The Alpha's Gamble - Chapter 14: Chapter 14
You are reading The Alpha's Gamble, Chapter 14: Chapter 14. Read more chapters of The Alpha's Gamble.
The rocks broke the surface of the water and I tried to steer myself against the deeper parts of the stream before I landed but as I was constantly reminded, I wasn’t a fucking bird.
Water circled my body, a searing pain throbbed through my arm, and my shoulder dislocated from the impact of the rocks. Bubbles formed as I screamed under the water and the pain was consuming my mind, overriding the voices that were laughing at me from within. I turned my head, the sun danced above me and golden strings shone on the surface but I had to stay submerged and let the stream carry me down. The second I raised my head I was dead. Luckily, the water was dark and filled with algae- I prayed they wouldn’t be able to spot me, but my lungs were burning and I tried to aid in the speed by peddling my feet against the rocks. A choked hiss forced my head back and I looked at the blood blending into the water where the sharp edge of rock cut my foot.
Maybe I should’ve chosen mutilation by the warriors. It would be the most embarrassing moment of my life if I emerged bloodied and broken from the water only for them to be waiting for me on land.
Focus, Maddie, you need to get the fuck out of here.
A thick branch lay across the stream and the water was going around the corner where the branch didn’t reach- I shot out my hand and grabbed it, lifting my head to gasp for a much-needed breath but only high enough above the surface to where the air could fill my lungs.
I listened, too afraid to open my eyes and see them standing there but I couldn’t hear any breaths or heartbeats. No footsteps or grunts.
I peered through one eye, please God don’t let anyone be here, it’s too mortifying to go down like that.
But there was nobody there.
They cast shadows further away and I heard the scraping of feet against gravel as they ran down the street and followed the stream. Why were they…my eyes widened when I saw what waited at the end of the stream, they stopped by the edge and stared down, careful not to fall.
Holy shit.
I dunked my head under the water when they turned back around.
“She’s not coming back.” A guy said.
“If the jump didn’t kill her, the rogues will,” another said.
My lips were pressed in a thin line to preserve the one breath I had time to take but I was choking, my lungs begging for air and eventually, I had to risk it. I pushed off the rocks and looked up at the sun as I heaved for a minute, not caring if they came back and grabbed me because holy shit that breath was the best thing that had happened to me in the longest time.
Luckily they were gone with the belief that I was dead and my scent was hidden which meant I could move unnoticed until I dried off- I just had to be careful not to touch anything or else they would smell it the second the water dried off.
“Shit,” I hissed. I looked at my deformed shoulder, the flattened surface where the bones had shifted, and my arm hanging limp at my side. The pain streaked through my body, and though it wasn’t terrible, I always hated having to arrange it myself. I gritted my teeth as I pushed it back into place. That hurt like a bitch, and there was nothing I could do about the cut under my foot so I had to limp my way around the town and find that forsaken red house with those stupid Rosemary bushes. If there was anything I wanted to set on fire right now it was Noah and Logan.
Or maybe that precious car of his.
I limped my way to the back end of the town, making sure not to take any roads and stay hidden from pack members. Usually, the sun heating my skin and sending those perfect shivers up my cold body would be a superior feeling but right now it brought me nothing but dread and fear. The second I was dry, I was screwed.
Looking around the corner of a wooden shed I could see the red paint glimmering under the light and the more I leaned to get a better look the larger the house grew and I saw people coming and going.
“You have got to be kidding me,” I whispered. That wasn’t just a red fucking house, it wasn’t a small shed that I was scouting- it was the freaking pack house.
When a breeze pulled in and swept through the garden the scent of Rosemary wafted toward me.
There are worse ways to go. None that I can think of, but surely there has to be something.
Okay, there are the bushes, I just had to make my way to them without getting caught and then set them on fire and get the hell out of there before anyone caught wind of what I’ve done. All the paths led to people-packed places, but I saw the forest line not too far down. If I could make it there, I could run through the woods and circle back to the meetup spot once I was across the border.
Okay, Maddie, it’s now or never. You got yourself into this mess, now you better get out of it.
I stayed down and hurried past the houses making sure to stay in the back and be careful around the corners. There was a botanic shop to my left, these people really liked their flowers, not what I would’ve guessed for a pack of mercenaries.
I pressed myself back against the house, it didn’t matter if I left my scent on anything now- I was already drying off. A breath paused in my throat when I heard a door opening, I was so close to the pack house, and I could see the bushes, but I had to get around the adjoining shed and the cellar.
One, two, three…I ran, threw myself on the ground behind the shed, and saw the staircase leading down to the cellar, around which the bushes were thick and tall in their boxes.
“Who was it?” a woman ground out and I crawled back until I felt the cold metal against my back.
“Never saw her face but we have her scent, if she comes back, we’ll know.”
“If she comes back?” the woman growled.
“She went down the fall,” a man reassured. “I didn’t sense a wolf on her so no, she won’t come back,” good, keep telling her that.
