Chapter 205

Chapter 205
His screams echoed through the mountains as the other two fled deeper into the forest. I noticed a gray wolf struggling to stand by a tree, preparing to bolt.

Max ripped open the his abdomen, intestines spilling out as the man futilely tried to stuff them back in. I joined my wolf, both of us clamping our jaws around the rogue's throat. We shook our heads, making blood spray across our fur until the man made a final gurgling sound and died. In the distance, I heard a scream turn into a whimper.

Max shifted back to human form while I stood and turned toward the gray wolf still by the tree. She had transformed into a human – a blonde woman with hair falling to her waist, crouched and trying to unfasten the chain around her neck.

Hearing me approach, she immediately shifted back to wolf form, growling and baring her teeth in warning.

"Stop, I won't hurt you," I said, but this only made her growl more fiercely.

She backed away, her fur standing on end. I bent down to observe her, staying vigilant in case she lunged for my throat. Which she did. I jumped back, raising my hands in a peaceful gesture.

"Why is she chained?" Max asked with concern.

"I don't know," I replied, not wanting to consider why they had her restrained. I just wanted to free her. "I'll unlock the chain for you, but don't bite me," I told her, kneeling down and slowly reaching for the chain.

The wolf continued to growl lowly, her blue eyes never leaving mine. I tried to break the chain with my bare hands, but it was too thick.

When I stood up too quickly, she immediately lunged at me, her teeth sinking into my arm. I shoved her away harder than intended, and she hit the tree. She jumped back to her feet instantly.

I crawled backward as the chain yanked her back. Growling at her, I got to my feet and walked to the dead rogue, searching his pockets for a key. Nothing. The other two who had fled must have taken it with them.

I found an old axe stuck in a fallen log at the campsite. When the she-wolf saw it, her blue eyes widened in fear, and she began pulling at the chain, trying to free herself.

"Wait, you're only going to hurt yourself. Stop," I commanded, but she continued to yank at the restraint.

She tried to bite me again, but I grabbed her by the scruff of her neck, pinning her to the ground and using my legs to hold her in place. She thrashed wildly beneath me as I raised the axe and brought it down on the chain.

The axe was dull, and the sound of metal hitting metal made the she-wolf scream, the noise ringing in my ears. After three strikes, the chain finally broke.

The wolf immediately pulled backward from between my legs, nearly knocking me over, and bolted into the trees.

"Oh, little wolf, you don't want me to chase you," I threatened before shifting.

Max and I followed her scent through the forest. She was light on her feet and fast. She was difficult to spot, but the chain still attached to her neck dragged along the ground, giving away her location.

We circled around the mountain range and realized she was running toward my home. When we reached the river, the sound of the waterfall drowned out all other noise, including the dragging chain.

"Smart. She knows her scent will be hard to find," I said through our mental link.

Max sniffed along the ground by the river. "Maybe she's stopped."

"Or she jumped in and was carried downstream," I guessed.

"We should send the pack out," Max suggested, and I agreed more eyes would be better.

I reluctantly connected to the pack link. I hated feeling their sorrow every time I connected with them, which was why I rarely used it.

"There's a gray wolf with blue eyes near the borders. Help me find her, but don't touch her," I commanded.

"Yes, Alpha," they responded in unison.

"What if she steps into a trap?" Max suddenly realized.

"Damn, I didn't think of that," I muttered.

My pack knew where the bear traps were and the locations of the pits, but she didn't. I shifted back to human form, waded across the river, and climbed up the bank on the other side. I could hear my pack members running through the forest.

"No one touches her," I reminded them through the link.

"How do you expect them to catch her without touching her?" Max growled in my head.

"They don't need to touch her to catch her," I said, and Max growled his displeasure at my vague answer.

I picked up a thick branch. "We can check the motion sensors at the house to at least know if she crossed the river."

As we walked home, I used the branch to trigger bear traps, making them snap shut harmlessly. I didn't want the she-wolf getting hurt by one of them. I also dug open a pit trap, knowing that resetting all these traps would be a pain in the ass.