He was hurt - badly. Everything in her screamed to run, run to Daddy and hide behind him for safety. Rational thinking told her that was just his hold over her, but the puppy in her wanted her father. Rowynn had never been this conflicted.
"I have to save him," she whispered.
It was still taking her a while to comprehend that second little soul inside of her. Her wolf had finally come out, and that meant that in time she would shift – though she knew she had passed that phase long ago. It would be a miracle if she learnt how to shift, knowing her body may not be able to take it. She wasn't a pup anymore - her bones were fully formed and shifting would leave her with permanent damage.
She sighed heavily as she knelt beside the human. He looked so peaceful as he slept – so soft and harmless. It was hard to believe that just moments ago he had wanted to rip her throat out. Even if she just wanted to run away, she was going to help him. She couldn't just leave him out here for her father's scouts to find and rip apart.
She couldn't move him on her own. Her father had a little cabin East of their land where her mother used to take her brothers and sisters and her to play, away from the pack. Her mother thought it would help them grow closer. Her and Raine still ventured there from time to time. It was safe because no one ever went there – especially their father.
Raine... She could trust her brother with anything. Whenever she was in big trouble, he was there to help her. Rowynn needed him now, to help her with this problem she had somehow stumbled into.
She had to stop making this a habit.
"Raine! Can you hear me?" she cried out. Her head was empty of voices, and she couldn't feel her brother. "Raine, I need you!" her cries became more desperate, as if at any given moment her very life would be sucked right out of her.
That last desperate cry seemed to have gotten through to her brother as a flash of white sprinted past her and was growling viciously over the unconscious man. Rowynn's blue eyes widened and it took a moment for her to realize Raine thought she was in danger. She rushed over to the man on the ground and stuck her hand out to gently shove Raine away.
"Raine, it's okay! He's not dangerous!" She tried to believe that, but in all honesty, she didn't know how dangerous this human really was.
In his wolf form, her brother was a ferocious beast – totally opposite to what his personality was like in his human form.
"He did that to you, didn't he?" Raine growled as his wolf connected with hers.
This wasn't how it was supposed to go. Before Rowynn could really think about her actions, her whole body was sprawled over the man and Raine had only seconds to stop himself before he ended up biting her face off. His only option was to growl and back away.
Rowynn hated when Raine shifted – he became an animal, and that reminded her of their father. If by some miracle she shifted, she would never do it again. She didn't want to be like that.
The bruises on her neck were evidence enough for Raine to make his judgement. "That's a human, Rowynn. What have you done?" he growled out as he paced back and forth like a caged animal.
She frowned and placed both of her hands on the man's chest. "I haven't done anything. Why are you and Dad and Liam always accusing me?" she snapped, eyes narrowed in annoyance.
Raine was taken aback. Never in her life had she ever snapped at him, but perhaps that was her newly found wolf talking. Maybe it had more guts than she ever would.
Raine looked confused after his initial shock. He continued to pace back and forth, as if contemplating what to do, and then suddenly stopped as he sniffed the air. His whole body turned to the side, and as of that moment Rowynn was petrified with what she, too, sniffed out.
Shifter's – lots of shifter's – and they were heading their way. They weren't from the Marsden land or family. They were strangers on Marsden territory and from the way the hairs on Raine's back stood up she knew they were in some very serious trouble.
"Raine..." Rowynn didn't even recognise her own voice – it was a mix of absolute fear and dread.
"Get away from here," Raine commanded, leaving no room for argument.
She would have run – she swore she would have. If it had been anyone else but Raine, by God Rowynn would have been hauling ass right at that very second... But it wasRaine. She could not, and would not, leave her big brother to get his tail whipped by this oncoming threat. She supposed that little speech would have had a little more meaning if she had the use of her legs to begin with. Her father always said she was all bark and no bite – she supposed he was right.
