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  Knuckles white from gripping the damp wood surrounding the cargo dock, Sage evened out her breathing and swallowed her pain. She refused to cry. She couldn't afford the weakness of tears until she put a safe distance between herself, Khurn and the pack of alpha wolves tracking her scent. Khurn would let his prize roam free. Sage needed to leave. She’s learned her lesson at the end of Khurn's overbearing hand. She had to avoid capture at all cost and find refuge so she could change long enough to heal her battered body.

  A faint sound of grinding metal grew closer. Its rolling motion triggered an all too familiar sensory memory; one Sage grew accustomed to hearing after being held in seclusion, tied and gagged in the damp chamber hidden below Khurn's fine abode.

  Sage triumphed over the memories of what happened there in the darkness; she would not allow them to consume her. She waited, timing her breathing with the roll and clank of the oncoming cargo train. Each breath counted would be one step closer to freedom. Closer, the hard rolling metal screeched against the girders. The looming darkness of the approaching railcars cut off Sage's already impaired visual field. She judged the motion of the train against her diminutive height and diminishing strength. Shifting to her wolf would be a bad idea. Even though the added muscular ability and flexibility would have helped her enormously, it was completely out of the equation.

  With a mental shove, Sage swallowed her pain and used the fear running through her veins. She ran as fast as her injuries allowed. Drawing small amounts of power from her inner wolf, Sage ran in quick bursts to come up even with the oncoming train. With a massive leap and a muffled, incoherent cry of pain, Sage flung her body upward toward the metal hand rail on the very last car. Her fingers locked around the cold slippery metal, and she held on for dear life.

  She hung there for several moments before hauling herself up and swinging her body around and into the old wooden car. She didn’t linger there; instead, she scurried into the darkest corner and listened to the guttural howl flooding the cold night air. Sage trembled as she held herself and silently prayed the train was far ahead of the pack by the time the alphas found her scent.

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  Sage had no idea how long she’d been huddled in the corner of the dark, damp carriage listening to the roll and clack of the train as it trundled along its tracks. But, her body began to revolt. As the adrenaline ebbed away, a battering ram of pain sent her slight frame into a series of shuddering jolts. Shock. She was slipping precariously into the clutches of shock. Her stomach reacted next. Rolling waves of nausea made her dizzy. The intense cold rushing through the rickety old carriage raised goose bumps along her exposed skin. Sage knew her body would soon succumb and she’d slip into a void of gut wrenching despair.

  Sage's beast roared inside her. It bayed for her to claim it and give herself some measure of relief from the pain. Everywhere hurt, ached and throbbed but none of it compared to the memory of her bloody, beaten body sprawled out before the alphas who'd claimed and marked her body as though it belonged to them.

  Sage scrambled to her side. She wretched, time and again, purging herself of the filth inside of her. Even with her body spiralling, Sage knew she could ill afford to change. Her only option was to endure a bit more pain, and then try to sleep. Hopefully by the time she came round, she'd be far enough away to effect a swift change, heal herself properly and with a little luck, feed.

  Rolling out from where she'd tucked herself in against the corner, Sage evened her breathing and hoped like Hell her plan worked. On the count of three, Sage snapped out her injured leg and fully extended the injured limb until stars assaulted her vision and a blanket of black pulled at her consciousness. Agony dragged her down into a cavernous void of darkness.

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  Chapter Six

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  Weak sunlight warmed the confines of the car. Its ruddy glow made its final descent over the horizon. Sage woke up screaming. Disorientation fed the nausea in her stomach. Dry heaving into the corner until her insides screamed from lack of sustenance, Sage fell onto her back and breathed. She tried to shut out the cold and pain and tried to focus, to rally her thoughts into making plans.

  She'd slept hard. It had been dark when she passed out, and by the looks of the sunset, she'd been out cold through most of the day. Her stomach growled, and her inner beast replied with its own low snarl of hunger and thirst. She desperately needed to feed; she needed food of any sort, either prey or cooked.

  But, with no money to her name and her leg in dire need of time to mend, Sage had no choice. She needed to change. It was the only way she could survive the night and remedy some of her more urgent needs, like clothes. If all went well and if luck was on her side, she'd hopefully come across someone’s yard and maybe snag a few stray items of clothing for when she changed back.

  Hours passed and with it came the eerie silence only true dark could bring. The stillness and quiet calm acted as a balm to Sage's troubled nerves. The rail car clunked and shifted as it idled slowly on the sidings. It jolted Sage hard against the wood when it came to a grinding halt.

  Hauling herself carefully over the carriage wall, she dropped to the ground, putting all of her weight on one foot. Sage froze on impact and shivered taking in a long wheezing breath. Snow encased her bare feet and enveloped her ankles with its icy grip. North. She had travelled north and by the looks of it a lot further north than she’d thought.

