Gaze (✔)

Chapter One: Forsaken

Once he was close enough, she slashed out with her knife, trailing it precisely across his chest. He grunted in pain, reeling back. Remembering her training, she took the chance to run at him, raising her blade once again.

Wyatt was quick, she had to give him that. He grabbed her hand, careful to angle the blade away from him and tightened his grasp. This caused bolts of pain to shoot up her arm, but she tried to ignore it. Gritting her teeth against the ache, she threw a punch at his exposed face, shocking him enough to steal her hand back.

“Who are you?” he snarled, using his unnatural speed to push her up against the wall again. He wrapped his large hand securely around her neck, easily cutting off her air supply. Still holding the knife, Clara glanced down, thrusting it forward and aiming for his stomach. He intercepted the move, grabbing her blade and throwing it across the alley. Her eyes widened with horror as she watched her last chance disappear. She couldn’t go against a werewolf unarmed.

Still struggling against him, she met his gaze, making sure to mask her fear with hatred. With the dim moonlight finally falling upon them, she could see his eyes.

They were both frozen, his hand slackening around her throat. She couldn’t describe what ran through her mind as she stared into his icy blue orbs – it was like she was recognising him somehow. The same look was upon his face, along with complete astonishment. She took a brief moment to study him for the first time, memorising his admittedly handsome face.

No! She snapped herself back to reality, realising what was happening.

Wyatt started to speak, his hand leaving her neck. “You’re my -”

She cut him off quickly, knowing exactly what he was going to say. She couldn’t handle it. “Don’t you fucking say it!” she spat. This can't be happening…She thought, panic rising within her. He couldn’t be her mate – not him!

Anger flashed in his eyes, and he pressed his palms into her shoulders, holding her in place. “Who are you?” he demanded again. “Why were you trying to kill me?”

Clara scowled, hatred burning in her eyes. “Because you’re a monster, you all are.” She replied, not trying to escape his hold. She knew it was futile.

Wyatt was glaring at her now. “So you’re a hunter, then?” he accused. “Should have known. I finally find my mate, and she’s my goddamn enemy.” He stepped back, grabbing her upper arm in a vice-like grip and pulling her away from the wall. She stumbled slightly as she was pulled along behind him in the direction of the main road.

As they approached the mouth of the alley, she spotted the glint of moonlight reflected off of something. My knife! Wyatt didn’t seem to notice it. As soon as she was close enough, she ducked down and grabbed it, spinning to face the werewolf. He released her arm, stepping back to avoid the swing of her blade.

She swiftly pushed forward against his chest whilst pulling his ankle out from under him, effectively making the Alpha lose his balance. She landed straddling his waist, her knife poised above his heart.

His expression was bitter, but he stared straight up at her. “Go on,” he said. “Do it.”

Oh, how she would have loved to end his life right there. However, something was holding her back. No matter what kind of monster he was, he was still fated as her soul mate.

Her hands trembled and her grip on the hilt slackened. She watched Wyatt’s hand slowly reach up, pushing the knife away from his chest. Clara didn’t protest, but instead leapt to her feet. Without a glance back at her mate, she bolted out of the alleyway and onto the main road, her boots slapping against the tarmac. Through the growing darkness, she spotted her old motorcycle where she had parked it earlier in the day and ran towards it, not daring to look back just yet.

Once she reached the black bike, she swung her leg over and kicked it to life. Its roar filled the night as she turned onto the road, sparing one last glance back. She jumped with surprise to see Wyatt standing in the middle of the road not thirty metres away. His expression was masked by shadows, but he didn’t seem to be pursuing him.

Without a second thought, Clara turned and sped off down the road.

*   *   *

She pushed open the caravan door, stepping inside with haste. She quickly surveyed the small mobile home she’d been travelling in. The main room was cramped mixture of a living room and dining room, with a mini-fridge serving as their only kitchen appliance. Behind a curtain were the two bunks where her partners, Garrett and Theo slept. She had opted for the couch, where Garrett was currently sitting.

He was the oldest of the three at only twenty-six years old, but still had the short temper of a teenager. Despite this, he was smart and a valued member of their team. Even now, he seemed to be reviewing some sort of papers, frequently pushing his scruffy dark hair out of his eyes. He stood up to greet her, noticing the grim expression on her soft features.

“What happened?” he demanded immediately in a low voice. Clara swallowed, clenching her fists.

“The Alpha knows we’re here.” She admitted, wincing at the glare that she was now receiving. “He caught me following him and I … I couldn’t kill him.”

“And you came back here?” Garrett yelled incredulously. “You’ll lead him right to us!”

She scowled back at her former mentor. “What was I supposed to do, let him kill me?” she snapped. “Look, we still have some time. If we leave now -”

She stopped as the door flew open, followed by the oblivious Theo. His square jaw clenched in a frown as he noticed their tensed faces, and he quickly closed the door behind him. Clara was most worried about his reaction. He was a brute, focussed only on killing the wolves and paying little to no mind to strategy or patience. They had never much liked each other, and she found herself always in competition with the older boy.

“What’s going on?” he questioned, eyeing Clara with curiosity.

“Clara here has managed to alert the god damn Alpha of our presence.” Garrett spat. “The entire pack will be here soon. We need to leave.”

Theo looked shocked, but a small smirk pulled at his lips. “Always knew you’d be the first to fuck up, Clara.” He turned to Garrett, “I’ll have everything ready to go in five minutes.”

Clara quickly escaped their glares by stepping out of the old caravan bus. The cold, winter air rushed into her lungs as she reached for her bike, wheeling it around to the back of the mobile home to store it. Once she’d locked it up securely, it seemed that Theo was already finished with packing up the trailer. She walked back around to the door, where he was blocking the doorway with his body.

He grinned down at her, sending chills up her spine. “So here’s the thing, Clara. That dog has got your scent now, yeah?” he said with a shrug. “So technically, he’s after you, not us.”

“What the hell does that mean, Harper?” she used his last name. “They’ll kill us all if they find us.”

“And if we get away, he’ll still have your scent to follow.” He continued. “So I thought of a nifty little solution.” There was a malicious glint in his eye that Clara did not miss. She caught on quickly to what the blue-eyed boy was saying.

“You’re going to leave me behind.” She breathed, eyes wide. His smile only widened. “You can’t do that, they’ll kill me!” The trailer’s engine purred to life, signalling that Garrett was ready to go.

“Better just you that all of us.” Theo shrugged. “Besides, you’re a big girl. I’m sure you can handle yourself.”

Slowly, the caravan began to back up. He reached behind him, throwing something out to Clara. She recognised it as her backpack, grateful that at least she was given a fighting chance.

“Goodbye, Clara.” The door closed, and the two hunters drove away. 

-
Wow, I just noticed that for some reason I wrote 'Clara' instead of Theo many times. So sorry about that, I've fixed it now but I hope nobody was too confused.
Thanks for reading, let me know what you think!

(Picture of Clara on the side)