Page 83 of What a Wolf's Heart Decides

But there was no time for that.

The open window beckoned, the floorboards below it dusted with snow.

It’s now or never.

Then it has to be now, she thought. Without another moment’s hesitation, she took the drawstring bag in her mouth, ran to the window, and jumped out.

Cold air blasted her lungs as the ground rushed up. She hit hard, snow exploding under her paws, then broke into a sprint. The bag between her jaws jostled up and down as she flew down the house’s long driveway and onto the road. Remy or Dom would have scolded her for not heading into the forest, but she didn’t want to risk getting lost. The road led straight into Elder Lake.

Her labored breaths and the crunch of snow were the only sounds as she ran, her paws eating up the ground. The ruts left by Bard’s tires were nearly gone, the grooves filled in with snow. Wind battered at her, sending an icy stream of flakes into her eyes and mouth. She put her head down and kept going. The trees on either side of the road flew past, silent sentinels to her flight.

For the first half hour or so, needles poked at the pads of her paws as she plowed through snowdrifts. Then her feet went numb.

Crap. She hadn’t thought about frostbite. Her body would heal on its own, but not if things got too serious. She let out a canine snort. It would be just her luck to escape Bard only to end up needing a Healer for a frostbitten foot.

Ahead, a glow shone from around a bend in the road.

Headlights.

Bard’s voice filled her head. “Every wolf in Elder Lake answers to me . . .”

Panic gripped her, and she darted off the road. Without any feeling in her paws, she tripped over her own feet and slid, sending a spray of snow into the air. White covered her vision. Then she was rolling. The earth spun, and scenes flashed in front of her as she tumbled: black sky, white ground, black sky, white ground.

Then boom. Her body slammed into something hard and the flashing scenes stopped. For a second, she was too stunned to move. Her brain worked like a clunky, wooden machine, parts clacking against each other. Snow continued to pelt her face. Wind whistled in her ears and through her fur. Something dug into her back.

She shifted, scraping against something hard, and got all four feet beneath her. Hunched on the ground, she did a quick mental inventory of her body, turning her head and wagging her tail. Her muscles ached—and she’d have a few bruises when she shifted—but she was otherwise unhurt. Except her bag was missing. She must have dropped it when she fell. Sucking in a breath, she surged to a standing position.

An evergreen soared above her, its needles heavy with snow. The trunk, which was massive, must have broken her fall as she slid down what she now realized was an embankment. It was a steep climb back to the road. A sigh built in her chest. Going up was going to be a lot harder than coming down.

Why couldn’t she catch a freaking break? A whine slipped from her throat.

As if in response, the wind gusted harder, sending a ribbon of snow swirling around her.

Right. Thanks.

Suppressing a sigh, she gathered her haunches beneath her, preparing to launch her body up the incline.

A strangled scream cut through the air behind her.

She whirled, fangs bared, her heart pounding like a drum.

There was nothing but trees.

Fur standing on end, she peered between the trunks. But the forest was too thick. Not even her wolf vision could penetrate the darkness.

She shook snow from her snout. Maybe it was an animal. A deer or a fox. There were all kinds of predators in the woods. Fortunately, none of them would approach her. Even regular gray wolves gave werewolves a wide berth.

A low moan emerged from the trees, and she froze. There was a gurgle, then another scream.

That wasn’t an animal. It was human.

A wounded human.

She didn’t think. She just crashed into the forest, her ears pricked toward the sound. Almost immediately, the scent of blood hit her nose. She followed it, leaping over a fallen tree branch. The trees were so tightly packed together the forest floor was almost clear of snow, making it easy for her to wend her way around rocks and roots.

About twenty feet in front of her, there was a clearing in the trees. A shaft of moonlight shone down like a spotlight. In the center of the clearing, a dark shape huddled on the ground.

She stumbled to a stop, unsure what she was seeing.

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