Daphne's POV
He was insane. Dangerous, unstable, and obsessed with me.
I tired very hard push him away from me, "It's not about Carl! We just met a few hours ago, but lots of crazy things happened. I don't even know who you are. Who were those werewolves behind us? And why? How am I supposed to be with you when I don’t know anything?"
“I-I’m sorry. I’m sorry. Oh goddess, I… I could explain everything. ” He stepped back, acting like a child who knew he made a large mistake.
I whimpered looking up at him as the rage and madness vanished from his face, replaced with panic and concern.
“But you were going to kill me!” I cried. Arthur’s face lost all color and he recoiled sharply.
“I’m sorry…”
His shoulders slumped and his eyes seemed glossy as if he was going to cry as he sunk to the ground and put his head in his hands. He trembled and his hands clenched.
"Do you love him? I mean your fiance?" He asked.
"Carl? Of course not! He was going to force me to marry him. That was one of the main reasons I ran with you."
"How wonderful! You don't love him! " He started to laugh and apologized, "I'm sorry. I-I couldn’t. I couldn’t control myself. I thought you could help me... You can't leave me. You're my mate. Without you, I'd die—"
How could anyone’s moods shift like that? Was he mentally ill? Was it a werewolf thing or were all werewolves like this?
Regardless, I believed him when he said he couldn’t control himself. "So tell me about you. All of it."
Arthur nodded and filled me in with every detail of his pathetic life in Brown Valley Pack.
I had no idea what to say. I felt sorry for him. But I wasn't sure if I wanted to continue this dangerous adventure.
Then he broke the silence, “…If you still want to leave, then kill me first.”
He was definitely crazy.
“Kill you?” I shouted. “I’m not you. I can’t kill!”
He paused and lifted his head to look at me, desperate and hopeful, “Y-You said something about a human village, right? I could go with you.”
He stood and smiled down at me, “I’m sure there’s a village along the river. If we follow it, we’ll find one. Those clothes had to have come from nearby, right?”
I nodded stiffly and struggled to my feet to follow him carefully through the forest back towards the river. I wasn’t far behind him, but he kept looking back at me, trying to start a conversation, but I only replied with a few words.
If I had any doubts before, I didn’t any longer. I couldn't go to a human village with Arthur. He would be a disaster. His instability aside, bringing a werewolf into a human village was bound to cause problems. Still, I couldn’t say that. I had to find my chance to leave alone.
We walked all day, stopping for breaks occasionally without running into a village. I wanted to stop when pain shot through my foot. I shrieked and stumbled back, crashing to the ground and grabbing my foot. The sole of my shoe had been punctured by a rock. Blood gushed from the hole it created.
Arthur was at my side, tearing his shirt to make a bandage, but I recoiled.
Arthur flinched, “I… I just want to stop the bleeding.”
I took the cloth with shaky hands, removed my ruined shoe, then the other with a huff, and dipped my bleeding foot into the river to wash the blood away. The injury certainly wasn’t going to help me escape Arthur. Was fate really against me leaving him?
The puncture was bad, but it was mostly a flesh wound. I wrapped my foot and put my other shoe on the foot. It would have been awkward to walk on, but there was no way I would be able to keep walking with the injury.
“I-I could carry you—“
“No,” I said quickly. He flinched. “I mean… we should rest and eat. Night’s coming soon.”
Arthur nodded, “I could… fish?”
I nodded and gave him a tense smile, “That sounds great.”
Arthur built a fire and strung up fish to roast, but he didn’t speak. Night fell over us and I turned away from him to pretend to get some sleep. It was nerve-racking to wait until he decided to sleep, but it paid off as I heard him lie down on the other side of the fire. When his breathing evened out into a deep sleep, I turned just enough to peek at him to make sure he was sleeping.
He was still and sprawled on his back.
Carefully, I got onto my feet and backed away from the camp into the woods, keeping my eyes on him. I was careful of my injury and made sure to avoid any more rocks. He shifted and I froze waiting for something to happen, yet he remained sleeping.
