Ty grips the metal dog collar at his side but he doesn't put it on me. "Now, be a good girl. Stand up." He growled condescendingly in my ear. My face was pressed into the dirt, my cheek getting scuffed up by gravel. His boot pressed into the middle of my back, keeping me down until I nod my compliance, not being able to handle the pressure.
The boot disappears and relief floods through me. I struggle to my feet and glare at the ground. I refused to think about what would happen to me once I entered that house. I hiss in pain as Ty kicks in the back of my knees, causing me to nearly tumble to the ground. Luckily I had been able stabilize myself. I glared at Ty from over my shoulder only to gasp as my breath caught in my throat at his closeness. I could feel the stubble on his chin scratching against my cheek and his hot breath on my neck.
"Get going," he growls from behind me. I look forward, realizing Benny was already making his way into the house and I remember that I'm supposed to be following him. I tread carefully, walking up the five wooden steps onto the front porch. The boards beneath my feet creak under my weight and I can see long scratches carved deeply into the paint. I swallowed my fears. This house was filled with others like me, that was evident by the marks in the wood and the scent that leaked out of the house. I feel Ty's fingertips grazing my arm and it's only once we enter the darkness of the hallway that I'm allowed to stop.
"Hannah." His voice was a whisper now, making my knees weak. I didn't answer him. I hear a fleshy crunch sounding from behind me and my blood runs cold. Ty grunts softly before reaching out for me. I inhale sharply and pull away.
"Don't," I manage to say between broken bites of stale breaths. "Don't you ever touch me."
He sighs heavily, ignoring my words before moving my hair off to the side. As my hair brushes against my neck I frown, a warm, wet and sticky substance globs on my neck and stains my hair. My eyes grow wide and my breath hitches.
"You're a rogue to them Hannah. They'll kill you the moment they catch your scent." The broad explanation made me have more questions than answers. I feel him shift in the darkness, his body pressing too close, disarmingly close, to me. He continues to guide my hair over my right shoulder, spreading some more of his blood into my hair, being sure to cover my scent thoroughly. Every inch of my skin is blushing with disgust, embarrassment and outrage. He pressed his uninjured hand into the small of my back and lead me deeper into the house. From the outside the house didn't appear this big, the distance we're walking is much longer than I anticipated. Normally I'd be able to map out my surroundings, but the hallway was dragging on.
"They'll be home soon. Do you have any idea as to what you are going to say to my Alpha once he gets here?" Benny speaks up finally, cueing our closeness to our destination. Just ahead a doorway gets bigger, some light peaking through it. An audible intake of breath was his only response.
The air hits me first.
My sense of smell overloaded by multiple scents. I blink back, shaking my head furiously, falling backwards into Ty's arms. His warmth wraps around me, the wolf inside me almost purring. Bliss unlike anything I've ever known filled me and time seemed to slow. His gaze shocks me back to reality and I felt my blush return to my cheeks. I nearly jumped out of my skin as he stands me up straight. I have to beg my nerves to stop vibrating at his touch. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine, now get off. I don't want you touching me," I lie. My skin is screaming for him to touch me.
"Whatever," he says as he shrugs me away from him. As soon as I steady myself I peer around the room, admiring an armoire in the corner with samurai armor protectively encased. Next to it, draped across a wall, was a single tapestry. It appeared antique in its weaving and stitching. The dim light doesn't provide me with enough of a chance to study it's detail so I moved on the next antique. A large totem pole towered over the room. A raven carved expertly at the top followed by a wolverine, a fox, a bear and then finally a wolf. The room was filled with old relics, each one more fantastic than the last.
Who are these people? I couldn't help but wonder.
They aren't people. His voice answered gruffly in my mind, catching me off guard. I shot him a glare but my nerves bounced beneath my flesh. Does he know that I like it when he touches me?
I stand perfectly still.
Every inch of my skin is taut with embarrassing tension, my lungs fighting with the pressure that filled them. I train my breaths to become slower, battling against the growing anxiety in my chest. It must have been an obvious attempt as my reactions earned me a concern glance from Ty.
"I figured I'd tell them of the situation. We only need a few days to help us prepare for the road ahead, after all she's being hunted. She needs to be trained at the very least in the basics." Ty said. Benny smirks and glances at me.
"You're kidding me, right?"
"What?"
"She is being hunted? But she only just shifted,"
"Which means they are one step ahead of us. Now we need to—" Ty was interrupted by the door slamming open. Immediately, as if on reflex, he stood in front of me. Knees slightly bent, teeth bared in a snarl and a guttural growl rumbling through his chest. The wolf in me swooned and a warm feeling gathered in my gut.
Benny was right.
They were back.
They didn't knock either. I gasp at how quickly they flooded the room. With frantic eyes I counted 10 unnerved and clearly territorial bodies. Their eyes are falling all over my body and my jaw tightens on its own.
"Wait!" Benny calls out, stepping between us and them. Their gazes don't move from us. "They aren't here to harm us. The girl...she's shifted."
"Why should we care?" A largely built man growled, his voice deep and raspy. His salt and peppered neared contrasting with his lively black hair. His jeans were torn at the knees, his plain blue shirt dirtied as if he had just finished rough housing in mud. His eyes began to glow a rich red, his pupils narrowing on us as if he was stalking prey.
"Richard," Ty voiced. He raised his hands in surrender, "she's a Dire."
YOU ARE READING
Interwined
Teen Fiction"Do you trust me?" He asked me, extending his hand towards me. I stared hard into his dark eyes which were now glossed over with tears. This had been the first time that I had ever seen him cry. I could tell he was scared, not just for himself but f...