I moved alongside the wall and took out the lighter, but when I tried to ignite it, the flame died every time. It had been submerged underwater with me, and the panic was growing with each failed flame.
Come on. Please…
Water circled my body, a searing pain throbbed through my arm, and my shoulder dislocated from the impact of the rocks. Bubbles formed as I screamed under the water and the pain was consuming my mind, overriding the voices that were laughing at me from within. I turned my head, the sun danced above me and golden strings shone on the surface but I had to stay submerged and let the stream carry me down. The second I raised my head I was dead. Luckily, the water was dark and filled with algae- I prayed they wouldn’t be able to spot me, but my lungs were burning and I tried to aid in the speed by peddling my feet against the rocks. A choked hiss forced my head back and I looked at the blood blending into the water where the sharp edge of rock cut my foot.
Maybe I should’ve chosen mutilation by the warriors. It would be the most embarrassing moment of my life if I emerged bloodied and broken from the water only for them to be waiting for me on land.
Focus, Maddie, you need to get the fuck out of here.
A thick branch lay across the stream and the water was going around the corner where the branch didn’t reach- I shot out my hand and grabbed it, lifting my head to gasp for a much-needed breath but only high enough above the surface to where the air could fill my lungs.
I listened, too afraid to open my eyes and see them standing there but I couldn’t hear any breaths or heartbeats. No footsteps or grunts.
I peered through one eye, please God don’t let anyone be here, it’s too mortifying to go down like that.
But there was nobody there.
They cast shadows further away and I heard the scraping of feet against gravel as they ran down the street and followed the stream. Why were they…my eyes widened when I saw what waited at the end of the stream, they stopped by the edge and stared down, careful not to fall.
Holy shit.
I dunked my head under the water when they turned back around.
“She’s not coming back.” A guy said.
“If the jump didn’t kill her, the rogues will,” another said.
My lips were pressed in a thin line to preserve the one breath I had time to take but I was choking, my lungs begging for air and eventually, I had to risk it. I pushed off the rocks and looked up at the sun as I heaved for a minute, not caring if they came back and grabbed me because holy shit that breath was the best thing that had happened to me in the longest time.
Luckily they were gone with the belief that I was dead and my scent was hidden which meant I could move unnoticed until I dried off- I just had to be careful not to touch anything or else they would smell it the second the water dried off.
“Shit,” I hissed. I looked at my deformed shoulder, the flattened surface where the bones had shifted, and my arm hanging limp at my side. The pain streaked through my body, and though it wasn’t terrible, I always hated having to arrange it myself. I gritted my teeth as I pushed it back into place. That hurt like a bitch, and there was nothing I could do about the cut under my foot so I had to limp my way around the town and find that forsaken red house with those stupid Rosemary bushes. If there was anything I wanted to set on fire right now it was Noah and Logan.
Or maybe that precious car of his.
I limped my way to the back end of the town, making sure not to take any roads and stay hidden from pack members. Usually, the sun heating my skin and sending those perfect shivers up my cold body would be a superior feeling but right now it brought me nothing but dread and fear. The second I was dry, I was screwed.
Looking around the corner of a wooden shed I could see the red paint glimmering under the light and the more I leaned to get a better look the larger the house grew and I saw people coming and going.
“You have got to be kidding me,” I whispered. That wasn’t just a red fucking house, it wasn’t a small shed that I was scouting- it was the freaking pack house.
When a breeze pulled in and swept through the garden the scent of Rosemary wafted toward me.
There are worse ways to go. None that I can think of, but surely there has to be something.
Okay, there are the bushes, I just had to make my way to them without getting caught and then set them on fire and get the hell out of there before anyone caught wind of what I’ve done. All the paths led to people-packed places, but I saw the forest line not too far down. If I could make it there, I could run through the woods and circle back to the meetup spot once I was across the border.
Okay, Maddie, it’s now or never. You got yourself into this mess, now you better get out of it.
I stayed down and hurried past the houses making sure to stay in the back and be careful around the corners. There was a botanic shop to my left, these people really liked their flowers, not what I would’ve guessed for a pack of mercenaries.
I pressed myself back against the house, it didn’t matter if I left my scent on anything now- I was already drying off. A breath paused in my throat when I heard a door opening, I was so close to the pack house, and I could see the bushes, but I had to get around the adjoining shed and the cellar.
One, two, three…I ran, threw myself on the ground behind the shed, and saw the staircase leading down to the cellar, around which the bushes were thick and tall in their boxes.
“Who was it?” a woman ground out and I crawled back until I felt the cold metal against my back.
“Never saw her face but we have her scent, if she comes back, we’ll know.”
“If she comes back?” the woman growled.
“She went down the fall,” a man reassured. “I didn’t sense a wolf on her so no, she won’t come back,” good, keep telling her that.
I moved alongside the wall and took out the lighter, but when I tried to ignite it, the flame died every time. It had been submerged underwater with me, and the panic was growing with each failed flame.
Come on. Please…
End of The Alpha's Gamble Chapter 14. Continue reading Chapter 15 or return to The Alpha's Gamble book page.