BOUND BY FLAMES

Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Laura's pov

I backed away from the window, almost tripping on the stool behind me.

The rumors were true. Dylan was a monster.

I couldn't stay here no matter how beautiful the place was.

I had to find a way to get out of here.

Quickly I arranged my stuff. I'd have to go back to my old pack because now that I had lost all my money, there was no way I could get to my destination.

I hated that I had to go back to my stepmother, but I had no choice anymore at this point. It was better than staying here with a monster that killed so easily.

My hands shook as I began gathering my things. It wasn’t much, just the clothes I had been wearing, a few odds and ends I’d found in the room and the thin blanket I’d slept under. My satchel, my precious coins…the money I had saved up for four years was all gone. I had worked so hard for them. Doing odd jobs just to get them —all of it was gone.

Without money, my plan to reach another pack seemed impossible. Going back to Stacy was my only hope of survival and escaping Dylan.

As much as I despised the thought of returning to Stacy and Viviana, it was better than staying here. I had already witnessed Dylan's anger. That poor man, woman, and child died because of something that had to do with late payment.

He was a sick man and I wanted nothing to do with a man like him.

Tying the blanket around my shoulders like a makeshift cloak, I made my way to the door, opened it, and slipped out of my room.

The hallway was quiet, the dim light casting soft shadows on the walls.

My uncovered feet made no sound as I tiptoed towards the staircase. I had no idea what I was doing. I was going off based on my instincts alone.

The staircase beckoned on me from ahead, and I swallowed hard. If I could just make it past the main door without anyone noticing, I’d be free and before Dylan realized, I'd be long gone and home.

Every step felt like my last, each creak of the floorboards making me anxious.

When I finally reached the main door, I held my breath, slowly turning the handle. I prayed that most of the guards were asleep or this would be a waste of time.

“Where do you think you’re going?” A voice asked from behind me and I froze.

Very slowly, I turned to see Ethan leaning against the wall, his sharp gray eyes fixed on me.

“I—” My voice faltered. “I need fresh air.”

I said and immediately mentally face-palmed myself. That was not a very good cover. I was never particularly the best at coming up with a lie on the spot. I should have thought of that.

He raised an eyebrow, clearly unimpressed by my excuse. “Fresh air? With a blanket tied around your shoulders?”

I bit my lip, my mind trying to find an explanation. “It gets cold at night,” I said weakly. Way to go Laura…

Ethan sighed, pushing off the wall and stepping closer. “You’re terrible at lying, Laura. Just go back to your room before you get yourself into trouble.”

“No,” I said, surprising even myself with the firmness in my voice. “I’m leaving this place. You can’t stop me.”

His eyes narrowed for a second and a moment, I thought he might drag me back upstairs. But then he did a surprising thing, he motioned toward the door as if to say the door was wide open.

“You can go ahead but know that if the Alpha finds you, I won't be there to save you from his wrath.”

That gave me more than enough reason to run away. His wrath?

Yeah, there was no way in hell I was staying behind.

Without wasting a single second, I yanked the door open before he changed his mind and ran, the cold night air hitting my face like a slap.

I didn't stop running until I got to the woods.

The forest was dark and unfamiliar, but I didn’t stop running. Branches scratched at my skin, and my lungs burned as I pushed myself forward. I knew they’d come after me if Dylan realized I was gone, but I didn’t care. I had to get away.

The faint lights of my old pack’s territory came into view just as the first rays of dawn broke through the trees. Relief flooded me as I stumbled into my pack, my legs trembling with absolute fatigue. I had been running for so long.

“Where the hell have you been?” My stepmother’s voice echoed before I saw her waiting just outside our house.

“I—I got lost,” I stammered, my voice shaking. “Rogues captured me, but I managed to escape.” I lied.

Stacy’s eyes narrowed skeptically “Rogues? You barely look scratched.” she sneered.

“I hid,” I lied, lowering my gaze. “It was the only way I could survive.”

Her hand suddenly shot out from nowhere, striking me across the face. The force of it sent me to the ground.

I held the affected side of my face, ignoring the pain that threatened to fall out of my eyes.

“Maybe you should’ve stayed with them,” she hissed, her voice dripping with venom. “You’re useless to me here and thanks to your sloppiness, a patient almost died in my hands.“

The tears I was trying to hold at bay fell. I had expected her to be like this. I had hoped it would be easier after the danger I had been in over the last twenty-four hours, but there was no such luck…

“Go to your room,” she snapped. “And don’t think this means you’re off the hook. You’ll work twice as hard to make up for almost destroying my credibility as a healer.”

I nodded silently and rushed out of her presence, retreating to my tiny room at the back of the house.

The walls felt even smaller than I remembered, the air suffocating. Staying with Dayln, even for a couple of hours, taught me just how small my life was here. If only he wasn't a demon sent from hell, maybe I would have stayed with him.

Sleeping was an entire chore. I kept dreaming about my ruthless mate finding me and torturing me to death.

The next morning, a knock sounded at my door before the door burst wide open, waking me up from sleep.

“Get up,” my stepmother barked as she approached me. “I need more herbs for my patients. And don’t come back empty-handed this time.”

I didn't waste time pulling myself out of bed. I dressed up in something that covered me from head to toe and headed for the woods. On getting there, I quickly picked the herbs my stepmother needed and headed back home.

As I was about to cross the roof, my satchel of herbs fell to the ground.

I bent down to pick it up when the roar of an engine filled my ears.

My head snapped up, and I turned to see a sleek black car speeding toward me down the narrow dirt road.

I barely managed to dive out of the way as the car screeched to a halt.

“What the hell?” I shouted as I pulled myself up, glaring at the sleek car. I couldn't see who was in there because the glass was tinted but I was about to give whoever it was a piece of my mind.

The door to the car opened, and just as I was about to rain insults at him, I froze, my blood running cold in my veins when Dylan, my mate, stepped out.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” I whispered.

He looked just as shocked to see me, his dark eyes narrowing as they locked onto mine.

“Are you okay?” He asked, worrying clouding his eyes.

For a second I stared at him in confusion. Why was he being so nice? Was this a plot of his?

I couldn't tell. I had heard he was a cunning man but what did he hope to gain by pretending he didn't know me?

“No,” I said, taking a step back.

“Is there a healer in this pack I can take you to? You look shell-shocked.”

“I know what you are doing but you won't get me, I'm not going back to your pack, you are a monster and I want nothing to do with you,”

With that, I turned around and ran away.