Free mate

I can hear Jason shouting my name as I run through the dark forest, almost tripping over roots of the big trees surrounding us. My bare feet hurt and I'm sure I'm bleeding but I ignore my burning lungs and aching muscles as a sprint between the trees. “Kate! I'll f*****g kill you if you don't stop now!” I can't believe I was supposed to marry that monster. I don't know why he hasn't shifted into his wolf form yet, he must be toying with me. I can imagine his wicked smile when he sees me stumbling away as fast as I can while he knows how easy it would be for him to catch me in his wolf form. I'm so out of shape that he should be able to catch me up in no time even as a human, he's athletic and strong while I'm fatigued and thin even on the best days. I don't dare to look back to see but I hear his steps coming closer, shouting at me. Jason's family had taken me when I was just five. I didn't remember what happened to my parents, no one knew how I ended up alone in the forest where they found me. Jason's father, Nicolas Strongwood, had heard me crying in the dark woods where they lived, all alone and scared. I don't remember anything of that time. My parents must have abandoned me or died but the Strongwoods were the only family I knew. I used to be grateful for them. They had saved my life by taking me in and it wasn't easy. We lived alone in the middle of the woods, away from the city. I've never seen anything but distant lights and Carolina told me a little about the place. How it was a scary and dangerous city run by bloodthirsty and cruel packs. She told me stories when she showed me how to cook or clean and I quickly learned to fear the idea of that terrible place, grateful to be here in the woods. Over the years I started to notice how poorly I was treated. Jason was five years older than me and he never had to do chores. Slowly I ended up being to the only person working, except for hunting which the men did. Carolina made sure I never went out further than to take care of our small garden. Once Nicolas caught me trying to go for a small walk and dragged be back inside by my hair, throwing me into the basement. It was where I slept but also a punishment. The cold dark room had a hard stone floor and only a thin mattress. If Nicolas was displeased with me he would throw me down and lock me in for hours. I hated it more than the occasional beating or ignoring me completely. The dark basement was suffocating and all I could do was curl on the mattress and wait for it to end. I ate leftovers from the rest of the family and while I had to work for most of the day I was thin and got tired easily. That's why I was so unsteady running in the dark and unfamiliar ground. Getting to the city was my only hope but it was still so far away, the faint light in the sky my only guidance. It terrified me but I didn't have a choice, living in that hellhole would kill me slowly anyway. “Kate!” Jason's voice was so close and I could hear the cruel edge to his shouting, he really was enjoying this. My legs were hurting and I had to gasp to get oxygen, heart beating wildly. I noticed a small road beside me, the first sign of other people. In there it would be easy for Jason to catch me but I didn't stand a chance here in the forest either. His superior senses would sense me here anyway, on the road I could hope for someone to see me and help. I turned to run towards the roan but my leg caught something and I fell down, a painful cry escaping my lips. I couldn't see the wounds but my ankle must have twisted, when I tried to scramble up it gave away under me and I couldn't stop the tears from streaming down my face. Every part of my body was hurting and I had to crawl towards the road. It was an empty hope anyway, who would be this far in the middle of the night? Jason was eerily quiet now, I had no idea where he was. I tried to listen for his movement but couldn't focus on anything happening around me. I couldn't ignore the sharp pain shooting up my leg when I got up and limped forward, head spinning and eyes watering. God, he really would kill me, I knew it. This attempted escape would make him lose all trust and insulted his pride too much. It took me a long time to figure out Jason. At first, he'd been jealous of the attention he suddenly had to share with me. He would slap me or push me down, blaming everything on me and making my life living hell. That settled down a little after few years when he seemed to notice how much help I was. He wasn't nice but during that time I had fewer bruises and he mostly ignored me. When I turned 14 he started to notice me again. I saw him watching me when I was cleaning myself in the river running behind the house, his eyes hungry. That scared me more than pushing around. Once I snapped at him when he slapped my ass when I was cooking dinner for us. “Don't touch me!” I turned to him, furious that he would do that. He was like a brother to me! I instantly regretted speaking up when I saw his gaze darken. Nicolas and Carolina wouldn't stand up to me no matter what he did. Jason leaned close enough to feel his breath on my face when he growled. “You don't tell me what to do, b***h”, I tried to shrink back but his hand gripped my neck with enough force to make me whimper. He stepped even closer, his entire body pressing into mine and I was suddenly very aware of how much taller he was. “Sorry”, my voice was so quiet but still he growled again. His other hand was sliding to my ass again, firmly slapping again. I tried to look down, to submit but his hand on my throat didn't let my head move. “Don't forget again, you're mine. Understand?” I nodded as much as I could and he released me, stepping back. I had just enough time to exhale and believe he was done when he grabbed my arm and pushed it against the hot stove. I screamed as my forearm burned, the pain was unimaginable. He only kept it there for a second but it felt like forever as the hot surface burned me. Then he calmly stepped back and walked away. I fell on the floor as he released my, still sobbing loudly. I tried to cradle my arm but that only hurt more. I stumbled to the sink and turned the cold water on, letting it numb the pain. There was a massive blister on my right arm radiating heat all over. I stood there until Caroline came to fetch the food. She didn't say anything, just sighed in a way that made it clear she thought this was my fault and I was inconveniencing her. He saw me as his property now and even if he'd let me live I'd be locked inside. The image of being locked in the basement kept me moving forward through the pain and I reached the edge of the forest. I was just about to cross the ditch to get to the road when I feel something grab my ankle. A high pitch scream erupted from my throat when Jason pulled me back from my twisted ankle, dragging me on the forest floor.