The smirk from Markus' face was wiped clean off as Safira made her declaration. What followed was a searing pain through the heart. Both Safira and Markus fell to the ground. It was unlike anything that they had ever felt before.
"You… you!" Markus let out a pained howl as he shifted into his wolf form.
Safira could feel his oppressive Alpha aura and anger, threatening to make her cower and paralyze in fear. But she didn't. Though still in agonizing pain, she scrambled to her feet and ran as fast as she could.
As she heard Markus' howl through the forest, she knew she was in deep trouble. By now, Markus had fully shifted into his wolf form. He was growling in anger as he fought back the pain of the rejected mate bond. He called for his Beta and Gammas to come to him.
Within seconds, they were by his side.
"What are your orders, Alpha?" His Beta asked as he lowered his head in respect.
"It's time for a hunt," Markus announced to his wolves, "The first to bring me that wolfless freak will be handsomely rewarded."
Markus and his wolves covered every inch of the forest, leaving no stone unturned. One of his gammas caught onto Safira's scent. He slashed at Safira, causing her to let out a pain-filled scream. The scent of her blood was thick in the air, making it even easier for them to find her.
Covered in blood, Safira refused to surrender. She unsheathed her hidden dagger, ready to fight till the end. She had nothing left to lose.
The gamma who landed the first blow howled into the sky to let his fellow wolves know where Safira was. As he prepared to attack her again, she struck first. Fighting through the pain, she sliced the gamma across his stomach, causing him to whimper in pain.
He fell back, just as the other wolves approached. Knowing there was no way she could win against them, she tightened her grip on the dagger and ran for her life. She knew the forest like the back of her hand.
'I can lose them at the waterfall,' she thought to herself as she ran in that direction.
But with the pain of the rejection, coupled with her grievous wounds, Safira could barely see the road in front of her. She stumbled through the forest while leaving a trail of blood, making it easy for the wolves to track her.
She could sense their presence all around her. They were toying with her. From the shadows, a wolf leaped at her. She narrowly dodged the first one, receiving a hard blow from the second one. The wolf bit down on her arm, causing her to drop her only weapon. She wrestled her arm out of his hold and punched the wolf square in the face with her good arm with all the strength she had.
Looking at the waterfall behind her, Safira knew what she had to do. It was her only hope of ever surviving. Above her, the moon shone brightly. In a last-ditch effort, Safira squinted her eyes closed and looked within herself.
If she could find her wolf now, she would be saved!
But all she was met with was emptiness.
At death's door, Safira weighed her options. Leaping off a waterfall to uncertain doom was a much better option than letting Markus and his wolves have her. Without a second thought, she did a running start and leaped off the edge.
The sound of the crashing waterfall drowned out her thoughts and the shouts of the wolves behind her. None of them dared to jump after her to bring her back to their Alpha. A smile formed on her face.
As she freefell through the air, Safira never felt more free at that moment. She expected to hit the water hard, but it never happened. It wasn't because she blacked out before she hit the water.
A shadow leapt after her. None of Markus' wolves ever saw it clearly. By the time they looked past the waterfall, they could no longer see anything.
There were no screams. No cries. Just silence.
~
When Safira opened her eyes again, she found herself on a different plane. There was only darkness all around, not a beacon of light to be found.
"Where am I?" Her voice echoed all around.
Was she dead?
If she was, she wouldn't know. She couldn't even see her own hands. Just then, a voice echoed all around her. A female voice, sweet yet strained. As her surroundings began to lighten, Safira noticed a figure in the distance.
A woman, frail and wounded, cradled a squabbling babe in her arms. Instinctively, Safira went to take a closer look. She didn't recognize the woman, but yet she felt like she knew her well.
Light flooded their surroundings, but they were in a cold bleak cell.
"She's beautiful," a familiar voice echoed.
Safira gasped as she turned to see Greyson, her adoptive father. He was in prison guard armor, an outfit she had not seen him wore in a long time.
"This… it can't be…" Safira covered her mouth with her hand as she put the pieces of the puzzle together in her mind.
The woman was her mother.
The song she hummed was a lullaby.
The babe in her arms, was her.
The woman looked up at Greyson with a smile so pure and angelic. What had she gone through that left her in such a state? Safira wanted to know. She reached out to clutch the locket.
The baby already had it around her neck. It was a gift from her mother to her.
"Have you thought of a name?" Greyson asked as he crouched down.
His expression was grim, as he reached out a finger to the baby.
"Safira. Her father and I agreed that she would be named Safira if she was a girl."
"She's a strong pup, this one," Greyson mused, a rare smile forming on his face as the babe curled her tiny fingers around his.
The woman smiled too, as she brought the babe close to her chest. She gently kissed the babe for the forehead.
"If only I could see her grow," the woman lamented as she closed her eyes.
A single tear rolled down her cheeks as her strength began to fail her. As she collapsed, the woman still held onto her child tightly. Even in death, she worried for her child's safety, not wanting her to get hurt.
Greyson reached out and held the babe in his hands as the lady collapsed on her side. She had breathed her last. Safira could not believe what she saw. She wanted to find out more.
But as she tried to get closer, everything vanished before her eyes. Fear gripped her heart as she recalled what had happened before she blacked out. She was taunted and wounded. Then, she took a leap of faith.
Something followed her. Was it friend or foe?