My lungs were on fire. Every breath felt like swallowing daggers of ice as I pushed my exhausted body forward through the dense forest. Three days. Three days of running, hiding, and barely surviving.
The small flashlight in my hand flickered, batteries dying. Soon I'd be in complete darkness.
"Come on," I whispered, smacking it against my palm. The beam steadied momentarily, illuminating the treacherous ground ahead.
My supplies were almost gone. Half a bottle of water. A few strips of jerky. Nothing that would sustain me much longer in this wilderness. I hadn't planned for such a long journey when I'd fled the Blue Mountain Pack.
I hadn't planned much at all.
Another twig snapped somewhere behind me. I froze, straining to hear over my pounding heart. Was it just an animal? Or something worse?
Someone worse.
The paranoia was eating me alive. Every shadow looked like Julian, every rustle sounded like pursuit. I kept moving, driven by raw fear rather than any real plan.
My foot caught on an exposed root, and I stumbled, barely catching myself before face-planting into the dirt. Pain shot up from my ankle, not quite a sprain but a sharp warning that my body was reaching its limits.
"Shit," I hissed, leaning against a tree trunk to catch my breath.
My throat was parched. I allowed myself one tiny sip of water, just enough to wet my tongue. The temptation to gulp the entire bottle was overwhelming, but I forced the cap back on. Who knew when I'd find more?
The night pressed in around me, oppressive and alive with sounds I couldn't identify. As a human raised among wolves, I'd never spent much time alone in the forest. I'd never needed to. Julian had always been with me, his wolf senses protecting us both.
Julian.
My chest ached at the thought of him. Not with longing, but with bitter betrayal. The memory of his unwelcome visit to my bed flickered through my mind. His possessive hands. His entitled words.
"I can have both."
A shudder ran through me that had nothing to do with the cold night air. There was no going back. Not ever.
I pushed away from the tree, wincing as I tested my weight on my tender ankle. It held. I had to keep moving. Rest was a luxury I couldn't afford.
The flashlight flickered again, more insistently this time. I gave it another frustrated tap, but the beam only grew dimmer.
"Don't you dare die on me," I muttered.
As if in defiance, the light sputtered once more and went out completely. I was plunged into darkness so absolute it felt like a physical weight pressing against my eyes.
Panic clawed at my throat. I forced it down, struggling to control my breathing. I could do this. I had to do this.
Slowly, my eyes adjusted to the blackness. The moon was a thin crescent, offering barely enough light to distinguish trees from shadows. I stuffed the useless flashlight into my backpack and moved forward with one hand outstretched, feeling my way.
My progress slowed to a crawl. Every step was a gamble, my feet searching for solid ground. Branches scratched at my face and arms, leaving stinging trails I couldn't see.
Would anyone even look for me? I wondered bitterly. Alpha Maxen had made it clear I was worthless to him. The pack saw me as nothing but an omega servant. Even Julian only wanted me as some twisted secret plaything.
For an absurd moment, I almost wished someone would care enough to search for me.
Almost.
A howl shattered the night, distant but unmistakable. My blood turned to ice.
They were coming.
The sound came from behind me, in the direction of the pack lands. They'd discovered my absence. They were hunting.
A fresh burst of adrenaline flooded my system. I abandoned caution, moving faster despite the darkness. Branches whipped my face. Thorns caught at my clothes. None of it mattered.
Only escape mattered.
I stumbled into a small clearing, moonlight suddenly revealing the ground ahead. My ankle throbbed with each step, threatening to give out entirely. How much farther could I run? How much farther could I make it before they caught me?
The howl came again, closer this time. My heart stuttered.
"No, no, no," I whispered, pushing my burning legs faster.
I didn't hear the impact coming. One moment I was running, the next a massive weight slammed into me from behind. I went down hard, face smashing into the dirt, air exploding from my lungs.
Pain bloomed across my back and shoulders. I tasted blood and soil.
This was it. They'd caught me. I'd be dragged back to face punishment, to face Julian's twisted desires and Selena's cruelty.
I thrashed wildly, trying to scramble to my feet, preparing to fight even though I knew it was hopeless. A human against wolves. What chance did I have?
I managed to flip onto my back, fists raised in desperate defiance.
The words of defiance died in my throat.
Standing over me wasn't Julian or one of Alpha Maxen's enforcers. It was a wolf. A massive black wolf with eyes that gleamed like liquid silver in the darkness.
I knew those eyes. I'd seen them once before, on the night of my escape—watching me from the trees as I fled the compound.
The wolf that had let me go.
It stood completely still, its massive form blocking out the stars above. No ordinary wolf, not even a normal shifter. This creature was enormous, its shoulders easily reaching my chest if I stood. Its black fur absorbed the moonlight, making it look like a hole cut in the fabric of the night.
Those silver eyes studied me with an intelligence that made my skin crawl.
"Why are you here?" I whispered, my voice barely audible. "Why did you come back for me?"
The wolf tilted its head, as if considering my question. For a wild moment, I thought it might actually answer.
I held my breath, caught between terror and something else—something I couldn't name as I stared into those otherworldly eyes that seemed to see straight through me.