment, it’s eerily quiet around us. I can feel Alora tensing up again, ready to take over, but then Clemmens’ wolf lowers his head slightly. It’s just one small moment, and I amnot even sure if it was truly Clemmens or the deep loyalty of his wolf spirit, but it’s enough for me to act. Without thinking twice, I turn around, sprint past him and jump into the coldness of the river. The stream is strong and dangerous. Wolves don’t come here to swim; we don’t even cross the river here. So, either I will drown here, or I will survive.
