MARKED BY THE HUNTER

07: THE PULL

I pressed my hands against my ears, even though it wouldn’t help.

“Make it stop,” I whispered.

Bryle Fox stepped forward and grabbed my wrists, pulling my hands down.

“Look at me.”

I didn’t want to. But yes I did.

His eyes locked onto mine, steady, and grounding.

“Focus on me,” he said.

The command in his voice cut through the noise.

Through the pull. Through everything. His body was close to mine, imagining that I was about kissing him perfectly, intentionally falling for him as if we've known each other..

But the sensation faded, not completely but it was enough.

I let out a shaky breath.

“What was that?” I asked.

“Pack call,” he said. “They’re trying to draw you out.”

“It almost worked,” I admitted.

His grip tightened slightly. "I know.”

A sudden thud hit the side of the cabin. It was hard and they tried another. The walls creaked under the force.

“They’re here,” Bryle Fox said.

With no hesitation and no questions, he grabbed my arm, then said, “We’re leaving.”

“Through the front?” I asked, glancing at the destroyed doorway.

“No.”

He pulled me toward the back of the cabin.

“There’s a path through the forest,” he said. “We take it, we might lose them.”

“Might?” I repeated.

He shot me a look. “Do you have a better plan?”

"No. I didn’t.."

Another slam hit the wall, stronger this time. Wood cracked, They were breaking in.

“Move,” he ordered.

We ran. The back door burst open as he kicked it, dragging me out into the storm.

The cold rain hit us like a wave, instantly soaking us to the bone, while the mud squelched beneath our feet as we ran deeper into the forest. Branches lashed against my skin, and the darkness felt even more oppressive here.

But somehow, I could see .. not perfectly. But better than I should. Every movement. Every shadow. Every shift in the trees.. Bryle Fox was holding my hand tightly.

“Faster,” Bryle said.

“I’m trying!”

A howl erupted behind us, but closer than before.

“They’re following,” I said unnecessarily.

“I know.”

We ran harder. Deeper into the forest. But no matter how fast we moved... They were faster.

A blur of motion cut through the trees ahead of us.

Bryle stopped abruptly, pulling me back just in time.

A massive wolf landed where we would have been seconds later.

Then another.

And another five werewolves.

Just like I felt. They surrounded us slowly, forming a wide circle. Unlike the rogue who attacked us earlier.

These wolves were controlled, and coordinated.

Their glowing eyes watched us carefully, hunting us like prey.

One of them stepped forward. Larger than the others. I knew he is the stronger among them.

And he is.. The alpha.

“You run well,” it said, its voice low but clear.

I froze.

“They talk?” I whispered.

Bryle Fox didn’t respond. But his focus was entirely on the Alpha. “You’re far from your territory,” he said evenly.

The Alpha’s gaze flickered to me. And everything inside me went still again.

“There is no territory anymore,” it said. “Not for her.”

My chest tightened.

“What do you want?” Bryle asked.

The Alpha tilted its head slightly. "You know what we want.”

Bryle’s grip on his weapon tightened.

“No,” he said.

The Alpha smiled. "You don’t get a choice, Hunter.”

Before I could react, the wolves moved. Everything happened at once.

Bryle lunged forward, blade flashing silver as he met the first attack head-on. Claws clashed with steel.

The sound was sharp. Violent.

I stumbled back, my heart pounding as the three wolves broke away from the fight, they are coming straight for me.

“No...” I whispered.

They lunged. And something inside me snapped again. This time, I didn’t hesitate. I reached for it.

That power. That pull. Their blood.

I created an illusion of a red thick thread, that thread was connected into my body, I can consume my strength and power to drag them and throw them to the other side, my power urgently hold back even before they lunged at me, through the looked in my eyes, as if I can senses what their blood is trying to comprehend.

I grabbed it hard until I successfully made it.

“STOP!” I growled.

Both wolves froze mid-air , as if we stopped in the time right and immediately. Their bodies trembled violently under the force of something they couldn’t see.. while hanging to the air.

I gasped, the strain hitting me instantly. It was stronger this time. Harder to control, it is too much!

“Alexa!” Bryle shouted.

I couldn’t respond. Because now.. I felt all of them.

Every wolf's heartbeat. Even the Alpha's power surged through me, wild and overwhelming.

“I can’t...” I choked.

The wolves in the air began to struggle. Fighting it back.

The Alpha growled, his body resisting the pull. "Impossible…” he snarled.

My vision blurred, my knees buckled. This was too much! too strong enough.

“I can’t hold them!” I cried.

Bryle Fox broke away from his fight, moving toward me.

“Then don’t,” he said.

My breath hitched. “What?”

“Let it go.”

“But they’ll.."

“I’ll handle it..." he said.

I looked at him. And despite everything, despite the fear, the chaos, he remains an unknown person in my eyes, but still I believed him.

So I let go.

The wolves dropped to the other side instantly. And Bryle Fox moved fast, bravely but deadly.