Free Web NovelChapter 42: Episode 042: Stray Wolf
Iris’s laughter stopped.
She blinked. The bright, chaotic light in her violet eyes flickered out for a split second, instantly replaced by a deep, hollow panic. She quickly pulled the sleeping baby closer to her chest, breaking eye contact with Rue.
"Why do you ask that?" Iris asked.
She brushed the question off quickly, forcing a light, airy tone that sounded entirely fake. She shifted her weight on the wooden stool, trying her absolute best to look perfectly relaxed.
Rue did not push. She did not raise her voice or demand the truth. She simply leaned back in her padded chair, rested her hands in her lap, and smiled softly.
"Where I come from," Rue started, keeping her voice low so Caius wouldn’t overhear from the kitchen. "I used to have a best friend. She was always the loudest person in the room. She planned all the events. She brought everyone food. She smiled the absolute brightest."
Iris remained perfectly still. Little Theron slept quietly against her green dress, his tiny fists curled against her collarbone.
"But she only smiled that bright to hide how completely exhausted she was," Rue explained flatly. "She spent all her energy making sure everyone else was happy so nobody would ever stop and ask if she was actually okay. You remind me of her."
Iris swallowed hard. The mask was cracking, and she knew it. She looked around the small, cozy cabin, completely avoiding Rue’s sharp pink eyes.
She needed an escape route. She needed to change the subject right now before she actually started crying in front of a girl she barely knew.
She was the adult here, so why did it feel like Rue was the oldest?
"Do you ever want to go back?" Iris asked suddenly, grabbing the first thought that came into her panicked mind. "To your old tribe? To your friend?"
Rue stopped. She looked away from Iris and looked around the room.
She saw the warm fire cracking softly in the stone hearth. She saw the heavy, beautiful ironwood crib sitting safely in the corner. From the kitchen, she heard the steady, rhythmic chop of Caius’s knife against the wooden board, followed by the low, happy hum of the deadly snake beastman washing sweet fruit for his family.
Back on Earth, she had a sterile hospital bed. She had a failing body. Here, she had a completely healthy life. She had a son. She had a fiercely devoted mate who washed her fruit.
"Never," Rue said. Her voice carried absolute, unwavering certainty. "This cabin is my home."
Iris nodded slowly. She respected the boundary instantly, deeply relieved that the focus was completely off her own feelings. She gently stood up, walked over to the crib, and placed the sleeping baby down into the soft moon-fox furs.
"I should go," Iris announced, forcing the bright, massive smile back onto her face. "Tanith will be looking for me. Tell Caius thank you for washing the fruit!"
Before Rue could say another word, Iris turned around and practically ran out the front door.
The heavy wooden door clicked shut.
Iris stepped off the porch and walked rapidly into the damp, thick fog of the ironwood forest.
She walked for a long time. The farther she got from Rue’s warm, peaceful home, the more her bright, perfect posture completely collapsed.
Her shoulders slumped heavily forward. Her breathing turned ragged. Rue was entirely right. Iris was completely exhausted. Unlike Tyara who could cry or be sad about her situation, she had no reason to be. Mother left her in charge of all of them.
She was scared she was going to disappoint them and that had kept her awake more than ever.
That was the reason why she left home and came here, and for once she decided to be different, so she could feel relief.
She didn’t expect for Rue to see through her.
She rubbed her tired eyes and turned down a narrow, hidden dirt path that led toward the swamps.
Then, she stopped dead in her tracks.
A very sharp, heavy scent cut right through the smell of the swamp mud. It was metallic. It was thick.
It was fresh blood.
Iris froze. Her violet eyes scanned the thick, twisting mangrove roots and the tall, dark grass ahead. A few yards away, resting at the edge of a shallow pool of murky water, was a massive, dark shape.
She took a hesitant step forward. The gray fog parted slightly.
It was a giant wolf beastman.
He was entirely in his beast form. He was absolutely massive, easily the size of a small boulder, covered in thick, dark gray fur. But the fur was matted together and completely soaked in dark red blood. A huge, terrifying gash ripped completely across his side, exposing raw red muscle. His heavy chest barely moved. He was bleeding out right on the wet grass.
Iris took a sharp step back. Her heart hammered wildly against her ribs.
Walk away, her brain screamed loudly. He would heal, this is not what you should do.
She turned her back to the dying wolf. A low, wet, entirely pathetic whine came from the grass behind her.
Iris stopped. She squeezed her eyes shut. She clenched her small hands into tight fists. She really did not want to get involved. She was already so tired. She did not want to deal with a wild, bleeding predator in the middle of nowhere.
But her conscience was entirely too loud. She could not just let him die in the mud.
"I am an idiot," Iris whispered to herself.
She turned around and rushed back to the giant wolf.
She dropped to her knees right in the grass, completely ruining her green dress. The wolf smelled like pine needles, old dirt, and heavy copper. He did not move as she kneeled right beside his massive head.
Iris reached into the small leather pouch tied to her waist. She pulled out a small, sharp hunting knife she normally used for cutting wild swamp berries.
She took a deep breath. She rolled up the long sleeve of her dress, exposing her pale wrist. Without giving herself time to panic, she pressed the sharp edge of the metal blade against her own skin and sliced.
A sharp, burning pain flared in her arm. Bright red blood instantly welled up from the cut, dripping down her hand.
She pressed her bleeding wrist directly against the massive, open wound on the wolf’s side.
The biological reaction was instant. The very second her blood touched his torn flesh, a soft, warm green glow radiated from the contact point. The heavy bleeding stopped. The torn, ruined muscles slowly started to knit themselves back together right in front of her eyes.
But the healing came at a massive, terrible physical cost.
Iris gasped loudly. The energy drained directly out of her own body, exactly like water pouring out of a cracked jug. Her vision blurred, filling with dark, spinning spots. Her skin turned freezing cold, completely losing its healthy color. Her entire body shook uncontrollably as the wolf’s massive wound demanded more and more of her strength to close.
Just a little more, Iris thought, gritting her teeth against the dizzying weakness.
When the deep gash finally closed into a thick, angry pink scar, Iris ripped her arm away.
She collapsed backward, panting heavily. Her head spun wildly. Her wrist throbbed with a dull, hot ache. freēwēbnovel.com
Her hands shook terribly as she reached down and grabbed the hem of her dress. She used her bloody knife to cut a long, thick strip of the fabric. She leaned forward, her vision swaying dangerously, and tightly wrapped the yellow cloth around the wolf’s newly scarred side to protect the sensitive skin from the swamp dirt.
She tied a clumsy knot. She was completely out of energy.
Iris forced herself to stand up. Her legs wobbled beneath her like wet branches. She looked down at the massive, unconscious beast resting quietly in the grass. His chest was finally rising and falling in a steady, healthy rhythm. He was going to live.
"Goodbye, wolfy," Iris whispered weakly.
She turned her back to him. She wrapped her good hand tightly around her bleeding wrist and began to walk away, limping slightly as she disappeared into the thick, gray fog of the swamp.
But the exact second she turned and walked away, the giant wolf’s ears twitched.
His massive, dark gray head shifted in the mud.
His bright, piercing silver eyes snapped wide open.
