Autumn’s stomach growled like a feral beast, twisting in on itself. Three days without food. Three nights shivering in the hollow of a rotting tree.
That’s when she saw it. A rough little campfire tucked between two fallen logs. Four rogues...scrawny, scarred, mean looking fuckers...squatted around it.
She did not hesitate. Hunger had eaten the fear out of her a long time ago. Like a shadow, she crept through the underbrush, belly low, hands fast. She snagged the loaf...
She crouched in the underbrush, watching the rogue camp ahead...three of them were roasting a rabbit over a fire
Their bags lay unattended. "Idiots! "
Another snatched loaf of bread, a wedge of cheese...then a ’crack’ underfoot. A snapped twig.
"Oi! Thieving bitch!" One of the rogues snarled, whirling around from the other side.
"YOU LITTLE SHIT...SHE TOOK OUR FOOD!"
Autumn did not wait. She bolted.
The forest blurred as she sprinted, hfeet slamming against roots and rocks. Behind her, snarls, curses, the thunder of pursuit. The chase exploded behind her like a pack of wild dogs on crack. Branches slapped her face. Thorns tore at her legs.
She did not stop. Did not look back. Heart pounding like a war drum, breath burning in her throat, she ran like hell.
"You’re dead, bitch!" one of them screamed.
They were fast. One nearly grabbed her coat. She yanked free, lost a sleeve, and kept going. Her bare arms stung, her legs screamed, but her instincts screamed louder..run or die.
"Fucking gutter rat!"
A knife whistled past her ear, embedding itself in a tree. She veered left, heart hammering.
But the rogues were gaining.
The trees thinned. The ground dropped. She skidded to a stop, boots scraping the gravel. The cliff loomed ahead...jagged rocks and a drop that looked like it kissed hell.
When Autumn skidded to a halt at the cliff’s edge, pebbles scattered down below into the void. The river roared beneath her, black and hungry.
Behind her, footsteps pounded closer. Curses flew. One tossed another knife. It whizzed past her cheek this time.
Her breath hitched. This was it.
She could feel her own heartbeat. Memories clawed at her...Lyla’s laughter, the boat tipping, the water swallowing her whole.
"Nowhere to run, thief."
She turned. The rogues emerged from the trees, grinning, knives glinting.
"Should’ve just starved quietly," one spat.
Autumn’s chest burned.
She glanced back at the river. The same waters that took Lyla, her little sister... her baby sister... ten years ago...
"Maybe it’ll take me too."
"Come quietly, and we’ll make it quick," the lead rogue sneered.
Autumn bared her teeth. "Eat shit."
The water swallowed her, dragging her down like greedy hands.
Flashbacks erupted behind her eyelids...Lyla’s giggle.
The two of them in a little wooden boat, carved by their father’s hands.
The sun on the water.
"Autumn!" Lyla’s voice.The boat rocking, Lyla’s squeal as she tipped over
Only Autumn made it to shore.
Only Autumn faced her father’s fury.
"Why did she die and not you?"
Her father’s face, twisted in grief... and hatred.
The pack’s whispers...The exile...The years of running, starving, surviving.
"Maybe this is it." Autumn thought.
She stopped fighting.
She let the darkness come. Maybe she was done running, done surviving like a stray dog with a death wish.
Her eyes closed, waiting for peace... and then...
Something snagged her arm...hard.
"Got her!" a rough voice barked.
Another yank. Her body jerked upward, the river spitting her out like a bad meal.
She gasped, choking on air, as she was hauled onto the shore like a damn fish.
She crashed onto the muddy bank, coughing, gasping, vision spinning. Nets tangled her limbs. She kicked, fought, cursed...
"What the fuck...let me go!"
Voices. Harsh. Sneers.
"You gotta be fucking kidding me," a deep voice growled.
"Caught her like a damn trout."said another.
"She is the one. Stole from the fringe last month. Took boots and two rabbits.Then injured one of our patrols while they tried to chase her?..."
"Well, well," a deep voice drawled."Look what garbage the river coughs up these days."
Autumn blinked water from her eyes.
Black uniforms. Bloodhound insignia.
The leader, a tattered Delta or Omega, Autumn could not see the rank properly...smirked, gripping the fishing net she was tangled in. "Remember us, thief?"
She was desperate. She had only taken a jacket and two loaves.
"You are under arrest," he said, yanking the net tighter. "And trust me..Alpha’s gonna love seeing you again."
Their Alpha was known for his brutality. There was a very thin chance of her escape if he himself was after her in the previous chase. So where exactly had they met before? She didn’t care. Didn’t ask.
"Then maybe you should’ve packed lunch," she snapped, trying to roll away. A boot slammed into her shoulder, pinning her down.
"You’re coming with us. Alpha wants to see you."
"Oh, great," she wheezed, smirking through the pain. "Tell him he can kiss my ass."
They didn’t appreciate that. Rough hands grabbed her, dragged her to her feet, still tangled in net. One punched her in the gut for good measure.
She groaned but did not scream. Screaming was for the weak.
As they shoved her forward, wet and bruised, one of them muttered, "Let’s see if the Alpha wants to mount her or skin her."
She shot him a look, blood dripping from her lip. "He can try.I am not like bitches in your pack. I bite.I will chew his Poppey off! "
Another hard kick at her stomach, followed by a few more.
She spat out some river water. "Go to hell."
The warriors laughed. "Nah, sweetheart. You first."