Unwilling Ch. 05

Suspension of disbelief is recommended. All characters are 18+. Please respect my copyrights to this story.

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~*Jared*~

Brushes and branches slapped against his body, leaving bloody scratches on his unprotected face. Leaves rustled whenever they took a turn or crossed one of the small clearings where the surrounding trees had grown so high that nothing would grow underneath their shadow. Jared could hear Darwin's labored breath right behind him, trying to keep up with the unforgiving pace he had set. He felt thick droplets of sweat rolling down the ridge of his spine, coating his shirt and the rims of his trousers in wetness that would soon turn cold and clammy. The ground was muddy and slippery from the morning dew, but there was no room for caution. Their pursuers were only a few hundred feet behind them, and they were gaining fast on their prey.

Jared knew they would have to shift into their wolf forms, just like the pack of werewolves following them, if they wanted to have any chance at all. But the first time he had suggested it to Darwin, Darwin had freaked out enough to cost them a few precious seconds.

"No way, I won't shift out here. I told you about my wolf! He's crazy, not even my Alpha could control him!"

"Who says I'd have to control you, we're running away, even a crazy wolf would get that!" Jared had rebutted while gasping for air. In the distance behind them he had heard twigs snap and leaves rustling, signs of how much the five wolves had gained on them.

"Stop asking me to do it, I won't take the risk! I'd rather die!" Darwin had exclaimed, his piercing blue eyes wide with terror, but there had been no time for Jared to remind his mate that he'd actually die if they kept going like this.

And now they were running again, trying to gain distance, but already out of breath and slowing down.

Darwin was still hurt even though he didn't complain about it. Jared could hear it in the way the man huffed and hissed with every step, but there was nothing he could do as long as they were in this forest.

When they reached the foot of Mt. Kennicky the terrain got more impracticable, leading them uphill and downhill in steeping succession. Though Darwin was a tour guide in the national park nearby, it took the last out of him, and finally slowed him down to a limping, breathless trot.

"Jared," he wheezed as he tried to keep up with the blond werewolf, "I can't go any further. I can't!"

It made Jared stop on the spot and look back. Darwin was pasty white, soaked in sweat and stumbling when he came to a halt. Jared quickly scanned their surroundings, but the wolves weren't in sight yet. He could definitely hear their yips and growls coming closer and closer, sounds of triumph at catching up to their prey, and he knew he had to act quick and decisive.

When he saw a small planked rope bridge on the foot of the hill they were currently slipping down, he made a hard turn and headed straight for it.

"Take the bridge, quickly!" he roared, and stopped long enough to let Darwin hobble past him and onto the rickety thing. A cold, clammy wind was blowing downhill, pulling at Darwin's raven black hair and filling the air with his scent and his pain as he clambered over the planks, clutching his side with one hand. They both had to hold on to the rope railing with every step, and it did slow them down considerably, but it was a chance Jared just had to take.

Darwin had nearly reached the other side when Jared heard the growl and the clicking of claws on wood. It made the hairs on his back bristle in sudden rage. The wolves had reached the bridge and were following them, and Jared hadn't reached the other side yet.

He looked in front of him, seeing Darwin's wide eyes, his scared face, and he knew time had finally run out. When he heard the snapping of teeth right behind him, he stopped and turned abruptly, making the wolf at his heels run right into him.

The black and grey wolf showed his teeth and pulled back, ready to attack Jared, its claws barely finding grip on the wet wooden planks.

Jared smiled, then his hands shifted with a sickening pop and a small spray of pinkish goo. "You keep running! This better not be for nothing, you hear me?" he roared over his shoulder, shooting one last dark glance at Darwin.

Then his claws cut the ropes, making the bridge snap and violently twist to one side, then rip apart and fall into the small canyon beneath, taking three wolves and Jared with it.

The only thing left for Darwin was to stand there and watch as they tumbled out of sight.

~*Darwin*~

Jared and three of the wolves were falling into the canyon, disappearing with a splash. Time seemed to just stop for Darwin, and everything ground to a halt. He didn't see the two wolves on the other side starting to run again, trying to find a way around the precipice, and he didn't hear their whining barks quickly disappear to the north.

