LOGINShare
Chapter 11
Related chapters
Hunted Chapter 1
RILEY Faster. Move. Come on. My breaths were ragged, every inhale and exhale tearing through me as I barreled through the woods. Branches snagged at my fur, cutting deep, but I couldn’t stop. Not now. Not when I could hear them right behind me—the snarls, the barks—closing in. Hunting me down like some damned animal. Hell, who was I kidding? That’s exactly what I was to them now. A mutt to put down. An inconvenience. A betrayal. I felt the snap of jaws too close, teeth grazing my tail as I dodged right, pushing every ounce of strength I had left. A single glance over my shoulder was my mistake. My paws slipped on the slick ground, sending me skidding over jagged rocks until I slammed down hard, side-first. Pain shot through me, raw and jagged, as I collided with a sharp rock that bit deep into my skin. Howls. Sneers. They were so damn close. Get up. Get up, Riley. I forced myself to stand, paws trembling. My legs screamed to give out, but I pushed forward. I had to. The
Hunted Chapter 2
SILAS“Come on, Scout!” I called to my dog, shutting the barn door after feeding the goats. I wiped my hands down my pants, then used the back of my hand to swipe the sweat from my brow.I glanced toward the house. Time to check on that damn dog—if it was still alive, that is.I thought about how close I’d come to running the poor thing over last night. Rain had been coming down in sheets, and I’d barely been able to see the road, just getting back from town with some supplies.As I pushed the door open, Scout bolted in ahead of me. But he stopped abruptly, tail tucked, a low growl rumbling from his chest. My senses went on high alert.Following his gaze, my eyes landed on the smears of blood. But there weren’t paw prints—no, these were human bloodprints.My hand found the bat by the wall, and I gripped it tight, creeping forward, following the trail. The marks led straight to the bathroom. With a quick breath and my hands wrapped tightly around the bat, I lifted my foot and slammed t
Hunted Chapter 3
RILEYFuck, my head’s pounding. All I could focus on was the hammering pain in the back of my skull as I forced my eyes open, barely able to make out the dim room around me.“You’re finally awake.”The gruff voice yanked me up, and I regretted it instantly, hissing at the pain that ripped through my stomach and neck. My hand went to my throat, fingers grazing cold metal. A goddamn chain. I glared up at the guy sprawled out on the couch, legs spread like he was watching his favorite show.“You chained me.” The words came out low, almost a growl, and I jerked my neck forward, the chain biting into my skin. “You fucking chained me.”He raised an eyebrow, unimpressed. “Well, seeing as you broke into my house and damn near choked me to death… figured it was in my best interest to keep you like that. Just in case you decided to go… wild again.”I stared him down for a second, maybe two, before slumping back onto the tiny bed. My gaze drifted to the bandage on my abdomen, the wound neatly wr
Hunted Chapter 4
SILAS I wasn’t an evil person, but I’d be lying if I called myself a saint. Life had taught me long ago that no one was entirely good or bad—we were all somewhere in the messy, gray middle. And right now, as I looked down at this stranger, passed out and burning up on my dog’s bed, I was firmly planted in that moral gray zone. Riley—if that was even his real name—was in bad shape. He’d been feverish and muttering incoherently for the past few minutes, his body a bundle of shivers one second and burning hot the next. His skin was so flushed I could feel the heat radiating off him, seeping into my shirt where he’d clawed at it like a lifeline. He twisted on his side, mumbling something I couldn’t quite catch, teeth chattering like he was freezing, though sweat drenched his skin. “I didn’t do it…” The words escaped his lips in a faint murmur, his fingers unclenching and curling into the mattress instead. I frowned, my eyes narrowing as I watched him. Didn’t do what? He wasn’t making
Hunted Chapter 5
SILAS“Are you even listening to me?” I demanded, leaning forward, my voice a low growl. Riley’s eyes were glazed, lost in whatever fevered haze had taken over, and I was starting to doubt he could even hear me. He didn’t respond, just stared, his lips parting in some kind of dazed surrender.And then he leaned in, lips brushing against mine, the contact so brief, it was almost a whisper. But in the same instant, my grip on the knife tightened, the blade biting deeper into his skin. Warm, slick blood coated my fingers, forcing me to jerk back. The heat, the scent—it was too intimate, too close.“What the fuck is wrong with you?” I spat, glaring at him. He groaned, hips lifting under my weight, his breath shuddering as he muttered, “I—I can’t help it…” His head rolled to the side, before his gaze met mine, pupils blown wide. “Please… make it stop… Marcus.”That name. Marcus. I didn’t know why it made my skin crawl, but it did. I bit down on the frustration, fingers pressing into his hi
Hunted Chapter 6
RileyI dragged my tongue across my cracked, dry lips, the metallic taste of blood lingering there as I watched him—this human who held me captive in this damn basement. I still didn’t know his name, and I couldn’t decide if he was keeping that detail from me to protect himself…or to keep me guessing. But I knew one thing for certain: I was hungry. Starving, really, and my stomach growled loud enough that even he noticed.“I’m hungry,” I snapped, watching his gaze narrow, sharpening like he could see right through me.“Tell me everything. Are there more of you coming for me?” His voice was hard, clipped. The way he looked at me, you’d think I’d already slit his throat.A sigh slipped out of me as I sank back, sliding down until I was sitting on the cold floor, legs stretched out in front of me. I winced as pain shot through my side, my wound throbbing from even that slight movement. Damn them. My pack had injected me with wolfsbane before they’d released me, left me half-drugged and b
Hunted Chapter 7
RILEYThe faint, rough warmth of something wet dragged across my arm, pulling me from a deep, pain filled sleep. I blinked against the darkness, my whole body tightening as I prepared for the worst. Had they found me? My pulse quickened, but then I saw it—a small figure close to me, a brown shape in the dim light. A dog. My mind pieced together its name from fractured memories. Scout. That was what the human had called it.“Hey, you,” I whispered, my fingers slipping into its warm, thick fur. The dog’s eyes gleamed back at me, the only comforting glow in this hollow basement.“How did you get in here?” I asked, voice barely above a rasp. I tried to lean forward, but the chain around my neck tugged sharply, the silver biting harder into my raw skin. I winced as I felt a fresh slice of pain, then the telltale trickle of blood. It seeped slowly, a crimson line over my skin, the scent was sharp and metallic in my nose, even as faint as it was.It wouldn’t be long now. The poison would wo
Hunted Chapter 8
SILAS I am not a murderer. I am not a murderer. The words hammered in my head, over and over, beating in time with the swing of the axe. It was barely morning, and already sweat clung to my skin, but that voice—that voice inside—was louder than anything, louder than the sound of the axe biting into wood. Over and over again. I am not a murderer. But if I let him die, what did that make me? I slammed the axe down, feeling the wood split under the force. “They’re the monsters,” I muttered, trying to ground myself, trying to remember. They’re the ones who kill. Not me. Uncle Orin told me, my parents told me. I saw it with my own eyes. But still… his voice, his face, the way he’d looked at me. What if… what if he wasn’t like them? My grip tightened on the axe until my knuckles turned white. It wasn’t supposed to feel like this. I wasn’t supposed to feel anything at all. I dropped the axe, chest heaving, and looked up at the sky, as if I’d find some sort of answer there. “Fuck!” T
Latest chapter
