Chapter 7 Only He Could Help Me
579 Words
I started shaking. A cold fear shot up my spine.
Was he even my father? He was treating me with more cruelty than an enemy.
"Lila," I said, forcing myself to stay calm. "Give me the key, then go back. Pretend nothing happened. No matter what, don't admit you were here."
"But Alison..."
"Now."
Lila's hand trembled as she passed the key through the bars.
I took it. The cold metal bit into my palm.
"Go," I told Lila, her face wet with tears. "Protect yourself. Take care of Mother. Promise me."
Lila bit her lip, nodded hard, and vanished into the dark.
I worked on the lock immediately.
It was old. The key ground against the mechanism with a harsh scrape. Every second felt like a year.
Finally, the lock opened.
I pushed the door and slipped out, moving quietly down the cell corridor. The passage was long. Faint firelight glowed at the far end—the guards' post.
I had to get past them.
But halfway down the corridor, a wave of dizziness hit me.
I braced against the wall, my vision spotting.
This wasn't just weakness. My body was growing hot. My heart raced. A strange, unsettling feeling started low in my stomach.
The drug!
Suddenly, I caught a sweet, cloying smell in the air. With my Wolf Spirit suppressed, my senses were dulled. I hadn't noticed it until now.
The air was laced with something—a pheromone trigger meant for female werewolves.
I gritted my teeth and kept walking, but my legs were weak. I could barely stand.
A deep, shameful hunger rose inside me—a craving to be touched, held.
No... Not here...
I bit down hard on my own wrist until blood filled my mouth. The pain cleared my head for a moment.
As the guard ahead turned his back, I chopped at the back of his neck.
Once I was sure he was unconscious, I took the keys from his belt and fled the dungeons.
I ran desperately, out of pack territory and into the woods.
The night wind hit my face, but couldn't cool the desire inside me.
Eventually, my strength gave out. I fell to my knees, then slumped against a tree trunk.
I needed to find Reyn. Only he could help me.
But how could I get to Silvermoon Pack?
From here to Reyn's stone fortress meant crossing half of Shadowfang Pack and a third of Silvermoon Pack. In my current state, it was impossible.
Unless...
I closed my eyes and tried to reach for that faint, thin connection deep in my Wolf Spirit.
That kiss three days ago hadn't just made our spirits tremble. It had spun a fragile thread between our souls.
Now, I grabbed that thread.
With every bit of will I had left, I sent a plea along it. "Please, Reyn, hear me."
The fire in my body burned hotter. I collapsed at the base of an ancient tree, my mind beginning to fog.
In the distance, a wolf howled. It was getting closer.
Was it Hawk? Had he already arrived?
I couldn't let him find me.
I stumbled to my feet, trying to move, but my legs were weak. I managed one step, then another, before my balance failed, and I fell.
At that moment, a pair of strong hands grabbed my arms and held me firmly.
My heart sank.
The only person who could have gotten here this fast was Hawk.
- Writer
