Page 46 of Hunt Me

“You’re expecting some fantastical story, but there’s not much to it. He was mid-shift when he barreled into me, sending us both crashing through the door. We attacked each other in the hall, both exchanging blows—”

“Get to the good part where you got this,” she demanded, tapping a finger to his chest.

“Be patient. I’m getting there.” She pouted. He found it adorable and tried to kiss the frown off her lips until she pinched his nipple. He hissed from the brief pain, but her message was received. “I was distracted when Prince Lykaon dispatched more wolves to find you. That’s when I earned this,” he said, motioning to his scar. “At that point, I was livid and disemboweled him.”

Matilda’s expression went slack.

“Is—”

“Unfortunately, he still lives, and I’m certain we will be going to war with the wolves once they’ve found their balls.”

“All because of me?” Matilda squeaked out.

“You’re self-absorbed. Are you aware of that?”

“It’s my middle name.”

Luka rolled his eyes and turned her away from him. She moaned when he began to massage her tense shoulders.

“You were the tipping point but not the sole reason. We’ve had ongoing skirmishes with the wolves for—”

Luka froze.

“What’s the matter?” She received her answer a second later when a vicious howl rumbled through the forest. It was followed by at least nine other howls.

“Wolves? How did they get here?”

“Get dressed. Quickly!”

18

Huntress vs Werewolf

Matilda barely had her knives in hand when Luka swept her into his arms. They didn’t make it past the icy tree line when a barrage of arrows penetrated through.

“I do not wish to alarm you, Tilda, but I don’t think we’ll make the journey back to the castle.”

“Why? What happened?” she asked frantically.

“T-the arrows… poison…,” he stammered.

Then Matilda felt it—a sticky warmth seeping against her side. She swallowed a large lump in her throat before asking, “How many?”

“Three,” Luka replied, fighting to get the words out.

“Take us to the ground. We won’t make it.”

“We can—”

“We can’t. We’re too far from the castle, and the arrows need to come out as soon as possible. Take us to the ground.”

Luka stubbornly shook his head. “I need… I need—”

Between the pain and the delirium that was settling in, he couldn’t string together the words to form a sentence. It wasn’t until black dots clouded his vision that he realized Matilda was right. His chest ached, and he was unsure if it was from the poison rapidly streaming through his body or if it was a mixture of disappointment, guilt, sadness, and inadequacy that he once again failed to protect his queen.

“You need to do as I say, Luka. We may have a chance of surviving if I fight, but we won’t if we crash and burn,” Matilda said, putting their dire situation in perspective.

Reluctantly, he agreed and used the last of his energy to float them safely to the ground.