The Hunters

Chapter 12

Still rooted to the ground, shivers wrack my body. My hands are clenched around the chakram, the sides of the handles biting into my palm. At some stage, something warm trickles down my fingers, but I make no move to check them.

Closing my eyes, I attempt to regulate my breathing.

'The wolf's body twists unnaturally. Its snout shrinks, popping, and fur and claws shorten. Bones pop at angles as it convulses in pain. It's legs are bent at an angle, kneecaps shifting under the skin, snapping the rest of the bones and resetting them.'

Bile rises, my heart quickening.

I have got to be dreaming.

There's no way this is real.

Any minute now, I'll wake in my room, Emily wailing across the hall.

The warmth continues to engulf my hand.

'Bones popping...'

The pounding in my head increases.

'Screams...'

A metallic taste grazes my tongue.

'Pained whimpers...'

"Ria?"

My head shoots up, finding Becca standing before me.

"Are you ok?"

Her voice sounds faint, impaired by the screams. Her hand reaches for my arm. Her lips move, but her voice never sounds. She glances towards my hand. My head pounds.

Something damp trickles down my cheek. My eyes are hot, my lungs burning.

Black splotches shimmer in front of my eyes. Becca steps back, turning around. When she returns her gaze to me, I quiver.

I feel my windpipe closing, dizziness catching up, until I can't feel anything at all.

*****

"What did she say?"

"Nothing you can't already see. Panic attack?"

"Looks like it."

"Do you think she saw something?"

"Not unless you sensed it, Kellen."

"I already told you. There was nothing unusual out there."

"We'll just have to wait then. Could you pass me the rag?"

A sharp pain runs up my arm, causing me to suck in a short breath. My throat burns, my head pounding.

"Is she waking now, Prince?"

The voice sounds soft, having a loose familiarity to it that I can't place.

Someone sighs at my side. "Give her chance, Kellen."

Kellen. No.

I bolt up, eyes squinting. Gritting my teeth through the obvious pain in my hand, I push myself further back, squinting at Kellen as my eyes adjust.

A rough hand finds its way to my arm, accompanied by Prince's deep yet soft voice. "Hey, it's just us."

I look between them both, my breathing unsteady. "He... He's not..."