Kevin’s POV
Being a werewolf had times that I might have wanted to be normal though those times were not common. I loved being a werewolf. I loved being a supernatural being. I loved being free of illnesses, loved the feeling as I shifted and heard my bones crunch as they change shape, loved how I felt alive under the light of the full moon, and loved the energy that coursed through my body as I sprinted across the fields as a wolf.
I loved it all and at this moment, I was particularly grateful I wasn’t a mere human as I traced Ella’s scent through the whole land. She was my mate and I wouldn’t have missed her scent even if she was lost in thousands of different scents. I had my mark on her and my wolf knew hers, I only had to be close enough to feel her out and I would find her.
I doubted that the ones who had taken her knew what we were or they would have tried to erase her scent which they didn’t. It wasn’t as if I wouldn’t be able to sniff her but it wouldn’t be as easy as this. I wouldn’t underestimate them too. If they could have sneaked up on us and taken my mate right under my nose, they were dangerous and we needed to be careful.
I didn’t have to tell that to the men though. They knew without me saying a word that we had to be careful so we could get Ella alive.
That was the goal of this sudden operation. We had to be fast enough to rescue Ella before anything happened to her and she had to escape alive. I would be as good as dead if she died.
I jumped as I felt a hand on my shoulder and sighed as I turned and realized that it was Liam. I knew part of me was still hoping that this was nothing but a bad dream and I would wake up very soon and find Ella in my arms, right where she belonged.
“She will be fine.” He said. “We will find her.”
I nodded. “I know that. I just want to see her like right now.”
“I know.” He smiled. “Be calm and keep your cool. i don’t like seeing you this distressed. I’m sure the other wolves are uncomfortable seeing you this way.”
I sighed. “I’m sorry.”
“We know. We just don’t want you making a mistake because of how you feel.”
“I know.”
“I sense her this way.” Cephas said, breaking the silent muttering between me and Liam.
She was close. I could sense her too. The bastards who had taken her didn’t do anything to mask her scent. I didn’t need her to be my mate to find her. Just by knowing her scent and being familiar with it, it was possible. Everyone in the pack could find her easily.
I still didn’t know what the people who had taken her were. I detected three different scents asides Ella’s from the trail and knew it was three people but I couldn’t tell what they were. They didn’t seem to be humans and weren’t any of the supernatural creatures that I was familiar with. They weren’t rogues, werewolves nor cannibals but I knew that they were cunning enough to take a woman from our midst without us noticing and strong enough that Ella fought with all her might but couldn’t break free.
I hissed silently at my thoughts. What was I expecting? I had just said that they were three strange creatures. How could I have expected Ella to fight them all alone and break free? It was obvious she needed me.
“I’m coming for you, Ella.” I muttered under my breath.
“She is here.” Cephas whispered but we all heard him. He pointed to a distance and I moved forward to see what he was pointing at.
Rage blinded me and I growled as I saw her. She was hanging on top of a tree and tied like a sacrificial lamb. She was unconscious or she would have sensed us and raised her head up. I sniffed, trying to hold back tears and stilled as her scent rushed into my nostrils. She was bleeding and as I narrowed my eyes at her body in concentration, trying to see everything, I realized that she had tears all over her skin.
Those bastards. I would make them pay for the sacrilege they did to my mate whoever they were, I vowed as I boiled with madness and fury. I didn’t care what they were but I knew that their blood was going to flow this instant.
I didn’t know I was already dashing forward until I felt Liam grab me and pull me back to where they all were.
“Let me go.” I growled at him.
He didn’t act like he heard me and tightened his hold on my hand. “I will when you’ve calmed down. You will get yourself and Ella killed if you barge in there like that without thinking and with no information. Is that what you want?”
Ella. I repeated her name in my head to calm myself down. She mustn’t get killed. I needed her alive.
Liam released my hand when he sensed that I was calm. “We need a plan.”
Ella’s POV
I smell burning flesh. The scent was thick in the air. I wondered what it was that was smelling. I opened my eyes, feeling groggy. What was that? I thought, my mind still wrapped in unconsciousness.
My mouth tasted like shit and I wondered what I had eaten. I didn’t remember eating anything odd last night that could have made my mouth sour like this.
