This Dark Wolf (Soul Bitten Shifter #1) - Everly Frost Page 0,16

but there’s another world a few miles down this side of the mountain range—a small resort at the side of a gorgeous lake where humans come for vacations. It’s a safe place for me that isn’t dominated by shifters, where I can escape with Dad’s blessing and pretend to be human. Blending in among humans is far easier than understanding my own kind. Hell, I have a part-time job in the souvenir shop, selling trinkets. I’ve even had a few flings with human men that didn’t last long because I kept them at arm’s length, knowing nothing could ever come of it.

The forest opens up a little more in this part of the mountain range, the trees slightly more sparse down to the dirt road that runs across the slope and finally joins up with the highway that leads into Portland.

A howl behind us makes me jolt, but I’m not sure who made the sound. Two wolves appear in the distance, gaining on Jace—and on us.

These are wolves I’ve never seen before, but I recognize their scents—Cody and his father, Baxter. Their wolves both have golden fur, one with a white tail and the other with russet-colored fur on its legs.

Jace spins to face them, but it looks like he’s out of weapons. He must have used up his remaining blade on Dawson or Peter.

My eyes widen when Jace braces, ready to meet the wolves head on with his human fists.

Why doesn’t Jace shift?

The smaller of the two wolves—the one with the white-tipped tail—reaches Jace first. At first, I think it’s Cody, but a shiver runs through me as I distinguish the two wolves’ scents and realize that the larger wolf with the russet legs is the man who tried to mark me. His golden eyes focus sharply on me across the distance as he races behind his father.

Jace sidesteps Baxter’s gnashing teeth and wallops Baxter’s head, knocking him across the forest floor into the nearest tree.

Before Jace can spin and throw himself at Cody, Cody’s wolf slips past him. I shudder as I realize that Cody wasn’t following his father out of subservience. He used his father to distract Jace to get past him.

While Jace and Baxter grapple with each other in the distance, Cody races toward Tristan, gaining on us. His wolf is sleek, beautiful in an aggressive way, his gold-tinged fur catching the moonlight that pours through the tree branches. His russet legs make him appear as if he waded through blood, a savage contrast to his agile appearance.

Tristan is already running as fast as he can in his human form while holding on to me. As fast as he is, there’s no way he can outrun Cody’s wolf. Not when the power blazing around Cody tells me he’s as strong as Tristan—a power I doubt his father recognizes.

I brace for impact as Cody leaps, teeth bared, aiming for the back of Tristan’s thigh. It’s a move that will bring Tristan down and force him to release me.

At the same time, there’s a sudden blur of movement from my right.

A new wolf leaps from the trees, ramming into Cody from the side and knocking him down.

I would recognize my father’s scent anywhere. “Dad!”

The two wolves tumble and skid across the forest floor, a tangle of claws and teeth slashing at each other before they separate and leap at each other again, trying to tear each other apart.

I smell my father’s blood. He’s injured. Cody’s claws have already found a mark—a shoulder, maybe his chest. Fear floods through me. I don’t know if my father realizes how strong Cody is.

I have to help him.

Pummeling Tristan’s back, I struggle against his hold. “Set me down!”

When he doesn’t stop running, I thrash with everything I have, my fists thumping against his spine, my feet kicking at his thighs. My voice rises to a desperate scream. “Let me go! I have to help my father!”

Still, Tristan doesn’t let me go. “No!” he roars.

Behind me, my father’s wolf yelps. My heart stops, deep fear flooding through me. I lift myself with my stomach muscles, ram my elbow into the back of Tristan’s head, and follow up by lifting my knee and crunching it into his face.

With a shout, Tristan veers off course under the impact of my blows. He crashes into the nearest tree, hitting it on the opposite side to where he holds me. The second his arms loosen, I launch myself away from him, landing on my feet, already sprinting