Chapter 9: Chapter Eight - Rescued

Shane’s POV.

“I can feel her. She’s in pain,” I told Chase, as we ran into the woods, past the tall trees, with her scent leading us.

I hadn’t planned for things to go this way, but it was as if I was under a spell and when it came to her, I couldn’t control myself. From the first time I’d set eyes on her, the fearful expression in her soulful green eyes had gripped my heart in a vice that I just couldn’t keep my distance from her. I should have let Chase handle it as I’d planned and we wouldn’t have to pass through this stress but Axel was being too impatient and so was I.

“Why did you even let her see you in the first place?” Chase gritted out, his words bearing an undertone of annoyance. He’d been in a meeting with Principal Barnett when I called him to help me find Anna.

“I just couldn’t stay away,”

It was true. I wasn’t meant to be at the school that morning. I was driving by when her scent of fresh jasmine sailed into my nose and it was so strong that I was powerless to its effect as I found myself pulling into the school compound in search of her. With every step I’d taken nearer to her destination, the scent only grew stronger and so did my heart palpitate wildly, matching the rhythm of hers and suddenly, I stopped in front of the classroom and the feeling of urgency radiating from her hit me when my eyes suddenly landed on her serene form, her green orbs staring at me with an expression of shock etched in them. More than that, I saw something else that I couldn’t fathom but before I could place what it was, like it was a dream, I saw her jumping through the window.

For a moment, I was scared shitless, and my heart stopped beating. So did Axel’s as I stood there, watching the open window with an open mouth and eyes wide open while my heart slammed against my chest. It wasn’t until I heard the sound of the shattered glass hitting the hard floor that I was spurred into action, quickly running outside to find Chase, hoping he’d be able to lead me to her and as I’d trusted, he knew where she’d be and he wasn’t wrong.

I could feel her and the deeper we got into the woods, the stronger her scent waxed.

“Well now that you’ve made her hurt herself and to escape, I’m sure you’ll be back to your senses and have better control of yourself,” he snapped but I ignored his grumpy tone and focused all of my senses on finding her.

In the distance, I heard a painful howl and Axel howled in response but it came out more as a painful whine as a wave of distress hit me. I could feel her wolf. She was projecting their pain and it made my heart hurt that I’d done that to her. If I hadn’t startled her or scared her, she wouldn’t have jumped through the window and hurt herself.

The agony-filled whine came again and Axel whined in response.

She needs us. Axel growled, projecting more of his energy into us. He wanted to be in control but we both understood that it wasn’t the time to let him out. We couldn’t risk scaring her again, as Axel was a bit bigger than the average wolf and could appear fiendish.

We doubled our speed and soon, the lake came into view but a frown slipped into my face when my eyes scanned the entire perimeter to see she was nowhere to be found. I slowed to a stop and immediately turned to Chase, whose expression was mirroring mine.

“You said she’d be here,” I snarled at him but he didn’t flinch as his gaze was still roaming the entire environment, his frown deepening.

“You felt her. She’s meant to be here.”

“Then where is she?” I barked at him, my anger rising but fear struck me when I thought of the possibility of her being taken by whoever has been responsible for the disappearance of all of the missing pack members. My heart dropped and a chilling sensation traveled down my spine. “What if…” I gulped and my fearful eyes landed on Chase’s brown orbs but he shook his head, understanding where I was going.

“No, she’s always here. If not here, then she’s home. I’m sure of it,” he assured me.

“You’ve followed her home?”

“Everyday, and it’s not the same address she wrote down in school. I think she has something to hide.”

I frowned, struggling to believe his words but I had no reason to doubt my best friend. But again, Anna looked too innocent to be telling lies. What could she possibly be hiding? Was that the reason she’s always running away from me too? Or was she just scared of my position as the Alpha of the pack and my sudden interest in her?

All of these questions swarmed my thoughts but then I turned to the side and a whiff of her scent suddenly sailed into my nostrils. I greedily inhaled it, taking a few steps forward.

“Her house is in this direction, at the other end of the Lake,” Chase said beside me.

“Let’s find her,” I took a step forward but Chase was quick to grab my arm, holding it in place. My eyes darted to him in annoyance, but he met my gaze with an intense one.

