10. The Fight
We are silent again, but his words repeat in my head again and again.
Maybe you should think about who the real threat is.
Maybe you should think about who the real threat is.
Maybe you should think about who the real threat is.
There is something I am missing, but I don't know what.
The forest looks different now, shadows stretching between trees as it's getting dark. "How much further?" I ask, wincing as another branch scrapes against my arm.
He doesn't answer, just keeps moving forward with that effortless grace, having no problem navigating through the approaching darkness.
I'm about to ask again when he suddenly spins around and slams into me, knocking me to the ground. Before I can even react, another figure crashes through and leaps toward us.
A wolf. Not in human form but an actual wolf—enormous, with matted gray fur and bared teeth.
I scramble backward on the ground, hands and feet pushing against the dirt, trying to get away. My back hitting a tree trunk, stopping me.
The wolf leader moves between me and the attacking wolf. He crouches low, arms out to his sides.
"No," he says, voice firm but not raised. "Stop this."
The wolf snarls and lunges. He sidesteps, grabbing at the wolf's neck but not squeezing, more like guiding. The wolf twists free and snaps at his arm. He pulls back just in time.
I press myself against the tree, heart pounding in my ears.
"Nadya, enough," he says again, circling slowly. When the wolf charges again, he catches her momentum and redirects it, sending her tumbling to the side without actually striking her.
The wolf springs back up, hackles raised. They circle each other, neither one fully committing to an attack.
"Enough!" he commands, his voice carrying such authority that even I freeze. The wolf struggles a moment longer before going still, though its eyes still burn with hatred when they find me.
"Go," he says to the wolf, voice softer now. "Now."
She growls low in her throat before turning and disappearing into the trees. He watches the spot where she vanished, then pulls something from his pocket, a small communication device.
"We had an incident. Nadya was here." He pauses, listening to a response I can't hear.
"No, under control for now. But organize a search party.
She shouldn't be out here in her condition.
" Another pause. "I'll continue tothe Compoundwith the Communicator.
Keep an eye out. I'll join the search after.
" He puts the device away and turns to me.
His eyes travel from my face down to where I'm still pressed against the tree trunk.
"Get up," he says flatly.
I try to stand but my legs refuse to cooperate, still trembling from the adrenaline. For several moments, all I can do is stare at the darkness where the wolf disappeared. My breath comes in short gasps.
He watches me, his expression a mixture of frustration and something else, but he doesn't rush me. "You're the one who wanted to come into wolf territory," he comments.
Not entirely true. I was the one trying to do my job. He was the one with the ultimatum.
I finally manage to push myself up, my legs still unsteady. I brush the dirt from my uniform with hands that won't quite stop shaking. "Who was she?" I ask, my voice stronger now.
His jaw tightens. "Someone who doesn't agree with my decision to bring you here."
"That's putting it mildly."
He stares into the darkening forest. "Let's just say you and her share something in common."
"What could that be?" I ask, surprised.
"You both want justice and would do anything to get it."
It seems she and I have very different interpretations of justice, but I keep quiet.
"Come," he says, his voice tight with irritation. "I have never in my life taken so long to get to the Compound."
Maybe you should think about who the real threat is.
Well, after this interaction, definitely the wolves. So what exactly is he not telling me?
After we've walked for what feels like another hour, he finally says, "Almost there."
I peer into the darkness ahead and catch glimpses of soft, golden light filtering between trees. As we get closer, I can make out structures—buildings nestled so perfectly within the forest that they seem to have grown from it rather than being built.
"This is where we're meeting tonight."
Meeting. The word makes my stomach clench with anxiety.
We emerge from the dense trees into a small clearing. The buildings I glimpsed earlier are now fully visible—a collection of structures that blend seamlessly with the forest around them. People move between them, some in similar uniforms to his, others in more casual clothing.
Several heads turn our way as we approach. Their expressions range from curiosity to outright hostility when they see me.
"You brought the human," one woman says, stepping forward. Her eyes, sharp and assessing, move from him to me and back again. "And she's still alive. Interesting."
"We had an incident on the way," he replies. "Nadya found us."
A murmur runs through the small crowd that has gathered.
"Is she alright?" the woman asks, concern replacing her earlier coldness.
"Injured, but mobile. I sent out a search party."