Stepping out of the trees, I step onto the road. I glance around and jump once I hear the loud roar of an engine snarling into the night. I know it’s his car, the mechanical beast sounds just as angry as Andrei must feel after he realized I ran.
“Hurry!” Sierra shouts.
Darting across the road, I quickly jump the barrier, too afraid to watch my step. Instead of landing safely on the other side, I fall off the side of a steep cliff, face first. My body is bashed and thrown as I tumble down, every blow knocks the air from my lungs leaving me gasping for breath as my world somersaults around me.
I hit a huge rock, and for a moment I’m hopeful it will be enough to stop my momentum, but I bounce off of it too. The edges of the rock tear into my flesh leaving me a bloody mess as I continue to plummet off the side of the cliff.
My body is thrown against another rocky edge and I dig my nails into the smooth dirt as I dangle off the side. The rocks slide beneath my fingertips and what little purchase I have left is lost and I fall again, straight down.
I hit feet first, the little bones in my feet shatter, piercing through my skin as all my weight bears down on them. Loud snaps fill the air as my ankles break and I can’t stop a howl of pain from escaping me.
But at least I can’t hear the car engine anymore.
I fall over onto my back and whimper as my legs throb like hot fire dancing through my body. I lay on the ground and stare up at the sky, waiting for my wolf to do what she can to heal me. Even without looking, I can tell it is a twisted mess down there.
“You need to push the bone back in, and preferably, turn your foot the right way. I can heal it, but backward feet I don’t recommend,” Sierra instructs while one ankle heals, the other is throbbing to its own beat, pain shoots up my leg and I have to fight the urge to pass out.
I suck in a breath as I force myself up on my elbows and stare at my foot, which is twisted in the opposite direction. The sight nearly makes me puke as my stomach twists and turns.
“Well, that looks painful,” Andrei dryly observes from behind me.
I turn to glare at him and find him staring at me. I growl. He isn’t supposed to be here. He has places to be and things to do. The wisest decision would be to let me go. He can’t keep telling me that he won’t hurt me, but force me to stay next to him at the same time.
“I would feel bad for you, except you ran from me,” he points out, walking over to me. He hooks his arm under my legs and settles the other behind my back, picking me up while I struggle to get out of his grip. “Stop it, Sage, you can’t run like that anyway! Besides, you don’t look like you have the stomach to re-break the ankle and force it back into its place.”
“And you do?” I snap at him. If looks could kill, I’m sure Andrei would drop dead from the intensity of scorn I imagine I’m throwing at him.
“Yes, I may even enjoy listening to you scream when I do,” he promises as he jumps off a rock onto the road. The worst part? He does it with a smirk on his lips.
The movement makes me cry out as another intense jolt of pain shoots through my entire leg. Andrei pops the trunk and sits me in the back of it.
“Ah, what are you doing?” I ask him. My eyes are so wide they could pop out of their sockets.
“Want me to fix it or not?” He snaps. Andrei lifts my leg and sits on the edge of the trunk.
“Ready,” I growl at him. I’m not sure what makes me react like this. It might be the stupid pain or my ego. For some reason, I want to prove to him that I am no wimp.
His fingers linger on my ankle and he meets my eyes. He viciously twists it in place and a scream is ripped out of me. The mix of pain, shock, and the damn sound of grating bones makes me feel light-headed. I jerk forward and throw up on the ground, emptying my stomach until I gag and gasp for breath.
Andrei walks to the front of the car. I use the moment to clamber out of the trunk and as I stand he returns and shoves me back into it. He tosses a bottle of water at me, and I growl at him. Just as I’m about to climb back out, he lifts my legs, tossing me in, and slams the lid shut. I kick the trunk lid hard, and he opens it.
“Hey, you shouldn’t have run. And if you dent my car from kicking? I will fucking brand your ass, it’s a classic. Now behave like the adult you’re supposed to be for fuck’s sake!” He growls and slams the trunk lid shut again.
The car starts speeding off as my body slams around in the trunk.
“I told you it was a bad idea,” Sierra mumbles, obviously salty at me for not listening.
“Shut up, Sierra, you are not helping!” I snap at her, and she growls at me. The only ray of sunshine in this situation is that my ankle is feeling a little better.
The car, to my surprise, doesn’t drive for long when it stops again. Then, I hear Zane’s voice and groan. “Alpha,” Zane greets Andrei.
“You need to babysit. Don’t let her out of your sight. I will deal with her when I get back,” the Alpha snaps before he opens the trunk and grabs my arm, hauling me out.
He shoves me at Zane, who grabs my elbow and grips it tight enough to ensure I have no chance to break out of his grip. Andrei gets back in the driver’s seat and watches us from inside the car.
Zane walks me to the house, stops at the door, and presses his hand on the weird scanning device. It beeps and the door opens.
“You can get in and out?” I ask, not bothering to hide how surprised I am.
“Yep, I am his new Beta,” Zane announces and opens the door wider. He shoves me inside and closes the door. Once it is closed and beeps, I hear Andrei drive off.
“Oi, where I can see you,” Zane prods, and I roll my eyes when he points to the couch.
Like an obedient dog that everyone here apparently wants me to be, I sit on it, and Zane sits in the armchair. He reaches for the remote and tosses it at me, while he grabs his phone out.