What's Beyond the Trees?

Chapter 11 Downstream

Raine's POV

I just killed a man.. I can't believe I killed a man.. I didn't mean to, but it happened.. What is going on today? I saved a life just to take one.. This isn't right.. I can't believe this has happened.. What do I do now? I feel my chest clenching at the hard thought of what I had just done. I let out a wavering breath before I hear a cackling laugh besides me. My eyes flipped open to see a drop dead gorgeous blonde standing right in front of me with the biggest malicious smile on her face.

Her hand bursts from her side and latching onto my neck. I gasp for air, using my nails to try to pry her hand from my neck. She lifts me off the ground acting as if I weigh nothing. This is crazy.. How can she do this so easily? I kick at her but making only little contact with her legs and this is not even affecting her. I see the poor bear try to stand on his four legs, looking weaker than ever.

"Why are you even fighting for this thing?" The blonde asks out loud, so I squeak out an answer. "He doesn't deserve this." She busts up laughing and squeezing my neck tighter than before as she states plainly. "I wasn't asking you pathic little human.. Bear.. why are you fighting this and defending her?" She asks more clearly confusing me completely.

My gaze bounces down to the weak looking bear still laying on the ground as I can't believe my eyes. The sound is what hits me first, it sounds as if all his bones are breaking all at once.. His huge fur-covered body changes somehow with the fur receding into him.. I know that sounds crazy but that's all I can think that its doing because it's not on the ground now, so it didn't fall off.. His huge stature changes into a hunched down frame of a human male. He is naked and looking weak even with his huge muscle-filled stature but the most handsome man I think I have ever seen.. He looks up at me, locking his gray-toned eyes with mine, looking guilty as he says in a deep baritone voice that sends a chill directly down my spine. "She helped me when no one else would.. why would I not?"

"So what you care for her then? You have a bond?" She asks with disgust in her tone as she continues to squeeze.. I'm sure the complete and utter shock is apparent across my face as I continue to scratch her arm and try to pry her fingers that are so tightly wrapped around my throat. Nothing is working and I'm starting to feel weak now. "Put her down and leave her alone and I will go with you." The man states while I instinctively shake my head as he sadly stares at me, causing her to laugh her very annoying cackle in victory as she states. "That's all I wanted bear."

They talk about this so calmly like this isn't the craziest thing I have ever been apart of in my entire life. I feel her grip loosening around my neck helping some much needed air to get into my lungs. Some relief is given to my lungs as I hear the woman state. "All right a deal is a deal I'm going to let her go and you're going to come with me." I watch him nod at her as he slowly tries to stand up but groaning out loudly in pain.

I anticipate her letting me go, out of her tight grip, so I can feel the ground under my feet once again. I have to say I absolutely hate dangling like prey from a predator's mouth. I feel so weak and helpless. I stare into the woman's eyes, seeing something that doesn't look right.. She still has that malicious smirk on her face as she says, "Nothing personal deary, but I can't keep worrying about you coming back since you have already kept him away from me multiple times already.." She lets go of my neck giving me a little bit of relief before I realize she dropped me off the edge of this cliff, over the water. I scream as I reach out trying to grasp for anything to help me.. I'm grasping for straws at this point and luckily my hand grabs hold of a tree root that bursting out of the side of the waterfall from the tree above. I grip it tight before swinging straight into the side of the cliff. An Ooof is the only thing that comes out of my mouth as I hear the bear or man, I guess I should say yelling. Next thing I see is the woman being thrown into the air and over the top of me. I watch her land into the water and floating away down the river.

"Raine hold on!" The man yells down to me as I try to do as he instructs, but the roots are not used to holding up anything my size and with the swinging that comes hand-in-hand with this fall, I don't know how much longer it's going to last. I can see it tearing as I squeak out. "the root is tearing." He nods looking all around for anything to help. But by the worry apparent on his face, I don't think there is anything for me.. The rain is still pouring, making holding this harder than what it has to be along with trying to see anything to help.. I try to regrip the root as I feel it start to tear more as I squeal out in fear of what's going to become of me from this. I close my eyes just scared to look anywhere. It is probably best if I don't see this obvious death coming my way.

