Page 48 of Hunt Me

“Drop the bow,” Matilda demanded.

“As soon as you drop your weapon.”

“I don’t have a weapon.”

David snorted. “I don’t believe that for one second, huntress.”

“Fine. You caught me,” she said, tossing one of the knives into the snow below. He relieved himself of his crossbow; he didn’t need it to subdue her.

“You look lovely,” David mused when she dropped out of the tree.

“Perks of being a prisoner of King Alesi,” she replied as they started to circle each other.

“You play the game well, Matilda.”

“What game do you speak of?”

“The game of winning the favor of men who hold power, only to make their power serve your own ambitions.”

“If you wish to waggle your tongue, waggle it truthfully. It is the men who want me, not the other way around.”

He shrugged nonchalantly. “All bullshit aside, I shall spare you if you come with me now. But if you stay and choose him, then I’ll consider you my enemy.”

“Leave these lands and return to Moonshire. King Alesi will be here soon with a small army.”

“You are not a good liar. I struck him several times. He has abandoned you and left you to fight his battles. Last chance. It’s him or me.”

“Him,” she answered promptly.

David tsked.

“‘Tis a shame. We could’ve been unstoppable together.”

His body contorted, bones snapping and reforming as fur spread across his skin. Moments later, a hulking wolf stood where the man had been. Matilda stared into its amber eyes and realized she might not survive the night.

David lunged with a vicious snarl, his jaws snapping shut where Matilda’s head had been a heartbeat before. She stumbled backward, barely keeping her footing.

She feinted toward the crossbow, catching the wolf off guard. He dove, and she used her shoulder to barrel into him. She felt pain blossoming near her collarbone—most likely from a hairline fracture, but her injuries would have to wait. The force wasn’t enough to knock the wolf off his paws, but it was enough to provide an opening. She successfully retrieved her hidden knife, but her small victory was short-lived when David knocked it away and forced her onto her back.

Matilda twisted beneath him, trying to roll onto her side, but the wolf shifted his weight and blocked her escape. One massive paw planted beside her shoulder while the other pinned her arm against the ground. She shoved at his chest, but the sheer weight of him made her efforts useless.

David lowered his enormous head until his muzzle hovered inches from her face. A low growl vibrated through his chest as his jaws parted, revealing rows of gleaming teeth. A strand of hot saliva slipped from his jaws, splashing on her face. Matilda’s stomach lurched, and her dinner threatened to make an appearance.

Suddenly, the wolf began to change.

His body convulsed as bones cracked and shifted beneath his fur. His massive frame contracted, limbs twisting and reshaping until the beast gave way to the man beneath it. Within moments, David was human again, straddling her with one hand still gripping her wrist.

He leaned closer, his face inches from hers.

“Reaching for weapons you cannot wield is foolhardy,” he said, chuckling, reaching for the knife.

“Do you intend to end me?”

“Nay, Prince Lykaon ordered me to bring you in alive.” Matilda sighed in relief. “I wouldn’t look so pleased. He ordered me to keep you alive. He said nothing about keeping you unharmed,” he taunted, tossing the blade back and forth between his hands. “We’ll call this recompense for toying with my affections.”

Her eyes fluttered shut when the blade dragged across her upper arm, separating the delicate skin. He didn’t stop until her blood ran and the snow turned crimson. Her eyes flew open when she heard choking and wheezing from above her. Matilda stared in confusion as Beta David clutched his throat and gaped at the bloody knife.

She noticed a hint of blood on his lips.