Lioness: The Hunt

Chapter Six

Minutes slowly passed as we knew the men were hunting us. Someone has chosen each of us and bad thing is the big bad Alpha chose me. I have never wished for time to go faster more than I do right now. We were now twenty minutes, and an ear shattering scream echoed the forest. All of our heads snapped up knowing that a woman was found, and the scream was a forced mating. My heart ached for her. No woman should be treated like this and forced upon. These men were pure evil and the thought that they ran packs utterly shocked me.

"How could anyone follow these men, be their pack, condone this?" I whispered. "I know what you mean Ember. Just like our pack, they only do it out of fear." Elise whispered back to me. "Yeah, same with my pack. My father is not the nicest man and is all about old school ways. That is why my mother and brother tried to hide me. 

They knew he would make me participate. He is all about rankings and holding a high standard. My brother, he will change all that when he is Alpha." Laura stated, "Most packs banned this forced mate hunt and only a slim few still support it. I do not think one woman though supports this." Anna whispered and I do not blame those packs or women these men need to be castrated.

We have now been up here for over an hour and from the screaming three women have been found and forced. With each piercing scream it caused so much guilt to build up in me because I did not try to get them to come with us, to keep them safe. Each scream caused each of us to fill with fear that they were getting closer and I to was scared.

"Elise, Anna, try to rest. Laura and I will keep watch. Keep your strength up." They nodded and curled together and forced themselves to take a nap. "That is nice of you Ember." Laura said with her soft voice. "Yeah, I did not want them to keep hearing this around us. We are all scared, I just want this to end so they can be safe again, all of us." I said even though deep down I knew I was not because he was lurking in the shadows for me.

I knew our scent being covered was helping us when now three hours in and still no sign of any of the men finding us. Then I heard a twig snap near our hide out. I slowly moved toward the vines to move to peek out and I saw one of the men. He was sniffing the air but was having trouble finding a scent to follow. Another man joined him frustrated. "How in the hell is there no scent. Where in the hell are they?" he was growing angry. "I do not know man this is bull. Hold on you smell that?" They then began sniffing the air and snuck behind a tree. I then saw a woman running through the bushes towards them.

"Laura, you need to wake them up and make them be quiet they are here, and it is not good." Laura followed my instructions and woke them covering their mouths pointing down below us signaling men were here. One man jumped out grabbing the young girl from behind causing her to scream. "You are not the ones we want. Do you know where the two little sisters went?" she was shaking in fear and tears falling down her cheeks as he yanked her hair back looking down at her. "Come on if you tell us we will let you go. If you do not tell us, then one of us will settle for you." I hope she did not see us because I knew out of fear and wanting to be safe, she would rat us out."

She then shook her head yes, "The two sisters went in a tree over there." She then pointed directly at us, and I realized she did not say all of us just Anna and Elise. I then looked at the girls, "No matter what swear you want tell anyone about me and what you see." They only nodded in response.

The men then circled us and looked for a way up but could not find one. "Come on, are you two playing hard to get? You should no that makes it that much sweeter when we get what we want." I swear I puked in my mouth right then. Anna was scared and back further into the wall of vines forgetting it was vines holding her. She then fell through, and the vines caught her from hitting the forest floor, but she hit a couple branches on the way down. On instinct Elise leapt to her sister's aid. In that moment both men were very happy to have their chosen laying at their feet.

They began stalking towards Anna and Elise and were basically salivating at the mere sight of them. "Laura do not come down until it is clear, do you understand?" she was looking on in horror, so I shook her to get her attention, "Laura do you understand?" "Yes." I did not waste another second and jumped to the ground landing on my feet. 

"Well, look who we have here. Another one I see." "Just wait your turn baby, we have some business to take care of." They laughed at me as if it were a game. They walked closer to the girls, and I blocked their path. "What do you think you are doing? We are both Beta's, you think you can stop us?" One shouted. "Jack, take care of this bitch. Do not kill her the Alpha wants her." The one he called jack then shredded through his clothing shifting into his muddy brown wolf. He then lunged and with a strong back handed punch I knocked him to the forest floor. Both growled and the other shifted as well into his light brown wolf.

I do not know where the courage came from but in knew I would fight to the death, "You want to fight, then let's fight." As they began circling us, I quickly transformed into my lion, and everyone gasped. The men stopped dead in their tracks at the mere sight of my lioness.

 I wasted no time I ran at the first wolf in front of me and slashed his throat with my claws. This got the attention of the other wolf who was very angry. He jumped on my back biting down on my shoulder. I held in the whimper that tried to escape my mouth. I bucked up like a bull, trying to escape his hold. I this threw our bodies backward to where I was now on top of him. With the thud of us hitting the ground and all my weight on him he released his grip off my shoulder. I felt the warmth of my blood running down my left leg. I had to muscle through the pain and get back on my guard. As I looked to the wolf he was not moving. I slowly approached him and that is when I realized that when we fell backwards, he landed on a broken tree, and it stab him through the heart. He was dead and this threat was over for now.

I shifted back into my human form and the blood was rushing down my back and chest. Laura was the first who ran to my aid. She did not even mention my lioness, she just began checking my wound. She then climbed back up the tree and brought down her water and hoodie. She turned around taking off her long sleeve shirt replacing it with her hoodie. She then knelt beside me and went to wash my wound. "Laura no, you need your water." She brushed off my hand from her arm. "I will be fine. Stop worrying about me and let me worry about you. You need this more; we can't let your wound get infected." I laid my hand back to my leg as she gently poured water over my wound.

After cleaning my wound, she ripped the sleeves off the shirt and laid to the side. She then took the remainder of the shirt and folded it and covered my wound with it. She took one sleeve up under my armpit and over top the shirt tying it tightly in a knot. She took the other sleeve and shoved in her pants pocket, "extra just in case." I nodded at her, "Thank you." Before she responded Elise was the first. "No, thank you, you saved us." I gently smiled at her. "You are the lion of the night." Anna voice was low but full of shock and my head snapped at her. "Yes, yes, I am. Please this needs to remain between us."

They all agreed and then Laura reminded me, "What are we going to do about you and clothes." I have a few here and there like I said I was running before I hid some in trees you know just in case." "Glad to see that you still have a sense of humor." In all my naked glory I began walking to a bush nearby hoping my stash was still there.