36

Birds chirping, cracking branches under my quick steps, the light wind that blew through the trees, everything got into my ears. But I also noticed my heavy breathing, my racing heartbeat and my aching feet.

I slowed down, the adrenaline slowly fading, and yet I wanted to put more distance between him and me until I stopped abruptly and looked into a man's eyes, startled.

He was standing by a tree with an ax in his hand. A plaid shirt slung over his shoulder and brown hair tied back adorned his head. The long beard looked unkempt. Human, I was sure of that.

As I was about to turn around, another man was standing in front of me, looking at me curiously. "Are you hurt?" he asked, getting closer to me. So far, Emma was the only person I had ever met. Would they realize that I'm a werewolf. Not really. Human instincts weren't well developed and we just looked like them, so there was a good chance I could fool them.

"No, I'm fine. I'm just a little disoriented." I smiled and wanted to run past him, but he grabbed my arm and pulled me behind him. "Let me go!" I hissed at him angrily, but he just looked at me menacingly and took me to a small camp that was right on the edge of the forest.

"Bring her to Aleks." He ordered a young man who grabbed my arm and led me to one of the huts. My fear brought me nausea, which weighed heavily on my stomach. I was done. The way they treated me, they certainly knew what I was.

A handsome brown haired man came out. He wore armor around his chest that shone in the sun and gave him a certain authority. His bright blue eyes looked me up and down. "Please come in," he told me, nodding his head toward the cabin.

I tried desperately not to tremble or cry, because I wanted to do both. But showing feelings wasn't the solution now. I had to pull myself together to get out of here alive.

In his hut there was a square table with a bowl of fruit on it and several small stools. Exhausted, I dropped onto one of the stools and looked at my sore-covered feet.

"Who are you?" Aleks asked me as he sat across from me and filled two glasses with water. "Melody," I answered him calmly, hoping that there were people with that name too. "And where are you from Melody." My hands were starting to sweat at the thought that he didn't look like a backworlder I could easily fool. On the contrary. He looked very well groomed and educated.

I needed to quickly come up with a story that sounded believable, and that's when Emma came to mind. "I come from a village in front of a castle. I was forced to work by wolves. I managed to escape last night." He looked at me curiously. "I know the castle. We've been waiting here for weeks to finally be able to attack, but they have too many guards. Maybe you can help us. You probably know more about it than we do."

I tried hard not to show any emotion. Of course I wanted to free the people in the village, but he also wanted to exterminate my race, shed werewolf blood, I wouldn't support that under any circumstances. "I was the last living person in the village. It would only bring more victims to attack them. It would be best for you to retreat." I threw at him decisively, thinking he might react angrily, but suddenly tears gathered in his eyes and he stood up not to show me his weakness.

"My sister must still be there," he whispered, turning his back to me. "Maybe you've seen her. Blue eyes that will draw you in zi-" "Emma," I interrupted him, realizing immediately that saying her name out loud was a mistake. But I felt so sorry for him, I felt his suffering deep inside me, and I knew the feeling of pain all too well.

Eyes wide, he turned to me and knelt in front of me, taking my hands and looking hopefully into my eyes. "You know her! Is she still alive!? Say something." He shook me. "Yes, she is alive and well." He dropped his head in my lap and breathed heavily.

I was totally overwhelmed. A human who would probably kill me instantly if he knew what I was, lay trembling in my lap and was the brother of my only friend, at the same time my mate's greatest enemy, whose absence I felt more and more as it sapphire hour after hour went worse.

I put my hand on his back soothingly, stroked him gently, tried to comfort him enough that he would finally get up, which he did. "I have to get her out of there, will you help me?" His blue eyes met mine, a feeling of security enveloped me and I nodded to him as if in a trance, but only because I couldn't let my cover fly for a short while. I could think of a way to get Emma to him without blood spilling.

We left the hut together. He showed me where I would sleep, where there was food and a place to wash. Only now did I realize that there weren't any women here at all, presumably they were all soldiers waiting for a good opportunity to attack.

A fresh breeze blew towards me from the woods, and there was not only the smell of moss and earth, but his, Calvin's, too. He picked up my scent and followed me here. But these men here were my shield. Even if they were only humans, their superiority was too much for one wolf alone.

