Death Alley

Chapter twenty-six

Wolves. Why wolves? They had to be the most fearsome animals on this planet, and seeing them up close made it worse, the hairs on their backs risen, their yellow teeth bared. There was so many... Too many.

"Run!" I screamed to Brian, practically pushing him out of his seat. I grabbed Skai and Brian got her oldest brother. The youngest had died of a disease a week prior.

"Defend yourselves!" I heard Inga order.

But we couldn't. We had no way of fending off the pack of vicious canines that pursued us. We had to run, run far, run fast. I had to protect Skai, but fighting was no option of mine.

Brian jogged ahead of me, leaving me trailing behind. Once in a while, he would stop for me to catch up, ensuring my safety. We dodged trees and stumbled over stumps and rocks, but we didn't stop, not unless someone was being left behind. And no one would be.

Wolves were not far behind us, but not all of them had us in mind. They attacked others. Leaving a horrendous blood bath of the camp. Two of them spotted us, however, their full of eagerness and their bellies growling. We couldn't stop now.

Skai whimpered in my arms, and her brother had his eyes shut tightly. They couldn't die, I would never let them die.

The snarling canines behind us barked and growled, slobber streaming from their ravenous, toothy mouths. But they weren't teeth-they were more like fangs, spikes even. A weapon that is made to puncture skin and to tear flesh was made naturally to these vicious creatures.

We ran past the spice border and the water hole, and we rushed deeper into the forest. Whether that was good or not, we could not tell. Part of me hopes we could lose the wolves quicker this way, but after nearly tripping over rocked and roots, I thought different.

Skai buried her black face deeper into my shoulder, trying to console herself. I pitied the poor girl, having to go through all of this so young. I couldn't even imagine it.

The wolves came closer, their snouts almost nipping our rears. We were so close to danger, so close to dying at the hands of these mindless creatures. My were going to be mauled, torn apart maybe. The scenarios kept pissing into my brain on by one, and all of them were plausible.

"We can't keep running forever!" Brian yelled, puffing hard.

"We have no choice!" I screamed back.

"Yes we do.." His voice came quite, and my stomach sank to the floor.

Brian passed the African boy to me, and he sprinted towards the wolves, his stance a defensive one. He had lost it, gone insane. This couldn't be happening.

"Brian, no!" I screamed. "Don't!"

"Keep going!" Brian demanded. How could I?

I watched the wolves stop dead in their tracks, crouching low before Brian, preparing for attack. I couldn't watch this. I couldn't let them kill him. He was all I had left, unless you counted Skai.

Then, I eyed the little African girl and her brother. Brian could at least defend himself, but these children were vulnerable. It was logical to run, to keep going, but every time I tried to move my legs, my chest hurt, and an unexplained force stopped me. I had a choice, and this wasn't going to be an easy one.

"Bailey," Brian was pleading now. "Leave here. Protect them. Everything will be okay."

"Don't lie to me, Brian."

Brian was about to say something, but the wolves waited no longer. They leaped at two different angles, piling on the poor ginger, my ginger. It was a dual effort as they sank their teeth into his limbs, ripping their heads back and forth violently. Brian screamed in pain.