Sold as the Alpha King's Breeder
Chapter 522 - 25 : The Beast

Chapter 522: Chapter 25 : The Beast

*Lena*

Xander was gone in an instant. I screamed his name, but it was useless. Bethany had just enough time to catch the holstered knife he’d thrown at her before he disappeared in a blur of ripped clothing and fur, his wolf bounding through the woods at an impossible speed.

I cursed loudly, catching up to Bethany in two quick strides as she reached the edge of the mist-covered clearing, her eyes wide with shock, and terror.

“I can’t shift,” I ground out, making eye contact with her.

She nodded, her dark curls trembling around her ears as she swallowed back whatever exclamation was at the tip of her tongue. She handed me the knife without looking at me, her eyes focusing on the direction in which Xander and the beast had gone.

I didn’t know which direction we were facing. I could still see the boundary wall behind us, but that was it. In front of us was a seemingly endless, dark forest.

“The farm is this way,” she said shakily, pointing her finger through the trees. “We can go back–”

“We can’t leave him out here!” I protested, gripping the hilt of the knife as I took it from its sheath, tossing the leather on the ground. “We’re going after Xander.”

I started walking to the edge of the clearing, glancing over my shoulder at Bethany. She gave me a quick, tight nod, then followed.

The woods were dense and completely dark. It was nearly impossible to see where we were going even with pale moonlight filtering through the canopy of trees. Leaves crunched beneath our feet as we followed the frantic trail of scratched dirt and broken, low-lying branches that were left behind when Xander tore after the beast. My heart was in my throat as we walked, eventually meeting up with the boundary wall again.

“The woods continue past the wall for only a mile or so,” Bethany whispered, pointing over the wall.

Stones had recently been broken loose from the upper edge of the wall, which was nearly as tall as me. I could see scratch marks on the stone. Either the beast or Xander had struggled to climb up and over the wall during the chase.

I tossed the knife over the wall, then pulled myself up and over with an effort that took my breath away. I wasn’t the most athletic, but I’d managed just fine. Bethany was up and over the wall in a split second, the muscles of her arms straining as she gingerly climbed back down, entirely more graceful than the awkward fall I’d accomplished.

“I need to shift, Lena. I can’t see their trail any longer. I can pick up their scent if I’m in my wolf form.”

I swallowed back my anxiety about being left out in the woods, alone. Bethany was right. I could no longer see the trail.

“I can carry you on my back,” she added as she began to take off her clothes. “I’m not a very big wolf though, so it won’t be a smooth ride.”

I had a sudden memory of my father taking me on long rides through the countryside in Valoria as a child, my fingers tangled in his chestnut-colored fur. I felt a rush of tears well in the corners of my eyes. I wondered, briefly, if I’d ever see him again, and how stupid I’d been over the last few years by putting distance between myself and my parents.

I blinked as the memory was flooded by our dark reality. Bethany was standing in front of me in her wolf form, her eyes glowing amber in the faded moonlight. I had no way of communicating with her now. I’d have to trust her.

I climbed on her back, holding onto her ruff with one hand while I gripped the knife with the other, and we were off.

She moved in a violent zigzag motion as we traveled through the forest for the last mile of dense trees and rotting, autumn foliage. I held on for dear life as she leaped over felled trees and tangles of thick brambles. She knew where she was going after a few minutes, I could tell. She no longer lifted her long snout to sniff the air. We were on their trail, and I knew it was just a matter of time before we caught up to Xander and his prey.

The sky opened up to us as we reached the edge of the forest. The hills rolled on and on in front of us, pockets of moonlight flooding shallow valleys as Bethany began to sprint into the mysterious new landscape.

I felt oddly claustrophobic, almost like the sky was falling down on me and tightening itself around me in a terrifying embrace. The stars were sharp and clear out here, and several burned an eerie red color above us as we finally closed in on Xander.

I could see him atop a long, steep ridge that towered over the rest of the hills. There were no trees in sight, not a single plant or bush as far as the eye could see. Xander lunged over the other side of the ridge and disappeared, and the space around us suddenly erupted into echoes of whatever battle was taking place just out of sight.

