Chapter 1

Anastasia’s POV

The wind blew my hair in all directions as I ran as fast as I could from my captors. I only had a few minutes to get over the barrier before they could track my scent again. If it hadn’t been for that cocky meathead guard, I don’t think I would have ever escaped. Who knew challenging him to an arm wrestling match would work in my favor?

My heart was racing in my chest and my lungs were burning. My legs felt weak and brittle, but I couldn’t stop running. I had to make it. If I stayed here any longer, I knew I wouldn’t survive another day. The trees broke and the barrier was in clear view now. Just when I thought I would finally be free, a howl sounded in the distance and more howls joined in. He must have noticed I was gone. I push my legs to run even faster.

I couldn’t let him catch me. Not again. My coven and I were a peaceful bunch. We keep to ourselves and would help others if they needed. There was a time when we were able to mingle freely between the humans and the wolves until unexplained deaths began to surface.

The wolves didn’t mind at first because it was only humans. That was until wolves began to turn up dead as well. Witches were blamed automatically, of course. We thought that we could continue to ignore the war between the witches and the wolves.

We chose to stay out of it, but the wolves didn’t care if you participated or not. They only knew hate. Our coven remained visible to the outside world until the year I turned 10. We were attacked, losing many of our people, including my parents. That’s when our High Priestess decided that it was safest to cloak our coven.

Had I stayed within the boarders of my coven, I wouldn’t have come in contact with the Silver Moon pack. I had only ventured a few feet south of the boarder when he caught me.

He held me captive for two years! Two years his entire pack abused me in ways unimaginable. For two years I was forced to do his bidding. I was a green witch. I followed specific laws with my magic, but for the past two years, I had no choice but to forget those laws. My magic was ment to heal, not hurt but I had no choice.

I couldn’t go back to that. I couldn’t hurt anyone else. I couldn’t do that anymore. I was only a few meters away from the barrier when suddenly, wolves came running towards me, breaking through the trees. I was running as fast as I could, but they were faster. My heart jumped into my throat as they grew closer.

Finally, I made it. I was halfway through the barrier when I felt a sharp pain rip through my side. I screamed. My body was yanked back. I was being pulled away from the barrier. One of the wolves managed to sink their teeth into me as I was crossing.

I tried to crawl away but it was useless. I surged up just enough energy to use the earth around me. The ground broke as the roots of the trees rose up and grabbed hold of the wolf that held onto me. It whimpered and let me go as I made the roots squeeze. Free again, I took off running, ignoring how much blood I was losing, and ignoring the pain.

The wolves stopped chasing as they all focused on ripping away at the root that held one of their friends prisoner. I reached the barrier and ran right through it. I didn’t stop running until I reached the road. My feet were bare and they felt raw on the cement surface. Now that I was past the barrier, my Coven should be able to track me.

I had to catch my breath before I started moving again. I couldn’t stay on the road, it wasn’t safe. He could easily get in a car and come look for me. I had to think, but my vision was getting patchy. I knew it was from the blood I was losing, but I needed to get off the road. If I could get to the trees, I could use the earth to mask my scent.

I managed to get across to the other side and the earth welcomed me. I walked as deep as I could into the trees, and found a spot up against an old oak tree to rest against. My breathing was labored now. I needed to stop the bleeding. There was yarrow all around me, so I collected as much as I could. Using my magic, I pulled the water from the damp morning grass and made a paste.

I ripped the fabric from the hem of my now bloodied dress and used it as a wrap. The bite wound wasn’t as big as it felt, so it was just enough paste made.

After I patched myself up, I rested back against the tree and used every bit of magic I had left to cover myself in leaves and vines, camouflaging myself from the eyes of anyone. Allowing the soil to mask my scent. The ground beneath me swallowed me whole and I accepted the protection the trees roots gave to me.

A wolf running by wouldn’t be able to detect me and that was perfect. I just needed enough time to rest. Just to catch my breath while I waited for my coven to find me. I just hoped they would find me before it was too late. My body felt limp, and I was loosing energy fast. I knew that soon my present state would become a faded memory.