CHAPTER THREE

Heather

I push the curtain to the side and peek out the window. A fresh blanket of snow covers the woods, and there are no tracks in it. So far, we haven't been found.

But how long can that last for?

I glance over my shoulder at Gregory and the handful of other students gathered in the cabin. We haven't built a fire because the smoke would draw the Silver Hunters right to us. Last night, we huddled together for warmth.

It was pathetic to say the least. The only redeeming part was that I was right next to Gregory.

It's so sad that I finally got to cuddle with my crush, and it was when he was completely beat up, and we were hiding for our lives.

"Well?" he asks, looking hopefully at me with his good eye. The other one is nearly swollen shut.

We've treated his injuries with what we could find at the cabin, but he needs more than it has. He needs a doctor.

"No tracks," I report. "They'll find us eventually, though. We can't stay here."

We all look at each other, and no one says a thing. I sigh. Do I have to do everything when it comes to this group?

"Okay, look," I say, stepping forward, "we need to come up with a plan. We can't just sit here waiting for them to find us. We need to be proactive."

The group nods in agreement, but nobody says a thing. They're all looking to me for direction.

"First things first," I say, pacing back and forth, "we need to find out where we are. We need to know what's around us."

Michael speaks up. "I saw a map on the wall yesterday. Maybe we can use that."

"Good idea," I say, and we head to the wall where the map is pinned up. We huddle around it, tracing our fingers along the lines and trying to figure out where we are.

"This is where the cabin is," I say, pointing to a spot on the map. "And if we follow this river, it should lead us to town, but we don't want to go there. We can't risk being spotted."

There's a moment of silence as everyone looks to each other and then to me. They're waiting for me to come up with a plan.

“We should go now,” Michael says. A few of the students nod, but most of them still look too terrified to even speak.

Stacy, a girl with curly hair and glasses, pipes up. "If we go outside during the day, they'll see us."

I glare at her. "And if we stay here any longer, they'll find us. It's miraculous they haven't already found us. We'll just stick to the woods. We stay here and die, or we leave."

"Leave for where?" a freshman boy asks.

I fold my arms. "I need to get in touch with my parents, so if we can just get somewhere with a phone ..."

"Town?" Brynn asks hopefully.

I shoot her a glare. Didn't I just say we can't go into town? "Don't be silly. Town is probably crawling with Silver Hunters."

Her shoulders fold, and she looks away. She should be lucky that she's even still here, and I haven't kicked her out of the group for being buddy-buddy with Winter.

"Anyone else have any ideas?" I ask.

There's a moment of silence before a voice speaks up from the back of the room. "Professor Khalek lives off-campus. Her place is just a few miles from here. My mom is friends with her, and I went to her house once."

I turn to see who spoke, and it's a girl I vaguely recognize from one of my classes. My heart jumps at what she's said.

Was Professor Khalek at the school when it was attacked? Or was she home?

God, I hope it's the latter. Maybe we have a chance at making it out of this mess alive.

"Do you know the way?" I ask the girl.

She nods. "I think so. It's not too hard to find."

"Okay, then that's our plan," I say, feeling a sense of relief over having a destination.

"But we have to be careful," I continue. "We'll travel during the day, but we'll have to move quietly and quickly. We can't risk being spotted by the Silver Hunters."

Everyone nods in agreement, and we begin to gather what supplies we can find in the cabin. It's not much, but we'll make do.

As we prepare to leave, I can't help but think about what we're leaving behind. The safety of the cabin, the warmth of the fire we never lit.

Staying here is tempting, but it's far too risky.

The room is quiet, everyone focused on getting as warm as they can. A lot of the students are only wearing slippers and pajamas, and they've wrapped themselves in blankets and moth-eaten hats we found in the closet.

“Hey.” Brynn points at the window. “I just saw something.”

My heart jumps into my chest. “What?”

She licks her lips. “It looked like … the sun glinting off of some metal.”

We all freeze, staring at each other in fear. Metal as in a Silver Hunter’s sword?

Putting a finger to my lips, I slip back to the window and peek out.

There's a figure moving through the trees, and my heart pounds as I recognize the familiar shape of a Silver Hunter. It's a woman with long, dark hair and a silver sword strapped to her back. She's scanning the tree line for any sign of us.

Ice runs through me. Shoot. I had hoped to get ahead of this.