Soon, I reached the forest and quickened my pace as I got farther away. A twinge of guilt went through me as I turned my back. Although I was afraid of being with Arthur, he wasn’t a bad person. He saved me, he trusted me, and he protected me, but as a human, I really had no way to deal with a werewolf who could lose control at any time.
I was safer away from all werewolves no matter what being mates meant. I ran into the forest until I reached a shallow stream. Carefully, I walked on the rocks downstream, hoping it would help erase my scent. When I got far enough to feel a bit at ease, I found a rock to sit on. Both of my feet throbbed and the makeshift bandage around my foot was red with blood.
I hoped I got far enough away before Arthur woke up that the scent of my blood would fade from the area. I lifted my foot and pulled off my shoe to get a better look at the injury. The bleeding had lessened, but it wouldn’t be stopping anytime soon.
What could I do?
I froze as something rustled nearby. My heart sped up and lurched in my chest as I turned my head. Another rustle came and I really hoped it was just a wayward rabbit or something, but there was no mistaking the glinting red lights moving slowly between the trees.
I thought back to the glinting lights that had surrounded my cabin. It seemed so long ago, but I remembered it clearly. They were red like Arthur’s but too numerous to be him, and they didn’t have the same qualities.
These eyes felt more like ravenous fires, glaring at me in the night, wanting to consume me. One appeared from the left, then another just behind it, and another from the right. Soon, there were twelve. The tallest wolf in the pack was light gray and the last to step into the moonlight spilling through the trees.
I shuddered as it looked at me. I could almost taste the death hanging around it like a cloak. With horror, I realized it was almost as big as Arthur.
Where was Arthur? Was he awake? Was he looking for me? Was he still sleeping? What was I thinking? After all this, couldn’t I have thought of a better way out than going into the forest bleeding like this?
The gray wolf snickered, "Behold, what have I found?”
I flinched at the wolf’s voice, masculine and hungry. The wolf bared his teeth in a gruesome grin that made me shudder.
“A sweet little one aching to be our dinner tonight.”
Daphne shook with terror. She shot to her feet and stumbled, her legs had lost all strength. She stared at the wolves, her heart hammering. If she could run, would she be able to? There was no way she could get rid of one wolf on her own, let alone dozens of them? They seemed to multiply in the night. Were they drawn to the scent of her blood, or could they sense her impending death?The grey wolf sniffed and stomped his foot, “A human?”The other wolves growled at her, seemingly aggravated by the grey wolf’s anger.“How dare a human intrude on my territory?”Daphne trembled as the wolves behind him began to growl, drool dripping from the jaws as they bared their teeth hungrily and stared at her.“Kill…”“…Meat.”“I’m starving.”Why couldn’t they speak like Arthur and the grey wolf? The other werewolves she’d encountered d
Brother. The word seemed to echo in the night as the gray wolf disappeared into the forest. What did that mean? He pushed that thought away. Owen was gone now. The rogues lay slaughtered in around them and Daphne was safe. He took a deep breath of relief. He had never known such terror as when he’d woken up to find her gone from their little camp. Her scent had been strong enough to follow, so he assumed she hadn’t been gone long. Why had she left at all? Didn’t she know how dangerous the forest was? He wanted to ask her, but he couldn’t get the words together around the relief of her still being alive. He turned sharply to look at her as the scent of her blood cut through the haze of his easing panic. She had been hurt before they’d gone to sleep. Had he been too late to keep her from being hurt further? Would she be okay? Her heart beat was beating too fast. “Daphne? Are you alright?” Daphne shuddered as the gray wolf
“My name is Blade,” the dark-skinned man said with a polite smile. “I’m the leader of this patrol… Usually, we’d have more space for visitors, but we’ve been getting more people lately, so I’m sorry in advance for the accommodations.”Daphne shook her head, “It’s better than the forest and we’re grateful.”Blade nodded and led them further into the city. They passed through the busiest part of town and headed up a hill. Nearby was a sturdy-looking building and a large field where werewolves seemed to be training. Between them was a modest house that reminded her a bit of her little cabin. A pang of longing went through her at the thought. What would become of all her books and things? Would someone find it and move in? Had the werewolves destroyed it?“That building there is the dungeon,” Blade said, pulling her out of her thoughts. “And the training grounds are over
