Free Web NovelChapter 9: I Take The Lead
Beta Daniel’s jaw tightened as his eyes flashed gold for a split second, the restraint of a trained warrior barely holding him in place.
"The only thing that matters is my Alpha’s order," he said coldly.
In one smooth motion, he reached over his shoulder and drew an arrow, the wood creaking softly as it settled against the bowstring. Around him, the rest of the guards followed suit. Steel tips caught the moonlight, a silent line of death forming across the clearing.
Daniel’s gaze locked onto Rhea. "Drop to your knees," he ordered, his voice firm with authority, "and surrender."
Rhea’s eyes moved slowly across them. One arrow, then another, then all of them. Her pulse didn’t slow, it sharpened.
Every instinct in her body screamed at her to run, but she held her ground anyway. Even as her legs trembled beneath her weight. Even as exhaustion clawed at her ribs.
"A Luna will never kneel," River growled, ready.
Rhea’s chin lifted slightly. "A Luna will never kneel before a Beta," she said evenly.
Daniel’s expression flickered, irritation breaking through his discipline. Behind him, a few guards shifted uneasily, exchanging low murmurs.
"Who are you?" Daniel barked again, anger rising now. "Take off your mask. Now."
Rhea didn’t answer. She could feel them closing in, their boots crunching over leaves, weapons tightening in grip, breath growing heavier in anticipation.
River paced restlessly beneath her skin, sensing danger in every direction. She calculated quickly. Too many. Too close. No clean escape route. Still, she refused to step back.
"Tell the Alpha we’ve found the intruder!" Daniel snapped over his shoulder. "And you, grab her!"
A guard lunged forward.
Rhea’s wolf surged instantly. But before she could react or even the man could close the distance, a violent snarl ripped through the air.
It didn’t just echo. It dominated.
The snarl ripped through the clearing hard enough to stop the guard cold. He staggered back as something massive moved between them. freewebnovel.cσ๓
Golden eyes ignited in the dark. "Touch her and die." Adam’s voice was low, lethal, and absolute.
He stepped forward slowly, and the entire line of guards instinctively shifted back without being ordered to. Even Daniel hesitated, his bow lowering slightly under sheer pressure alone.
The forest itself seemed to go quieter in his presence. Then more eyes appeared beyond the treeline. Adam’s wolves. Watching. Waiting. Ready.
Kaleb’s guards stiffened instantly, their posture shifting as recognition hit. Subtle. Reluctant. Submissive.
Adam did not break eye contact with them. "If anyone moves again," he said calmly, "I will not repeat myself."
The threat didn’t need volume, it didn’t need force, it simply was.
Then his gaze shifted slightly to Rhea. A flicker of something unreadable crossed his face.
"You still want to stand here and watch?" he asked quietly. "Or are you coming with me to safety?" He extended his hand.
Rhea looked at it for half a second. Pride flared immediately, sharp and stubborn despite everything in her body screaming at her to accept it.
She stepped past him instead. "I’ll find my own way out," she said flatly, already moving into the trees.
Adam’s jaw tightened faintly at the rejection, a low growl rumbling under his breath, instinct, not anger. He followed anyway. So did his wolves.
Behind them, the tension in the clearing snapped like a taut wire. And then, Kaleb stepped into view. The moment his eyes landed on the retreating figures, something inside him shifted violently.
His wolf surged forward with a deep, possessive snarl. The scent in the air hit him fully now, stronger, sharper, and undeniably her. Impossible.
His jaw clenched hard enough to ache. "How," he breathed, almost lost inside the thought.
Then rage replaced disbelief. "Go after them!" Kaleb roared, his voice merging with his wolf’s as golden fury lit his eyes. "They can’t escape!"
The guards didn’t hesitate. The moment Kaleb gave the order, they lunged forward as one.
The forest erupted with the violent sound of shifting. Bones cracking, muscles tearing and reforming, deep snarls ripping through the night air as human forms collapsed into wolves.
Fur burst through skin beneath the pale moonlight, claws digging into the earth as the pack surged into the trees. Leaves scattered violently beneath pounding paws.
Kaleb shifted mid-run, his massive dark wolf tearing through the undergrowth beside the others, but his thoughts remained chaotic beneath the animal instinct clawing at his mind.
His wolf growled uneasily.
How the hell is Rhea alive? the thought slammed through him again, disbelieving and sharp. He had seen her die. Hadn’t he?
The scent lingering in the air said otherwise.
Kaleb’s ears flattened slightly as unease settled deep in his chest. Something about tonight felt wrong. Dangerous in ways he couldn’t explain.
—
Deeper inside the forest, Rhea heard them coming. The distant pounding of paws, the snapping of branches, the low, predatory howls echoing through the trees.
Her chest tightened instantly. "They’re gaining on us," River warned sharply beneath her skin.
Beside her, Adam slowed briefly, listening to the sounds cutting through the forest behind them. His expression darkened instantly.
Rhea quickly scanned the trees ahead, instincts kicking in. "I know another path," she said quickly, her breath uneven as she pointed toward a narrow ridge hidden behind thick brush. "There’s a creek ahead that masks scent trails. If we cut through there—"
Adam stopped running so abruptly that the wolves behind him nearly collided into his back. His eyes flashed gold as he turned toward her.
"I take the lead," he growled lowly. "I don’t follow." The sheer Alpha dominance in his voice brushed against her nerves like claws. freewebnoveℓ.com
Rhea’s jaw tightened immediately despite the exhaustion threatening to drag her down. "I’m not following an Alpha like you either," she snapped back.
Adam stared at her for a second, visibly irritated. "I don’t have time to argue," he said sharply. "They’re chasing you. Which means they’ll run straight into me."
Rhea’s fingers curled tighter around the strap across her shoulder. "I don’t trust you," she shot back without hesitation.
The forest wind whipped between them, carrying tension thick enough to choke on.
Adam stepped closer, slightly, towering over her beneath the moonlight. His stance dangerous, controlled, predatory.
"You don’t need to trust me," he said coldly. "You just need to survive." Then his expression hardened further. "Your way or mine," he continued, his voice edged with command, "but I’m leading."
Rhea looked like she wanted to stab him. She opened her mouth to speak, but Adam was already moving.
He turned sharply and headed in the opposite direction without waiting for her answer. His wolves followed instantly without question, disappearing through the trees behind him like shadows obeying instinct.
Within seconds, Rhea was left standing alone between two paths. The one she knew, and the one the most dangerous Alpha in the territory had chosen.
Behind her, the sounds of pursuit were getting closer, much closer.
Rhea’s chest heaved in sharp bursts as she stared into the darkness ahead. She only had seconds left to decide.
