The Blackfang Alphas and Slaves

Chapter 14

CHAPTER 14

KAI

I leaned my back against the rough bark of a massive oak tree and let out a breath that felt like lead in my lungs. Today marked the eighth day since we had been wandering through this hellish forest, and there was still no sign of an exit or a familiar trail. Next to me, the carcass of a huge python lay tangled in the roots, its scales even darker and more jagged than the first one I had killed. This was the fifth beast we had taken down since we got lost, and my hands were still shaking from the adrenaline. We had both thought the forest wouldn't be much of a problem since we were werewolves, but this place didn't care about our bloodline.

My perspective had changed a lot over the last week, and I could feel a weight on my shoulders that wasn't there before. My recklessness usually cost us time and energy, and I had learned the hard way that charging in headfirst was a good way to get buried under the leaves. My latest battle had been smoother than the others, but the one before that had nearly ended everything. I had underestimated a thick-hided boar, and it had almost gutted me before Ivara stepped in.

She had thrown herself into the path of the beast to save my life, and she had almost lost hers in the process.

I looked over at Ivara, who was leaning against the opposite side of the tree, her face pale and her breathing shallow. She looked weak and tired, and I felt a sharp pang of guilt in my chest. I stood up, my joints popping and protesting, and wiped the dried blood off my forearms.

"Stay here," I said, my voice sounding rough and foreign to my own ears. "I’m going to go find us something for dinner. I’ve been watching how you track the smaller game, so I think I can handle it this time. I’ll see if I can find those blue-leafed herbs you used on my shoulder too."

She didn't argue, she just gave a small, tired nod and closed her eyes. I moved into the brush, trying to be as silent as I could, and spent the next hour stalking a pair of squirrels and digging through the damp earth for the right plants. My mind kept drifting back to the way the python had lunged at her, and how her arm had looked after the teeth sank in. It had been a deep, nasty bite, the kind of wound that would leave a werewolf limping for days and a human dead in minutes.

When I finally made my way back to the clearing with two squirrels dangling from my belt and a handful of crushed herbs, I noticed something that made me stop in my tracks. Ivara was sitting in the same spot, but she was rubbing her arm, the same arm that had been shredded just a few hours ago. I remembered seeing the meat torn open, the bone almost showing through the red mess, and I had expected to spend the night stitching her back together.

But as I stepped closer, I saw that the deep, jagged hole was gone. In its place was nothing but a thin, fading pink scar. It was impossible. Even for a high-ranking wolf, a wound like that would take at least a week to knit back together, and she was supposed to be a regular slave with no special bloodline.

"What happened to the wound?" I asked, dropping the squirrels and stepping into her space. "The python practically bit through your arm, Ivara. I saw it."

She looked up at me, her expression blank and her eyes steady. She didn't even flinch as she pulled her sleeve down to cover the mark. "I don't know what you're talking about, Kai. I wasn't injured there. You must have been seeing things in the dark."

I frowned, my heart starting to beat a little faster. "I wasn't seeing things. There was blood everywhere. I was going to use these herbs to keep the infection out, but there’s nothing to treat."

She just shrugged and leaned her head back against the tree. "The forest plays tricks on the mind when you're hungry and tired. I’m fine. Let’s just eat and get some sleep so we can move at dawn."

I wanted to press her, to grab her arm and demand to know how she had healed a life-threatening injury in the time it took me to catch a couple of rodents, but I stopped myself. She had saved my life, and if she wanted to lie about it, I guess I owed her the space to do it. I sat down and started skinning the squirrels, but my mind wouldn't let the image go. The contrast between the gore I had seen and the smooth skin she was showing me now was too obvious to ignore.

She was hiding something, something big, and it wasn't just some slave girl luck. As the fire crackled between us and the scent of roasting meat filled the air, I watched her out of the corner of my eye. I had spent my whole life thinking I knew exactly who was powerful and who was weak in this world, but looking at the girl sitting across from me, I realized I didn't know anything at all.

"You're a bad liar," I muttered under my breath, but she didn't respond. She just stared into the flames, her face as calm and eerie as the moon hanging over the trees.

I knew one thing for sure. Whatever was happening to her, whatever power she was keeping under wraps, it was the only reason we were still alive. But it also meant that the girl I was bringing back to the pack wasn't the same girl I had met in the cages.