A small part of Darwin's mind knew they were still on the hunt for him and probably would soon catch up if he didn't start running like Jared had told him to, but the major part of him didn't care... yet.

When he realized his hands were shaking he looked down at them, perplexed by the sheer whiteness of his skin, how fragile and thin his arms looked, how he could see his own blood pulsing through the veins right beneath the pale black hairs behind his knuckles. Pathetic. Worthless. Helpless.

He felt a pain he had never felt before, and it ripped him apart just to put him back together, again and again. His chest didn't feel tight, which did confuse him because he had heard it was supposed to do that when a werewolf lost his mate. It did feel glowing hot, like he was melting from the inside, and his stomach was cramping with panic and shock, but he could breathe just fine and his heart obviously wasn't broken.

He apparently wasn't going to drop dead any time soon, but that didn't stop the pain either. His instincts told him to move already, run and save his skin, that everything was alright, but he just couldn't move, couldn't tear his eyes away from the spot where Jared had disappeared into the depths of the canyon, or away from his shaking, pale hands.

His wolf was urging him to stop this nonsense, getting more and more agitated with every second Darwin didn't comply. Everything was so out of place-- Darwin had never risked his life like this for any reason, and it still didn't occur to him to look for survivors.

Darwin took a deep breath and finally managed to close his eyes. That small movement was better than nothing, but now that he wasn't focused on anything he finally realized how close he had been to losing control the whole time.

His wolf didn't hesitate. He just took over.

Darwin could feel the skin at his back and his thighs rip open, but the wet sound accompanying it seemed distant and hollow. He also felt the black fur flowing out of the tears in his skin and over his body like a hot, prickling wave. He knew it would be dry and perfect, he had seen it before, and he also knew what would follow next.

With a wet pop his shoulders dislocated and then were re-set, changing the angle of his arms. His fingers knit together and got shorter, sliding out of the casts that had enveloped his once-broken fingers, his arms changed their proportions, and then the fur reached his face. Clothes fell to the ground ripped and stained with clear gel and blood, closely followed by Darwin himself.

As he fell down to the ground with a low groan, his spine elongated as a furred tail popped out of his tailbone, then the groan changed to a high-pitched yip and then a growl as his face changed its shape.

The last thing Darwin felt was the puddle of blood and gunk beneath him, then the wolf took over his mind too, and everything went black for the human.

~*~

The wolf staggered to his feet and shook himself vigorously. It had been nearly a month since he last had had the chance to get out of his mental cage, only to find himself in another more real one, down in a basement. Out here everything was better. He felt the wind brushing through his fur, heard the whispers of tree branches brushing against each other and the song of birds. He could smell a myriad of different scents, bombarding his deprived brain with seductions he had so long missed.

The black wolf definitely loved the woods. The only thing that would have made this moment better was his mate, who was now absent, dealing with their attackers somewhere else.

He saw no reason to fear for his mate's life, not like Darwin, his human brother, had feared for him. The fall had not been an accident, it had been instigated by Jared, and Jared was dominant. He had to know what he was doing, that was the rule of life. Until the wolf saw Jared's dead, cold body lying at the river bank, he wouldn't believe his mate was dead.

With a shake of his furred head the giant wolf took off, moving through the maze of trees and ferns.

He instinctively chose a path away from his pursuers and into the direction that would most likely lead him to the foot of the canyon further down the way. He knew the two wolves behind him would easily be able to overpower or even kill him-- after all he had no experience fighting--, but since he couldn't yet see or smell them he didn't see any reason to panic.

The wolf also knew that he somehow was different from the wolves he had met in his life. He didn't act like them, didn't think like them-- like humans with wolf instincts-- but instead like a wolf with a fearful, sleeping human consciousness inside him. The others had never understood his seemingly crazy behavior, but to him it was a freedom he relished, not some kind of defect.