Rowynn had a mind to curse the spirits watching over them. There were unknown wolves heading right in their general direction, and this human lay unconscious right beside her while her brother was getting ready to fight an already losing battle.
Rowynn had set out to get her father's attention – she was hoping getting his attention didn't involve her and her brother returning home with little more than their noses ripped off.
Raine was yelling at her through their link to run, run as fast as she could and get help – but she was frozen. The newly found wolf inside of her was also yelling at her, but she was growling something completely different. Rowynn's wolf wanted her to shift and fight, because she knew Raine was in danger. Even if Rowynn wanted to shift – and she wanted to very badly – the girl would likely die from either the shock to her body, or be ripped apart while she took the time to shift.
Raine tried to make himself as large as possible in hopes of the oncoming threat retreating, but Rowynn knew that wasn't going to work – they were already being surrounded. There was a lump in her throat that she just couldn't seem to swallow down. The heavy air that surrounded them was almost suffocating, and for the first time since her mother died, Rowynn prayed for some sort of miracle to happen.
Her heart was racing so fast she could almost feel a soft pain erupting throughout her chest. She watched on as dozens of shifted wolves moved out from behind the dense growth of trees, and came scarily closer towards Raine and her. They were all a variety of colours and sizes, but the big one steadily stalking towards Raine was most certainly the biggest threat.
It was obvious from Raine's body language that they were communicating. Rowynn looked behind her, wondering if they had noticed the human – but she was only fooling herself, they would have to be blind not to have noticed him.
Raine suddenly snarled and she backed away out of instinct.
"They want the human," he growled.
She gasped, "Why would they want him?"
Instantly a cold chill ran down her spine, and she finally looked up, taking in their appearances. She knew just how fucked they really were with one word.
Sullivan... The pack was known for that family, and their anti-human preaching's. It was no secret her father held an immense hatred for the pack, and Rowynn knew exactly why. It was the pack that had been giving them grief over territory for years now, and the only pack the high alpha, Collin Reach, favoured.
The wolf that had been communicating with her brother must have been getting bored with her awkward gawking, because before Raine even had time to react, three wolves were on top of him, pinning his wolf down and snarling viciously.
"Raine!" her voice sounded pathetic – like it didn't even belong to her. "Stop hurting him!"
A soft giggle erupted from within the distance. "Nobody is hurting him. As a shifter, you should know that better than anyone."
Rowynn took a step forward and finally found her backbone. "Tell them to let him go," she growled.
This she-wolf was stunning, as were most of their kind. Sandy coloured hair curled to perfection, rose tinted cheeks and the biggest brown eyes Rowynn had ever seen. Just from those features alone Rowynn knew exactly who this shifter was. She was the Sullivan pack's big sister – the alpha's sister.
"You stupid girl," she growled back, before she cut herself off and straightened her posture. The wolves that surrounded her growled and snapped their jaws at Rowynn, but she couldn't back down when Raine was in trouble. "Jack Marsden's ditzy daughter saving that filth? Well, as they say, the weak stick together."
Rowynn's brows furrowed and her hands absently pinched at her jeans. How did this woman know who she was?
Her lips twitched and Rowynn noticed that her head dipped to the side ever so slightly. Whatever snarky mood she had just been in started to dissipate as she growled, "Give us the human. That's all we came for."
Rowynn don't know what came over her, or where this courage came from, but she instantly regretted the next sentence that flew from her mouth. "I'll rip you apart before that happens."
That's all it took. That smile flew from her face and turned into a disgusting grin as the woman snapped her fingers and two wolves were lunging for Rowynn. She faintly heard Raine call out, but everything happened so fast, she didn't know what was said, who said it, or what was even going on.
Her arms instinctively rose to shield her face, and her feet were glued to the floor. If they were going to tackle her, she refused to die face first in the dirt.
It felt like it was taking forever, and when she heard a soft whimper, her eyelids peeked open to look at what exactly was taking so long.
