The Bite
844 Words
Chapter 4 - The Bite
Dakota's POV
We ran.
Trees whipped past in a blur. My lungs burned. Kieran was faster, pulling ahead, but he kept glancing back to make sure I was still with him.
Behind us, the howls grew closer.
"They're going to catch us!" I gasped.
"Not if we split up!" Kieran skidded to a stop. "You go left, toward the highway. I'll lead them east."
"That's suicide..."
"It's a strategy. They want you more than me. I'll buy you time." He shoved his phone into my hands. "The evidence is on here. Password is 4719. If I don't make it, get this to the authorities. Expose Vaughn."
"Kieran..."
"Go!"
I ran left, hating myself for leaving him. But I couldn't let his sacrifice be for nothing.
I crashed through the underbrush, branches tearing at my clothes. The highway appeared ahead, headlights streaming past. Civilization. Safety.
I burst out of the tree line and nearly got hit by a truck. It swerved, horn blaring. I stumbled onto the shoulder, gasping.
A howl erupted from the forest. Too close.
I ran along the highway, desperate for help. A car, a*****e, or anything.
There—a big store, lights was still on.
I sprinted toward it and crashed through the doors. The clerk looked up, startled.
"Call the police!" I panted.
"What? Are you okay..."
The windows shattered.
Wolves burst through, massive and snarling. The clerk screamed and customers scattered.
I grabbed a display rack and threw it at the nearest wolf. It yelped but kept coming.
No escape. I was cornered.
The lead wolf shifted—half human, half beast. Vaughn's enforcer. "You shouldn't have run, girl."
"Yeah, well, I'm full of bad decisions."
He lunged. I dove behind the counter as his claws tore through the air where I'd been standing.
This was it. I was going to die in a*****e at nineteen.
Then the door exploded inward.
Kieran stood there, fully shifted, blood dripping from his jaws. He roared, a sound that shook the building.
The other wolves hesitated. Kieran was bigger than them, older, stronger.
"She's mine," Kieran snarled. "Vaughn's orders. Back off."
The enforcer growled but stepped back. "Fine. Take her. But she's scheduled for the cage tomorrow. Vaughn moved up the fight."
Tomorrow. Not three days. Tomorrow.
Kieran grabbed me by the arm, his claws digging in just enough to hurt. "Let's go."
He dragged me outside. The other wolves watched but didn't follow.
We got a block away before Kieran released me. He was still partially shifted, breathing hard.
"Are you insane?" I hissed. "You just..."
"Saved your life. You're welcome." He pulled me into an alley. "We don't have much time. They'll be watching now. The fight is tomorrow, and we have to make it look real."
"This is real! They're going to kill us!"
"Not if we're smart." Kieran's eyes, still wolf gold locked onto mine. "I told you the plan. I bite you, inject the serum, you fake your death. It's the only way."
"And if it doesn't work?"
"Then we both die, and Vaughn wins." He stepped closer. "I know you're scared. I am too. But I've been planning this for months. Trust me, Dakota. One more time."
I wanted to run. Wanted to grab Ember and disappear.
But Vaughn would find us. He'd kill us both.
The only way out was through.
"Okay," I whispered. "Tomorrow. We do this."
Kieran nodded. Then his phone buzzed. He checked it and his expression darkened.
"What?"
"Vaughn knows we're working together. He changed the rules." Kieran's voice was hollow. "The fight tomorrow isn't just death match. It's bonding."
"Bonding?"
"If I bite you, I'll create a pack bond. You'll become a wolf. And Vaughn will own us both."
My world tilted. "So the serum..."
"Won't just fake your death. It'll trigger your first shift if you have any dormant wolf blood." He met my eyes. "Do you know your bloodline? Any werewolf ancestry?"
"I'm an orphan. I don't know anything about my parents."
"Then we're gambling. Either you're fully human and the serum works, or you're dormant wolf and the bite awakens you." He ran a hand through his locs. "If it's the latter, you'll shift. And there's no telling what you'll become."
"What do you mean?"
Kieran hesitated. "Some bloodlines are... dangerous. Berserkers, for example. They can't control their rage. They kill everything."
"Are you saying I might be a Berserker?"
"I'm saying I don't know. And we won't until it's too late." He gripped my shoulders. "This is your last chance to run, Dakota. I'll help you disappear. We'll figure something out."
I thought of Ember. Of the kids Vaughn had killed. Of the evidence on Kieran's phone that could stop all of this.
"No," I said. "We're doing this and whatever happens, we end Vaughn."
Kieran searched my face. Then, slowly, he nodded. "You're either really brave or really stupid."
"Probably both."
He almost smiled. "Get some rest. Tomorrow's going to be hell."
He was right.
Tomorrow, everything changed.
- Writer
