Chapter 3

Elvira

I felt water, cold, relentless waves crashing over my body. My lungs burn. My limbs are heavy. Every inch of me is screaming in agony. I don’t know how long I’ve been here, half-submerged, my body battered and bruised. The wounds on my side throb painfully, and I can feel the sickening warmth of infection spreading through my skin. My clothes are torn, soaked with water and blood.

I force my eyes open. The environment around me is blurred, my head spinning. A thick mist hovers over the riverbank, shrouding everything in eerie silence. Where am I? How am I still alive?

I clutch my rib, where the arrow pierced me. The pain is sharp, but I grit my teeth and push myself up. My limbs shake, but I manage to stand.

I need to move. I don’t know where I am. I don’t know where to go. But I have to keep moving. I step forward, my bare feet sinking into the damp ground. The forest looms ahead, dark and still. I stagger into it, hoping, praying, that I find a way out of this nightmare. Then I hear them. Growls.

My body stiffens. I turn just in time to see them emerging from the shadows, rogue wolves. Their eyes gleam in the darkness, hunger and violence dripping from their snarls. Their bodies are thin but strong, their fur matted with dried blood. I barely open my mouth before they lunge. I ran as fast as my legs could carry me.

Pain slices through me with every step. My lungs burn, my vision swims, but I don’t stop. The sound of paws pounding against the grass is too close.

I’m not fast enough.

Something crashes into my back, and I fall hard. My hands scrape against the rough ground, but I don’t have time to feel the pain. The rogue wolves close in around me, teeth bared, ready to rip me apart. I scramble back, my breath ragged. A shadow moves. A scent hits me, blood. Before I can react, someone steps in front of me.

Tall, his eyes silver white. His energy radiates power, an Alpha. His dark hair is damp with sweat and blood, his muscular frame barely covered by tattered clothing. But it’s his eyes that send a shiver down my spine, deep, piercing, and cold. I felt cold sweat on my feet. The rogue wolves hesitated, just for a second.

Bones snap, his body twisting and expanding in mere seconds. A monstrous beast emerges, towering over rogues. Dark fur. His muscles rippled with raw power. His transformation is effortless, terrifying even.

The fight was over in seconds. Never seen someone so fast and strong in my 18 years of living. Blood sprays, snarls turn into screams. One rogue is torn apart, the second follows soon after. The third flees back into the forest.

I press a hand to my mouth, suppressing a gasp. He turned to me. My body screams at me to run, but I’m frozen in place, watching as he turns to me. His piercing gaze locked onto mine, and I felt goosebumps ripple through my body.

I didn't wait, I ran. I don’t care about the pain anymore. I don’t care that my legs can barely hold me up. I climb the nearest tree, my fingers gripping the rough bark as I haul myself up. I stay still, trying not to make a single sound. I clutch my wounded side, blood seeping through my fingers. My breathing is unsteady, but I don’t make a sound.

Then, I heard him speak.

“I can see you.”

I froze, my eyes creeping out. His voice is deep, rough, filled with amusement. Could he really see me?

Slowly, I shift, peering down. My heart leaps to my throat when I see him staring directly into my eyes. I felt my soul leave my body.

“Come down,” he says, arms crossed. “You need to treat your wounds.”

I stay quiet. I might be weak, but at least I’m not dumb. He’s obviously luring me.

“I won’t ask again.” He said, his tone cold.

Silence stretches between us. Then, he turns. He’s leaving. I bite my lip, hesitation clawing at me. Is he really trying to help me?

I look down at my wounded self, I could barely survive one minute by myself, I need help. Before I can second-guess myself, I climb down. But he didn’t stop walking. But when he hears me following, he gestured toward the front.

“Come in front,” he orders.

I don’t. I stay behind him, barely holding up. My vision blurs slightly, exhaustion weighing me down. I can’t pass out, not now.

….

I wake up to warmth. Soft, fresh bandages wrapped around my wounds. A faint scent of cinnamon. I bolt upright, gasping. I glanced at my wounds, they were healed.

“Where am I?” Pain explodes in my head, forcing me to wince.

A soft chuckle makes me snap my eyes open. An elderly woman sits beside me, smiling warmly. Her silver hair is tied neatly behind her head, and her wrinkled hands gently pat mine.

“Easy now,” she says. “You’re safe.”

Safe? I look around, my heart hammering. The room is huge, dimly lit by a lighted candle. The walls are wooden, the bed beneath me soft. My clothes had been changed into a robe. I panicked. Who changed my clothes?

“Where am I?” I ask again, my voice sharper this time.

The woman only smiles, ignoring my question. My stomach tightens, my first thought is Bloodmoon. Did he bring me back? Did Eric and Elijah find me?

I try to move, but the woman presses a gentle hand to my shoulder. That made me panic even more.

“You need to rest.”

“No, I need to leave,” I say, my voice hoarse.

She shakes her head. “You’re in no condition to go anywhere.”

I swallow hard, my mind racing. “Who brought me here?”

The woman’s smile doesn’t falter. I go still, memories from earlier flooding in. My stomach turns. The rogue-killer, the blood-reeking Alpha.

But where is he? I don’t get to ask.

The door creaks open, and heavy footsteps fill the room. I look up to see him walk into the room, I hold my breath as he steps into the light. His piercing eyes settle on me and my blood run cold. And then, he smirks.