A Fatal Bond

Chapter 02 - Think Fast!

Aerilyn

“She’s the one.”

The words shot through me like ice.

The two men stood up from their seat slowly, their scary eyes never leaving mine as they advanced towards me. Then the other men followed, abandoning their meal and coming for their new prize.

Me.

I took a few steps back, my eyes scanning the threat. They were six in number, all of them looking hefty, dangerous and supernatural. I heard a low growl coming from them and my eyes followed four as claws extended from their hands.

And the remaining pulled blades from their belts.

A cold sweat trickled down my spine.

I knew I couldn't fight all of them; they’d rip my flesh before I even got a chance to land a punch. I took a step back and they advanced towards me.

“Don't be scared, girl,” one of them said, flashing his rotten teeth in a crooked smile. “We just want the gold.”

Run.

My legs began moving as soon as the thought came. I sprinted into the alley, my hunger, my money, and my food completely forgotten.

Boots pounded, and people shouted.

“She’s on the poster! That’s her!”

“Stop her.”

“Don’t let her get away.”

“That’s my money getting away.”

I tore through the crowd, shoving bodies out of my way, my heart slamming in my chest.

I heard their shouts, curses and the commotion they caused behind me, but I didn’t dare to look back. I turned left, ducking into a narrow alley between two broken buildings. Trash crunched under my boots, and the walls closed in tight.

But I had mastered the in and out of the undercity and I knew these paths. I’d escaped through here before.

“Split up!” Someone yelled. “Don’t let her out of sight.”

I kept running.

I leapt over a pile of crates and dodged a drunk passed out beside a leaking pipe. My legs burned, but I didn’t stop. I couldn’t.

If they caught me, I was dead.

Or worse, delivered to Lucian.

A sharp pain hit my side as I twisted around another corner, nearly losing my balance. A hand grabbed my coat, but I slipped free and the fabric tore.

“You little b***h!” A voice growled behind me.

Keep going.

Air burned in my lungs and my legs screamed, but I didn’t care.

I flew past a broken fence, jumped it, hit the ground and kept running.

“Cut her off! Go around!” Another voice shouted.

They were everywhere.

I turned again, sharper this time, and crashed into an old trash bin. Pain shot in my side, but I didn’t stop.

I knew every nook and cranny of these alleys.

They didn’t.

I slipped into a tight gap between two walls and climbed up a short ladder. My hands burned like hell, but I didn’t stop. I rolled over the top and jumped down into a dark alley behind a building.

I hid behind a trash bin, holding my breath. The sound of their boots and their shouts had faded.

There was only silence.

They’d lost me.

For now.

My heartbeat thudded loudly in my ears and my breath came in sharp, but I forced it to quiet down.

After a while of staying still, I was certain that they were all gone. I pulled my hood down as far as it would go, and stood up cautiously.

I walked in the shadows for a while, completely avoiding the streets and the crowd, till the rusty fence that guarded the old junkyard which had been my home for the past twelve years came into view.

I slipped behind it gently, clutching my aching side.

The familiar rusty smell of the dark junkyard filled my nose as I stepped into it. It was dark and quiet, just the way I liked it.

I ran past rusted cars and broken machines. My feet crunched on glass and metal, but I didn’t stop. I didn’t look back.

I ducked behind a bent metal fence and rushed to the back corner, my corner.

A blue shipping container sat at the edge of the junkyard, its door scratched and dented, and the paint almost gone. It looked like junk, like everything else here. But to me, it was home.

No one ever came near it. No one cared.

I yanked the door open, slipped inside, and slammed it shut. It was dark, cold, and safe.

I leaned against the wall, breathing hard. My side hurt, my legs felt weak, and sweat dripped down my neck.

I gripped my side, cursing silently at my inability to heal fast like every other werewolf.

I could’ve died out there.

The undercity wasn’t safe for me anymore. Infact, nowhere in this whole city was safe for me.

I pushed off the wall and dropped to my knees, pulling out my stash box from the corner. It was an old crate, filled with everything I’d stolen and saved over the years.

My hands shook as I opened it.

I found a cracked watch. A fake ring. A few coins. A dagger with a chipped blade. A wolf fang dipped in gold.