Following the sound of water the wolf made his way along the canyon side, trotting along merrily, tongue flopping around from the unusual amount of exertion. The surroundings did tantalize him to just take off into the wilderness, but going without his mate was not only dangerous, but also wrong. The human side, Darwin, may be a loner, but the wolf surely wasn't. He would have to find Jared first, one way or the other.

He finally found a small, bumpy path down to the canyon ground, and gingerly worked his way down, claws spread, tail flailing from left to right for balance. The river broadened a few dozen feet further upstream from his position, becoming a lazier, blubbering stream with sand embankments, bushes and bundles of grass on both sides. The wolf was on one side, but on the other side and slightly downstream he could make out movement. The brushes there were thick and lush, having not yet lost their leaves, but amidst the greenery and against the rocky cliff in the back the wolf saw flashes of red cloth and naked skin.

The rumbling echo of water made it hard to hear anything from the other side, but the wolf didn't need to worry. Just when his paw touched the ice cold water three persons broke through the brushes and tumbled to the edge of the canyon river. Two of them were naked, and the third person's clothes were in tatters: Jared.

The wolf may have been calm about the situation as long as he hadn't seen anything, but watching his mate wrestle for the upper hand just a stone throw's distance away enraged him to no end. He must have growled or barked before jumping into the river, because even as he was fighting of his attackers Jared still looked behind him and screamed.

Of course, in his wolf form Darwin didn't understand any of the things Jared yelled, but his wolf at least understood the urgency in his voice and stopped in the middle of the river, treading the ice cold water as the current slowly carried him down stream.

Him drifting away also seemed to meet Jared's expectations, because his attention snapped back to his attackers-- just a second to late.

When the log hit Jared's head he didn't even have time to make a sound, he just went slack.

At about the same moment the two wolves that had taken the scenic route to find Darwin reached the river bed and effectively blocked Darwin's way out.

Going back to where Jared was now hoisted onto the back of one of the naked men was out of the question simply because Jared had ordered him to stay away, and his way back wasn't going to work anymore. The two parties seemed to communicate about what to do now, but the wolf didn't understand them either.

When he saw one of the wolves still in animal form attempting to go after him by wading into the cold water he finally gave up and swam with the current. He'd have to follow them in a safe distance and wait for a good moment to free Jared. The wolf was nothing if not optimistic.

~*Jared*~

When Jared reached land it wasn't a second to soon. One of his attackers luckily hadn't survived the fall and the ensuing wrestling match, but the other two had somehow managed not only to swim to the sand embankment he had reached, but also to shift shape much quicker than they were supposed to. One of them was dark-skinned, with a bulky build and long, tantalizing limbs matching the cocky expression on his beautifully chiselled face, the other looked like one of those hillbilly types with too much meat on his ribs, too much hair on his arms and belly, and a dire need to visit a hair salon and get the backside of his head fixed. Both of them seemed unsure what to do for a moment, regrouping by circling him against the cliff wall next to the river bank.

Jared had a plan that involved being overpowered and captured, but as his eyes darted behind his attackers and he watched Darwin's furry form wade into the water in an attempt to save him by risking his own life he was hard-pressed to just kill them all in a surge of primal rage. It wouldn't be that hard, since he had an ace up his sleeve: He was Alpha, able to overpower any werewolf with the sheer force of his will, as long as there was no other Alpha present. It just would have ruined his plan to end this hunt once and for all.

It took quite a bit of yelling at the black wolf and a good portion of self restraint, but somehow he could keep himself from strangling the werewolves and stop Darwin from joining the fun, and not a moment too soon. Just when Jared turned his attention to the two problems in front of him, two more reached the riverside Darwin had used as an entrance and seemed torn about whom they should give their attention to.

To make his point Jared grabbed the hillbilly-guy by his neck to pull him back and throw him against the rough stone surface behind, putting as much force and muscle as he could muster into the throw. If he made just enough of a fuss to keep his attackers busy without overpowering them, they'd leave the swimming wolf that was Darwin alone.

The naked, bulgy man crashed against the rocks with a pained cry, alarming his friends on the other side of the river. One of them was in mid-change, the other one still in his wolf form, and the third, dark skinned one on Jared's side of the river instantly went for him swinging a wooden branch.

