AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“No,” he growled, “but I will tell you that your vindication is out in my forest if you can survive long enough to obtain it.”
So, yes, a test. I had to survive whatever awaited me. “Can I have a lighter?”
He tilted his head to the side, thinking it over. “Just this one item. That’s it.” His fingers plucked a metal lighter from his pocket. “Here.”
I took it from him, shoved it deep into the front pocket of my jean shorts, and cracked my neck. Jumping up and down, I prepared my body to run. I had grown cold and stiff in that cell, but now adrenaline began to pulse through my veins. “I’m ready.”
“Bella Hart?”
“Yeah?”
“You might be the first to make it.”
The first? Shit!
He opened the gate, and I rushed past him, running for the stairs, climbing them quickly, and shooting out of the underground cells at nearly top speed. The sudden light almost blinded me, but I forced myself to focus on the line of trees ahead.
And that was when I heard it. Multiple howls. A chorus that rose in pitch and lengthened in duration as if they bayed at the rising sun instead of a moon. I pumped my arms and legs, desperate to reach the edge of the forest.
Undertaker told the truth. I was bait. The hunt had begun, and he invited his entire pack to participate.
I made it to the trees and didn’t stop, knowing I had to keep moving. When I slowed down, they would find me. There was no guarantee they weren’t close now, but I had to try to outrun the wolves.
If I hadn’t known what Undertaker and his club were, this would have been a shock. Crow prepared me for this when he described his bond to his crow. Wolves shared a bond with their human side, too.
My lungs began to burn as I heaved air into them. I couldn’t keep this up. I wasn’t in terrible shape, but I didn’t run marathons either. A painful twitch in my right side slowly got worse as I slowed, pausing for a few seconds to listen. Somewhere, I heard water trickling over rocks.
There had to be a river or a lake close.
If I wanted to survive, I had to mask my scent. I probably smelled like that jail cell, and my clothes stunk. The wolves would pick up on that odor.
It didn’t take long to find the stream that spilled into a lake. I could tell from where I stood on the bank that it was deep in the middle. I’d always been a good swimmer. I decided to take my chances with the water over the wolves.
It was fucking cold as I stepped into it, going slow in order not to splash and cause too many ripples on the surface. The sun would rise high soon, around the time I’d reach the other side. A swim that should wash most of the stench from my clothes. It would be hot, and I’d dry off quickly.
This had to work.
When I finally waded out far enough to submerge my shoulders, I ducked under the surface and began to swim underwater. The temperature didn’t bother me with the consistent movement, but my shoes felt heavy, forcing me to travel slower.
I surfaced before I wanted.
My gaze bounced around the lake, but I didn’t see anyone. No wolves. No animals. Just a clear blue sky, trees, and a bright summer sun. This would have been nice if I wasn’t on the run.
It took five more trips to the surface to reach the other side of the lake. After waiting in the water for long minutes, hovering behind a grouping of large rocks, I finally left it.
I swam toward the shore when I noticed a pathway to the right, hidden mainly by overhanging rocks. It was in the path of the sun, but from both shorelines, I would be hidden from view if I hugged the inside wall of tree roots, rock, and packed dirt.
I waded toward that area, hoping my luck prevailed. My shoes were soaked and squished as I walked, but I was clear of the lake. The heat of the day had risen, and I felt my clothes begin to dry. It wasn’t the most pleasant walk. I chafed a little from the denim shorts, and my feet hurt.
But I was alive. I’d made it this far.
And then a howl rose from the trees ahead.
“DO YOU KNOW WHY THE war with the Dirty Death and my club started?” I asked, glancing between Carson and Sadie.
“Fang’s death,” Carson answered. “Undertaker’s son. From what I understand, it was an accident.”
“It was,” I confirmed, “but shit escalated when Undertaker’s property taxes weren’t paid. He lost his land because my father paid them. Rook owns the deed to a hundred acres of ancestral land that the wolves consider sacred ground.”
