SEVEN

Eden pov

“Leave me and run. You have a bigger chance to get out of here alone. Head to North, that’s where you will find a safe shelter. Run and don’t look back.” 

Although his words were barely louder than a whisper, they held so much power, bravery and selflessness I knew I couldn’t leave him behind. A person, who was willing to put his own safety in jeopardy deserved salvation as much as I did. 

I knew we couldn’t outrun the patrol or fight them off, but what we could do was use anything we could to our advantage. I looked around and tried to figure out which route would be the best. 

So far nothing worked like I had planned, but somehow, the very thing I feared the most turned out to be the distraction I needed. 

The growl I expected was so powerful, it might have shaken the ground around the pack house. The sound alerted the patrol and they instantly took off towards the building, leaving us behind. 

I glanced at the old man and grinned. “Think you could run until we get over the border after all? There won’t be a better chance to get out than the one we have now.” 

There was a hint of doubt in his eyes, but stronger than that was his drive to get out. 

When he nodded his head, I winked at him. “You owe me your name as soon as we step over that border, my friend. I’m Eden, by the way.” 

He didn’t answer, didn’t acknowledge my words. Intread, he got out of my hold and took off. This had to be the first time I saw someone as old as him run that fast. Truth to be told, I had some difficulty keeping up with him, but we managed. 

I knew we stepped over the pack border but didn’t alert my friend. He deserved a moment to sit down and rest, but we didn’t know how far the patrol and the Alpha were willing to go, so I took advantage of him, still running. 

Once we got far away, we could rest. 

By the time my lungs started burning and I couldn’t feel the muscles in my legs anymore, I realized we had run for longer than a couple of minutes as I initially planned. 

I was close to collapsing while the old man, the same man who claimed he was too old and slow, kept running without breaking a bead of sweat. How? 

“I think I’m about to die,” I blurted out. My voice didn’t sound like mine, it was so hoarse, almost like I had been choked for hours and finally got a chance to speak. 

“Shoot,” the old man finally stopped. “I forgot you’re not a full-blood shifter, sorry,” he muttered the apology as I ran into him. 

I tried to stop, I really did, but my muscles didn’t listen to me so…

To his credit, he didn’t pay attention to it and focused on our surroundings. “Oh, I recognize this place. We’re about fifteen miles away from the pack territory. Although I believe this is unclaimed land, we should be safe here for now. I’m Richard. It’s nice to finally exchange names, Eden.” 

“Indeed, it is,” I grinned and offered him my hand for a handshake. 

Unlike other people I had met before, Richard didn’t pull a face of disgust and gladly shook my hand. Both of us grinned like fools until the realization sunk in. We were out. Free. 

“So, what now?” He asked. 

At first, I just shrugged, still unsure of how to feel about freedom. This was the first time I had left the territory after I moved there. I didn’t know the world out there, the laws and rules of survival. 

If anything, I almost felt like an infant that had barely left the womb and faced the fact that now, I had to learn how to breathe without assistance. 

“Oh, how about we rest a bit and figure out a plan? I got some food in my backpack. If you want to, we can cook something or stick to snacks until morning, maybe?” 

Richard laughed at me as he sat down. Then, his eyes focused on something in the distance and a loud, heavy sigh left him. “I don’t remember when was the last time I breathed in fresh air.” He muttered. 

The words took me off guard. What was he trying to tell me? 

“In fact, I have no idea how much time I spent in that cell. It has to be years.” 

“Wait,” I gasped and sat next to him. “You were there all that time and never tried to speak to me? Why didn't you try to connect with me before today?” 

Richard shrugged his shoulders. “I didn’t want to scare you. Sometimes, just the thought of having someone nearby helps you… Not to feel that lonely, I guess? Anyway, I saw many things in that cell but every time they came downstairs to berate you, you left the cell stronger, more determined for some reason. I didn’t know why you stayed there, but I also didn’t want to intervene without knowing anything. Until today, of course.” 

“I hoped that my mate would get me out of there,” I admitted. 

Technically, Richard and I were strangers, but I trusted him enough to admit that much. It was the truth, after all. While I had no idea there was someone watching me every day, hearing me cry, the thought made me feel warmer. I wasn’t as alone as I thought.

“Look at you, princess. You endured so much waiting for your prince charming and ended up escaping on your own. You even brought the wicked ogre with you,” Richard chuckled. 

I had forgotten how it felt to have a father, to enjoy moments of joking around with him, but I had a suspicion that this conversation was pretty close to that. 

I reached into my backpack and pulled out two protein bars. I hated the taste, but they were a great source of energy and easy on the stomach. 

As we snacked on those, we let the silence take over for a bit. Neither of us seemed adamant to insist on more discussions until we were done eating and washed the dry protein bars down with some water. 

“I suppose now we should come up with a plan, right? The first night of our freedom. Tell me, Eden, is there anywhere you ever wanted to go to?” Richard questioned me. 

Right when his eyes focused on me, I started wondering how pathetic it would sound if I admitted that I had never really thought about it. My life was in that pack, it was the center of my universe. I didn’t know anything outside it, not to the level to dream about visiting places. 

“Nope,” I finally admitted, thankfully sounding somewhat light-hearted. 

I probably was feeling too relaxed and didn’t pay attention to anything until Richard’s body froze next to mine. My heart started beating so fast, I heard the pounding in my ears. It had to be the trackers that crazy Alpha sent, right? 

Richard grabbed my wrist and shook me. “Fire.”