Chapter 4: Strategy is the Key

Gray felt her blood boil. She wasn't to be any man's property. 

"You have thirty seconds to prepare."

A timer appeared on the wall, and Gray's heart raced so fast that it made her sick. She had been preparing this for years, and why did she feel like her mind went numb? And why was she doubting it now? Where was all her strength? Where was her determination to fight back and survive?"

Alice grabbed her hands and forced her to look at her. 

"Hold together, Gray. If we stick together, it will be harder for them to catch us. We're strong fighters. Remember that," Alice told her before clapping before her face to get Gray's attention which worked because Gray blinked and shook her head. 

"It won't work! We're going to be caught anyway! They have a whole week to catch us. It's inevitable," Gray said, unsure. 

"Gray, I need you to focus. What was the use of being defiant a few hours ago? Didn't you say you'll survive for your father? Didn't you promise that you'll see each other again? Would you break your father's heart just because you doubt yourself? You're more than a Haquihana. You're a fighter," Alice said, giving Gray enough courage, which seemingly worked. 

Gray's wide eyes flickered up to where the timer counted ten seconds. She shut her eyes and took a deep breath. Gray had to get through this. She had to see her father again. She had to be the one to take good care of him. 

"Okay, let's do this."

"Good, let's go."

The door started to open, and Alice grabbed Gray's shaking hands. They bolted as soon as the door was up, running side by side but without where they would go. They weren't friends or acquaintances. It's just that they both hate a common Alpha, so they decided to team up. 

With years of training and spent years in the forest, Gray's instinct kicked in, and she quickly surveyed the landscape. 

"Listen, Gray, the element you need to

escape from your pursuer is to hide your scent. There are ways for you to hide it. Option number one is the decaying leaves. You need to bury your body under it, and the natural decaying scent will hide your scent: option number two, water. Most forests have rivers. All you need to do is submerge yourself under the water and hold your breath: option three is animals. Grab yourself any odor-producing animals and rub them all over you. And option number four, mud. Cover your entire body with mud, and it will hide your scent."

Gray remembered all of what her father had told her. Her surroundings were all blurred with the evergreen, green, and brown tree trunks they ran past. 

Once they'd run for what felt like six minutes, they stopped to catch their breath. Gray knew it was risky since she spotted three alphas trailing them not too long ago. Those alphas must have been trailing their scent, but if Gray hadn't let Alice rest for a bit, they wouldn't have continued. 

Alice looked around in awe at the tall trees and sighed. 

"It's beautiful."

Gray nodded. 

"It is, but there's no time to admire the forest. We have maniacs coming for us," Gray replied. 

As bad as the situation was, there was no doubt that their surroundings were quite breathtaking. And why would not? The council owned this forest. Its purpose was for breeding purposes games like this. It was selected meticulously and carefully prepared for this sole reason. Above them was the darkening sky, and that's when Gray reminded herself, they were quickly losing daylight and needed a place to hide. 

"We need to go and find a place for tonight," she told Alice. 

Alice nodded. 

"But the forest is so big, and we don't know where to start," Alice replied, looking around. 

Gray huffed. It was a smart move on the elders' side. Bringing Haquihana wolves from any pack on the skirt of the kingdom who had a little training in the actual wild would mean that their pursuers have an even better chance at catching them sooner. But sadly, Gray had prepared this. She's more than ready. 

By the time the girls had run around four hours, Gray had decided to take a rest and do what the first one his brother told her. Gray started to pick stones of different sizes. 

"What are you going to do with those?"

"Trust me, we'll need this," Gray told her, selecting some stones with sharp edges. 

Although Alice seems clueless about Gray's plan, she takes the biggest stone she can fit in her dress pocket. 

Gray and Alice needed a long rest from running too long. And she knows where that place should be. 

"Do you know how to climb trees?" she asked the clueless Alice. 

"Yes," Alice replied.

Gray heard some pounding of paws closing in their location, so she decided to climb the pine tree that was high and huge enough for them. 

"Start climbing. The maniacs are closing in," Gray said, ushering Alice to climb with their pockets full of stone. 

By Gray's calculation, her scent became potent as the medicine given to her started to kick in. More and more alphas and male wolves would drown in her, so she needed to climb the trees to protect herself from those hungry wolves. 

Wolves can climb trees, but they prefer the ground. Gray knew that. Although wolves can climb, they prefer to wait. And Gray also knew about it. 

"Why did we climb? The wolves will only be waiting for us down," Alice told her. 

"We can't keep running, Alice. We will be exhausted by then. We need to rest here," Gray replied, trying to hide from the thick Pine leaves. 

"Here? On the tree?" Alice was confused. 

"Yes," Gray replied. 

"But wolves can climb," Alice protested. 

"That's why we have stones in our pockets. We can throw stones at them when they decide to follow us up. And they will eventually give up."

"You are so sure," Alice said. 

"Oh, I've trained about it for years," Gray said, smirking.