Blood on the Ridge
933 Words
Chapter 6 – Blood on the Ridge
Anna
I ran.
My legs burned, but I didn’t stop. The howls behind us were growing louder—more than one. My breath came in ragged gasps, the cold air cutting my lungs as Richard’s tall frame moved like a shadow ahead of me, fast and lethal.
The trees blurred as we reached the northern ridge. My heart stopped at the sight.
Three wolves stood at the border, their coats a sickly gray-brown. Rogues.
But it wasn’t just the sight of them that made my stomach twist.
It was the fourth figure. A man. Human. With blood on his shirt... and a twisted smirk on his face.
My knees buckled.
Him.
“Alpha Kenneth sends his regards,” the man sneered, his voice dripping with venom. “You’ve got something of his. Or should I say… someone.”
My blood went ice cold.
Richard stepped in front of me like a wall, growling low. “If you value your life, you’ll turn around now.”
The man’s smile widened. “Oh, I don’t think so. See, she belongs to the Blood Ash Pack. You know the rules, Alpha. A stolen Luna must be returned.”
“She’s not yours to claim,” Richard snapped. “She’s mine.”
The words sent a shock through me. Mine.
I watched as his body trembled, on the edge of shifting, his beast barely restrained. I wanted to run, but my legs were frozen. My past had caught up. Faster than I thought it would.
“You don’t understand,” I whispered. “That man… that’s Alpha Kenneth’s Beta. Mason. He’s the one who—” My voice cracked. “He hurt me.”
Richard didn’t flinch. He simply said, “Then I’ll kill him.”
Richard
I’d never known rage like this. Not even in battle.
The moment she said his name, my vision tinted red. My wolf clawed at my skin, furious, protective, wild.
The rogues were nothing to me. I could tear them apart in seconds.
But this Mason… he was human. I couldn’t shift for him. No—he deserved to face me, not my beast.
I stepped forward slowly. “You have one chance to walk away.”
Mason raised a gun. Old-fashioned. Silver bullets.
Coward.
“I came for the girl. Not you.”
I lunged.
He fired.
The shot rang through the trees—loud, sharp.
Pain exploded in my side.
But I didn’t stop.
I tackled him to the ground, ripping the gun from his hand and slamming my fist into his jaw. Again. And again. Blood splattered the snow-dusted leaves.
“RICHARD!” Anna’s scream cut through my rage.
I turned. One of the rogues had gotten past the barrier—heading straight for her.
Anna
I didn’t think—I ran.
But the rogue was faster. Fangs bared, yellow eyes locked on mine, he pounced.
Time slowed.
Then, a blur of black fur collided with the rogue mid-air, knocking him to the ground.
It was a wolf. Huge. Midnight black.
It wasn’t Richard.
Someone else had shifted.
The rogue yelped, tried to retreat, but the black wolf ripped into him, tearing muscle from bone.
I stumbled back, shaking, unsure if I should run or help. Mason was groaning on the ground, blood pooling under his head, and Richard was crouched beside him, panting, bleeding from his side.
"Anna," he said, voice hoarse, "Come here."
I dropped to my knees beside him, pressing my hands to his wound. Warm, wet blood soaked through my fingers.
"I can heal you," I said, though I didn’t know how.
"You already are," he whispered.
The black wolf shifted mid-step, its body twisting and reforming into a tall, muscular man with olive skin and piercing gray eyes. He was naked, scarred, and grinning like a madman.
"Nice to meet you, Luna," he said, bowing low. "Name’s Kael. Guess I’m just in time."
Richard
Kael.
Damn him.
Always showing up at the worst—and best—moments.
"Thanks," I muttered through gritted teeth.
Kael winked. "You can thank me by not bleeding out before dinner."
I looked at Anna. Her face was pale, her hands slick with my blood. She wasn’t shaking anymore—just focused. Present.
The girl who had trembled earlier was gone.
"I have to take her back," I said to Kael. "Can you secure the ridge?"
Kael nodded, already shifting again.
Anna helped me up. She wasn’t strong, but she was determined. She looped my arm over her shoulders, dragging me slowly back toward the path.
Every step was agony, but I didn’t care.
She had stayed.
Even when the past came back for her.
Even when I was hit.
She stayed.
Anna
Richard collapsed onto the bed in the guest house, blood still seeping from the makeshift bandage I’d tied with torn bedsheets.
I sat beside him, holding his hand.
"You didn’t have to get shot for me," I whispered, voice shaking now that it was over.
"I’d take a bullet for you every time," he said, eyes fluttering closed.
I kissed his knuckles softly, heart aching.
He’d fought for me.
Chose me.
Bled for me.
For the first time in my life, I felt claimed. Not as a possession. But as someone worthy.
But then—
A soft knock at the door.
I opened it.
And froze.
A man stood there—tall, regal, with black hair and cruel, familiar eyes.
He smiled.
“Hello, Princess.”
The world tilted.
My vision blurred.
And then—
Everything went black
- Writer
