To Love and To Leave

4: Escapade

Well, Cam didn't wait. She knew she probably ought to considering she didn't know what kind of lunatics she was dealing with, but some restless, mistrustful side of her refused to let her wait in that room like a sitting duck. The door was unlocked. She smiled a little in spite of herself before pausing. Was it a trap? Were they waiting to see if she would try to flee? Breathing shakily, she pulled the door open and peeked. There was no one waiting for her and no cameras that she could see. Only the lonely stretch of carpeted hall.

She snuck out of the door and closed it gently behind her. The only way out that she knew was the stairs, so she headed in that direction. At the sound of another door opening at the opposite end of the hall, she hastened her pace and all but sprinted down the stairs as quietly as she could. The second floor was still too high and she didn't know where to jump from anyhow, so she raced down to the bottom floor. It seemed to good to be true that the front door was there, unguarded and hopefully unlocked. Still, she was scared so she went for it. This doorknob twisted easily in her hand too and suddenly she was outside on the porch in the humid mid-morning air.

While she considered the best way to sneak off the property, knowing this wasn't well planned out enough to steal a car, a holler came from inside the house. She bolted without letting herself think twice about it. Someone else shouted from the lawn as she sprinted passed, and she looked over her shoulder. A little girl was pointing at her, frizzy brown hair and widened eyes searing into Cam's long-term memory. She turned her attention forward and pumped her legs faster.

At last, she made it to the forest surrounding the estate and felt safer, better protected. She continued to run, even though her lungs were burning now.

Need to buy that gym membership pronto, she thought angrily to herself.

It hadn't been but ten minutes when she felt like someone was watching her. Which was odd seeing how she was hauling ass through the woods. Then she dared to turn her head to the left for just a fleeting second and instantly regretted it.

There, running alongside her, was a massive brown wolf. Its head was cocked to the side, staring right back at her. When it encountered a tree in its path, it maneuvered around it without even looking away from her. Cam was simultaneously horrified and fascinated. The animal was nearly as tall as herself. She may have been a small human, but she never thought a canine would be able to match her.

She was still staring at it when she smacked into something hard and furry. It knocked her off her feet, stealing the air from her lungs. Gasping, she lay on her back and blinked up at the sun poking in through the canopy. Another wolf stood above her and nudged her side with its face. This one was a stunning arctic white. As soon as Cam caught her breath, she scrambled backwards away from the massive creature. Both wolves stood side by side, watching her with peculiar attention. What kind of wolf just stared at its prey, not growling or coming closer or running away?

Cam struggled to get to her feet, teetering at first and then regaining equilibrium rather quickly. Eyeing the wolves, she moved parallel to them. She was already thinking about whether or not she could outrun them. And she obviously couldn't but that didn't mean she wouldn't try. Maybe these big animals were what the cult was trying to protect her from.

Damn, she scolded herself. Just what you get for running away.

Before she could charge into the woods again, the brown wolf suddenly leapt into motion. It sprang over to her in short, bouncy strides, almost like it was prancing. She froze. It leveled itself with her and bent its front half down with a playful whine.

"What?" she accidentally asked aloud. "What do you want?"

The wolf crooned arr-ar-arrr and wagged its fluffy tail. She could only watch it in utter bewilderment. An approaching noise interrupted the strange scene, and Cam turned her head to acknowledge the ATV speeding towards them. The white wolf rejoined the brown one and they stood regally together as the vehicle came closer. With a tug of dread Cam realized Melody was the rider. She was surprised that the girl wasn't fazed by the sight of the giant beasts.

"Come on now," Melody told her. "Think you've learned your lesson." Cam walked towards her, pointing at the canines. Before she could speak, Melody cut her off. She was looking at the wolves as she said, "Thank you. You may go now."

Cam's pointing finger fell to her side, jaw hanging.

"There's a lot for you to learn." Smiling, Melody patted the back of the ATV seat. "Hop on now. We've got to get you back to the house."

"Y-You're not mad that I ran away?" Cam asked.

"I knew you would at least try if you were the true mate of Logan. You'd have to be a fighter to put up with him the rest of your life," she replied with a grin.

"The rest of my life?"

Melody sighed. "You will learn everything soon enough, I promise."

"Why can't I know now?"

"Because, Camila, your mate must be the one to explain everything. It will forge a bond between the two of you."

"But Melody . . . please," Cam begged. "Don't you see I just want to leave? Why don't I get a choice?"

"You will have a choice, but you are not yet informed enough to make one. I know this is asking a lot of you, but trust me. Trust all of us. You are one of us now, and we would never do anything to hurt you."

"Then you should know that keeping me here against my will is not doing me any good. I have a job and friends to get back to. You can't just snatch me out of my life."

With a patient smile, Melody turned off the ATV and rose from the bench. Cam took a step back, wary.

"We are going to show you beautiful, amazing things that you never dreamt were possible," the woman told her. "You would not be here if fate or Nature hadn't picked you. You wouldn't be here unless you were created for this."

Cam found herself immobile and speechless yet again. What does someone say to that? You sound crazy as hell! Or maybe, Do you realize how insane you sound?

However, Melody began speaking before Cam could decide whether or not she wanted to declare her sentiments. "Now, I know you're hungry. Let's get you back to the house so we can feed you. The others are quite excited to meet you."

She didn't protest as Melody helped her slide onto the seat and instructed her to hold her waist on the drive back. Awkward as it was, she obliged. She would probably hit her head and get brain trauma if she fell off, so better to stay aboard until she found out what all this nonsense actually meant.