Chapter 2
CHAPTER TWO
Wren
The thing about wolves was, unless you were their alpha, they didn't give a shit what you told them to do. An alpha's job was to keep their pack in line and under the radar. It was one of the reasons lone wolves were closely monitored by the coalition.
And it was exactly why, as soon as there was enough space to squeeze out, the wolf took off to the right instead of going toward the garage like I'd told her to.
Cursing under my breath, I ran after her. The worst-case scenario was I would have to leave without her. Unless they had guns on them, and then maybe neither of us would be leaving.
She skidded across the entryway as she turned, her paws scrambling to gain purchase on the smooth stone surface. Her nails were loud as she regained her footing and took off down the hall toward the living room.
Left with no other choice but to follow, I figured I could easily get to the kitchen and grab a weapon of some sort. The entire back of the house was windows and doors, which would mean an easy escape, but they would see us leaving instead of the plan of slipping away hours before they noticed.
"What the-" Mateo fell out of the chair as the wolf jumped for him.
She grabbed the back hem of his shirt as he fell to the ground, the loud sound of material ripping filling the room.
"Get off me, you bitch! Chad!" He was yelling with all he had in him and managed to get enough distance to kick the wolf hard in the stomach, sending her toppling over with a yelp a few feet away from him.
It was enough time for him to put furniture in between them, and thankfully, he didn't grab for a gun.
I was already in the kitchen and grabbed the entire butcher block of knives off the counter by the stove. How I was going to fight off two men and get a feral wolf out of the house and to safety was weighing heavily on me. There was only so much I was capable of.
"Chad!" Mateo picked up a vase from the credenza table behind the couch and threw it at the wolf as she barreled toward him again, her teeth on display and murder in her eyes. "Chad! Bring a gun!"
I needed to get the wolf and get the hell out before Chad made it to the living room. I could hear the faint sound of feet pounding on the floor upstairs and knew I only had seconds.
Mateo hadn't seemed to even notice me yet, his focus on the wolf that was now chasing him around the couch and not the less threatening human.
I ran to the back door and slid it open, keeping my eyes on the shit show in front of me. She was too weak to catch him with everything he threw at her, but there was only one pillow left on the couch and nothing within arm's reach.
"Don't move!" Chad was standing at the end of the hallway, a gun pointed right at me. "Stop chasing him, or I'll shoot her!"
A knife was already in my hand at my side, and I threw it before he could even process what I was doing. The gun went off, and I sprinted out the door.
The wolf was right behind me, and we ran along the windows at the back of the house toward the stairs off the deck. I glanced inside to see Mateo standing over Chad, his hands in his hair. There was no doubt I'd hit him with the knife.
We practically flew down the steps into the yard, if it could even be called that. The house was pretty much in the forest. I had no clue where we were, but eventually, we would get to somewhere I could get us help.
The wolf glanced over at me as we ran, her eyes questioning.
I'd already dropped the cumbersome butcher block but held two knives in case I needed them.
I was still naked and running like I was out for an evening stroll through the park.
I could have gone so much faster in my fox form, but if I could avoid shifting, that was for the best. If Marcos's men saw what I was, he'd see me as a new kind of trophy.
We approached a creek a few minutes later, and I slowed to sniff the air. The area was unfamiliar to me, but the trees led me to believe we were in the mountain area surrounding Crescent Valley.
"Do you know where we are?" I looked at the wolf, who was starting to struggle. "I can carry you. Let's stop and we can get a quick drink."
Splashing into the water, I turned to watch the direction we came. In the distance, I could hear what sounded like motors heading straight for us. We didn't have long until they caught up to us.
"Hurry up." I put the knives on the dirt and scooped water into my hands, splashing my face. The coolness reinvigorated me, and I was ready to fight if needed. "There are two off-roading vehicles headed this way. I must not have injured Chad that bad."
She growled as she lifted her mouth from the water, her eyes darting all around us. If she ran back toward them, I wasn't going to chase her. She probably wanted to kill them, but if she tried to now, they would kill her first.
"Can you run more, or do I need to carry you?" I picked up the knives and then stepped out of the water.
She followed but didn't make any noise as we started running again. Her breaths were panting and her tongue hanging out of the side of her mouth. The off-roading vehicles didn't seem to be gaining on us.
My companion started to limp, and I slowed. "I'm going to carry you." I dropped one of the knives and put the other one in my mouth. I could run faster with her in my arms, not having to worry about her keeping up.
I moved in front of her, and we both stopped. She eyed me warily but looked so exhausted she didn't put up any fight when I scooped her up. She was shivering and her heart was nearly beating out of her chest.
The vehicles were keeping their distance and weren't visible but were close enough. If someone was a good shot, they would have shot me in the back. As I ran, I zig-zagged to be on the safe side.
My arms, legs, and feet burned as I ran at least another mile, with nothing but forest in front of us. My speed had put the men even farther behind us, the sound of them barely registering in my ears.
