Chapter 7 #2
Even if I were able to somehow channel my inner gunslinger and fire one shot after another, it still wouldn’t matter. Not when there were only five bullets for at least seven wolves.
Still, I had to try.
I did my best to keep my hand steady as I turned on my heel, trying to follow the sound of the loudest growl, but it was almost impossible. There were just too many of them.
Then, like a switch, the growling stopped.
And it wasn’t just the wolves. The whole of the Wilds stilled. For a moment, there wasn’t a single sound. No snapping twigs or rustling leaves—just the hammering of my heart.
What the hell was going on? Why had they—
All thoughts about the wolves slipped into the background as the ground beneath my feet began to tremble—a dull, rumbling vibration that tingled through the soles of my shoes, shivering straight up the length of my legs.
What the hell?
It wasn’t an earthquake. At least, not like one I’d ever felt before. This was different…almost like the tiny tremors triggered by a stampede.
Whatever it was, the wolves wanted no part of it. Letting out sharp whimpers of fear, they rushed off in the opposite direction. But what the hell was so scary that it could manage to frighten a pack of hungry wolves away?
The answer sprouted up in my head, but I pushed it away before it could take root.
No. I refused to believe it.
Surely there had to be something else in the Wilds big enough to cause this kind of shaking. Something capable of crashing through the trees like thunder.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
Like the waves of a violent storm rolling in from far away, the sound grew closer and more powerful with every passing second.
And it was headed straight toward me.
Thump! Thump! THUMP!
Holy shit, it was almost here.
With no time to run, I dropped the phone and gripped the gun with both hands. I braced my back against the trunk of a tree for support, then stretched my arms out, locking my elbows, and—
BANG!
The moment the enormous wall of muscle broke through the shadowy line of shrubs in front of me, I pulled the trigger.
Standing at least seven feet tall and as wide as an ox, I knew it wasn’t Felicity. Flashes of bone-white claw and fang rushed through the fallen light of the phone, but those were the only features I could clearly make out.
Not that I needed to see anything else.
One look was all it took for me to know exactly what I was facing.
A ferus.
An alpha.
And a really pissed one.
Chuck was right. The .45 hadn’t stopped it.
It hadn’t even slowed the beast down.
And I’d definitely hit my target. In the split second that the light had flashed over the ferus’ chest, I’d caught sight of bright red blood blossoming like a rose on the pale material of his shirt.
The memory of Chuck’s words rang in my ears.
If he’s still coming for you, trust me, you’re gonna want that last bullet for yourself.
Oh God. Had it really come to that?
Unfortunately, it had. Another shot would probably only piss off the alpha even more. Enough to make my death slow and agonizing.
Then I’d be the one they’d be pouring into a coffin.
Or I could end everything myself in a relatively painless flash.
There really wasn’t any other choice.
Closing my eyes, I cocked the hammer back, locking it in place. I twisted the muzzle toward my temple, and—
Thunk!
Before my finger could tighten around the trigger, I was hit by something heavy and hard. What felt like the force of a freight train wrenched the revolver out of my hand, tossing it into the darkness.
Massive arms as strong as steel wrapped around me, cushioning the blow as I was propelled backward into the unforgiving pillar of a redwood tree.
My spine might have been saved from the worst of the impact, but not my lungs.
Air rushed out from my throat in one giant puff, leaving me gasping, desperate to breathe again.
This was it.
There was no point in opening my eyes. Not when excruciating pain was only moments away.
Any second now, the ferus would curl its wrists and dig its claws into my back. He’d slice my flesh with his hands while his fangs ripped into my throat. He’d bleed me dry. Tear me in half. Suck the marrow out of my bones. Laugh while I faded into oblivion.
Pinned between the tree trunk and the rock-hard expanse of the alpha’s chest, there was no chance of fighting back. I couldn’t move an inch. I could barely even wiggle my fingers. All I could do was shake in fear as I waited for the agony to start.
But it never did.
Instead, I felt the deep, rattling rumble of the creature’s growl moving through me, as second after excruciating second ticked by.
Then, finally, a hard voice filled my ears.
“You.”
That was it. Just one word. But it was enough.
My eyes popped open, and I found myself staring into a gorgeously familiar moss-green gaze.
My mouth dropped open in disbelief. It couldn’t be.
I knew those eyes. I’d spent hours staring into them in my dreams.
But this was no dream.
“Oh my God, you’re real.”
The corners of the alpha’s mouth pulled down even harder at the sound of my voice. His eyes narrowed, projecting more menace than a whole pack of wolves combined.
“What the hell are you doing here?”