Standing directly in front of her was the stranger she had found, the wolves neck gripped between his fingers, and the other wolf cowering back with his tail between his legs. Not moments before he had been out cold, and in mere seconds he was in front of her.
Who was this man?
Rowynn looked up at him and he tilted his head to look back at her. The look on his face sent shivers running up and down her spine.
"You okay?" he asked.
She nodded once before replying, "Yes."
He nodded back, as if expecting as much, and turned to stare back at the mini army before them. He threw the shifter at the woman, who dodged the oncoming wolf with ease. Rowynn covered her nose, staring wide-eyed at the human. She could smell burned flesh and fur.
The human growled low in his throat, "Olivia."
"Kato," she snapped back. Her nose turned up in disgust at the very mention of his name.
They simply stared at each other for about a minute before the woman –Olivia – growled dangerously. "My brother, Maliki, what have your human's done with him?"
Rowynn blinked and looked up towards the back of the human's dark head. Kato, was that his name?
Kato scoffed, "He attacked innocent human's. You know why we had to take him, Olivia."
His body was shaking, and as she looked down, Rowynn noticed he was still visibly injured. His body was scarred from the tip of his nose all the way down. She wondered just how long he could stay standing before he couldn't tolerate it any longer.
"Then we'll just take you forcibly. Maliki in exchange for you. A trade."
The woman looked serious and her eyes were almost popping out of her head with anger.
Kato's arm pulled back as he backed up, his hand pressing against Rowynn's side. He was protecting her – or, at least, that's what she had assumed he was doing.
His response was short and curt, "Leave, Olivia. It'll take more than a few shifter's to bring me down and you damn well know it."
Rowynn supposed this Olivia woman didn't expect that sort of response, because her anger filled eyes soon turned sombre, and turned her gaze away from them. "Have it your way. We'll be seeing you very soon, Kato."
And just like that, the wolves released Raine, and Olivia beckoned them to follow her. They retreated to Sullivan territory, leaving Rowynn to stare after them.
Olivia Sullivan. She'd heard her father mention that name before.
She didn't think about it too much, because after her initial shock had subsided she immediately raced to Raine's side. Rowynn dropped to her knees to check and see if he was okay, but her brother shook her off and moved in front of her. He was growling menacingly at Kato – a warning for him not to come any closer.
Kato had a bored look on his scarred face as he muttered, "Tell your puppy to stop that before I rip his tongue out."
That just made Raine angrier.
"Rowynn, go home," he snapped.
She almost chewed her lip off as she thought about what she was going to do. "Raine, stop. He need's our help."
"He has no business with us." His words were final, and it reminded her of the way their father would talk to her – like she was a five-year-old pup.
Kato simply stared, as if studying the two squabbling siblings.
"Raine, Dad will come looking once he smell's those wolves on our land. Please, take Kato to Mother's cabin. I have to see Dad, or else, he'll get suspicious if at least one of us doesn't return." Her eyes and voice were pleading.
Raine didn't say anything for a few seconds, but she knew his resolve was wavering.
Rowynn grinned and gave him a soft pat behind the ear. Raine huffed, but didn't complain. He trusted her judgement, and for that she was grateful. She slowly got to her feet and moved towards Kato. As she looked up at his staggering height, she smiled awkwardly. "Go with my brother. He'll take you somewhere safe."
Kato stared down at the little female with apprehension, but something had changed in his eyes. "You'd do that, huh?"
She didn't say anything and just nodded. Did he think them monsters? Maybe. She had so many questions to ask him and so little time.
He moved forward, brushing past her as he did, and shook his head. "You're something else, you know that?"
With a soft blush creeping up into her cheeks, she watched as Kato followed Raine, and hoped nothing went wrong. Rowynn knew in her heart that this man wouldn't hurt Raine, but her head was spinning with worry. He had been so hostile before, and she wondered – yet again – if she was making the right decision.
Rowynn sighed as she turned and started to walk.
It was time to face her father.