Kieran sat in silence while the guys talked. About what she had no clue. She was stuck in her thoughts, trying to figure out what could've happened. The radio played quietly in the background. It was some song she didn't know by an artist she'd never heard of. Her shoulders tensed slightly when she caught the boy next to her staring out of the corner of her eye.
He'd done that quite a bit since they'd picked her up, though she thought he'd stopped roughly half an hour ago.
She shifted around in her seat. They'd been driving for nearly three hours and she was getting uncomfortable.
"How close is the nearest town?" She asked. The three guys shared a look. They were silent for a couple beats before the driver answered.
"Not far."
She wanted a better answer, but she got the feeling there was something wrong with these three. They kept looking to each other, having some sort of mental conversation. She turned to the window again. She was still very confused. She didn't know where she was, how she got there, or why she was left alone on the side of the road.
She could remember the bus. Her splitting headache, the sudden nausea. Falling forward. But after that, nothing.
After another hour of driving and a short nap, Kieran noticed the sun had set. The world was slowly darkening as the night crept in. The air grew colder. She thought they'd have made it to a town by now.
Suddenly, and for a reason unknown to her, the driver pulled over. He cut the engine and got out, letting his friend in the back out as well.
"Out," The driver demanded.
The passenger door had been opened and the seat pulled forward. A nervous chill ran down her spine.
Slowly she got out of the truck. She was immediately grabbed, and despite her protests, they began to drag her into the woods. She was pulled into the driver's chest once they'd walked far enough into the treeline that she'd lost sight of the road. The other two pressed themselves against her; one on her side, the other directly behind her, effectively trapping her between them. Their bodies were hot as a furnace and the combined heat made her sweat lightly.
The ones behind and on the side dove at her neck. It was quick and aggressive, each claiming a side. She tried to move away. The driver grabbed her chin and forced her to look at him. Then he kissed her. Hard.
Their hands were everywhere. She started to panic. They held her tight, locked between their hands. Her mind was racing but one thought rang louder than the rest.
I'm going to be raped.
Her breathing picked up as her panic grew. Someone's hand groped her chest. It jolted her into action, and she lashed out. Her knee came forward to connect with the driver's groin. She elbowed the one in the throat as she threw her head back to smash the nose of the guy behind her. They all let go of her. The driver was on the ground, the passenger gripping his bloody nose, and the third was hunched over his knees, trying to breathe.
She didn't waste any time. They'd moved away from her now, groaning as they waited for the pain to pass. She bolted.
She could hear the guys groaning and cursing, but she didn't look back. They would come after her, she knew. They didn't seem like the type to give up on a chase.
She felt bile rise in her throat as the distinct sound of bones snapping echoed behind her.
What the hell is going on?
She chanced a quick glance at the spot the three boys should have been. Key word: should. Three impossibly large wolves occupied the space instead. Her breath left her lungs as she made eye contact with one. Another howled loudly into the growing darkness, freezing her blood in her veins.
She whipped back around and pushed herself to run faster. She needed to get away from there. She had to find the road. Her heart tripped when she picked up on the sound of paws thundering on the dirt. They were following her now, and they were gaining. She scanned her surroundings desperately for anywhere she could lose them.
She ran for a dense, very dark part of the forest. Hopefully she could lose them in there. As she crossed into the darker area she heard growls.
The thundering slowed, and she wondered if they were going to give up.
No.
That was too easy.
After a moment's pause, they followed. She didn't stop running. And she didn't look back. The air was closer here and nearly pitch black. Her shoulders pricked with the distinct feeling of being watched. She glanced around, wondering for a moment if the trees had eyes. A break in the trees up ahead made her think she was close to finding the road again. The sound of animals moving behind her had disappeared. But she knew they were still there.
Almost there.
Just a little further.
Sweat poured down her face in salty streams. She had to hurry. They were coming. She barely flinched when a low-hanging branch whipped across her right cheek. They were coming. A howl tore through the night.
Too close.
She forced herself to run faster. Just a little further. She stumbled over a loose rock and fell forward. She felt as dirt pushed under her fingernails and fallen pine needles pricked her palms. She got up quickly, kept running.
This shouldn't be happening. This shouldn't be possible.
She stopped to catch her breath. Mistake number one.
Something moved through the bushes. Shadows danced threateningly. The wind whispered with a promise. A promise of blood.
She ran. Branches clung to her clothes. Roots reached up to grab her ankles. The forest was against her. It wouldn't let her leave. She looked over her shoulder.
Mistake number two.
She could hear their feet pounding the earth behind her.
Too close.
They would find her. They would drag her back to that godforsaken truck. She ignored the burning in her lungs. The ache in her legs. She tried to run faster. Shadows darted past on either side of her. They would cut her off.
She veered to the left. She searched for a place to hide.
She tucked herself into the hollow at the base of a rotted tree. Mistake number three.
The forest grew silent, and as it seemed to be doing, she too held her breath. A twig snapped. She prayed.
Please don't let them find me.
She looked into the trees. Into a dark so smothering it seemed to wrap around her. It clung to her skin like a too-small t-shirt. She closed her eyes.
Minutes passed. Silence. She opened her eyes, crawled out of the hollow. It was quick.
She couldn't even scream.
"Shh, it's alright."
A hand was pressed tightly to her mouth to keep her quiet. An arm wrapped tightly around her waist. Even though she was still surrounded by strangers, her panic lessened a little. Whoever was holding her, was female.
Kieran could just make out three other figures in the dark. All appeared to be male. Their body language suggested they were suspicious, but not a danger. Yet.
The hand was removed from her mouth, but the woman's arm stayed in place. A moment later the three wolves she'd been hiding from joined the group. She was horrified as the sound of bones popping met her ears once again. And suddenly, the wolves became the three guys.
Her face flushed red and she looked to the navy sky. They were naked.
"Sam, Tyler, Brad. Why are you here?" One of the men asked.
"Just coming to collect what's ours. Now hand her over," The driver snarled.
"She's on our land. And human. You have no claim to her here," The woman said.
The three snarled and growled. The men who'd rescued her growled back, louder.
"Leave. Now. Or it'll be my father you speak to next."
She was confused but very curious now. The three who'd dragged her into the woods looked slightly afraid by that last statement. It made her wonder who this guy's dad was.
It took a moment of glaring and stiff silence before the three guys left. Kieran slumped against the woman in relief. She was safe. She hoped.
"Come with us. We have somewhere you can stay," The one who'd used his father as a threat said.
She hesitated. She was very grateful that they'd helped her, of course. But she wasn't going to make the same mistake that got her into this mess.
"There's no need to worry. We aren't like them," The woman murmured in Kieran's ear gently.
Her voice made Kieran's mind go blank for a moment. Her body felt suddenly heavy, like she needed to sleep. She no longer had any desire to argue. She'd forgotten why she was denying these people in the first place. This was what she imagined being drunk felt like.
She nodded an absent okay. The woman supported her as they walked, and they led her into the night.