I duck back from the window and turn to the others. "We have to go. Now."

"What is it?" Gregory hisses back.

"Through the back," I whisper, pointing to the door that leads to the woods. "Quietly. There's a Silver Hunter out front."

We slip out into the snow, the cold biting at my skin. We're all bundled up, but it's not enough to keep out the freezing air.

As we head deeper into the woods, I can hear the Hunter's footsteps getting louder. She's almost upon us.

We all move as quickly and quietly as possible, but the snow crunches underfoot with every step.

Gregory grabs my hand, pulling me alongside of him. "Don't stop," he says, looking over his shoulder. "Keep moving."

The Hunter bursts through the trees just as we get into the thickest part of the woods. I can hear her curse and start to run after us.

My heart races as we try to put as much distance between us and the Hunter as possible. We weave through the trees, jumping over fallen logs and dodging low-hanging branches. The winter air burns my lungs, but I push through it, fueled by adrenaline and fear.

As we run, I can see the cabin getting smaller and smaller behind us, until it's nothing but a tiny dot in the distance.

We sprint through the snow, the trees blurring by as we barrel through the forest. I can hear the Silver Hunter's footsteps pounding behind me, her breathing ragged as she tries to keep up.

"Split up!" I yell to the group, hoping to throw the Hunter off our trail.

Everyone scatters in different directions, and I lose sight of Gregory. My heart drops as I realize I'm on my own.

I sprint through the snow, my breath coming in ragged gasps. I can feel the Hunter's presence behind me, and I know I don't have much time left.

I zig around a tree and look over my shoulder. She's gone. She must have followed someone else.

I glance around frantically, looking for a place to hide.

That's when I see it: a small cave in the side of a nearby hill. Without a second thought, I dart towards it, hoping it'll be enough to keep me safe.

I slip inside the cave, my heart pounding in my chest. The darkness envelops me, and I can hear my own breathing echo off the walls.

Suddenly, I hear something moving outside the cave. The Hunter must have followed me.

I hold my breath, listening as the footsteps grow louder and louder. The Hunter's sword scrapes against the stone as she approaches.

I can feel my heart in my throat as the footsteps stop outside the cave. I'm trapped.

Reaching into my pocket, I feel for my talisman. My fingers brush it, and I bite my lip. If I can use it on the Silver Hunter before she attacks, then she won't know what hit her.

But then, to my surprise, the footsteps start to recede. The Hunter must have given up.

I let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding and sink to the ground, my back against the cave wall. I'm trembling like a leaf, and I don't want to move, but I know I can't stay here.

Crawling to the edge of the cave, I use my heightened hearing and listen. There's nothing but the occasional twitter of birds and the distant roaring of a highway.

Satisfied that she's left, I climb out of the cave and breathe in sweet relief.

But it's short-lived.

Suddenly, I feel a sharp pain as someone kicks me in the knee from behind, sending me tumbling to the ground. I yelp in pain, my leg throbbing as I try to push myself up.

But before I can, the Hunter is on me. She grabs me by the hair and yanks me up to my feet, her sword at my throat.

"Don't move," she hisses, her breath hot against my cheek.

I freeze, my heart racing as I stare at the silver blade. This is it. The end.

But then ... a rustling in the trees. The Hunter's head snaps to the side, her grip on me faltering.

And that's when I see him. Gregory emerges from the trees, his lips curled into a snarl. With a fierce determination in his eyes, he lunges at the Hunter, knocking her to the ground.

I scramble backwards, watching in horror as the two of them fight. Gregory is strong, but he's also severely injured. He's no match for her. She tosses him into the air, and he hits a tree before crumpling to the ground.

I can't just sit here and watch. I have to help.

I grab a stick from the ground and charge at the Hunter, swinging wildly. My aim is off, and she easily dodges my attacks. But my distraction is enough for Gregory to land a blow, knocking the sword out of the Hunter's hand.

We both pounce on her, pinning her to the ground. She struggles and fights, but we get her face down into the snow and hold her down. She thrashes, but her fight lessens until she’s not moving at all.

We stand there for a moment, panting and shaking, staring down at the lifeless body on the ground.

"We have to keep moving," Gregory says, breaking the silence. "We can't stay here."

I stand up, my whole body shaking. We don't even know where everyone else is. Telling them to split up was probably a bad idea. How the hell will Gregory and I find Professor Khalek's house now?

