The Escape

EMMA'S POV

I should have walked this journey a long time ago, but I stupidly waited until my own family betrayed me and things got this ugly. Now my feet feels sore and my bones ache from running.

I had hoped to have crossed the borderline before nightfall, but it's already dark and I am several metres away from the visible line of bonder posts.

While taking this path made my journey a lot longer, avoiding trouble with the pack soldiers that patrol the border at night was more important. Getting caught leaving the pack before being officially banished would earn me a prison sentence. But I was sure I would safely cross to the other side using this path because it's so close to the famous and mysterious Goldenheart Kingdom.

No one expects an attack from the massive Kingdom and there are no rogues that live within its borders. My guess is our pack soldiers do not patrol this area much because it's so close to the golden posts that mark the borderline of Goldenheart Kingdom.

Even in darkness I can see the clear line of long posts that have been painted a golden colour to make them stand out against the green bushes and trees. It really looks like the land of the strongest wolves even from the outside.

As much as it's tempting to turn and head that side I know well that I would only be welcome to be a lowly servant in the Black Mountain pack.

I stop staring at the golden posts and keep running toward the borderline of our pack. The box of clothes and food in my hands feels more heavier now than it was hours ago.

I wonder if the alpha can feel me getting away even if I don't have a wolf. He obviously wouldn't send soldiers to get me back when no one in his pack wants me. So I will be safe from him and his soldiers once I get past the borderline.

This journey would be a lot shorter if I could shift. A wolf's stronger sight would help me see clearer in the darkness. But useless me was probably not worthy of being awarded a wolf. If failure was a person, I imagine it would have my face.

I slow down my pace as the darkness makes it hard for me to see far enough to keep running. My surroundings are starting to look more scarier than a foggy, haunted forest. I don't believe in monsters, but nothing looks the same anymore once it's dark.

How I wish I had the option of going back.

I tighten my grip on the box and try to focus harder on the dark path ahead. I take fast strides until I see three tall shadows pop up several metres ahead. I immediately halt, my heart throbbing so hard that I literally hear the sound.

I want to believe they are just shadows in the dark, but they are moving and we are on the same path! They are definitely people. But no ordinary people would be using this path at night. So they are definitely soldiers! Can they also see me?

My limps suddenly feels like they have been frozen on ice. Unless they are humans with weak sight like mine they must have noticed me already.

I can't get caught now!

Not when I am so close to the borderline. Hiding is the only viable option I have, because I can't run back home and wait to be kicked out of my parent's house and then get banished.

I force my legs to take quiet steps towards the bushes even though I suspect that whoever it is may have seen me.

"Hey lady! Stop right there!" One of the tall silhouettes yells and they all start rushing towards me.

I let go the box of clothes and food and take off.

It's not like I will be needing that box if I am dead.

A new rush of adrenaline is all it takes to get my sore feet moving faster than I thought I could run. I know I can't go back since they will chase me to as far as I can go. So I force my way through the thick bushes, using my hands to push away twigs and smaller branches. They get scratched, but I ignore the pain as I strain to move even faster.

I can hear their heavy footsteps catching up fast. At least they haven't shifted into their wolf form, so there is hope I can outrun them. I no longer have time to carefully scan the way ahead, I just keep moving. There isn't even a clear path anywhere around me as rough branches keep hitting and scratching the sides of my body.

There is no time to attend to the wounds, because I would have a lot more to worry about if those men catch me.

"She's too damn fast!" She must be a fuckin' rogue!" I hear one shout and notice that they are getting closer despite how fast I am running.

Rogues are never arrested, they are killed by whoever catches them. So I am dead if they catch me.

I try to move faster, but my body is finally too tired to add more speed. The adrenaline is waning and I am starting to feel all the pains I should have been feeling from the start.

My chest burns from the cold air I have breathed in and stinging pain shoots from my raw feet. I do my best to block away the pain because I can't stop running.

"The Alpha will reward us if we take her head to him!" I hear another soldier shout in a thrilling voice.

My heart pounds harder, but somehow the fear fails to give me the jolt of adrenaline I need to pick up speed. I am running out of energy to keep my sore feet moving and the soldiers are catching up fast.

There is no doubt they won't stop chasing if there is a reward for killing a rogue. I wonder if they would believe me at all if I told them that I am not a rogue.

I catch a glimpse of something golden as I squeeze through even thicker bushes.

Did I just close the borderline of Goldenheart Kingdom? That would be worse than running back home. The stronger wolves don't like rogues either. And I really don't want to find out what other scary mysteries dwell within the borders of the massive Kingdom.