There was no way I was going to stop.
After about an hour, I started to regret my decision to stay in my human form. My feet were healing as I ran, but with the exertion of running with a wolf in my arms, they felt like I was walking over hot coals.
I'd lost the noise of our pursuers a while ago and was in a small valley. I had no clue if we were going toward civilization or farther into the wilderness. Eventually, we'd come out the other side, but it could be a long time.
"We need to rest and hope for the best." I put the wolf down and she stretched, her mouth opening in a yawn. She had dozed on and off during our journey.
She sniffed the air and her ears perked up. She took off in the direction we were headed. I groaned and chased her, the sun occasionally peeking through the trees. It wasn't too hot, but we'd gained elevation, so it was cooler anyway.
Not wanting to yell after her in case they were close enough to hear, I jogged as my feet screamed at me to take a break.
My throat and mouth were parched, and my stomach twisted from hunger.
I was about to shift and find the resources I needed when the wolf cut diagonally toward a break in the mountains.
I wasn’t sure what the hell she was doing, so I followed.
A little way farther, she came to a stop in a clearing that had a small cabin. I sniffed, but the only thing I could smell was the fresh air and a water source not too far away.
"Do you smell any humans?" I slowed beside her as we walked out into the bright midday sun. "We need to figure out where we are."
If the cabin was a hunting lodge of some kind, there might be a map or a compass.
As we got closer, though, I could see the cabin had been abandoned long ago.
The small porch had weeds and grass growing through the planks and the windows were all shattered.
It was a place to rest, though, and hopefully, I could find something of use to us.
Carefully going up the two steps, I flinched as the rough wood touched my tender feet. They needed a good soak and a few hours to heal.
My wolf friend was right beside me as I pushed open the door to reveal a simple one-room cabin with a small kitchenette in one corner, a wood-burning stove, and four bunk beds. The smell of mildew was ripe in the air, and I scrunched my nose.
"I won't be sleeping on one of those things." Moving into the room, I looked around as the wolf went to one of the beds and jumped onto it, curling into a ball. "Maybe you should shift so we can have a conversation and come up with a plan. It would be nice to know your name too."
Her eyes were already shut, and I rolled my eyes. I couldn't just show up somewhere naked with a wolf.
Going to a floor-to-ceiling metal cabinet, I opened it, the hinges making an awful noise that made me cringe. Inside there were canned goods, blankets, and clothes.
I squatted down and pulled out a pair of pants and a long-sleeved shirt. Taking them to the small table in the corner, I looked in the drawers for something to cut them with.
Finding a pair of rusty scissors, I sat down on the dusty chair and began hacking away at the pants and then at the shirt. I wasn't trying to set a fashion statement, but already I was impressed with how they looked.
I went back to the cabinet and rummaged around, finding a spool of fishing twine. I cut two small holes in the back waistband of the pants so I could make the waist smaller.
They fit perfectly and I wondered if, when all was said and done, fashion design might be my calling. Snorting, I put the supplies back and looked over at the girl, who was now lying on her side, her feet moving like she was running in her dream.
If she didn't shift, the wolves had a missing wolf database that would hopefully be of use when we found our way back from the middle of nowhere. I at least hoped if she knew about others, she would tell us so we could get them out too.
The thought of other wolves being held captive by Marcos or anyone else made my stomach roll with nausea. It was exactly why the coalition existed. We weren't pets or sources of entertainment for humans. All it took was one human knowing to put us all at risk.
Kingston's sister had put everyone at risk by revealing herself to Marcos. He may have shown her attention in the beginning to lead her to believe he was a decent guy, but when it came down to it, he was rotten to his core.
I headed outside and stepped off the small porch. I'd clean my feet, find some food, and then rest a little while before we continued our journey.
The question was, would Marcos's men still be out looking for us? If they were, they were far away with how much ground I was able to cover. We were in the middle of nowhere, and even if they did follow us, we could outrun them again.
My feet burned as I tramped across the clearing toward the sound of water. There had been boots back in the cabin, but they were far too big for my feet.
About a quarter-mile away from the cabin and through a patch of trees, I came across a stream that looked to be almost dried up from whatever snow had been still melting in the mountains. There was enough water to cover my feet as I stepped in, the cool water washing away the pain.
Why was everything such a mess? What should have been a simple job had turned into something that was quickly spiraling out of control. It wasn't even the threat of exposure that was making me ache deep in my chest.
I never intended to develop feelings for Kingston and Zayn, but I had. Their anger toward me hurt more than I ever imagined. They were never going to trust me after I'd deceived them.
Stepping out of the stream, I sat down under the shade of a tree not far away. I had to figure out a way to make things right with them. Even if they didn't want me to stick around once Marcos was dealt with, I needed to at least try.
I leaned back against the tree trunk and shut my eyes. It was too bad the water hadn't washed away the pain in my heart.