Page 123 of Into the Isle

I lifted up, steady as could be, and roared at the wolves in front of us. A flicker of doubt flashed in their eyes.

And then I charged at them headlong. My rumbling gait shook the earth, swinging Ravinica on me like she was riding a bull.

She let out a cry of anguish, shock, or excitement—perhaps a combination of the three. The wolves tried to make a wall in front of us . . . I kept barreling toward them . . .

At the last second, they broke, not wanting anything to do with my claws or Ravinica’s spear as she rode atop my back.

Having Ravinica riding bear-back was something I’d never done with another person. Desperate times called for desperate measures, and she navigated the tense situation with aplomb.

I rampaged through the trees toward the mountain that would lead us up to the academy. There, we would be safe.

As we took to the thicker trees, she let out a cry: “They’re all over us, Grim!”

I didn’t need to be told. I could feel the presence of the wolves to my right and left, flitting by, maneuvering over and around the trees much swifter and quicker than I could.

I was a lumbering giant. My legs moved me at a fast speed, yet the Torfen pack was agile, lithe, and trained for the hunt. Their pack tactics were second to none.

As we sped away from the clearing, Ravinica jabbed her spear left and right, keeping the hounds at bay.

The wolves snarled and barked at her, scenting their prey, knowing they only needed one well-executed, coordinated strike to bring me down.

I would do everything to make sure it didn’t happen—everything to make sure Ravinica was safe.

I had a purpose at Vikingrune for perhaps the first time. Protect her at all costs. Keep her, save her, and adore her.

Ravinica’s weight on top of me was nothing. She was light, and got more comfortable the longer I barreled through the woods. She managed to lean into the rocking and shaking caused by my burly galloping.

In her element, Ravinica shouted like a valkyrie to the heavens, thrusting her spear like a jouster. She nearly lanced one of the gray wolves and sent it scurrying off.

Another wolf took its place, this one darker.

Sven, I thought, knowing he was not the largest but certainly the most intelligent and dangerous of the Torfen cubs.

The wolf shifter barreled into my side, dipping under Ravinica’s spear. He raked his claws across my belly and I growled, slowed, and swung an arm out aimlessly.

Sven pulled back, adjusting the trajectory of his charge to curve around a tree trunk that split between us.

I angled away from the trunk, so once we were on the other side of it Sven was further away.

I nearly charged straight into one of his kinsmen, who leapt into the air out of the shadows.

Ravinica thrust her spear and caught the wolf in the leg, sending it spiraling in the air before it skittered on its side and yelped in pain.

The other three wolves kept their pace, eager to bring me down. They made mistakes because they were so thirsty for violence and mating. The Torfens didn’t move how I knew they were capable of moving. They stumbled over each other, each one trying to be the hero to topple the bear and his rider.

Minutes passed as we careened through the forest. I moved at a breakneck speed for a bear, and we were getting close to the mountains.

Passing Isleton to my left, I heard shouts and gasps from people on the outskirts. It wasn’t every day a full-grown bear paraded past their town with a bevy of wolves giving chase.

Snarling, howling, and roaring filled the night.

I caught sight of two other wolf shifters far to the right—no association to the Torfens. They shagged under the canopy of a tree, much like Ravinica and I had. They watched us go curiously, and I assumed continued their gallivanting once we were past. Lucky them.

I vaguely wondered if the fornicating wolves knew each other, or if they were simply giving in to their base instincts and urges.

Finally, we burst through the trees. Sven and his ilk charged out a few seconds later, two to my right, one to my left.

I gained the steps, the path, the rocks, and they slowed as they hopped from spot to spot. I climbed the road better than they could, going in a straight line up the hillside. The wolves had to traverse around boulders too high, inclines too steep. They had to use intelligence to continue chasing me, while I could use brute force.

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