Held For Ransom

Chapter 16

That's when it dawned on me.

I had shifted.

I had shifted!

I was about to jump up and down in excitement, when I remembered that one, I was a wolf and I doubted wolves could jump very well; and two, I was so unsteady on my feet that I could barely stand in the new form.

Cole walked over with a wide grin gracing his lips. When he was standing in front of me, I was shocked to see that I towered around five feet over him. He was six feet tall..which means I was a whopping eleven to twelve foot tall wolf.

Holy crap.

Other wolves aren't this big. Only the highest ranking ones, the Alpha and Luna, are this big. Normal ones are only about eight feet in height, a voice sounded in my head. I immediately recognized the voice as Cole's and my head snapped to his. He was smirking at me and nodding, confirming my suspicions.

Now how do I change back?  I asked in my thoughts, knowing perfectly well he could hear me.

Just concentrate on turning back to your human form. You may want to beware though, you'll be completely naked when you shift back, he warned, gesturing to my shredded clothes on the ground that I hadn't noticed before.

Oops.

Narrowing my eyes at him, I thought, Well then why don't you go get me some that aren't in pieces?!

He pouted, You're no fun.

I rolled my eyes. Yes I am, you're just perverted.

That I am, he winked. I shook my head and sat on my rump, while he walked back out the door.

Hopefully to get me some clothes, because there's no way I'm streaking back to my room, I thought sarcastically.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

15 minutes later, he came back with some undergarments, a t-shirt, and a pair of shorts.

Turn around, I thought, narrowing my eyes at him slightly. If he thought he was allowed to just stand there and watch me shift and see me naked, he was completely insane.

Heaving a huge, over-dramatic sigh, he turned around and crossed his arms.

I waited a few seconds to make sure he wasn't planning on turning around while I shifted. When I was sure that he wouldn't, I took a few steps back and concentrated on shifting back to my human form. A few seconds later, I felt myself shrinking and morphing back, which, by the way, was a very weird feeling.

I scrambled to put the clothing on, nearly tripping over my own two feet in the process. When I was fully clothed, I told him, "You can turn around now."

He turned around, and suddenly I felt very self-conscious. Here I was, standing in front of him in a loose t-shirt and shorts, with my legs fully on display.

Therefore, my scars were fully on display as well.

I looked up at Cole, preparing for the worst. Disgust? Regret?

Instead, he looked sad. And angry. "What did he do to you..?" He whispered, not taking his eyes off my deep, ugly scars that were the result of my father's wrath.

"I've already told you," I replied in a soft voice, afraid of breaking down again. I wouldn't. My father was my past. He couldn't do anything to me now. He had no power over me anymore. I refused to be afraid of him anymore.

"Come here," Cole commanded gently, and I obeyed. I walked towards him slowly, and as soon as I reached him, I was engulfed in his strong arms. He hugged me tightly, and it took all my willpower not to sob right then and there.