Chapter 5

Lucia's POV

My back slammed hard against the ground, knocking the air out of me.

I hissed, forcing my body into a sitting position.

Kathy clutched her arm, forcing her feet in my direction. A long scar ran down her face, refusing to heal from the impact of the bomb.

“Kill her,” Kathy hissed, her eyes glaring daggers at me.

“Are you sure that is a bright idea? I mean, you Alpha just proposed marriage to me.”

She faltered for a moment and then, her eyes hardened. “Tie her up.”

The wolves who had not been knocked unconscious by my smoke bombs or bullets tied me up with a thick rope.

One of them sneered at me as he forced a ball of clothing into my mouth.

Kathy stomped on my palm with the heel of her boot. “Rest assured. I will enjoy killing you.”

My eyes darted around me, trying to find a way out.

South City was still far away and I had expressly warned my people never to come into these forests.

My only hope was him. I looked in the direction of his house.

Was there any way I could alert him?

“What are you looking at?” Kathy asked, turning in the direction of my gaze.

As she was distracted, I spat our my gag and jumped forward, biting into the bullet wound on her calf.

She screamed, trying to shove me off but I did not let go until I had taken a chunk out of her leg.

Her other leg kicked my ribs, tossing me away from her.

Even as I wheezed, I had a smile on my face.

I was not dying here today.

Leaves crunched under his boots as he walked past me.

“If I had known that you were so desperate for death, I would have left you to your fate with rhe Alpha.”

I wiped the blood dripping down the side of my mouth. “You're late.”

“Sorry. I had to pack up a few things.”

He toased the two reloads of my bullets that I thought that I had lost to me.

“Thanks,” I said and reloaded my gun.

“Who the hell are you?” Her eyes were narrowed, her posture guarded.

“Not information I should be telling someone who is about to die,” he said, raising his bow to her.

Suddenly, there was a loud thud in the distance.

Our heads all snapped up.

“Shit,” he swore, picking me up and starting to run.

“What's wrong?”

“That was their Alpha,” he explained as he ran. “If he catches us, we are done for.”

“South City!” I exclaimed when the city came into view.

He did not slow down, curving through our streets until we crossed through the first stronghold.

My eyes widened as we came to a stop. “How do you know the roads so well?”

“Instinct,” he said.

“What kind of instinct–”

“Lucia, will you keep questioning me or will you let me take you to the hospital?”

Headlights flashed once, a car driving to us at full speed.

“Lucia!” Peter yelled, jumping out of the car before it was fully parked.

Two cars flanked us on either side, my men getting down and raising their guns.

“Who are you?” Peter snapped.

I raised my hands in front of me. “No. He saved me…wait a minute, what's your name?”

He rolled his eyes, handing me over to Peter. “I have to go.”

“My offer still stands,” I said, stopping him in his tracks. “Join me.”

His hand clenched around his bow. “I will not be your subordinate.”

“I know your strengths well enough not to demand such.”

The silence stretched as I waited for his answer.

“Ryan,” he said and walked back to me. “You keep your end of the bargain. The moment you breathe anything close to an alliance with those beasts, I will kill you and leave.”

Half of my bodyguard cocked their guns. I raised my hand to stop them.

“That's acceptable. But you also cannot wake up and decide that you are done with our arrangement and leave.”

“Sure thing.”

Ryan reached into his bag and pulled out another ball of dirt, forcing it between my lips.

“If you die, our arrangement is off.”

I chewed, watching him walk to the car.

As Ryan opened the car door, his body jerked. In a swift motion, he pulled out two of his arrows and shot into the distance.

There was a muffled huff and then a third.

“Do you have fuel or kerosene?” Ryan asked, already walking in the direction of his prey.

I nodded at my men to listen to him.

“Why?”

Ryan dragged back a large wolf with the help of two other men.

“The tracker wolves have GPS chips embedded in their bodies so they are tracked in real time. I find that fire helps the most in melting the chips.”

We stood to the side, watching smoke waft up to the night sky from the burning body.

“You should also work on changing the entrance to the city,” Ryan said, scanning the terrain.

I would give anything to know what was going through his mind.

“Lucia,” Peter called.

I hummed.

“Where did you find that man?”

Something indecipherable was swirling in Peter's eyes.

“Do you know him?” I asked.

Ryan turned as if he could hear us talking about him. “You should get her to the hospital.”

Peter nodded at him before lowering his voice. “I don't think that man is human.”