Page 1 of The Untamed

Run faster.

He’s going to catch you, Rae.

Tears burn my eyes from the chill of the early fall Alaskan air that also makes my breath come out in white-clouded puffs. My lungs ache and my calves are on fire.

I won’t let him catch me.

I won’t.

My determination to outrun him has another shot of adrenaline surging through my veins. New resolve to beat him has me darting off the pathway between the trees into the thicket. Branches lash out at me, seemingly accomplices on his side. A particularly sharp one snags at my hair. I strangle the cry of surprise in my throat, not eager to give away my new location.

Snap.

Too late.

“Raegan Abigail Jamison!”

He only calls me by my full name when he’s pissed. This thought fuels me faster, ignoring the painful whip of icy wind and cruel branches, each taking their turns to punish me for him.

The snarled way in which he says my name feels closer. Too close. If Dad were here, he’d save me.

But he’s not.

I’m all alone with no one to intervene.

I could stab him. The thought has me cackling, unable to suppress the crazed sounds slipping past my lips. It could be defeat that has me sabotaging myself and giving up my location.

He won’t hurt me.

He can’t.

Dad would whip him into next week.

Another bubble of laughter bursts out.

Snap. Snap. Snap.

Twigs break under his heavy boots right behind me. So close. There’s nowhere to run. He’s going to catch me. I grip the hilt of the too-big knife tighter than before. Even though it’s cold, winter promising its annual return, my hands are slick from sweat inside my thick gloves.

“Got you!”

The words are hissed half a second before strong arms encircle my waist. I shriek in surprise, stumbling over my own feet, and go down hard, taking him with me. We hit the cold, unforgiving earth with a thud that probably scares off any game within a hundred-mile radius. Pain assaults me from every direction—elbows and knees quickly bruising, the sting of my lip that must’ve been pierced by a tooth, and every single muscle on fire from exertion.

“Get. Off. Me!” I bite out my words as I attempt to wriggle out from his massive frame. It’s unfair, really, how he can have all the height and weight and muscles. I’m skin and bones beside him. I hate how strong he is despite our close ages.

“Give it back to me, Rae, so fucking help me.”

His threats don’t work on me. I’ve heard them a million times before. Though I may be smaller, I’m not afraid of him. I just hoped I’d be faster. Once again, I’m proved wrong.

He struggles to take the knife from my grip, but I manage to keep my hold on it. After seconds of not being able to take it from me, he takes another tactic, choosing to flip me over onto my back. His large hand easily covers my wrist, pinning it to the cold ground.

Ryder.

My brother.

Big, arrogant asshole.

I attempt to spit at him, but his other hand crushes my mouth, already keen on my underhanded tactics having been on the receiving end of them for as long as I can remember.

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