Sold AS The alpha King's Breeder

Chapter 65 : Hold On For Me * Jared*

I pulled my clothes back on, not even bothering to clean the blood off my body.It wasn't my own.It belonged to the three wolves now scattered in pieces near the center of the camp.I huffed a breath, adrenaline coursing through my body as I looked at the wolves.I'd practically skinned them alive, then sent that shadow after what remained.

Abe was staring at me from across their remains, his eyes darkened as he pulled his knife belt through his belt loops.

"ELIZA!"

I shouted, baring my teeth.Nothing.

Only the wind carried any noise toward us, and it was the sound of the river roaring nearby.

The silver wolf at my feet twitched as it succumbed to a painful death.

Good.

This one I'd taken my particular time with.

It had barreled into our camp reeking of Eliza, of her fear, but not of her blood.

She'd gotten away somehow.

"Gather what you can.

We need to go,"

I barked, glancing at Abe before gathering up my supplies and our bedrolls.

Eliza's boots and socks had been dragged in several different directions.

Her knife belt and vest were still there as well.

She was out there barefoot with no way to protect herself.

"lI have her scent,"

Abe stated, shrugging on his backpack.

"What do you want to do with them?"

He waved his hand over the pile of dead wolves.I shook my head.

"I don't care, leave them.Let them be an example to whoever is dumb enough to try to track us."

The silver wolf was obviously in control of the rogues; that was a bad sign.It meant whoever this wolf had been before I ripped it apart with my bare hands had been a witch of some kind.

Only Dark Witches ran with the rogues.But this witch wasn't Hestia, that was clear enough.

Hestia would have killed Abe and Eliza without so much as looking at them, and she didn't need soulless rogues to do her dirty work.

We left the camp and followed Eliza's scent roughly a mile toward the mountains where her scent abruptly ended, right at the river's edge.

"s**t," I breathed, looking up and down the river bank.

"Can she swim?" Abe said flatly, crossing his hands over his chest.

I was more worried about her freezing to death somewhere downstream.

"Yes, she can swim-"

followed by Eliza's voice gasping and crying out for help.I didn't hesitate.I jumped into the river and threw my body into action, letting it carry me

be soaked-all of our food and clothing.I didn't care.Her screams

for

out of the river and broke into a wet sprint in the direction of her voice.She was far, I knew that much.Her cries for help and agonizing screams were being carried on the wind like the air around us was

yelled back to Abe, who was panting a few paces

body groaning with fatigue as I sprinted forward, my paws thundering across the rocky forest floor.I didn't turn back to see whether or not Abe had

foot in less than an hour, I didn't know.I didn't have a chance to give it much thought.I skidded to a stop, panting and staring wide-eyed at a circle of stones not unlike

in the center in pale silver light.It smelled overwhelmingly

air was thick

palms up on her

whirling, small

open, blinking slowly like she was

howled, alerting Abe

on the ground a few feet from

as I shifted back to my usual form, pulling on a soaking wet shirt

"Eliza!"

hoarsely, the extent of her

the Cryptex penetrating her skin.Her mouth was slightly ajar as she stared forward through the circle and into the sparse birch forest.I knelt in front

Cryptex from her hand, but it was fixed in place like it was a part of her.She sucked

her cheek as

I begged, wiping her tears away from her cheeks

But then

wasn't

reared back from her, landing on my ass as I looked down at her

lines of black ink snaked up her wrist and arm, intertwined with ink the color of raw emeralds.I screamed her name, crawling back over to her and doing everything in my power to tear the Cryptex from her flesh.She didn't flinch.She

then the Cryptex stopped whirling and the inner

the ground, dirt now coating its bloodied surface.I ripped

her breath coming in

in place over her palm.I shook her by

f**k

to a stop and dropping

a desperate look over my shoulder as I gathered

wide as he saw

much blood,

f*****g know, okay? We need

"Everything is wet!"

a leather pouch from his bag and whispered a thankful prayer and he opened it and found the contents still dry-sterile bandages, ointment, needles and

sent a rush of rage through me.How did this happen? Who was

"DRAVEN!"

I screamed, seeing red.

bastard.Where are you? What did you do

us whispered in answer, a burst of

to get out of

hissed, kicking my backpack and belt toward

cave system nearby.I saw it when I was trying to find you.We can camp there and figure

up, cradling her in

was freezing, cold to

power not to scream and unleash my dark powers out of

knelt, wrapping the Cryptex in a wet

were standing before a darkened fissure at the base of the

me he'd rather be home and warm in his bed than finding out whether of not this cave

praying she could feel the fevered heat coming