Chapter One (Isla)

As I ran down a forest path, a sense of foreboding washed over me as I slowed my pace to answer my ringing phone. “Mom?”

“Don’t come back here, Isla run!” My mom's panicked voice ordered.

“What do you mean, run? Why?”

“They found us. You have to run…” I heard a crash and a scream before the line went dead.

“Mom... Mom.. Damn it. I’m coming.” I yelled into the phone as panic rose in my chest and I left the path I was running along, heading home.

I hung up, pushing my body as fast as it would go. How dare she tell me to run like I want to be responsible for their deaths? Over my dead body, no way would I let that happen!

I was more than an hour away. I needed to pick up the pace. My parents owned an enormous property in the Rocky Mountains, large enough to get lost in. No one bothered us here, and it was the perfect place to hide. Until now, that is.

I leapt over a creek, heading directly for home, hoping I would get there in time. The sun was setting. Hopefully, my wonky night vision would work.

I continued my pace until I was about fifteen minutes from our cottage. I slowly made my way closer, careful not to make a sound as I approached. Unfamiliar scents hit me, letting me know they had already arrived. I made my way to one of the many weapon storage spots we had hidden throughout our property, grabbing a duffle bag of weapons and strapping two swords onto my back, and a throwing knife holster to my thigh.

There were no sounds of struggles or fighting coming from inside. Was I too late? Avoiding the wolves guarding the front door and the scattered spots throughout our property, I peered through a window, dreading what I would see. It took a minute for my eyes to adjust and for my brain to comprehend what I was seeing.

My mom and dad were on their knees in front of a large, muscled man, with a square jaw lined with dark stubble to match the dark brown, almost long black hair that fell just below his shoulders, black eyes showing no signs of mercy.

I glanced at my parents, knowing how scared they must be, but they showed no sign of fear, like they accepted their fate. Fuck that. I was tensing to jump the wolves around the corner when I heard the thud. Looking back through the window, I saw my mother's body limp on the floor. Her head separated from her body, her head's position on the floor had her eyes looking right at me. Bile rose as I fought to hold back my tears. My father followed seconds later, not giving me time to process what was happening.

 A scream ripped from my lungs as I hurled around the corner, attacking the sentinels guarding the front door. Jumping into the air, I caught the first guy off guard as I unsheathed my sword and sliced through his neck, his head dropping to the ground with a thud. A second turned on me, swinging his sword as I swiftly dodged it. Jumping back, I grabbed one of the throwing knives I had in my thigh holster and threw it at him, hitting him in the eye. He screamed and covered his face; a minute later, his head laid with the other.

I could hear more wolves running towards me. I knew I couldn’t fight them all. Damn it, I hate running away. I looked up and locked eyes with a man with blue-grey eyes and temporarily froze, being caught off guard by his gaze. His blue-grey eyes mesmerised me. 

A wolf slammed into my side while I was distracted, knocking me to the ground, my sword falling from my hand. Shaking my head hard, I jumped to my feet and went to retrieve my weapon. The wolf that had body slammed into me stepped on my sword, preventing me from taking it. I looked up as the man that had caught my attention was running towards me.

Turning to look behind me, I saw two wolves ready to strike; I turned back to the man in front of me. I braced myself and I ran towards the man, dropping ‌to the ground the last second to knock him over. He saw my movement and at the last second grabbed my shoulders, flipping me onto my back, kneeling over me. Confusion filled his gaze as he looked at me. His scent hitting me, trying to pull me to him. He seemed to be frozen in place, then without warning, he kissed me.

In alarm, I pushed him away, slapping his face hard as I scooted out from underneath him, I turned and ran towards the duffle bag I had left by the window. At a full run, I grabbed the bag, slung it over my shoulder and headed into the woods.

The two wolves that had been behind me jumped for me, but at the last second, I pivoted and‌ continued to run. Confusion about what had just happened roiled, but I pushed it down. I had a truck hidden a mile or so from here, I just had to get to it.

I could hear the men who hadn't turned yet shift and hit the ground running as I picked up my pace. They may be faster than me, but I knew these woods better than anyone.

Some must have still been in human form, I realised as arrows whizzed past my head. I jumped up into the trees using the leaves and branches as cover, jumping from one to the next avoiding their arrows, luckily; we lived where the trees were big enough to do this. Spotting my truck in the distance, I jumped down and bolted for it. Jumping into the driver's seat, I turned on the engine and sped away, sending dirt and debris flying. A last look in the mirror revealed three massive wolves with red eyes, and a bunch of other wolves and archers shadowed by the treeline.

I looked down, noticing I had an arrow jutting from my shoulder. Knowing I couldn’t slow down, I gritted my teeth and snapped the arrow while steering with my knees and pulled it free. Grabbing some of the scattered clothing laying in my truck, I sloppily bandaged the wound.

My family had another safe house a few days from here. The blue-grey eyed man popped into my head, his soft lips still leaving an imprint on me. “What the hell was that?” I mumbled to myself as I touched my lips. Turning down an old dirt road, I headed to the highway, intent on getting to the next safe house. Hopefully, my mom's magic would still be effective, although I was doubtful. It would give me a place to pick up supplies and clean clothes if I can keep them off my trail.

A couple of days later, I parked my truck in the secret spot my dad had shown me and then hiked to the cabin, which was about an hour away from where I had parked. The roads coming into and out of this place had all been recovered by nature, which made it the perfect place to hide, unless the pursuers had an unfair advantage, like, let’s say, a witch. Sometimes I really hated magic, but it was mostly because I couldn’t control mine where other witches could.

An hour later, I unlocked the cabin door and entered, rummaging through cupboards, looking for supplies. I had entered a small bedroom and began looking in drawers for clothes, when someone grabbed me from behind, putting a knife to my throat.