hunting the desert sun. ******COMPLETED******

#21 Cara

Everything inside me was burning. my eyes stung from the smoke and they were barely able to stay open. I needed to find an open door but I couldn't see. the walls were covered in a thick soot from the smoke. I felt my way around touching the walls and hoping I would find a door that wasn't locked. I knew I couldn't last like this for much longer. if I die at least I got to say I loved him. my mind was racing around. I didn't have enough time with him. I had never thought about the life I coukd have had before. I never thought I wanted to have children and to be a mom but what if I did want too and now I was going to die here. all my choices taken from me. I leaned against the wall and slid to the floor.

my breathing was shallow. I coukd feel it slipping away. No! I pushed myself up and made myself push even further. I wasn't going to give up. if I were going to die it was going to be with me fighting. on my finger tips I felt a know. I grasped it hard pushing the door open. the room was dark. it was a small apartment with only one bedroom and bathroom. "they call these family apartments? geeze humans treat their own kind like animals." there was a small window in the make shift living room and I ran to it finally hope rising inside of me. the window opened easily. "Thank you Moon Goddess!" I peeked out the window looking around to see if there was any way I coukd jump from this high up. I took in a deep breath of the fresh desert air. it was cool as I took in more filling my lungs with as much oxygen as I could. I pulled myself back in looking around to see if there was anything I could use to help me escape. there wasn't much to the place. whoever lived there before hadn't had much. I sighed deeply. I was going to have to jump without any help. I knew the risks. I knew I was not a shifter. I closed my eyes and then decided I had to do it.

the building started creaking and then it hit me. a loud explosion that through towards the window. I closed my eyes again and tucked my body in as close I could. I felt myself thrown out the window. I was falling. I felt a sense of weightlessness as I flew through the night sky. there was nothing I could do. I was helpless. I heard shouting under me as I fell through the sky then I felt myself start to fall. I knew this was going to hurt. I embraced myself as I became like a lead weight falling towards the ground. then I felt arms grabbing me before I hit the ground. we tumbled to the ground and then I allowed myself to lay still for a brief moment. I was safe. I sat up still on the ground. Alpha Gray lay there next to me. He had saved my life. he wasn't moving. moving closer to him to see if he was breathing his eyes shot open. "holy s**t!" I jumped back as he started to laugh.

"you ok princess?"

"is Liam ok? where is he?" I tried getting up to my feet but my legs gave out underneath me. my body was screaming at me to rest but I needed to see Liam. to touch him and tell him I loved him. "he is fine. he is on the other side of the building." the building was still falling in on itself causing a thunderous noise with each layer that dropped.

I slumped back down closing my eyes. " I was about to jump but then there was an explosion. I was thrown out the window." I was taking in fresh air as I lay there letting my body rest before I went to Liam. "thanks for being my pillow."

"kind of glad you didn't have me killed now aren't you." I started laughing at his joke. I was glad I didn't have him killed. "we should get you to Liam. I'm sure he is going crazy after all of this." we stood up and I brushed off the dirt from my hands. I could see my clothes covered in the black soot. I knew I looked like a mess. I could still smell the smoke swirling around me. The fire was crackling and roaring as it burned on inside the building.

"Come on Alpha. Let's go get my mate. I can feel he is suffering. He is angry. It's not like anything I have ever felt before. It's blocking me from mindlinking him." With a nod of his head we were running to the other side of the building. The warriors were standing there in complete shock. I looked around looking for Liam but I didn't see him anywhere. I called out to one of the warriors standing there still dumbfounded by wha they were seeing. The fires intensity was casting a glow on the sky and the heat was surounding every one there. i could hear sirens off in the distance. "Where is Beta Liam?"

The warrior turned to me and the Alpha as we stood there waiting for him to answer."He left. After the explosion. He took off." I looked at him still trying to take in what he said.

It was like a knife peircing my heart. He left. "Why would he leave.?"

The warrior moved closer to us as we stood there. "He was seeking revenge. He thought.. we all thought you were dead." I sank to the desert floor clutching my heart. All of a sudden I could feel his pain. His anger was choking me and my heart felt like it was shattering. He was so entranced in his grief and pain he could no longer feel me at all but I could feel him. Every bit of his emotions were coursing through my veins. I needed to find him. He need to know I was alive nd that I was ok.

"Alpha, I need you to try and mindlink him. Hurry! He has shut me out in his grief."

"I will try but he may have shut us all out." I saw his eyes roll back into his head. It felt like I had been waiting for hours. The Alpha's eyes focused back on me. There was a saddness in his eyes I had never seen before."I can't get him to answer. He has shut us all out. We need to find him before he is completley lost." I started running to his Suv not even stopping to check if he was behind me.

"I am going to need your nose to find him! Hurry!"

He shook his head at me. I was growing impatient as he stalled. "I will need to shift and search for him as my wolf. You are welcome to ride my wolf. Iknow that sounds awkward given our history but it woud be easier to find him in that form." I shook my head and came towards him as he changed effortlessly into his massive black wolf. He knelt down bending low enough for me to climb on his back. I didn't waste any time climbing on and digging my hands into his silky fur. Holding on tightly he reared up and began running the warriors keeping pace behind us. I could hear the paws pounding the desert sand as we ran. The alpha was sniffing the air and pausing every so often to make sure he still could scent Liam. I could still feel his anger like I could feel my own heartbeat.

I knew we had little time. Liam was in danger of losing his humanity. Losing a mate did tings to a shifter. I knew because I had to hunt them before when they went rogue. I knew what would happn as the wolf took over and the man no longer existed. The beast would become ferral. I had never heard of the human side of the wolf coming back after turning. I wasn't even sure it could be done.