The Red Wolf

Buzz

The ground was a blur beneath my feet. My legs moved in perfect sync with my body, the rhythm of my stride effortless, like I had done this a thousand times before. I had always loved running—always faster than anyone around me, even Bailey and Stella as kids. I was built for this. But this wasn’t just a normal run. This was a race against something that wasn’t human.

Ronan’s hand was firm around my wrist, pulling me forward, but I was already keeping up with him—my pace matching his as the terrain flew past us, the trees flashing by in a blur of green.

The wolves behind us were closing in, fast and silent, their coordinated movements eerily precise. I could hear their breaths, their paws slapping the earth, the air vibrating with their presence. Every instinct in my body screamed that we had to keep going, faster, harder.

I pushed myself further, the adrenaline in my veins surging. The wild energy of the run was familiar, but the hunt behind us made it all the more urgent.

Then—chaos.

Out of nowhere, a blur of fur slammed into the pack behind us, knocking them off course in an explosion of snarls and teeth. The sound of the fight was almost deafening—the snap of jaws, the vicious growls, and the unrelenting clash of bodies. It was a blur of motion, a chaotic storm of wolves fighting wolves.

Ronan jerked me forward. “Keep running,” he grunted, his voice tight with the same urgency I felt.

We pushed through the thick trees, my feet pounding the earth as we sprinted away from the fray. The wolves were no longer right behind us, but the weight of what had just happened lingered, a tension I couldn’t shake.

We reached an old shack—overgrown, abandoned, hidden in the trees. Ronan yanked the door open and ushered me inside, the cool, musty air of the structure hitting me like a wall. The silence that followed was deafening.

I pressed my back to the wall, breathing hard, my chest heaving with each inhale. The crash of adrenaline that had been keeping me going was starting to wear off, and suddenly, everything felt too much. Too loud.

I could hear every creak of the wood around me. The distant rustle of leaves. The faintest shift in the air. My own heartbeat thundered in my ears, and the taste of the dirt in my mouth was intense. Everything was too much.

“s**t,” I muttered under my breath, trying to steady myself. “It’s like… too much.”

Ronan’s eyes flickered to me, a look so deep that I could feel it in my chest. “What do you mean?”

I swallowed hard. “My senses. They’re… it’s all too loud. Too specific. Everything’s too much right now.”

Ronan didn’t press. Instead, he took a small step toward me, his voice soft and steady. “Focus on something,” he said. “Anything. Just focus on one thing.”

I met his eyes, confusion flickering through me. “What?”

“Focus on something small,” he repeated, his tone calm, almost soothing. “The sound of my voice. The rhythm of your breath. Just… something.”

I blinked, a little stunned at how easy his words were to follow. For a moment, I didn’t know why it felt so natural to listen to him. But I nodded, trying to focus.

My breath came in slowly, deliberately. I listened to the air as it moved in and out of my lungs, the steady rhythm grounding me. The chaos of my senses started to quiet, the overwhelming flood of sounds fading into the background.

I took another deep breath and let the tension in my shoulders ease. It was like… he had a way of cutting through the noise.

I was surprised how quickly I felt better, how easily his voice helped ground me. I had been drowning in everything, but now? Now, the world felt manageable again. I almost didn’t realize how much I had needed that.

“Better?” Ronan’s voice was quiet, but there was a soft edge to it, like he was actually checking in.

I nodded, still trying to settle the pounding in my head. “Yeah. A lot better.”

The tension between us shifted, something unspoken passing between us. I glanced up at him again, and this time, I didn’t feel the usual unease. There was a sense of comfort in the silence, an ease that had never been there before. It was strange, considering how much danger we had just escaped, but in that moment, I felt… safe.

Ronan stepped back, turning to the doorway like he was listening for something, but his focus was still on me. “You’re good. We’re safe here.”

I couldn’t help but stare at him for a moment, watching the way his body seemed to relax, like everything about him was in control. I couldn’t quite place the feeling it stirred in me, but there was something about him that made me feel… calm.

“So,” I said, breaking the silence, my voice a little lighter than before, “that was… insane.”

Ronan didn’t look at me right away, his eyes still scanning the outside. “You handled it well.”

I laughed softly, still trying to catch my breath. “Yeah, well, I’ve always been fast. But I didn’t think I’d be outrunning wolves today.”

His lips quirked in a half-smile, but there was something else in his gaze, something I couldn’t quite read. “You kept up with me better than I expected.”

I raised an eyebrow. “You’re not so bad yourself.”

Ronan didn’t smile this time. His expression shifted to something else, something serious. “You’re not just keeping up with me, Maya. You’re faster than you think.”

I froze, my breath catching. There was something in his tone—something that felt off. But he wasn’t looking at me when he said it, and I wasn’t sure how to process it.

Before I could ask him what he meant, he shook his head, like he’d already decided to move past it. “Don’t worry about it.”

I opened my mouth to say something, but my words caught in my throat. The uneasy feeling that had settled in my chest didn’t dissipate, but I let it go—for now.

Instead, I let the silence fill the space between us again, the quiet so much more comfortable than I expected. And as I stood there, still feeling the buzz of adrenaline in my veins, I realized something.

I should be more afraid. After everything that had just happened—after the chase, the wolves, the chaos—I should be terrified. But I wasn’t.

I felt… safe. And, for the first time, I knew why. It was because of him.