“Are you sure you want to do this? You think she’ll be ready for the surprise?”

My heart slammed hard against my chest and deep bittersweet feelings assailed me at the thought of seeing her again and caring for her.

“I have to see her, to care for her, and make her understand that I don’t intend to harm her. It kills me every time to see her running away from me.”

Axel whined and a deep ache reverberated through me, making me rub at my chest. As if Chase could feel it too, he let out a heavy sigh.

“Let’s find her.”

A smile stretched my lips and with him leading the way, we ran along the side of the lake, towards the outskirts of the town. If I wasn’t so worried about her, I’d wonder what her family was doing living in such a closed-off area that wasn’t safe due to the continuous disappearance of the pack members, but at that moment, all I wanted was to lay my eyes on her and hold her in my arms.

Soon, a cottage came into view, and true to Chase’s words, her scent began to wax stronger but as we got closer to the house, it felt as though I’d been tossed into one of my dreams, where she always cried for help but this time, the voice wasn’t faint. It was loud and clear as she was screaming in agony and my steps were fueled with the agonizing energy she was giving off.

“She’s in danger,” I told Chase in a panic-stricken voice, my heart slamming hard against my chest as I struggled to double my speed just to quickly cover the distance between us and the house.

As we got closer to the house, her wails came out more like they were muffled and I glanced at Chase to see he had the same fear-stricken expression on his face. Without uttering more words, I ran towards the front door and threw it open to see the most disturbing sight of my life.

Anna was laying on the floor with an obese older man pinning her to the hard floor, his zipper undone and his hand between her legs while the other was holding her wrists above her head. Her cries were muffled because a cloth was shoved in her mouth.

The man’s fearful eyes darted to us, as an angry roar slipped out of my lips, fury fuelling my blood streams. Blinded by my rage and the need to protect her and save her from this monster, I covered the distance between us and yanked him off her, tossing him to one end of the room. I vaguely heard the whine of pain that came from him as I crouched down on my knees, to take the cloth off Anna’s mouth. She shut her eyes tightly, tears pouring out of them and it shattered my heart to pieces to know that I’d let her down. If I had been early, I could have saved her from the lunatic.

Axel whined deeply, and I felt a tug within me as her wolf linked with Axel, and he began to give off a strong comforting energy. Gently, I scooped Anna into my arms and rose to my feet, my eyes darting to the sick bastard that had abused her. Chase was holding him in a tight grip and I could see blood dripping from his nose and mouth with a few teeth scattered about. One of his eyes was also swollen. A bit of satisfaction settled within me to calm some of the rage but I wasn’t nearly done with him. I’d make him pay for ever conceiving such dirty thoughts about my girl and for even having the audacity to act on them. I’d end his miserable existence in the most painful way possible and send him to hell.

“Take him to the dungeons in the packhouse and lock him up.”

Chase nodded. I turned to leave but I heard the incoherent words he spewed that sounded like a plea for forgiveness but before I could act, I heard Chase slamming his head against the wall and a scream tore out of his lips. Ignoring them, I marched out of the house, hurrying towards where I’d left my car in the school. I made sure to take the shortest route, while also watching out to make sure no one saw Anna. It would kill me for the world to see her in such a fragile and vulnerable state. Thankfully, the other students were still having classes and I had no problem sitting her on the passenger seat with the seatbelts tightened around her. I also got a blanket from the backseat and spread it on her.

Thereafter, I jogged around to the driver’s seat and got in, pulling out of the school compound and zooming home, to the packhouse. For most of the drive, my eyes remained on her and when I saw her eyes close and her pulse stop, my heart nearly stopped from fear. My hands shook with part rage and part panic but I tried to keep calm until I arrived at the packhouse. Quickly, I took her to one of the spare bedrooms and laid her down on the bed, spreading the covers over her.

She wasn’t breathing but her skin was still warm and it gave me a little bit of relief. Hastily, I called the pack doctor, Dr Mark to hurry down and attend to her. For the few minutes it took for Dr Mark to arrive, I sat by her bedside, holding her arm tightly and praying deep down that she wouldn’t leave me after I’d just found her.