Chapter 5
My scream echoes through my skull as the beast shakes its head
violently, flinging me toward the kitchens. My body flies
through the air, and I crash heavily on the floor. Groaning. I
scramble to get to my feet, slipping on the tiled floor that is
drenched in blood. Bodies are strewn across the restaurant
floor, and I run for the kitchen doors just as I am tackled to the
ground–another wolf is upon me.
The wolf’s teeth tear into my thigh, and this time, when I hear
my father’s panicked voice ring out, I know he has shifted back.
to find me.
“Dad!” I scream for him before hearing his strained voice.
“Samuel, get to Cleo!” I hear his gurgled cry from another room.
before I hear the snapping of bones again. I kick out, trying to
get the wolf mauling me off while keeping my arms over my
head, knowing if he gets to my neck, I am gone. Claws rake
down my sides, and I scream in agony as the wolf drags me
closer.
I thrash, screaming and kicking when his weight is suddenly
gone from on top of me. I gasp in relief only to see a massive
black wolf standing over the rogue that attacked me. The rogue.
Chapter 5
now lies dead at his feet. I crawl back on my hands and feet, my
leg throbbing as my blood spills onto the floor, mingling with
the rest of the bright red stains. I shriek when I notice another
rogue lunge at my face, only to stop midair when the black wolf
mauls it. I try to escape, but I am caught beneath the black wolf.
He takes down the rogue, and I clutch his fur, wondering which
Alpha it is because I haven’t seen this wolf before. He doesn’t
snarl as I use his body to pull myself out from under him so that
I can stand, but the wolf sniffs my leg and whimpers when I
notice more rogues spilling in through open windows. The wolf
snarls, spinning on his feet before snapping his teeth at me, his
way of telling me to run without the mindlink.
I don’t need to be told twice. I clamber to my feet, ignoring the
pain and running toward the kitchen to find somewhere to hide
and catch glimpses of rogues everywhere. They are going to kill
everyone, I think, panicked. There are too many. Sliding along
the floor, my leg throbs to its own beat, and my arm is gushing
blood when four rogues come into the kitchen from the other
end. I come to a jarring halt before spinning, only to find my exit
is now blocked, and I am surrounded.
“Cleo, where are you?” my father calls through the mindlink.
“Dad, I’m…” a snarl pulls me from the mindlink.
Chapter 5
“Hold on, Bub, I’m trying to get to you!” he calls back, but my
eyes track the movement of the wolves surrounding me.
Looking around, I grab a knife off the counter, trying to watch
them as they stalk toward me. The one at the exit I just came in
from charges at me, and my eyes fly wide, a shriek leaving my
lips when it too is suddenly mauled, mere inches away from me.
The huge black wolf from before starts ripping it to shreds and
knocking me out of the way when the other four join the fray,
trying to kill him. Scrambling back on my hands and feet, I turn,
looking for a way to escape, when I see one wolf tear into the
black wolf’s hind leg. Panic ripples through me at the si
sight,
knowing that the wolf is the only thing keeping me alive.
I stare at my hand and remember the knife. Getting my hands
and knees, I scramble to my feet. I rush toward the one ripping
at his rear leg while two try to get at him from the side, the
other dead on the ground. I plunge the knife into the filthy gray
wolf. It rears back and snarls then wheezes when I pull the
knife out just as quickly.
Only it doesn’t kill him. It only fuels his rage. Panic surges
through me as I watch him stalk toward me, his eyes burning
with fury. The other two wolves are still being torn apart by the
black wolf when more rush in. My breath catches in my throat.
I’m trapped. Before I can even move, the gray wolf lunges at me,
Chapter 5
its fangs sinking into my shoulder, and I scream as pain rips
through me.
The wolf shakes its head violently, tearing into my flesh. Blood
spills out, pooling around me as I try to scramble away, but the
wolf releases me just as quickly, leaving me gasping, shivering
in agony.
I roll onto my side, every movement sending waves of pain
through me. Blood slicks the floor beneath me, making it harder
to drag myself toward the walk–in freezer. I reach for the
handle, desperate, my hands trembling, but the sound of the
battle intensifies. More wolves charge in, knocking over steel
benches, sending utensils flying through the air, the chaos
growing by the second. The black wolf, my unexpected savior,
is now surrounded, outnumbered, bloodied, and still, he fights.
With each blow, I see him slow, his body weakening, blood
seeping through his fur. Yet he doesn’t retreat. His body moves
with a precision that defies the odds, positioning himself
between me and the wolves.
I feel completely powerless, trapped in a human body, unable to
shift, unable to help. My heart aches with the weight of it. All I
can do is watch as the wolf continues to protect me.
Who is he? Why hasn’t he abandoned me to save himself?