All of it was worthless, or close to worthless.

I cursed under my breath. I needed more. I needed something valuable. Something that I could sell and it’d give me enough money to escape the city for good.

And I needed it fast.

I cursed under my breath and moved to the second stash hidden under the floorboards. I ripped the metal sheet up and pulled out the pouch I hadn’t touched in months.

I opened it fast.

I found a blood-red ruby. A gold cuff. Three rings. A glowing vial. A forged ID from the uppercity.

I stared at the things, my heart pounding.

Would it be enough? Could I buy my way out of this city with these items?

Because now, I had no choice. I had to run before the whole undercity would turn into hunters. Everyone would be looking for me. For the gold. For the reward.

Twelve years of hiding. Twelve years of stealing. Twelve years of running from his shadow.

And now, he had found me.

The gold would turn friends into enemies, and strangers into monsters. No one would protect me.

I was prey now.

I poured the items from both pouches onto the metal floor, picking them out one by one. I squinted at them as I examined each piece under the weak lamp on my worn out bed. My mind worked fast, trying to guess their worth.

My hopes came crashing down when I realized that they weren’t even worth enough to transport me to the port, let alone out of the city.

I sighed, rubbing my hands through my hair, gripping it for a second as if holding my head together would stop it from spinning.

All these years of running. For what? So I could die in the dirt like a stray dog?

I pressed my palms on my eyes. For a moment, I wished I’d never run. I wished that Lucian had just killed me with my parents.

But no, I wouldn’t die here.

Then a dangerous, but bright, thought hit me.

I had to steal something—something big. Something worth more than all this junk combined.

And I had to do it tonight.

I sat still for a moment, listening to the wind whistle through the cracks on the walls.

In my head, I drafted out a simple, but risky, plan; steal tonight, sell it in the morning and leave the city immediately afterwards.

The thought calmed my heart just a little.

That was it.

One last job.

Then I disappeared for good.

And the best place to carry out this job was Club Pandemonium.

With my mind made up, I stood up from the ground. Washed my dirty body and got dressed, disguised in a red dress and blonde wig that I reserve for special occasions—like this one.

Club Pandemonium stank of sweat, smoke and something I couldn’t name.

The music was too loud and disco lights flashed across the bodies that moved on the dance floor. I walked in slowly, pretending to belong. My dress clung to my body like a second skin, and my wig itchy under the heat, but I held my head high, trying to look expensive.

But the deeper I went, the faster my hope faded.

There was nothing here.

No jewel. No rich drunks wearing gold or flashing money. Just addicts, drunk wolves and perverts, making my stomach curl in disgust.

I turned around fast, anger burning in my chest. I was wasting time. My side ached and my body screamed for rest, but I just needed to get out.

I stepped outside, grateful to escape the heat.

“Wait.”

I heard a low, cold voice behind me, and I froze.

A man stood in my way. He was tall, built like a tank with yellow wolf eyes staring down at me. His lips curled up in a slow, cruel smile.

He held a crumpled wanted poster to my face and my face stared back at me.

“She’s the one,” he said.

Shit.

I shook my head. “That’s not me,” I said, backing away. “You’ve got the wrong girl—”

But he moved fast.

Before I could run, he grabbed me by the arm. I jerked back, but he held on tightly.

With his other hand, he yanked off my wig and my real hair tumbled down my back.

People turned to look.

No. No. No.

I struggled, clawing at his arm and kicking at his legs.

“Let me go!” I screamed. “Get off me!”

But he was too strong. His arm locked around me like steel, lifting me off the ground and taking me to the other side of the dimly lit street and he slammed my back against the wall.

I gasped. The pain in my ribs almost knocked me out.

He leaned close. His breath stank of blood and liquor.

“You know,” he said in a low, sickly sweet voice. “They said dead or alive.”

He grinned.

“I could kill you right now and still get paid.”

My blood ran cold. “No. Please—”

He raised his hand and long, deadly, curved nails slid out of his fingers, ready to strike.

My entire life flashed in front of me.

I squeezed my eyes shut, ready to accept my fate.

This was it.

This was how my life was going to end.