Gregory stands as well, wincing in pain.

"Come on." I push through the snow, feeling so tired that I almost want to lie down and just give up.

But I don't. Because I'm anything but a quitter.

We walk for what feels like hours, the only sounds are our labored breathing and the crunch of snow underfoot. I'm starting to feel like we're never going to find civilization when we come across a clearing.

In the center of the clearing is a small cabin with a smoking chimney. Relief floods through me. We might have found a safe haven.

“Is this Professor Khalek’s house?” Gregory asks.

“No.” I’ve lost the map, but I know we’re not close enough for this to be our destination. It’s a place to warm up, though, and maybe we can use their phone.

We approach the cabin cautiously, but I don't see any signs of danger. I knock on the door and wait, my heart pounding in my chest.

After a few moments, the door creaks open, and an old woman's face appears in the opening. She looks us over, taking in our ragged appearance and fear-filled eyes.

"Hi," I say. "We got separated from our classmates. Do you have a phone we can use?"

"Come in," she says, stepping back to let us pass. "You look so cold."

"Thank you." I step inside, Gregory following close behind. The cabin is small and cozy, with a spiral staircase leading to a loft.

The woman leads us to the living room, where she stokes the fire, adding a few logs to the flames. The warmth feels amazing against my frozen skin.

"You're lucky you found me," she says, turning to face us. "There's not much around here for miles."

I nod, gratitude filling me. "Thank you so much for letting us in."

"You look like you could use a few stitches, young man," she tells Gregory.

"I suppose so," he mumbles.

"Have a seat." She gestures at the chairs in the living room. "How about some soup?"

"We really need a phone." I lick my lips and bounce on my heels. There's no time to waste.

She bustles into her kitchen. "I just made chicken noodle. You're not vegetarian, are you? You won't last long in this house if so!" She chuckles.

I grind my teeth. I'm glad she opened the door to us, but we really don't have time to waste. No doubt that one Silver Hunter called in the others for reinforcement. They could find us at any minute.

If I can just call my parents, then I can tell them what happened at Hawthorn. They'll come and get me, and Gregory and I will finally be safe.

"You sit down." She spoons soup into two bowls. "Rest a while."

I plop onto the couch, and the second I do, it feels like I'm melting. I just want to close my eyes and fall asleep.

"I'm worried about the others," Gregory mumbles.

Of course, he is. Unfortunately, sometimes he cares too much. I don't know why he bothers. His glimmer ability—which is part of being a werewolf—works on most people, and he can make nearly anyone like him.

Me being one of the exceptions. I like Gregory for who he is. I can tell when I’m being glimmered—the attraction to someone feels different—and he hasn’t used that on me in a long time.

Our relationship is a two-way road, and he doesn’t have that with most people. I’d like to think that what we have is special.

"They'll be fine." I yawn. "What's-Her-Name will take them to Professor Khalek's house."

"... just knocked on my door," the woman whispers in the kitchen.

I sit up straight, my super sharp hearing kicking into gear. My abilities aren't as cool as some people's, and it sucks that I still don’t know what I am, but the heightened hearing that I’ve always had comes in handy.

Especially when someone is trying to screw me over.

"... they're in the living room." She chuckles softly, and I realize she's on the phone. "Can you believe it? They just walked right in."

My heart nearly stops. Oh ... my ... God.

Gregory lifts a spoonful of soup to his mouth, but I lunge forward and knock it out of his hand. “Don’t eat it.”

“What?” He stares at me.

“She probably tried to drug us.” I stand. "We have to go," I hiss.

"Huh?" Gregory looks perplexed. "But we—"

"She's working with the Silver Hunters," I whisper. "She's in the kitchen right now talking to them."

Gregory's jaw drops, but I don't give him any time to be shocked. I grab him and haul him to the door.

“Would you two like some …” The old woman stops in the doorway. “Where are you going?” Her eyes harden.

“Run!” I fling the door open, and Gregory and I tumble through it.

The woman shouts after us, but we don’t stop. We're running across the driveway in a matter of seconds. We slip and fall on the hard-packed snow and ice, but we keep going. Across the road that leads to town and back into the woods.

We can't go into town. We can't even stay at an old lady's house.

We can't trust anyone.

And now Gregory and I are separated from the other students. If we don't find somewhere to hide soon, we're done for.