THE PRICE OF LOYALTY
Kaidaira’s point of view.
“Save me goddess..” I mumbled as I pounded through dense forest, my paws thrashing against the earth with a frantic heartbeat. Usually, my wolf form was a symbol of strength and freedom, but now it felt like some fragile shield against the dangers closing in.
Every stride burned, my legs aflame with exhaustion, my lungs heaving like bellows. My injuries, sustained in that desperate bid for escape from the palace, weighed me down, refusing to heal as fast as I needed them to.
Sweat fell from my fur, plastering it to neck and shoulder. The metallic taste of blood was in my nostrils, along with the earthy scent of damp soil and decaying leaves.
Branches whipped across my face, their twiggy fingers scratching at my cheeks, leaving stinging welts. Leaves crunched beneath my paws, releasing a bitter aroma of crushed vegetation.
My heart ran like a runaway drumbeat in my chest, my senses on high. Every snap of a twig, every rustle of the leaves, made me flinch. The forest, once a sanctuary, was now a maze of terror. I dared not look back, fearing what I may see: guards and Zarek closing the noose, their pursuit a dogged cadence that reverberated between the trees.
A faint rustling in the underbrush ahead made me skid to a stop; my ears went up like antennae. My breath slowed, and I strained to listen. The rustling grew louder and I recognised the deliberate tread and that masculine scent.
Zarek.
My instincts shrieked at me to run, but my body betrayed me. Exhaustion and pain anchored me to the spot, a trembling, helpless thing.
Out of the underbrush came this huge wolf form of Zarek, his eyes afire with anger, hot coals burning in the dark. His fur was standing on end, bristling with aggression, and his jaws open, showing razor-sharp teeth.
My tail tucked between my legs, I let out a whimper-lowly, pitiful-a sound that brought up fear in me. Zarek's eyes glittered with triumph as he shifted into human form and loomed over me with a cruel smile.
"You think you can outrun me, Kaidaira?" His voice was honey laced with poison-a poisoned dagger to the heart. "You think you can defy me?"
I flinched, ears folding back in abnegation as Zarek's gaze raked over me like a branding iron. His eyes crawled over my injuries, and his smile grew, cold and calculated.
"You're no match for me, little wolf," he sneered with disdain.
The next thing I knew, Zarek's fist landed on my jaw, sending me crashing into the ground. Pain shot through my face in a riot of colors and light. I yelped. My cry echoed through the forest, a desperate plea for mercy.
"Please, Zarek. stop," I pleaded, my voice barely audible-a whispered prayer.
He booted me, his foot landing on my ribs, and I heard my bones break-that sickly snap that sent me gasping.
"Stop being stubborn, Kaidaira," Zarek sneered, spitting in my face. "Be the good girl you've always been. Obey me, and I might spare your life."
I looked up at Zarek, tears pricking at the corners of my eyes. How could he do this to me? Had our love been nothing? Was I just a pawn to be used and discarded?
"Zarek, please." I whispered, my voice cracking, a fragile thread of hope.
He laughed, the sound cold and mirthless, a winter wind freezing my heart.
"You are nothing but property, Kaidaira," he spat, "mine to command, mine to break."
His words cut deeper than any blow. I realized, in that moment, that I'd never known Zarek. The man that I loved was a monster cloaking in charm and deceit.
The instant Zarek raised his foot for yet another blow, something inside told me I had to find the strength to break loose. My body had betrayed me, and for my own survival, I needed to be free.
"Please, Zarek, have mercy," I pleaded, my voice breaking like fragile twigs, my body shaking like a leaf in an autumn gust.
Zarek's face contorted in a sadistic smile, his lips curling upward like some sort of venomous snake. "You're no longer needed, Kaidaira. You've served your purpose. Now, you're nothing but a commodity to be sold."
I felt a wave of desperation well up inside me. "How can you do this to me?" I asked, my eyes streaming with tears like the autumn rain. "After everything I've done for you. after all the sacrifices I've made."
Zarek's laughter cut me off, a harsh jeering sound. "Sacrifices?" he repeated, his voice oozing disdain. "You think killing your own brother was a sacrifice? You did that for me, didn't you, Kaidaira?"
I felt the weight of my heart as it sank to the anchors of despair. "Yes," I whispered, the memory of that night flooding through my mind. "I did it to protect you-to protect our pack."
Zarek was grinning from ear to ear. "And now, that same pack will profit from your sale. Poetic, don't you think?"
I felt a chill dread creeping over me. "You used me," I accused in a low voice.
Zarek shrugged. "You were useful. Now you're not."
With a rough jerk, Zarek pulled me to my feet and dragged me back through the forest, toward the palace. Leaves crunched and small branches snapped in quiet memorial.
As we burst out into the clearing, I saw a group of Egyptian guards awaiting us, their faces cold and impassive. Zarek slung me at their feet.
"Here's the merchandise," he said, his voice cold.
One of the guards held out a pouch full of gold to Zarek, and the man took it, grinning.
"Well worth it," Zarek said.
The guard didn't even flinch. "She's yours now. Do with her as you please."
A chill dread washed over me as the Egyptians closed in on me.
Zarek turned to leave, tossing me one last smug look. "Farewell, Kaidaira. May your new masters treat you well."