I looked triumphantly into the forest and then turned to Aleks, who was holding a map and studying it carefully.

Days passed when I spent most of my time with Aleks. He was the smartest man I had ever met and yet he didn't see the real me, luckily for me.

He made plans, went through the map for hours every day. Asked me questions about the castle, the forest and the village that I couldn't answer myself, and even if I had, I certainly wouldn't have given him the opportunity to march in there and cause a bloodbath.

I spent my private hours thinking about Damien, my black-haired savior. The kiss was still on my lips, even though it was so many days ago, it still brought me a feeling of connection, despite my inner wolf saying goodbye more and more.

The sun was slowly setting, bringing the end of another day. Another day without Sapphire by my side, without Damien around, without knowing how Emma was doing and with no certainty about the future that awaited me.

I was sitting a little way from the camp, in a small meadow from which I could keep a good eye on everything around me. My attention turned to Aleks and his men, who were about to light a small fire in the middle of the camp, which brought some light into the darkness and crackled so beautifully that I felt safe despite the loneliness.

To my left was the darkness of the forest in which my angry nightmare was up to mischief, not wanting to let go of me, wanting to destroy me. My life was a tightrope act and one wrong move on my part could end my existence forever.

"Hey," whispered Aleks, suddenly standing next to me. Not hearing him coming made it clear to me that my instincts were really failing me. Without Damien around, there would soon be nothing left of me. "A beautiful night, so calm and clear," he murmured to himself as he sat down next to me on the meadow, watching his men do it around the campfire and a small smile formed on his lips.

"Yeah, really beautiful," I replied quietly, my eyes on his face. He looked over at me, his eyes met mine. The deep blue reluctantly pulled me into a whirlpool of benevolence and turmoil. As he gently tucked a strand of my hair behind my ears and smiled like he was lucky, I avoided his gaze and drew the cool air deep into my lungs.

"Don't do that," I warned him, staring into space, forcing myself to stop looking at him. "Tell me what happened to you. Whatever it was, I won't ever let anyone hurt you again." I heard the tremor in his voice, the pity he felt for me. But I didn't want pity, didn't want him to feel anything for me at all, I could never, by nature, reciprocate. It would only make things worse. The last few days have been beautiful, no doubt about it. I got to know a man, away from instincts and obligations, who was brave and educated, who treated me better than I deserved, but this life was not destined for me. I belonged in another world.

"You don't have to protect me Aleks. I'll keep my promise to help you find Emma, but you have to promise to let me go if I tell you." My eyes sought his, who wistfully avoided me. How long did it take people to become attracted to someone, I didn't know. Was a week enough to get his heart beating for me, or was he playing himself. "What if I don't want to let you go anymore Melody."

He got up and looked deep into my eyes. His appearance flickered from the fire that was still crackling softly. Stretching out his hand to me, he helped me up, took me tight in his arms for a moment and said goodbye to me for today, tomorrow would be a new day.

I stood there for a while, rooted to the ground, thinking about everything that had been said. Realized that, without me wanting to admit it, I had grown fond of him too, and now I had to come up with a solution. I didn't want to endanger him another day with my presence, risk even the smallest scratch on his skin.

Exhausted, I wanted to make my way to my hut, but a loud panting drew my attention to the forest. I didn't recognize anything, but I knew who was standing there in the depths of the forest, staring at me. Stunned, I stared into the black, not realizing anything, and when there was no more sound, my weak body finally found its way into the small hut to sink into the soft bed.

I widened my eyes and gasped for air. I didn't recognize anything, it was pitch black in the little hut, which contained only my bed and a small table. Sweat collected in small beads on my forehead, an eerie heat took over me completely and made my heart race.

A nightmare probably brought me back to reality, didn't let me sleep in peace anymore, didn't allow me to rest, of all times when I felt weaker than ever without sapphire.

As I struggled to swing my tired legs in front of the bed and was about to get up, a horrible scream pierced my consciousness. I was stunned to say it wasn't a dream and briefly closed my eyes to collect myself. Had to force my body to see where the scream was coming from, no matter how scared I was of what was waiting for me out there in the dark.