Arthur lifted his nose. Daphne was getting closer. He had been waiting at the door of the house they’d been given in since she left, half-fearful that she shouldn’t return and on edge about how long it took her to return.She smelled nice, clean, and relaxed. There was a hint of medicine in the wind that made him relax a bit. Daphne’s injuries had been treated. Arthur stood and headed towards the scent at a light run to meet her on the road.In the distance, he heard a struggle and the sharp snap of metal coming from the prison. He hurried toward the ridge that overlooked the prison as the wall burst open with a snarl.The stench of the rogue pissed him off, but the anger turned to fear as Daphne’s scent caught his nose. The rogue twitched and turned his head towards where Daphne was. She turned to run as it lurched into a run and Arthur roared, rushing forward as Daphne screamed."Arthur!"The rogue snarled mid-leap as Arth
She was much warmer when she woke up than she remembered going to bed, curled into something soft and furry.Wait.She opened her eyes with a gasp and turned her head out of the patch of golden fur in her face. The bed creaked with their combined weight and she was all but crammed against the wall beneath the window. She couldn’t say she was uncomfortable, but she was definitely annoyed.He was far too big to be sharing this, or any, bed with her in his wolf form.She glowered at his large body covered in golden fur that gleamed in the morning sun streaming through the window.He was several times larger than the average wolf, his eyes glowed like rubies, and his fur was like melted gold. When she thought back to all the trouble that had followed them over the past two days, questions sprouted up in her mind, but she was certain that Arthur was extremely special.She’d have to figure out how to talk about all of that aft
Rex had been the alpha of the Sharp Armor pack for a long time, yet he didn’t think he had ever faced an issue like this. Rogue attacks were becoming more frequent, and several of the packs in the area were finding themselves having to deal with them, including his. In the past, there weren't many losses as his patrolmen usually outnumbered the rogues in the area, but lately, there had been casualties.The other packs had complained of the same issue.His patrolmen came back saying that the rogues had moved with purpose as if they were organized, and their organization had only been increasing over the past few months.It had been horrifying to hear and unbelievable, but he couldn’t ignore it. Rogues were supposed to be unorganized and lost to their passions and instincts. They were dangerous because they had no reservations against slaughtering anyone in their way and were made stronger by their bloodlust. Having such power become organized was a pr
Blade gasped as Daphne’s jaw opened in shock. She couldn’t believe what Rex had said. Didn’t he just say he wasn’t sure about Arthur’s control?“You want him to join the patrol?”Daphne and Arthur looked at each other. Arthur was just as surprised before turning a suspicious glare at Rex.Rex grinned, “We are very short of people recently. Rogue attacks are increasing, and our patrolmen are often injured. The cubs in training are still too untrained to fill the spots. Blade tells me you’re very strong. It’s an obvious decision.”Arthur scoffed, “You just want to use me as a tool.”Daphne had to agree. Though it wasn’t the worst thing Rex could ask for, it wasn’t very polite.Rex shrugged, “Think what you want. The forest is full of rogues and very dangerous. We can shelter Daphne for free because she's just a fragile human. But you…”
Just before dawn, as promised, Daphne sent Arthur off to the training field. It was nerve-racking to let him go alone, but she did because Arthur was adamant that he wouldn’t risk her getting hurt again. She made him promise at least three times to keep in control of his anger, behave, and remember that they needed the safety the pack could give them.Despite the promises, she was still uneasy. She spent the morning cleaning the house and organizing things to keep herself calm, but the cottage wasn’t that large. She wandered around the house and took stock of the little bit of land behind the house that was fenced in. Maybe it had been a little garden.She poked and prodded the earth and weeded the area. Soon, she lost herself and her worry to the work. It was about lunchtime when she heard the front door open.“Daphne?” Arthur called.“Coming!” She washed her hands and hurried around the side of the house until she ent