STAY ALERT

Jemima's POV

The night was so heavy around us, so intense and quiet, the kind of silence that presses down on your chest like a foreign presence. Adrian’s voice echoed in my mind through the pack's mind link.

“Shift. Now.”

I didn’t hesitate. The command surged through me, setting my veins on fire. One by one, the others responded, their human forms shifting into powerful wolves with thick fur and sharp, dark claws. 

The shift came over me like something I wasn’t prepared for, pulling me under and spitting me out in my wolf form. My senses sharpened instantly, every sound, every scent, every movement in the forest felt as if it was amplified in my head

And then, there was nothing. No more thudding, no more rustling. Just silence. The kind that wasn’t natural. The kind that made the fur on the back of my neck stand up.

“Stay alert,” Adrian warned through the link. His voice was calm, but I could sense the tension that came with it. “Something’s out there.”

I bent down low, my claws digging into the ground as I scanned the darkness. My wolf was on edge, pacing inside me, ready to pounce. Whatever this was, it wasn’t ordinary. It was heavy, oppressive, and wrong.

Suddenly, I saw it, a slight movement. A glint of something metallic. My wolf instincts took over, and before I could think, I jumped at Adrian, pulling him down with all the force I could think of mustering. He let out a startled growl as we tumbled to the ground.

“Jemima, what the hell—?” he started, but I cut him off through the link.

“Look at the tree behind you!” I barked.

Adrian’s head snapped up toward the trunk, his amber eyes narrowing. A sharp angry growl he released told me he saw it. A sleek black arrow buried in the bark of the tree, the tip still vibrating from the force it took to shoot the arrow.

“It was aimed at your skull,” I said, my voice trembling with the adrenaline rushing through me.

Adrian’s gaze diverted to me, a mixture of gratitude and frustration swirling in his mind. But we didn’t have time for that. There wasn’t time for words. My attention went back to the arrow. I focused on it, allowing my energy to flow, and pulled it out of the tree when I told my mind to do so.

The arrow stayed suspended in the air for a moment before I used my eyes to direct it toward the darkness. My eyes were fixed onto a shape hidden among the trees. It was a wolf, I was sure, so massive and broad, its fur moving with all the aggression in the world combined. 

The rival pack. I didn’t hesitate. With a flick of my head, the arrow went forward and pierced the big black wolf’s shoulder. If I had never felt good about anything before, I definitely felt good about this.

A loud howl broke through the forest and I knew I had aimed well. Then all hell broke loose.

Adrian’s voice shouted through the mind link. “Attack!”

The pack jumped into motion. Wolves came out from the shadows, their howls and growls cutting through the night as they charged toward the other group. 

I stayed back for a moment, my sharp vision going through every wolf on the battlefield. From where I stayed low to the ground, I could see everything, the way our wolves clashed with the others, fangs all out and stained with blood and their claws tearing through flesh.

My heart pounded as I focused on another wolf staying just on the other side. It was smaller, quicker, and going between the trees. My eyes locked onto it, and I reached out with my mind, pulling a branch that was hanging low with enough force to remove it from where it was hinged to the tree. 

The branch hit the wolf and knocked it off balance and it stumbled, growling in frustration, then one of our packmates took the opportunity to charge at the other wolf, pinning it to the ground.

“Nice shot,” Adrian said, his voice breaking through the chaos as he landed beside me, his fur streaked with blood, some of it was his, most of it was not.

I didn’t respond, too focused on the battle. The air was thick with the metallic and coppery scent of blood and the snarls of wolves that were fighting everywhere. My wolf pushed against me, desperate to join the others in the fighting, but I held her back. I wasn’t done here.

Adrian followed my gaze to the fattest wolf in the other pack—the one that I had hit with the arrow earlier. It was limping now, trying to retreat, but its eyes were burning with so much anger and hater.

“That one,” I said through the link, nodding toward it. “It’s their leader.”

Adrian growled low in agreement. “Take it down.”

I didn’t need to be told twice. I came out from the place I was hiding, my claws digging into the ground as I ran toward the injured wolf. It saw me coming and let out a deep, angry growl and barred its teeth.

Good. Let it think it had a chance.

I did as if I wanted to go left, but then I went right instead, then I sank my teeth into its neck. It yelled in pain, turning to snap at me, but I was already gone, going round to strike again. I learnt this move from Adrian, and I could feel him watching e from the other side. The scent of its blood filled my nostrils, giving me the drive I needed to go forward.

Somewhere behind me, Adrian and the others were finishing off the rest of the other pack. The sound of bones breaking and flesh tearing filled the air, but I couldn’t focus on that now. My fight was with this one right here.

“Jemima, watch out!” Adrian’s voice roared through the link, and I turned around just in time to see another wolf coming at me from the left side.

It was massive, its fur stained with blood and its eyes wild like it was ready to devour. I barely had time to react before it jumped at me, knocking me to the ground. I felt the pain shooting up through my side as its claws grazed my ribs, and I was struggling to come out from under it. 

It opened its mouth and was almost prepared for my end when something knocked him off with a loud roar. It was Adrian.

“You okay?” Adrian’s voice came with concern.

“I’m fine,” I shot back, though the pain in my ribs said otherwise.

Adrian came over to me, his eyes scanning my injuries. “You’re hurt,” he said, his voice tight.

“I’m fine,” I insisted, though my ribs pained me with every breath I took.

He didn’t look convinced. “You need to rest.”

I shook my head. “Not yet. We need to figure out why they came after us.”

Adrian sighed, but he didn’t argue. Instead, he turned to the rest of the pack. “Search the area. Find anything that might give us answers.”

As the others went away, I sank onto the ground, my body finally giving in to the exhaustion.