Bloody Paw Prints

Ch 45 No warnings

“We can’t stay here,” Ash growls, glaring at my stubbornness. “Do you seriously want the hunters to find us? They’ll kill us” he reminds me for the fifth time.

“Go get us some clothes, Ash. We’ll wait here” I whisper, my face against Christian shoulder. He’s skin was hot, warming my skin as I lean against him carefully. Ash was behind me, leg pressing into my back and his hand resting on my hip.  The way I saw it, Ash should go get some clothes, then if the hunters saw us while we headed back we’d say we lost our way while hiking. But Ash was being just as stubborn, refusing to leave us- well, me actually, I doubted he cared about Christian who was now a challenge for position of Alpha.

“I’m not leaving. We’re going back together” Ash snaps.

I glower at Ash, my face still in Christian’s shoulder blades. I could breathe properly-almost- but stretching the muscles in my torso awakened the pain. Besides, I still felt too weak to move. Okay, so that may be an excuse, but I wasn’t going to leave Christian. Even with Ash’s blood Christian was half dead. The wounds on his back, chest and arms had healed a fair bit, but I knew every movement would be like getting the wound again. He wasn’t in the shape to run over half a kilometre just to get to the pack house.

But I also knew if we stayed too long the ground hunters would show up and shoot us before we could even stand up to run. And that’s what Ash was getting at. “Irana, we have to leave” he says softer and I feel him lean down, his chest touching my numb arm.

I breathe a sigh before nodding reluctantly. “Christian? Do you think you can walk?” I ask softly, wondering what I would do if he said no. Ash’s patients had been wearing thin while we talked, and I knew much more are he was going to throw me over his shoulder and drag me home, even if I screamed at him to bring Christian.

“I think so” Christian mutters in a voice weaker then I would have liked. He shifts under me, fur tickling my face. I sit up off Christian and shift too, feeling pain flourish over my ribs from just the change. Christian stands up, unsteady on his feet but follows Ash when he starts walking towards the house, a burnt coloured wolf moving between trees.

I pad after them; staying close to Christian was we move. I shake my fur out and flinch. That wasn’t a good idea; I felt a sting in my ribs, slowly moving into my chest. Ignoring the pain I pick my way over a snow drift.

I glance around as we move slowly through the snow, watching and listening for hunters. Christian gently nuzzles my shoulder as I walk up beside him. I pause to lick his face, unsure if what he was doing was because of thanks or affection. Christian pulls back slightly, shaking his head because I’d licked him.

I wheeze-snort a laugh and push the side of my head into his neck. The silver wolf pushes his nose against my before pulling away, nearly making me fall into the snow. Ash pauses in front of us, looking back as we slowly make our way to him. Once behind the bronze wolf I push my head into his hamstring, telling him to keep moving.

Ash does as I say and resumes walking, only this time slow enough for us to stay with him.

40ish minutes later I pause. My muscles were shaking again and I really wanted to lay down and sleep for a few hours. I knew we were only a good 150 meters from the pack hour, but it felt like it was miles to me. I knew where we were, only meters away from my old home, where my brother, mum and dad would be huddled in the warmth. Beside me Christian whines softly and noses at Ash who just snarls. He shoves an image of the pack house at us but even that had lost our motivation to find it.

I stare at the house hidden in the bush, wondering if the hunters would go onto other people property.

Slowly I turn towards the house, winding around trees that I’d grown up with. I pass one with a tire sitting on the end of a worn rope, remember falling off it when I was 10 and started laugh because I through it was fun, then the pain had registered and I started crying.