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The other one chuckles darkly, circling me with an unsettling swagger. “Yes, rather rude of you to speak to us like that. We don’t take kindly to outsiders being rude.”
I’ve realized that the danger is only escalating, but I still attempt to keep my fear at bay. “I didn’t mean any offense. I’ll leave, just… let me go.”
Their laughter echoes off the narrow walls, like a haunting soundtrack to my growing fear. I look at one of the men, then at the other one, and realize that they are reveling in the power they have over me. Little by little, they continue to close in on me. They don’t want to just intimidate me. No. What they want is much darker than that.
“Leaving won’t be enough, little bird,” the first man sneers, his words sending a chill down my spine. “We need to make sure you remember not to wander into places you don’t belong.”
I walk backward, but I hit a wall and I realize there is nowhere to run, nowhere to hide. I’m trapped here, just like alittle bird in a cage. Suddenly, I remember my bear mace. My hand dives into my pocket and my fingers wrap around the small metal bottle. I extract it quickly, holding it up as a warning.
“Back off!” I shout as loudly as I can, in hopes that someone might hear me and come to my aid, but that hope soon dies out, because I don’t know anyone here. “I’m not afraid to use this!” I shout again.
The men exchange an amused glance, their laughter echoing all around us.
“Oh, look,” the first man says, unfazed by the poor excuse of a weapon in my hand. “The little bird thinks she can fight back. Cute.”
I maintain a shaky grip on the bottle, as the alley seems to narrow and the shadows close in on me, and the men continue to advance towards me.
“What are you gonna do, spray us with your fancy bear mace?” the other one chuckles. “You’re way in over your head, girl.”
I might be able to take one of them out. Scratch him, bite him, kick him, buy myself enough time to run past him. But what about the other one? I can’t take on two men twice my size. It is then that I face a harrowing realization – it is not the bears I should be afraid of, but rather humans.
“Well, that seems rather unfair, doesn’t it?” Suddenly a voice cuts through the darkness, and I see an approaching shadow. “Two grown ass men against a girl. Luckily, I’m here now to even the odds.”
The two men turn around and stare Cal straight in the face. I’ve never been happier to see someone, even if that someone was a stranger to me.
“Now,” Cal says, cracking his knuckles, “are you going to let the girl go or are we going to have a problem?”
The two men exchange a meaningful glance, then the first one beckons the other to go, almost as if they were frightened of him.
“Let’s go,” the man snarls. “She’s not worth it.”
Cal and I watch them go, and I feel as if a huge weight has just been lifted off of me.
“Quite the welcome, huh?” he grins.
I exhale deeply, but that anxiety is still inside of me, and I doubt it’ll leave me as long as I’m here. “Can we just go, please?” I ask, and he turns serious immediately.
“Sure thing,” he replies. “Come on. I’ll walk you to your campsite.”
Chapter Six
Rock
When I check my watch, I realize the whole day has gone by. I spent it lending a hand around the village, noticing that Cal is nowhere to be seen since the morning. I ask around the village if he told anyone of his plans for the day, but all I get in response are head shakes.
As the day’s work concludes, I decide to head toward Elena’s camp. I feel bad. We haven’t really spoken after what happened. I just… left. She didn’t say anything either, but I don’t want her to think that all I wanted was to take advantage of her. Human or bear shifter, respect is something we value highly around here. Hopefully, she knows that, but in case she doesn’t, I’ll just go and tell her that myself.
The path to Elena’s camp takes me through the quiet outskirts of the village, through the cave that serves as a protective barrier against the outside world. The sun dips below the horizon, casting long shadows. The day is slowly coming to an end. As I approach the camp, a knot of worry tightens in my chest. The flickering glow of the campfire reveals two people there.
So that’s where Cal’s been all day?
I approach cautiously, as they’re sitting by the campfire. Elena is laughing. It is a sound I could listen to all day. I suppose that is only one of the reasons Cal is here.
“Hey Rock!” Cal notices me first, raising his hand in a greeting. Elena turns to me as well, offering a warm smile. “Join us. We were just talking about what happened at Pinehaven.”
“What happened?” I ask, taking a seat on Elena’s other side, so that she is sitting between me and Cal.
Elena proceeds to tell me of the unsettling events in Pinehaven. She describes the cold welcome she received from the people in the village, which I’m not all that surprised to hear, because they are not keen on strangers. Still, the encounter with the two men in the inn as well as in the alley makes my blood boil.
