Elaria’s POV
Rough hands yanked me to my feet.
The pain shot up my arms as someone clamped down hard, bruising fingers digging into my muscle and my bone. I screamed, twisting and fighting blindly, but there were too many of them. My legs kicked out, catching only air as they dragged me deeper into the trees.
“Let me go!” I shouted, voice raw, wild, desperate. “Oh, Alaric. . .!”
“He is not coming for you, little wolf,” one of them snarled in my ear, breath hot and foul. “He doesn't even know you are gone yet. Before he finds out, it will be too late.”
He will come for me. I know he will, but what if he couldn’t find me? What if they cloaked their scent or took a path that led far from the village? What if no one even noticed I was gone until nightfall? I had told no one where I was go
