Betrayed by the Alpha, Redeemed by the moon

Chapter 3

Aria

The sound of crunching leaves beneath footsteps was the first sound I heard. I snapped to attention, my muscles screaming at me as I shot up into the air.

Dizziness made my brain swim, and I had to take a moment to realize where I was. The forest. The escape. I had run... run till my legs failed me, and I had fallen here, in the middle of nowhere, hoping that fatigue would overcome me, and I would stay unconscious for a few hours.

I couldn’t afford to sleep anymore.

Panic coursed through my veins as the events of yesterday came flooding back to me like a slap in the face. Mason’s dungeon. The escape. The forest. The wolves chasing me.

I heard my heartbeat in my ears and I leaned in to listen more. The footsteps were approaching and I heard low whispering in the far.

They were coming.

I anxiously glanced around, trying to figure out what to do, my thoughts racing. The thick branches of the massive trees towered over me, entwined like a web, yet there wasn't any undergrowth to provide any shelter.

The voices grew louder now, and I caught snatches of their conversation.

“I can smell her. She’s close.”

“Her scent’s fresh…she’s up ahead.”

Every nerve in my body went cold. There wasn’t time to think. I propelled myself upwards off the ground, my legs wobbling beneath me as I forced them to do their job. I had to get out of here, now.

However I could not shake off the weariness that gnawed at my very bones and I stumbled blindly through the forest, my bare feet sliding on the moss-encrusted rocks as I ran.

Branches slapped against my face, and sharp thorns scraped against my skin, but I didn’t stop. I couldn’t. Now I heard them, the wolves, their voices becoming clearer, more defined, behind me. They were gaining on me.

I stumbled over a fallen log and felt a stinging agony shoot through my ankle, but I grabbed myself before I hit the ground. I was breathing heavily and had trouble seeing due to fatigue, but I persisted, fighting my wailing muscles with every stride.

And suddenly, far out in the gentle morning light, I saw it: a large stream meandering through the forest, like a ribbon made of silver. It was so wide and quick and so deep, but I did not hesitate.

All of my instincts told me to run, to just keep on running, and so without thinking, I took off towards the water.

The cold hit me in the face, the breath out of my lungs, the current pulling me under. The icy water wrapped around me, dragging me under, but I fought against the panic rising in my chest.

I had to stay submerged, had to stay hidden. My heart pounded in my ears as I kicked my legs, forcing myself deeper into the stream.

The water covered my scent, and the wolves couldn't find me. But it also threatened to drag me away, the current strong and unforgiving.

My lungs burned as I held my breath, my chest tight with the strain. When I couldn't possibly take anymore, I heard them.

“We’re close. She’s gotta be nearby.”

“I can’t smell her anymore. It stops here.”

My body went numb because the voices came from just above the stream, a couple of feet above where I was in the water. I submerged myself more in the water, hoping to not be noticed.

The icy liquid stung my skin, and my lungs screamed for air, but I held on, praying that they wouldn’t come closer.

“Maybe she jumped into the water," one of them muttered, his voice laced with irritation.

"Even if she did, she would never survive swimming through it," another voice rings. “We can’t follow her across anyway.”

I heard the footsteps retreating, the leaves rustling as they began to leave. I didn't move, though. The steady rush of the stream was the only sound remaining while I waited, my chest straining with the desire to breathe.

When I was certain they were gone, I finally allowed myself to rise. My head cracked the surface, and I took deep breaths to try and fill the smoldering hole in my chest as I begged for air.

I shivered violently, my body shaking from the exertion of the cold air combined with the chilling water adhering to my skin.

My heart was still pounding as I stood there for a few seconds trying to catch my breath. I forced myself to swim even though my motions were feeble and sluggish at first.

Here, the river was quieter and carried me softly downstream. Even though my body was screaming for a break and my limbs were heavy, I dared not stop.

I had no idea how long I had been in there. As I floated down the river, it felt like time was never-ending, carrying me away from the Shadow Moon Pack and all I had ever known.

Eventually, I gave up trying and let the water carry me since my arms and legs became too numb to move.

I slipped in and out of consciousness on the stream, everything around me a smear of green and blue, the leaves of the trees along it melting together.

I could feel myself fading in and out of consciousness, the sleep overtaking me like a dense fog.

I wanted to sleep. To simply close my eyes and let the water take me wherever it wanted to take me. But I couldn’t. Not yet.

I was drifting for a while before I sensed the bottom of the stream getting closer to me. I gradually came to the realization that I had reached a shallow section of the river and that the water was no longer pushing me along.

My feet finally hit the ground and I kicked my body once again into forced movement, I dragged myself through that waist-deep water, until at last I made it to shore.

I landed on the bank and lay there, gasping for air, my body trembling. My muscles ached from the effort it had required to continue, and my clothes stuck to my skin, heavy and saturated. I just stood there for a long time, trying to regain my breath while staring up at the sky.

I'd succeeded. I had escaped.

But it was a hollow win. I couldn't tell where I was. I had no idea what awaited me. It was then that I realized I was still in the woods, and fatigue hit me like a lead blanket.

I groaned and forced myself to stand, my legs trembling beneath me. I was surrounded by a deep forest, with tall trees that blocked out most of the sunshine with their branches.

Following the turmoil of the previous two days, everything appeared motionless and eerily peaceful.

I did not know whether the wolves were still tracking me or whether they had given up on me once they lost my scent at the river.

But I couldn’t risk staying here.

I cringed and took a hesitant step forward, the sharp rocks digging into my feet. My clothes stuck to my body, the cold air causing my body to shake uncontrollably as I marched on.

Every step was a struggle, my body begging for sleep, yet I would not allow it, and I continued to march. I had no other choice.

As I pushed through the thick brush, the trees gave way to an open clearing, and my breath caught in my throat.

It wasn’t the open space that surprised me, though. But it was what I noticed in the clearing as I was standing there.