Determined, I tore open the small door and looked around first, had to get an overview. But my eyes hadn't adjusted to the darkness yet, giving me no way of really seeing anything clearly.

The embers of the small fire were the only thing I could catch, until suddenly a gray wolf slowly walked towards me. My heart leaped at the sight of his bloodied mouth. For a moment I looked fearfully into Calvin's eyes. I wasn't afraid that he might do something to me, he loved me too much for that. I was afraid to find out whose blood was dripping down on him.

Frozen, I looked behind him, now that I was slowly becoming more and more aware of my surroundings, and saw several men lying on the ground, bleeding. They were in excruciating pain, rolling back and forth on the cold forest floor. They probably longed for death.

A hand jerked me away from Calvin. Aleks yelled at me, shook me, pointed in the other direction, but I couldn't understand a word. Did he want me to run away? He was so smart, he ought to know that no matter how fast I ran, I wouldn't have a chance of escaping.

Calvin snapped in front of us several times and growled at the brown-haired man, after which he stood between us and drew his sword. Unlike the giant wolf, the sword in his hand looked like a small toothpick.

Panic shot through me, making me tremble. I tugged at Aleks arms in desperation, wanting to pull him away from the wolf who only wanted me anyway, and I would be willing to surrender to protect Aleks, to spare him an agonizing death. "Melody go!" he turned to me. My eyes widened to see Calvin jump onto Aleks, who flipped him over and sent me falling backwards.

I felt the pain of the impact on my back, whimpering briefly from the pain, but the adrenaline made me forget the injuries quickly. Sitting on the ground, I saw Calvin standing over Aleks, who held his sword to the side of the wolf's neck to keep him from ripping his throat.

My pulse threatened to give me a shock, but I found my way back to my feet, standing only a few meters away from them, had to do something. Aleks wouldn't be able to hold him back much longer, heard the wolf snap, which went through my bones. "Get off him!", I ran towards them both and tried to rip Calvin off Aleks by his fur, but he didn't notice me at all.

In a panic, I grabbed branches and stones and threw it at him with all my might, but he didn't let go. He had a firm grip on his prey. I cried out in desperation, holding my head, which threatened to burst from the roar, and suddenly, completely unexpectedly, Saphir growled so loudly that even I got scared of her. She allowed the transformation, finally being completely one with me again. My pure feelings for the human must have got through to her.

My black fur immediately warmed me, my paws let me feel the ground more intensely. I heard every little noise and could clearly see everything in the darkness.

I boldly lunged at the gray wolf, biting myself in its neck, pulling with full force while Sapphire yelped and growled at the same time. As if intoxicated, I bit down harder and harder, not letting go, even as he got angry with the pain and turned away from Aleks to take aim at me. The taste of his blood spread in my mouth. I had to swallow several times, shaking myself in disgust.

Growling, he turned back to the brown-haired one, who was still lying on the floor, staring at us both with wide eyes. Determined to risk my life for him, I jumped between them and bared my teeth in warning, fixing Calvin, not taking my eyes off him for a second. His gaze fell on me until he looked in amazement at the man lying behind me, his sword trembling in his hand.

Calvin's eyes changed. He no longer looked at me as if he had feelings for me, but with contempt. I knew what was going on inside him. A wolf would never stand against its own kind to protect a human being, who were our greatest enemies at the time. I couldn't believe what I was doing right now. Aleks would probably give me the killing blow once this fight was over. But I knew I was doing the right thing. It wasn't a matter of human or wolf. For me, since Emma, there have been no differences. I only differentiated between good and bad people, and here I knew exactly which of the two had a pure soul and which had none at all.

Before Calvin could jump, I bit him deeply in the throat, but he managed to fend off and stand over me. I kept trying to hurt him, but he dodged and bit my shoulder with full force. The pain went through my whole body, made me howl and tremble. When I then looked deep into his eyes, whimpering, heard him growl one last time to take my life, I saw his eyes suddenly widen and stared at me in bewilderment.

Blood poured down on me from its open mouth. I felt every drop hitting my skin. He breathed deep, fast breaths at me until suddenly all life disappeared from his eyes and his lifeless body fell on top of me, squeezing me under him, where I only closed my eyes, whimpering in fear and pain. it was over.