The Chase

I was able to gain a few precious moments before any of them came to their senses and rushed after me. My uncle’s voice was loud in my ears as he yelled,

“Damn it! Don’t let that bitch get away! Catch her and kill her immediately!”

The thought of him wanting me dead was too much to bear. But none of that mattered right now. All my thoughts screamed to run, run as fast as my legs would carry me. Only being seventeen, I wished I was able to obtain my wolf. If I had her then I would have shifted and ran even faster.

I hear thrashing behind me. Growls that sounded menacing and ominous to my ears. They have shifted and were now in their wolf forms. Knowing that made my heart twist in panic. It was dark in the forest, only the full moon lighting my way, but lighting theirs as well. Was the moon goddess really going to let my life end like this? Did she even care?

Obviously she didn’t if she let an entire pack be annihilated. My breathing was becoming labored, my throat burning, my chest hammering with each pound of my heart. My thighs burned and my feet tore at the ground as I didn’t wear any shoes. My right side was beginning to twist in pain from running too hard and for too long.

But I pushed on even harder.

I hear a wolf’s howl in the distance just behind me, making my skin crawl. The snow was everywhere, turning my poor feet into numb icicles. I turn slightly behind me just to see them catching up to me. There was now more than two as I spot at least six of them.

I wasn’t going to make it. There was no way I could outrun these rogues. They were gaining up on me and once they catch me, who knew what they were going to do to me before they finally give me the final blow to end my life.

I couldn’t help the sob that tore through my entire body, making me falter just a bit. Suddenly a small clearing came to view as I thrashed out of the trees and come to a dead stop, eyes wide with terror.

No. Please God, no.

There really was no hope for me after all. My breathing was erratic, and my limbs were cold and numb. My feet throbbed in pain and my sides burned to where I wanted to double over and rest. Doesn’t matter if I did now, I was dead anyways.

I stare down a fifty foot drop of a cliff, straight into a large lake that was just as dark and eerie as this entire night had been.

A low growl sounds behind me, making every muscle in my body stiffen with dread. I slowly turned around, tears dropping from my eyelids, my nose running in despair. More than a dozen of them were slowly coming out of the trees, baring their fangs, and snarling with a viciousness that brought fear into my soul.

I take a step back in that fear only to stumble on some rocks that were laid there at the edge. My heart wouldn’t stop pounding as I had the lake and full moon to my back and the rogues stalking me to my front. I didn’t know what I could do to get out of this situation. If I jump I would surely die, but I couldn’t just stay here either, since I would be torn to pieces in a gruesome death. Either way, I was dead.

Was there really no hope for me? Was this how my life was to end after all?

The one in the center gets even closer and snaps his jaws in my direction, causing me to jump in fright. The others then follow suit, also snapping their jaws as if they were playing with me. Slight anger flashes in with the fear that I have. The fact they were taking pleasure in torturing me before they kill me was barbaric and cruel.

I cry out when one of them suddenly jumps from the boulder it was perched on and growls, swiping a large paw at me. I stumble again, my foot touching nothing but air. Steadying myself I crouch down as another sob tears through me.

“P-Please, don’t do this.” I plead, not knowing what else to do.

“Sorry young one, but I can’t have you live.

I flinch at the voice that spoke just behind the wolves. The stranger walks to the front as if he was the most important being among us, followed by my uncle, who wouldn’t even look at me.

“U-Uncle…p-please.” I beg him.

He just turns away and doesn’t say a word.

“He won’t save you. Who do you think was the mastermind of this raid?”

I clench my hands into the ground, hurting my fingernails in the process. I stare at my uncle, remembering the words that was said between the two of them before I ran for my life.

Did he really betray us? His own family?

“You know what? I’ll be nice this once and give you a little knowledge before you die, because regardless of what happens here tonight, you will die.”

“Your dear conniving, selfish uncle here was too eager to uphold his part of the deal. My sister, who just so happens to be his awaited mate, for the death of your father, who is my worst enemy. With him out of the way not only do I get his lands, but the removal of the breach between a treaty with the rogues that I can use in any way I want. With the Night Stone pack completely gone, money and glory is to be had and it’s all mine.”

I wasn’t sure what he meant by all this, but one thing was for sure. My people, my parents were all dead because of these two assholes right in front of me. Because my uncle was too damn besotted by his mate. He was literally willing to backstab his entire pack, his sister, me, just so he could be in love.

How twisted was that?

Rage was building within me at the thought he would go so low just for a mate. Our lives meant nothing to him, our kindness, our love…was absolutely shit to him.

“Enough chit chat, say goodbye to your niece Marcus, for it will be the last time you’ll ever see her alive.”

My uncle still kept his head turned away and didn’t even acknowledge his words or me.

“No? Well, didn’t expect it from you anyways. You really are a slimeball.” The man says with disgust. “The fact my sister is mated with you is pathetic, she deserves so much better.”

“I’ll say it then, goodbye sweetheart, maybe in your next life you’ll get a happy ending.”

With that he turns away. It was like the signal to the rogues as they all, at once, jump towards me, their mouths wide open with razor sharp fangs. Screaming I stumble backwards and felt nothing but air as I fell to my death.