Now that Jared had his attackers' undivided attention he felt better, calmer. Not that he was sure about his genius plan of getting caught. If he made one wrong move with those remaining three, they would not hesitate to try and kill him for intruding on their territory. It was an instinctual thing, heritage from their wolf ancestry, although it didn't mean they would win a fight against Jared.

It definitely was a risk to let that one lone guy hit him with the branch, but it was a risk worth taking.

The wooden club met the back of his head with a loud cracking sound, and though he hadn't planned to go down that hard, he actually blacked out for a few seconds. It did save Jared the trouble of bad acting, but it also made him way more vulnerable than he originally had planned.

~*~

Jared finally came to upside down and dangling from a shoulder as the wolf who had swum after Darwin reached Jared's side of the riverbank. Even face down and stunned he could smell the wolf's adrenaline and testosterone hanging chokingly thick in the air. The brown haired guy Jared had thrown against the rocks was stumbling to his feet, stinking of the hunt's excitement just as much as the wolf, obviously ready to take his revenge.

The fourth attacker on the other side of the river had finished her change back to human form and jumped into the icy river to swim to the other side within seconds.

"Damn it, he got away!"

"It doesn't matter. You know him, he'll follow this one no matter what. Just like he'd never leave the pack," Jared's captor said. He had an amazing voice, dark and sultry and thick as toffee, and it vibrated through Jared's limp body like a shiver.

"Gorgeous. But him following this one doesn't help us do our job. Which was to bring Darwin, not everyone else. Carl will be so pissed!"

The breath Mr. Sultry-- as Jared decided to call his captor for now-- took was deep enough to lift Jared's whole body for an inch, which was not a small feat considering Jared was near double his mass. Maybe it was a good thing he hadn't tried to put up more of a fight, this guy seemed to have more strength than his exterior let on.

"Don't bicker with me, it doesn't suit you. We're taking him and I'll handle Carl when it's necessary. Greta, go get the car, bring it down to Fortunis Bridge, we'll meet you there."

Through one slitted eye Jared could see the ash-blond girl jog into the woods, but had to close it when the remaining group turned and started walking, following the river downstream. When he felt sure it was safe he opened one eye occasionally to look for Darwin, but the black wolf had wisely disappeared and was nowhere to be seen.

Jared hoped it would stay that way.

~*Harry*~

It had been silent for too long. Something was going on up there, Harry was sure of it. His new 'friend', Rayne, had foretold another visit by either himself or-- much worse-- Carl, but it had been hours since then, and nobody had come.

There had been faint movement upstairs some time ago, but now there was nothing but silence and darkness, and, quite honestly, Harry was sick of it and sick of being scared shitless.

Since his hands were bound together at the wrists behind his back and his legs weren't shackled, he could sit up without any troubles, but he had yet to dare to get up and walk around. Fear was a powerful thing, able to keep a person glued to the spot for a long time, but fear's power was starting to lose its influence on Harry. Now light and a plan to escape began to look more promising than waiting for fate to come get him.

Harry got up with a silent grunt. The echo of his own sound made his heart pound fiercely, but when a few seconds went by without the world exploding he decided to keep on being brave. Slowly Harry felt his way forward, heading for the spot where he had seen the light switch before, careful not to run into a wall. Every step and every sound seemed magnified a thousand times, but that had to be nerves, just nerves.

If it were Darwin in his place, he wouldn't flinch and just walk over there, Harry mused, and had to suppress a squeak when his shoulder hit the wall next to the door. Whatever problems Darwin ran into, he always seemed to just fly through without a second thought, consequences be damned. And here Harry was, kidnapped by Rayne the Walmart werewolf, afraid of a dark cellar with the light switch just a step away. He felt pathetic.

Slowly feeling his way along the crumbling wall he first reached the door, which of course was locked, because that would have been too easy. Just one step to its left he found the cover plate of the light switch, and after a bit of balancing on the balls of his feet and feeling around bent forward like a human hook he finally found the switch itself, and flipped it.