Compelled By The Moon

Chapter 9

Chapter 9

When Sam felt satisfied with the destruction of my clothing, he waved the other pack member away who bounded up to Will's side and threw me several apologetic looks - I merely looked away as the pain engulfed my heart in sorrow.

"So. Who's going to volunteer to be dragged through the woods?" Sam asked suddenly as he picked up shards of cloth from the forest floor. Will and I looked at each other in surprise.

"I volunteer myself as a tribute." Will announced, sending me a wink. I immediately picked up on the reference as smiled inwardly. I thought over whether it would be believable if Will got dragged through the woods instead of myself.

Shaking my head, I stepped out of Will's grasp. "It would be best if I did it. Will it too tall and muscular, it wouldn't be believable." I said. I shot Will an apologetic smile but he only shook his head in exasperation.

"Very well. Will, drag Amy around the forest, make it so that when you reach the end the hunters will find her in a very open space with a lot of leaves and probably a fallen tree. Preferably on a steep dip in the ground." Sam ordered.

"I know just the place, Alpha." Will saluted. He motioned for me to lay on my back and I followed his instructions. Looking up at Sam, an idea formed in my head.

"You and... Wolfy over there, need to make it look like I tried to fight off a wolf here. The outcome needs to look as though I fell unconscious, so try to aim at throwing 'me' against a tree." I told him. He nodded his head and I relaxed on the cold forest floor. "Ready," I informed Will.

He grabbed my ankle and began dragging me across the forest floor. Dirt, leaves and twigs moved underneath my body as I was pulled along quickly. I hissed in pain several times from being repeatedly stabbed by sharp twigs and stones.

Minutes passed by and we reached the area where Will said he had in mind. A tree looked as though it had ripped in two from strong winds. The trunk nestled diagonally on the very steep dip in the ground. At the bottom, there was a river with a strong current as a few stray leaves rushed past among the surface.

"That river looks like it could pull a body away!" I announced.

"That was the point." Will murmured in response. "There's also a few wolf dens in this area so it makes it more believable." He says in a bored tone.

I quickly glance at him, his sudden change in demeanour nearly gave me whiplash. I wonder what caused the sudden shift in his mood. For a moment, I had thought I said something that had upset him, but I had barely said much to Will and this was my first time meeting him.

I thumped my head back on the ground and rested my hands on my tummy while I waited for Sam and the other pack member to meet up with us. I began to grow impatient, so I closed my eyes and allowed my imagination to run wild again.

A few minutes passed and a cold, wet solid object nudged my cheek. Rolling over, I grumpily murmured incoherent words. I was too sleepy to be awake right now. But the thing nudged me again. I waved my hands at it to tell it to leave me alone.

When the thing nudged me again, I opened my eyes. I turned my head to look at what kept me nudging me awake. My annoyance dissipated as I came face to face with a small wolf. The brown fur with ginger specks looked so soft as the big brown eyes stared back into mine.

I slowly sat up. The small wolf cub looked fascinated with me, as I was fascinated with it. It slowly crept towards me and curled up on my lap. Running my fingers through its silky, soft fur, I smiled at the small cub.

I am only a stranger but this little baby trusts me enough to approach me and curl up in a ball on me. My heart melted at the sight. I looked up to an approaching Sam with glassy eyes as the tears threatened to fall.