Matenapped |✓

|/20\|

|/Regan\|

He smelled like smoke, and I couldn't breathe.

"Let me go, god damnit!" I curse, slapping away at his arms that currently held me in a bone crushing embrace. I don't even know why he just randomly grabbed me and hugged me, but from the smell of lingering smoke and alcohol I think I had a clue.

"Why do you have to be drunk to hug me?" I attempted pushing away from his chest but to no avail.

"You smell like strawberries." His words slurred.

"Can someone get this drunk off of me?" I yelled out to the house. Grayson was suddenly pulled away from me, and Caiden was smirking holding the back of his shirt.

"Care to explain why he got so drunk?" I asked, crossing my arms.

"It's just the whole box thing."

"Ah, of course, it's my fault." I scoffed at Caiden.

"Yep, glad you recognized it, cupcake." He winked and I rolled my eyes.

"I'm going on a walk." I muttered.

"Nooooooo! Loooovvve mee-" he stopped slurring to burp, causing me to cringe.

"You need someone to come wth you-" Caiden started but I interrupted him.

"I'll be fine."

"I'll take her." Gael popped into the room.. I sighed, wanting to go on the walk in peace.

"Good, if Grayson-"

"Thaatsss meeee!" Grayson laughed before muttering an 'oh no' and passing out, Caiden letting him fall to the floor.

"Like I was saying," Caiden eyed Grayson's unconscious body. "If he found out you went on a walk alone he'd have our heads, so just allow Gael to assist you, will 'ya?"

"Cranky asshole." I muttered before grabbing a coat.

"What was that?"

"Nothing." I sent him an all too innocent smile that we both knew was fake. He scowled before disappearing down the hall.

"So why did you want to go on a walk?" Gael asked, strolling beside me towards the woods.

"I don't know." I shrugged. "Just been in that damn house too long."

"Relatable." She sighed and allowed us to engulf in silence, the only sounds of the forest and the wind.

It wasn't long until I tripped and face planted into a fallen log. Gael shrieked, don't ask me why, and ran over to me. She lifted my face and gasped when she saw the damage.

"Your nose is bleeding, we should head back-"

"I'd rather you stay right where you are, ladies." A deeper voice growled. I jumped and turned to see the brown-haired navy blue eyed boy from my late night walk in the forest. My stomach burned at the sight of him, my throat feeling as if it was coated in warm blood.

"What do you want?" Gael stood in front of my protectively as if shielding me from his sharp eyes.

"Alpha Monroe put out an offer to bring Alpha Hayes's mate to him." He spoke. My heart clenched as I registered words and our situation. We were so deep in the woods that I didn't know if we could call for help.

"Leave before you face punishment of threatening the Luna." Gael growled at him.

"Oh, I'm not threatening the poor human, I'm simply informing her of what's about to happen."

"And what's that, mutt?" I spat at him. I heard a deep rumble. I knew werewolves didn't like being called mutt or pup.

"You're about get punished, that's what." His voice snarled, already sounding half wolf.

Gael took action before he did, running at him with incredible speed and attempting to overpower him. But he was big and bulky, and she was just a frail shewolf.

He shifted full on into his wolf, and I immediately recognized it from that night. Shadow, well Grayson, warned him off.

Gael shifted, too, and I was clueless as to what to do. Run? What if he had backup? Hope she makes overpowers him? Unlikely, but possible if she out-witted him. Yell? We were so far, I wasn't sure if that was possible.

Gael was flung into a nearby tree, causing it to snap and fall down. She looked over at me with her silver eyes, giving me a pleading look.

Run.

So I stood up and darted, and when he noticed and was about to chase after me, Gael jumped back onto his back in distraction. She was risking her life for mine.

Now, I could dance for hours, but I wasn't fit to run far. And man, was this far.

Plus, when my nose is bleeding and it's freezing, it was hell. Except I knew there could be far worse things coming for me if I didn't make it out of these woods.

I was praying that I would make it out before he could catch up, and I was praying that Gael wouldn't sacrifice everything to keep distracting him.

When I glanced back I tripled hard over a fallen trunk, and I screamed out in pain when I felt a snap, my leg twisting in the most unnatural position. My leg. I sobbed out, but didn't quit. I couldn't go back to Brett. Never.

So I pulled myself up and bit my fist that was covered in my coat to stop myself from screaming, and I hobbled as fast as I could. If only I was close to the edge of the woods.

I heard a distressed howl, and I recognized it as Gael's. That meant she was warning me. Of fuck.

I knew I wasn't going to be able to make it out of here before he found me, so I wracked my brain to think of something to get Grayson's attention. I knew mind links were a thing but since I was a human I couldn't use them, I could only receive them.

What other possible way could I get to Grayson that I was in danger?

And then it hit me.

My mark. He could feel when I was in major pain, and he already felt my leg break. He was probably already coming.

But I needed him to know that I didn't just trip that I was being hunted to be taken away. I needed him to know this was worse than a broken leg.

So I braved up and snapped the nearest twig off of a tree, and then I stabbed it into my arm, my side, my other leg, and so on, hissing each time. It didn't go through my body, but it sure as hell punctured skin.

Regan, what's going on, damnit? His voice flooded my head, and I prayed he could hear my thoughts.

He's hunting me, Gael distracted but he took her down, broke my leg, help.

And it worked.

I'm already in the woods, just stay hidden.

I'll try my best.

And with that I felt the pull out of my mind, and I realized that the only way I could link him was if he linked me first and tuned in to my thoughts.

I hobbled around, desperately looking for a log to hide under, but by the time I found one I could see the man's brown wold in the distance. I cursed and jumped under the log, pulling sticks, mud, and leaves to cover me.

I held my breath when I heard him stop and breath heavily. I didn't dare move an inch, knowing full well that with his heightened senses he would be able to hear the leaves move around.

My throat closed when there was a low growl, and before I knew it, the log above me was flung high into the air, and when it came flying back down I didn't expect it to hit me in the head with full force.

Black dots started surrounding my vision, and the leaves, sticks, and mud was brushed off of me, a grinning brown wold looking down at me. And then I blacked out.

•••

Sorry for being shitty and leaving you like that lol