I remembered eating canned beans with the boys yesterday night and then talking late into the night. I gasped as I fought against the sleep fog in my head. Even if we had slept late, I should be awake by now so we could continue on our journey.
I opened my eyes and gasped at how bright it was as I glanced at the sky. What was wrong? Why didn’t any of them wake me up? Did the boys oversleep like I did?
I cringed my nose at the scent of burning fire still in the air and my eyes widened in horror as I realized that it had been me all along. I was tied up in a tree and a fire was burning right under me. How did I get here? Who did this to me? They had to be crazy. I wondered for how long I had been burning without realizing it and judging from the burns on my skin and the smoke in my nostrils, I was certain that it had been for a while.
Shit, Ella, think. I berated myself as I struggled against the binds. This wasn’t the time to wonder where I was or who did this to me. There was a burning issue on ground that I needed to solve first. I was burning and needed to get myself free. I wouldn’t know the answers to my questions anyway if I died from smoke inhalation.
I tried to flip myself to loosen the binds but it was impossible. The ropes around my wrists binding me to the tree were so tight I wondered if I was a sacrificial lamb. I believed that was what I was at the moment.
Who were the bastards that had me tied up like this and where was the boys? I kept on asking myself. I wondered if they weren’t here because they were tied up at different spots. I wondered how strong these captors were if they could overpower us all.
I couldn’t understand why I wasn’t feeling the pain even though I was burning. If I hadn’t sensed the smoke, I would have died before knowing what happened.
I sighed, thinking of everything that had happened to me since I decided to go back home and couldn’t stop wondering why all the bad things keep on happening to me. It was really frustrating and I knew that I wouldn’t go out for months if I finally get home.
I sensed the presence of others with me and snapped my attention to where they were coming from and winced as my neck made a popping sound at the sudden movement. I was stiff already. I rolled my eyes, feeling defeated already. How could I fight in this condition even if I magically get down from this tree?
“You are awake.”
I stared at the four strange creatures before me. I didn’t think I had ever seen anything like they were before and couldn’t stop staring. I began to have flashes of memory of what happened yesterday night, how I was suddenly groped from sleep in the midst of the boys and fighting with them and then going suddenly unconscious.
They noticed my stare and chuckled at the confusion in my eyes. “You want to know what we are.”
I snorted. “Who cares? Let me down.”
“Not until you are fully cooked.” One of them replied. “Why is she taking forever to get grilled?”
Because I am a werewolf and my body is trying its best to heal me as fast as I’m burning. Grilled? I couldn’t believe he had used that term for me like I was pork or barbecue beef.
“Where are the others?” I asked, curious to know about the men.
A look of confusion flitted through their eyes but then it cleared. “Why are you curious about us? We are only four.”
I rolled my eyes, wanting to tell them that they were frustratingly slow in the head but until I knew what my enemies were and how strong they were, I couldn’t dare risk making them angry and worsening my chances at escape.
“I don’t care about you.”
“Oh! You mean your friends. They wouldn’t know that you are gone until we have you in our bellies and by that time, we would have gone and they would never find you.”
My heart went cold in my chest. “What did you do to them?”
“Nothing really. We don’t eat men and left them alone but they would be sleeping for the whole day. Why do you think you are burning but can’t feel the pain?”
“You drugged us?”
One of them scrunched up his nose. “You insult us. Drugs? The chemical we released into the air is much more stronger than any drug. Our skins produce a scent that make others go numb, weak and feel sleepy around us.”
“And you are telling me this?” I asked, pretending to be in shock and awe.
“Because you are not a threat. You will end up pretty soon as our breakfast.”
I smirked. “Don’t be too sure of that.”
Their stomachs grumbled and I panicked though I tried hard to not show it. My time was almost up and I wished that they weren’t right that the boys would be sleeping till I end up dead because I couldn’t save myself and I certainly didn’t want to end up in someone’s belly or worse, be divided among bellies.
“You aren’t grilling fast enough because you are awake. Sleep.”
I sensed a foul smell coming from their body into the air and felt my eyes growing heavier despite my determination to stay awake. I moaned, hoping that a miracle occurred and the boys found me soon.
I had only one thought on my mind as I slipped into unconsciousness. I didn’t want to end up in their bellies. I didn’t want to die and if at all I was to die, I wanted to leave this world like a warrior and have a proper grave to myself.