Page 20 of Lycan

He drew back as if offended.

“Fear, I smell it.” He sneered. “I will not harm you.”

“Hard to believe with you snapping your teeth at me.” My voice trembled.

He huffed so hard my hair fluttered around my bare shoulders. I hugged my chest, suddenly feeling how naked I was.

“You are mine. I will not hurt what is mine.” He said it with such finality. As if his claim was a statement of fact. I narrowed my eyes up at him.

“You already have,” I retorted, wanting to see what he would say back.

Fenrir loomed over me, a growl ripping through the shack. His large grip wrapped around my bicep, and he pulled me to my feet with ease. I stumbled after him. He seemed dead set on dragging me to the corner of the shack. He gently urged me against the wall.

“What are you doing—no!” I shouted.

Fenrir bent one of the rusted old pipes over my waist, securing it around my hip and stabbing the other side into the wood. It burst through the wall and he shoved again, lashing it around my waist. The rusted bar dug into my belly, effectivelytrapping me. I wrapped my hands around the metal, shoving and pulling in panic.

“Wh-what is this?” I choked out. “Fenrir, what are you doing?!”

“I will return.” He studied me and as if coming to a decision, turned to the swaying door.

“Wait.” I uselessly yanked at the flaking metal. “How long will you be gone?”

He shoved the door open, his fur fluttering with the draft from outside. Without his body as protection, the chill seeped into my veins.

“If you’re leaving me here, you owe it to me to give mesomeanswers!”

“I will not be gone long.” The glow in his eyes intensified. Pam used to talk to me about heaven and hell and Fenrir seemed like a creature straight out of those biblical tales. A shiver coasted up my spine.

“Fenrir!” I struggled against the harsh edges of the metal bar. “Fenrir, don’t leave me,” I cried. He stiffened and loped back to me. The glow from his eyes fell across mine and he pressed the sharp tip of his claw under my jaw.

“I will be back for you.” His tongue slid across my cheek, catching half my lips.

“Wait,” I cried, panting. If he walked away and came across Jason and Pam; he’d kill them, I had no doubt. I couldn’t let that happen.

“Leave Jason and Pam alone.” Maybe I could wiggle down and get out of this makeshift contraption once he was gone. I froze in place before I could clue him off to it. “Please, don’t hurt them.” Emotion throbbed through my gut. “I swear I’ll do as you say and stay put, but please, please, leave my family alone.”

“Your?” His muzzle curled. “Nothing is yours. You are mine. Belong to me. Only me.”

He loomed close to my face. I made sure to stay still, holding my breath as he snarled in my face.

“I will kill any that take your attention from me.” His head cocked.

I clenched my eyes closed from the onslaught of his glow. I leaned against the wall, letting it support my weight. When I opened my eyes, he was gone.

The window allowed a faint yellow hue to reflect inside. The sun was just beginning to rise but it would be hours before the day warmed up and I’d turn into a popsicle if I didn’t get to warmth, especially since I was naked.

I gripped the cold bar digging into my stomach. It wasn’t so tight that it restricted my breathing, so if I sucked it in a bit and slid down then I could get out of this. Only problem was my boobs and head.

I wiggled down an inch and the rust caused the bar to abrasively rub against my skin. Copper flakes fluttered to the ground.

Once I reached right below my breasts, I flattened my shoulders against the wall. Bracing my hands on the bar, I used the wood at my back and the strength in my thighs to push with all my might. Just a little more so my breasts could fit. Strain burned through my muscles. I could do this. After all, I was the one to carry things around here, I could do this. I gritted my teeth and gave a final heave. The bar groaned in protest, but it moved enough. I inched my hands over my nipples, squeezed my eyes closed, and yanked down. Scrapes abraded my skin across the side of my boob and all my knuckles. Now just my head. Wrapping my hands around the bar, I braced again, managing to get a better grip at this angle. I pushed with gritted teeth, and it moved a few more inches with a squeak. I panted, dropping my clammy hands. Turning my head, I inched down. Pressurebecame excruciating near my ear, but I gritted my teeth, pushing through. I bit back a whimper and finally extricated myself.

At least I was finally free.

I popped to my feet. Fenrir seemed like a single-minded creature set on killing the people that had taken him, but if he caught the scent of my parents . . .

I pounded down the steps and onto the forest floor. Leaves, pebbles, and branches crunched underfoot. I winced at the assault on the bottom of my feet, but continued forward, hugging my breasts so their bouncing didn’t hurt as much while I ran. In the last decade I’d lived here, I’d never ran through the woods nude. It was not a comfortable feeling.

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