I screamed, unable to help it. Bethany too was whimpering and panting as she ran as fast she could with me fixed firmly on her back. I knew my weight was slowing her down, but it would have taken me ages to run that far on my own.

I wasn’t sure what I saw when we reached the top of the ridge. Xander was pinned to the ground by another wolf, but it didn’t look like any wolf I’d ever seen. Xander’s teeth were white and reflecting in the moonlight as he snarled and snapped his jaws, latching himself on his opponent’s leg, which caused the other wolf to screech and move off Xander as it tried to free itself from his jaw.

I didn’t realize I’d let go of Bethany until I hit the ground. The impact knocked the breath from my lungs. I realized I’d dropped the knife as I clenched my hands into fists, trying in vain to catch my breath. My vision blurred, the stars above my head spinning in a circle as I reached up to feel along the back of my skull. Warmth, wetness. Blood.

Bethany was howling and snarling. Someone yelped, then screeched. I found my bearings just enough to roll to my side, looking down over the ridge at the battle taking place below... but then I started rolling, then tumbling.

Down the hill I went, head over heels, right into the fray.

Rocks cut across my skin and tore my clothes as I tried everything in my power to stop, but it was useless. My feet went right over my head one last time before I came to a stop only a few yards from where Xander and Bethany were battling for their lives against the beast.

I gasped, more from shock than lack of breath, as my eyes traveled over the unearthly creature from close up. Bile rose in my throat as its eyes fixed on mine.

It was nearly hairless, its skin molted and gray, with patches of what looked like mange covering most of its skin. Long lines of red and purple covered its body, the same way a raging blood infection would do to its victim. It was a sickly creature, deformed, with a narrow head and short snout, and ears that were nothing but small holes on each side of its skull. It looked prehistoric, like some long-forgotten creature from the stories my aunts and uncles used to tell us when we were kids, something that existed long before the Moon Goddess cursed our kind with the powers of the wolf.

This was no wolf, not at all.

I was at a loss for words as it looked into my eyes. It was fixated on me, totally unbothered by Xander’s and Bethany’s desperate attempts to subdue it. I felt numb all of the sudden. I felt my body moving against its will. I was crawling toward it, reaching out with one hand to try to touch it...

But then it left my gaze, and I snapped out of my stupor as Xander’s jaw locked around my boot, flinging me backward out of harm’s way.

Bethany screamed. I raised my head in horror as I saw her in her human form, the creature towering over her with its mouth agape. It’s teeth... they were wrong. They were all wrong. Its canine teeth were as long as my palm, shining in the moonlight and sharpened to an edge that seemed impossible as it dipped its head back down and clamped its mouth shut on Bethany’s shoulder.

Xander tackled it and knocked it over, but it was still latched onto Bethany and she was sent flying. I jumped to my feet, watching in horror as she landed several yards away, her body limp and arms outstretched.

Oh, Goddess. She had to be dead. There was no way someone could have survived that kind of trauma. I was running toward her before my mind caught up with my body. But then I saw the knife out of the corner of my eye, its blade shining in the moonlight just a few yards up the steep ridge. I changed course, running as fast as my feet could carry me until I reached the knife.

But in my haste, I’d grabbed it by the blade, and its sharpened edge sliced through my palm. I hissed, clutching the bloodied knife by the hilt as I ran toward Bethany.

Her chest was moving. She was gasping, taking desperate, shallow breaths. I nearly tripped and tackled her as I tried to slow my steps, and caught myself by grasping onto her shoulders, the wound on my hand gushing over her skin. I dropped the knife and grabbed her face between my hands, then wiped the dirt from her mouth. I cursed under my breath as I made a fist with my wounded hand and it held it up over her mouth.

But then I was knocked sideways. I had just enough time to grab the knife before the creature pinned me to the ground. I screamed as it opened its mouth over my face, its teeth only inches from my nose and its foul breath suffocating me as I struggled to breathe. Its massive claws pressed into my belly, curling as they broke through my skin.

Xander’s voice was the last thing I heard before it all went dark. I felt the knife hit something hard as my vision began to blur. I twisted the knife as hard as I could, then let go, my body spiraling into nothingness.

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