I feel the root give out again as I squeal out more, I don't have much more time as I can hear the root tearing again. I open one eye looking at the root and this is it.. It's tearing and there is nothing to do after it does. It squeaking like a strained rope, as I swing around adding more tension to the root than I ever wanted. It starts to collapse as I squeeze my eyes shut and wait for my end to come.. I should try to hold my breath just in case. I take in a deep breath and holding it in as I feel the root break. I scream instinctively letting out the breath I was planning on holding as I feel my wrist grasped into a tight hold, making me whiplash into the waterfall.. I'm bouncing from out of the water then into it as I try to look up just to see the man holding onto something with one hand and me with the other. I swing across the waterfall screaming out as I crash through the water, feeling like a fish on the end of a flimsy fishing line.

Water is covering my face making it hard to breath and I don't know how to get out of this. "F*ck I'm slipping!" He yells at me as I brace myself as much as I can for what's to come.

Next thing I know the grip is still around my wrist tethering us together, but we are now both shooting through the hard pressured water, like when you're at a water park going down the biggest water slide there. I scream getting so much water into my mouth as I try to spit it out just for it to be replaced by more. I'm consuming all the water in the river it feels like, overwhelming my body at this point.. This is rough and scarier than anything I thought it would be, because from above it doesn't look that bad down here in the river, you think you can handle it if you ever fell in, but when you're in it its something completely different.. I'm not a strong swimmer and with the strong currents I don't think I will survive this. I try to push myself over the waves to get some air into my lungs. But it's not working.. Everytime I open my mouth, I get hit by another wave.

My lungs are burning just aching for some much needed air, but nothing is helping.. The grip on my wrist tightens as I feel myself being pulled through the heavy water until I'm wrapped into this man's tight hold. I wrap my arms around him and holding on for dear life because he is my only chance at surviving this. I can feel us moving through the water as he pulls us out, dragging our bodies onto the shore, as I spit out the whole river that was in my mouth and probably lungs. I gasp for air as I stare up at the dark clouded night sky, just excited to feel the rain pouring on my face, because I never thought I would survive this.

I pant trying to get as much of this soothing air as I can into my body. I see the silhouette of the man who saved me hovering over me, as I feel a soft touch to my cheek. "Raine are you ok?" His soothing baritone rumbling voice calms down my rapidly beating heart as I stare up, just wishing I could see my savior's face. I nod to answer him because I don't have enough air in my lungs to speak at the moment. He whips me up as if I'm a rag doll and into his even more protective embrace, hugging me so tight into his muscular frame before he says in my ear as a whisper. "I'm so sorry." I feel the wind that's carrying this storm send a chill directly down my spine making me shake now being soaking wet. I see him looking around but we have gone too far down the river, we are not even remotely close to home base now.

His strong arms whip me up into his tight hold bridal style, before carrying my weak body away from the river. I stare up at his features that are being lightly lit up by the lightning and my eyes adjusting after everything that just happened. His strong jawline and beard is what gets most of my attention because the light lines it perfectly, but his eyes almost glow in the dark. The gray looks like his eyes are just as cloudy as the sky above. It's mesmerizing.

I watch his eyes pan across the area, looking for who knows what. He just looks handsome with his mind running. I must have lost my mind in the fall or maybe hit my head harder than I thought. Because none of this seems real, but like a dream. I can't help but snuggle into his warm hold, just enjoying this surprising comfort for as long as I can, because I'm sure it won't last long at all. I close my eyes and taking in his calming cedar pine musk that just reminds me of these woods.. I would like to say it's the woods if I wasn't smelling it directly off his chest.

The rain isn't dripping on my face anymore as I pry my eyes open to see that we are in a small cave. I instinctively hop up as I say as if it should be obvious. "We can't just come in here there might be something living in her like a bear.." I stop myself as I glance up, feeling stupid the moment those words left my lips. "We will be fine." he says to me not making fun but there was a sarcastic tone in his voice at me making me blush more at that extra attention to my stupidity.

Dammit I probably look like such a weak i***t to him that he now is stuck with.. Ugh the only reason I got a gorgeous man's attention like this, was because of the fact that I helped him before and it looks like he feels responsible.. But if I wasn't the damsel in distress than he would probably be long gone.. This sucks.. I hate feeling useless or like a burden.. just like I already do with Orion. I need to get out of here and leave this poor man alone before I bother him more than I already have.