The Lesser of 2 Evils

KRISTINA, FREEDOM COMES AT A HIGH PRICE

I strip quickly behind a tree to shift to Bella’s form. After ensuring no one is watching, she gently picks up my clothes in her mouth before taking off into the woods. Someone would question why I’m taking my clothes with me if they were to see so I need to avoid the pack and the patrol as I head for our territory border. Knowing no one will be looking for me for a few hours helps as well as all of the false trails I laid in the past two days but I’ll still feel better once the border is behind me.

Bella runs and runs for her life and mine, seeing and encountering no one on our semi-direct path to the border, crossing water three times to cover our scent. I’m promised to the Alpha of our pack – they’re going to come looking for me, of this I have no doubt but I don’t intend to make it easy for them. She races steadily until I sense the border and know when I’ve crossed it, leaving my pack’s territory behind.

The distance is already so vast, I can no longer hear the mindlink of anyone in the pack – not even Lincoln as my Alpha. Bella doesn’t slow down even a little bit, both of us vowing to go for as long as we can to put as much distance as possible between us and home before we stop to rest. We’ve crossed into a territory I don’t recognize – but having never been beyond our border before, I have no idea what lays beyond so everything is new and unrecognizable to me.

I can smell other wolf scents – many are pungent, rotten – have a bad odour to them, almost sickly. I’ve heard the stories of these wolves – rogues. It is how they kept us inside our territory borders – a few horror stories about the terrors that are the rogue wolves of the world beyond our safe home and none of us ever dared to venture even close to the edges. I’m scared to death of running into some – Bella is not a fighter – as a she-wolf we were never trained to fight, not even to defend ourselves so if we run into any trouble… well, it is best if we don’t.

After a long while the scents around us begin to change again and I know I’ve crossed into the territory of another pack. Bella stops immediately, afraid to proceed uninvited – almost preferring to risk the rogues instead. Knowing how our pack dealt with the few outsiders that ever crossed into our territory… I have no desire to be an unwanted guest for this pack.

Bella turns around and heads back toward the border.

As we approach, the smell of rogue wolf hits her snout hard – like a physical punch in the face. It doesn’t take us long to see the source of the stink – four large males standing on the other side of the border, staring at me. They seem to be waiting patiently for us to cross the border so they can attack, so Bella uncomfortably holds her position. Not being a fighter in the first place, we have zero chance against four males. We also know that the presence of these rogues is likely to draw the patrol of the pack whose territory I’m currently trespassing in and they’re just as likely to attack me so I’m still not safe.

Then it hits me – I’m a rogue.

Holy shit – I ran away from my pack which makes me a rogue wolf. The fact that there are four rogues ‘working’ together as they wait for me is unusual and tells me they have more than just my death on their minds. With that horrible thought in my mind, I opt to stay on the pack’s territory – trespassing. If they deal with me like we dealt with trespassers, at least it’ll be quick and they are unlikely to rape me first.

If I cross that border, all bets are off.

It isn’t long before I start to smell the scents of other wolves quickly approaching, as I also hearing their thundering paws. To make herself appear as nonthreatening as possible, Bella lays down on her belly and rests her chin on her front paws. It is a sign of submission to the approaching pack members in the hopes they don’t slaughter us on sight, which they’re just as apt to do.

In seconds, Bella is completely surrounded by several large warrior wolves and she-wolves, all baring their teeth angrily at the rogue trespasser – us. I brave a glance toward the rogues who are still on their side of the border, watching curiously. One of the warriors shifts into his human form and stands in front of me. Bella keeps her eyes lowered out of respect for his nude form.

“Shift!” He demands of her and she immediately complies, unable and unwilling to defy him. In seconds I’m laying naked on the ground in front of everyone, attempting to conceal myself. I make no attempts to stand as every movement I make stirs the circle of wolves’ agitation to new heights.

“Who are you and why are you here, rogue?” The man questions me and I risk a look in his eyes before quickly looking away again. I want him to know I’m being honest and sincere without being disrespectful – a tough line to follow.

“My old pack is several hours from here. I’m no longer able to live there and am now on the run,” I glance into his eyes again but get no read on whether he is believing me or not. I tell the truth without revealing too much, hoping it is enough. Either way, I’m not returning home and that is victory enough for me.

“I was preparing to leave your territory – I didn’t mean to trespass but then,” my voice trails off as my gaze drifts to the rogues pacing anxiously at the border. His gaze goes there too, briefly before refocusing back on me. I finish with a whispered ‘I’m sorry’ before going silent. My life is literally in this man’s hands and there is little more I can do than sit here naked and hope for the best.

The man stares at me while his eyes glaze over and I know he’s mindlinking with his pack members – likely discussing what to do with me. I wait quietly for the verdict and when his eyes clear, it isn’t the answer I was wishing for but since they don’t kill me on the spot, I’m calling it a win.

“You may shift for the walk back to our camp but if you try anything, you will be killed – do you understand me?” I nod slowly to show I hear him and understand the gravity of the situation.

They’re taking me to their camp?

Bella takes over and the circle of wolves escorts me to their camp, leaving a couple behind to keep an eye on the rogues still at the border. Not expecting first class accommodations, I’m nonetheless disappointed to be walked straight into the dungeon, in the basement beneath the main packhouse. They guide me into a cell where there is a T-shirt and some sweats waiting for me, which I promptly change into after they have me shift back.

Once dressed, a cuff of silver is attached to my left ankle, ensuring I not only can’t go anywhere but that I also have no shifter abilities, as the silver suppresses Bella. The cuff is tight and chafes, leaving a bleeding and painful gouge that I know will refuse to heal without Bella’s help, so it’s here to stay.

Once cuffed and bleeding, I’m left alone in the dark cell. The bars are made of silver so if I somehow managed to detach myself from the cuff, I wouldn’t go far anyways. The cell has cot with a thin mattress on it with no bedding and a simple bucket to use for a toilet. There is a single light bulb high in the ceiling as the only illumination in the entire room and it is located outside my cell, so I’m mostly in semi-dark.

Happy Birthday to me.