Chapter 6 – Blood on the Wind
The forest whispered of death long before they smelled it.
.
.
.
Not long before Damien had left, Aria finally stepped outside. The morning mist clung low to the ground, her cloak pulled tight around her shoulders. The air was sharp, humming with the scent of pine, wet earth and something darker.
Blood.
With muscles coiled, the wind shifted, her wolf stirred. It wasn't Damien's blood this time, she sensed; it was fresh and moving. Even the forest held its breath and listened.
That's when she heard it. A howl, distant but strong, echoed through the valley like a warning bell. The Blood-fang Pack was on the hunt.
Her pulse kicked in her throat. She glanced back at the cabin, where the faintest traces of his scent still lingered—pine, smoke and dominance. He'd left earlier and vanished into the trees without a sound. But his absence didn't feel like safety rather, it felt like a shadow still clinging to her soul.
Aria crouched low as she brushed her fingertips across the forest floor. The tracks were clear, large paws with deep impressions. Wolves, she could clearly tell; moving faster than she thought.
Hurriedly, she rose to her feet, her eyes glowing faintly in the dim light. The tracks were fresh—large, heavy, six at least. Too close. "You're too loud, Blood-fangs," she muttered. "You always were."
The howl came again but much closer now. It was laced with fury this time around; followed by voices. Men.
She instinctively darted behind a thick oak, blending into the shadows as three figures emerged from the mist. Their black leather armor bore the Blood-fang crest; a crimson wolf howling over a crescent moon.
"Spread out!" one barked. "He was seen near the east ridge. Find him before the rogues do." Her heart slammed against her ribs as those words got to her. They were looking for Damien; their Alpha. Her thoughts came out in a whisper.
A second wolf sniffed the air. In a single breath, he frowned. "He's close! I can smell his blood…mixed with…" He paused, nose twitching again. "Something else, something female."
She momentarily froze with the mention of a female. She didn't expect their senses to be that sharp.
"Rogue scent," another snarled. "If she's touched him…"
"She dies," the first finished coldly.
The words spontaneously struck through her like knives. Her wolf bristled, but she bit back the urge to shift. One wrong move and they'd scent her instantly.
As careful and quietly as she could, she tried to escape but then the wind betrayed her. It swept through the trees, stirring her cloak as it carried her scent across the clearing. Three heads snapped toward her hiding place with blazing golden eyes.
"Rogue!" One shouted. That's when the chase began.
They moved fast—too fast. In an instant, Aria bolted, weaving between trees as her boots kicked up dirt. She didn't look back. The forest exploded with pursuit; branches snapping with growls echoing behind her.
She can't stop now. All that she briskly searched for is a safety hideout. She pushed herself harder, her wolf screaming in her chest. The mate bond flared, hot and demanding; pulsing in time with her racing heart. He felt it too.
Somewhere miles ahead, Damien stopped mid-stride. Blood still stained his hands from the night before, but when the bond burned through his chest, he froze. His wolf snarled awake; it signaled. She was in danger.
He didn't stop to think but immediately ran back; towards the direction his instincts led him.
Back in the forest, Aria dove through the underbrush, sliding behind a fallen log. She could hear them closing in. Their snarls and scent thick with aggression.
She immediately drew her dagger as she laid in ambush, her pulse steady despite the adrenaline. One of them leapt over the log—and she moved like lightning. Her blade slashed up and caught him across the throat. Blood sprayed and wolf dropped.
"Found her!" another shouted.
She spun, but they were already there. One instantly tackled her to the ground, teeth bared. A shadow moved between the trees—fast and silent. Then claws met flesh.
She struggled and snarled until the metallic sound of claws meeting flesh ripped through the air. The attacker went flying backward, slamming into a tree.
In between them now was Damien, half-shifted. His gold eyes burned with fury. The other Blood-fangs stood rooted to the ground they stood in awe.
"Alpha" one stammered, falling to his knees. "You… you're alive."
"Barely," he growled. His gaze instinctively flicked to Aria who was bleeding and breathless with her wolf glowing under her skin. His jaw tightened. "Touch her again," he warned, his voice low and deadly, "and I'll show you what alive doesn't mean."
The pack bowed instantly. "She's a rogue, Alpha. We thought…"
"I said," his tone dropped lower, "don't touch her." His words echoed with wrath, silence followed. Even the forest seemed to obey him.
Aria glared, furious and shaken. "You shouldn't have come back," she hissed. He shouldn't but some buried, traitorous part of her was glad he did.
Damien's gaze met hers; steady, defiant and unrepentant. "You think I could stay away when the bond screamed your name?"
Her chest tightened. "You risked everything."
"I don't care." His voice was rough, a growl beneath every word. "Let them think what they want. Let the world burn if it must but no one touches what's mine."
She bristled instantly. "I am not yours."
His hand brushed her arm, gentle this time. The bond pulsed between them again, a molten current neither of them could deny.
"Then tell your heartbeat to stop matching mine," he murmured. She opened her to retort but behind them, another howl shattered the air. More wolves. Many more.
Damien's head snapped toward the sound, his expression turning hard again. "They're bringing the scouts," he muttered. "They'll find this place soon."
Aria's eyes narrowed. "Then we run."
He smirked faintly. "Together?" She hesitated but only for a second. "Don't make me regret it."
"Too late for that." He mumbled.
They soon sprinted into the forest, side by side. Behind them, the howls rose higher, echoing through the trees like a promise of war. The Blood -fang Pack had found their Alpha. But he wasn't coming home alone.