Page 34 of Hunted

I know he’s right. I know staying is pointless when my powers barely work and I couldn’t run to save my life. And I might need to.

“You’re not allowed to get eaten by a bear, okay?” I whisper.

One corner of his mouth lifts. “Okay, love. I’ll meet you back at the house.”

I have tears in my eyes as I nod, slowly backing up.

At no point does Mack look away from the bear.

When the bear swivels his head toward me, Mack steps in front of me, completely blocking me from view.

I retreat, slowly, as quietly as I can, each step careful as I try not to capture the bear’s attention. Because there’s no out-running a bear.

Not in my condition.

Then I’m out of sight, and I hesitate about leaving Mack.

The bear is probably very confused. It looks at Mack and sees a man, but smells a wolf. I’m debating whether to wait for Mack, hoping the bear remembers it’s supposed to be shy when Mack yells.

I jump, start to go back, and then I remember what he said.

Black bears are shy. He’s trying to scare it away. If the bear was attacking, he would run or he would shift so he could fight back.

Vibrations shake the leaves and branches of a nearby branch. Hopefully, it’s the bear running away from Mack and not toward him.

I can’t just stand here, waiting, hoping the bear doesn’t come this way.

I hurry back to the house, peering over my shoulder at the snap of a branch or the rustle of nearby leaves. There’s no sign of Mack or the bear. It’s just me on this quiet, early afternoon day.

Should I call Bennett when I get home, just in case Mack is in trouble?

The house is coming into view when an internal alarm screams a warning so loud I couldn’t miss it if I tried.

Someone is watching me.

I whirl to my right when all the hairs on the back of my neck stand tall.

Nothing.

No one is there.

The sound of my heavy panting breaths is ridiculous. I wasn’t even running, and I’m practically gasping. I wasn’t lying when I said stairs were the devil. So, I’m learning, are distances of more than a hundred meters.

I press a hand to my belly as I scan my surroundings, unnerved. There is no sign of a person or thing in the distance, yet I swear I still feel someone is watching me.

“Maybe it’s Mack,” I mutter, trying to convince myself.

Mack would smile as he walked toward me, not hide behind a tree, watching me the way I feel like someone is doing.

What to do?

I’m telling myself to stop being so paranoid and that this is all in my head, when a dark figure sprints from one tree to the next.

I stumble away, heart hammering in my chest.

And I step on… nothing.

My scream echoes all around me as I fall, instinctively curling myself into a ball to protect my baby. My head bears the brunt, colliding with rocks and earth on my tumble down a steep hill.

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