I have no time to really check whether or not I have crossed that borderline. A tide of terror runs through my body when I hear a wolf's howl not too far behind me.

The soldiers must have shifted to get to me faster. I can't outrun their wolves no matter how much I try. I can only imagine what they will do once they catch me.

The pain in my chest is increasing with each step I take and I finally feel like giving up. They will catch me in the end anyway.

An audible gasp escapes my lips when I run into a trunk of a huge tree with full force. I fall back with a thud and feel the back of my head hit a stone. Pain overwhelmed every other emotion I had. Air is suddenly knocked out of me, leaving my body feeling numb for several seconds. My vision takes almost a minute to clear again.

I hear another growl from the wolves, but this time the sound comes from the spot right beside me. I turn my head and see them.

Three gigantic wolves with eyes glowing in the darkness. Their frightening fangs makes my hurting body jerk up instinctively. I desperately try to crawl away. But they don't let me move a metre away as long crawls sink deep into the flesh of my left leg. I shriek in excruciating pain when the wolf uses those crawls to pull me back to the same spot I had left.

"I am not a rogue! Please... you don't have to kill me!" I stutter, but none of the beasts seems to be listening.

My own mistakes lead me to my death. I should never have tried this escape. Maybe I would have survived being a rogue if I had waited to be officially banished. Now my family will be burying my bloodied head that these cruel wolves will carry to the Alpha thinking they killed a rogue and deserves to be awarded.

I squeeze my eyes shut when the second wolf attacks. It's fangs bite deep into my right shoulder while its sharp crawls sink into my chest.

Pain soars into unbearable heights as both the crawls and teeth tear the flesh on their way. I feel a huge amount of blood wetting my clothes and my life slipping away with it.

It's finally over. I can feel my spirit and body about to part ways. I wonder if Joanne and our parents will be happy to hear the news of my death. They definitely will feel relieved, none will shed a year to mourn my demise. Now no one will ever know that I wasn't the liar my sister made me look like. I will forever be a legendary example of an evil loser, yet I never loved myself half of the way I loved the people that never deserved it.

I feel the wolf suddenly withdraw its crawls and teeth and more blood gushes out. It growls again, but this time it's roar is laced with an unmistakable hint of great fear. I hear their heavy steps retreating as if cowering back from something.

What would three soldiers in their wolf form suddenly be afraid of? They have certainly killed many more rogues before. How would they just leave without the head they wanted to take to the Alpha?

My lungs feels like they have been torn and crushed. I try to breathe in deep and an impossibly sweet, most alluring scent rushes in through my nostils. Nothing in this world can smell so devine. I forget about my pains and sorrow for a moment as I am completely overwhelmed by it's soothing sensation.

"You must be really brave to be doing this in my kingdom." A very angry but quite mesmerizing voice snarls. I have never heard of angels speaking, but I am sure that is what they sound like. Fearless, husky and authoritative.

I force my eyes to open and see a spectacular, dark silhouette with glowing blue eyes standing just a few metres from me. It looks like a figure drawn by a skilled artist, too unnaturally beautiful to be real.

His otherworldly scent keeps getting more prominent and lulling away some of my pain.

Is he my mate?

I must be hallucinating because my body is torn and bleeding and I am dying. My mind is trying to convince me that there is hope while in reality my soul is seconds away from entering into the spirit world of the dead.

Even if what I am seeing were to be true, he has arrived a little too late. I am going to die, even before I learn his name.

"Don't even think of running, you won't get far." He hisses at the three wolves behind me.

Are they really afraid of one man who hasn't shifted into his wolf form? Even a lycan cannot fight three adult wolves unless they are all cowards.

They growl a few times before gaining the courage to rush forward and attack. But they all fall right in front of him, like he took away their strength by some strange means and they can't move an inch farther.

What the f**k is he?

The wolves shift back into their human form and start pleading for his mercy. My death is so near that their voices sound like distant whispers of imaginary beings. My consciousness is also fading, but I keep my eyes focused on the mystery man, curious to see what he will do to the men at his feet. My vision is already getting blurry, soon I will be no more. But I keep watching them.

"We . . . made a . . . mistake! We are . . . so sorry. Forgive us . . . please!" One pleads in a scared voice.

"You don't sound honestly sorry... and I forgive." The beautiful figure replies in a frigid voice. He steps back and away from them and they cry out in panic.

My vision finally goes completely dark but not before I see a massive ball of fire suddenly engulf all three men and their screams fill the air.