Page 27 of Grumpy Special Ops Bear: Ep. 1
My stomach plummeted. “Rules for what?”
“The Hunt you are about to be part of. Hunting animals is only so much fun for us. But hunting humans… Well…” He smiled. “That’s been a decadent luxury for our kind for centuries. A sort of ritual,” he revealed, running his fingers down my cheek.
I jerked my head away.
He grabbed my chin again, forcing me to look at him. “Tomorrow morning, I’ll cut you loose, giving you a head start before I set my pack on you. If you can make it to the park rangers, you’ll win, but if not, one of us will catch you, and… well…” He turned his gaze to the half-eaten elk carcass, then back.
I gulped. There was something dark in his eyes, but I was too frightened to understand what it was.
“You’re going to hunt me?” I croaked. “Like a fucking animal?”
Josh laughed coldly. “What can I say? Tradition is tradition,” he replied, as if we were discussing going to a baseball game. “But for now, get some sleep, my beautiful prey. For tomorrow will be the full moon, and you must run for your precious life.”
My legs felt like jelly. “I don’t understand. Why?” I whispered in shock. “I’ve done nothing to you.”
“To me personally? No. But there are others—” He stopped himself and grimaced. “But you will learn all about that later. For now, just know your death will give one of my pack members the greatest honor.”
This crazy motherfucker actually believed this Hunt was some great tournament of champions, and I was the human trophy.
“Rest now, Trinity. Sleep peacefully.”
No. No. No.
I tried every way to rationalize what was happening, but it didn’t work. No matter how much I wished myself to be somewhere else, I was tied to this fucking tree. And Josh was a shifter. And this was his pack.
I watched as they all turned back into wolves before they ripped apart what they’d left of the elk carcass.
I shuddered. Those teeth… They’d use them to tear me apart.
I was going to be sick again, but I forced myself to breathe deeply and focus on staying alive.
The rope tethered my arms to my sides, looping around my body and the tree. I kept squirming, trying to get loose, while I attempted to figure out a plan.
I tried not to smile with delight when they all disappeared from the campsite. Their blood-curdling howling echoed around the woods, but it grew farther and farther away.
Finally. Maybe I can get the hell out of here.
I wiggled from side to side, trying to loosen the rope. I was happy that I was wearing a jacket to prevent rope burn, so I continued working to loosen the rope. It was slow going, but eventually the rope slackened at the bottom just enough to where I could move my hand into the front pocket of my pants.
I sighed with relief when I felt the cold metal object.My pocketknife.
“Thank God. A bit of luck for me,” I whispered.
Keeping my eyes pinned to the woods where they’d disappeared, I slowly used my fingertips to inch my knife up and out of my cargo pants’ front pocket. My heart raced with happiness once I had it in the palm of my hand. Opening the knife, I started sawing at the rope that was around my waist.
Idiots. Did they really think I was so pathetic that I wouldn’t try to escape?
As it was, I had to cut the ropes inch by painful inch. I kept my breathing steady, as I did on all my adventures, and I told myself that was exactly what this was—just another adventure.
I’d make it through this shit.
I could survive in the woods and figure out a way to get to the closest state park ranger station.
The contract with Josh was for a month. We were already a good chunk of the way into the trip, and if I didn’t check in soon, someone would send help.
Yeah, Halle will make sure I’m okay.
I almost let out a cry of triumph when I finally cut through the rope at my waist. The severed rope loosened and dropped to the ground. Quietly, I walked backward into the tree line.