  Damn, how long had she really been out, two, three days? Christ, no wonder her beast was raw. Taking in a deep breath through her nose, Sage drew in a barrage of unfamiliar scents. When no noticeable trace of wolf stained the air, Sage reluctantly submitted to the will of her wolf.

  Using the snowy backdrop as the perfect camouflage for her oncoming change, Sage went down on all fours and accepted her wolf’s more dominant form. Rippling waves of pain washed over the line of her spine as her vertebrae cracked, arched and popped into place. Razor sharp claws, capable of shredding through the toughest of flesh tore through the tips of Sage's extending paws. Her facial features lengthened, and as her shimmering coat of satin white fur draped into place Sage lifted the line of her lupine snout and tested the air for threats.

  Hidden by the drifts of fallen snow, Sage limped slowly, but not because of her injured paw. Being in wolf form, she proved more agile given she had three other paws to balance her out. Scouting was the reason for Sage's cautious behaviour. She could ill afford being noticed out in the open. It wasn’t unusual for wolves to be shot on sight. Stalking and keeping as far into the shadows as she could, Sage gingerly made her way around the outskirts of a town. She stopped often to scent the air before proceeding on toward a small farm where the sound of her prey rang in her ears.

  Using innate instincts, Sage proceeded with caution. Even though hunger tore at her insides, she revelled in the thrill of the hunt. With her mouth salivating, Sage's svelte wolf circled the fenced off barn. The sound of bleating sheep was a symphony to her wolf’s hunger. She had to be fast, in and out; gorge while the going was good and pull out quick before the humans roused and came out on the defensive and tried to put a good ole round of buckshot in her rear.

  Crawling forward on her belly, Sage approached with stealth. By the time the small flock sensed her, it was too late. With precision, she struck, instinctively grasping her kill by the throat and clamping down tight. When the struggle quieted, Sage sated her hunger and quenched her thirst, coating the stark brightness of her gleaming white coat with the blood of her kill. With no time to appreciate the fresh consumption of delicious red meat, Sage hightailed it out of the barn and raced for the treeline. Her blood stained coat was a noticeable target against the snow’s blinding purity.

  Rounding the small holding and heading clockwise, Sage skirted the small town. She slowed her pace as her fears dwindled slightly. She paused just long enough to take a cooling drink and clean the blood from her muzzle and the ruff of her coat in a narrow brook that coasted along the edge of the township. She
set off once again, hiding in the trees and shadows limping into the night. The flash of her coat danced across the landscape growing dimmer the further she ventured into the densely packed forests. Sage ran until the air stung her lungs and the pain in her paw drove her to the ground. She rested briefly, keeping her ears pricked high, listening, waiting, hidden by the gift of Mother Nature’s snowy embrace.

  The silence of the night unsettled Sage. She was used to the noise that came hand in hand with the chaotic savagery of Khurn's wild pack. Just the thought of their hostile advances welled up the fear in Sage's gut until her stomach rolled. Even the strength of being in wolf form could not abate the rolling tide of nausea. She regurgitated violently into the snow.

  When she was finally able to scan the surrounding woodland, Sage noticed a small cabin tucked discreetly in amongst the trees. She knew the cabin lay empty; her wolf would have scented the heavy aroma of human flesh.

  Prudence prevailed alongside the thought of a dry night’s sleep. Sage edged closer to the cabin, keeping her body low as she approached it from the rear. It came as no surprise when she found the door locked. But, the small thread of partially hidden string disappearing over the door frame gave her some hope that a key dangled from its end. But, to obtain it, Sage had to change. Her body still felt weak; her paw still harbored a numb and aching limp. If she changed, it would take even longer to heal…if it ever did.

  She refused to recognize the more obvious of her injuries. They would never really heal. Instead, they would rise to the surface as soon as she made the change, but she had to submit and give herself over to her weaker human form. She needed to get inside and feel some semblance of warmth.

  Changing back so soon was never a good idea even when strength was at its peak. Feeding from the power of the pack helped ease a wolf back into their human form. It was pure joy to wake up lost within a mountain of limbs and caring hands. The pack, their power, the healing life-force fed a member its strength to overcome the change’s sometimes painful aftermath.

  God, it all seemed so long ago, before Khurn served her up as an entrée to the males in his pack. Back then, Sage had been beloved among her pack. She’d revelled in her alpha's power. She missed that, missed the love of her parents and her family. Most of all she missed Tobias and his carefree nature and formidable strength of heart. She longed to see him happy and hoped his new mate would be able to heal the wound left by the loss of his brother, Khadlyn.

  Naked on the hard wooden porch, Sage shivered uncontrollably. Her glistening body steamed from her change sending wisps of smoke into the freezing cold air. Fat flurries of snow danced like needles, sticking into every pore of sensitive skin. She needed to move, crawl inside and hide from the cold. Using her last ounce of her will, Sage hauled herself up on two shaky limbs and fumbled with the key stuck to the end of the string.

  She didn't look around the cabin; she didn't rightly care. All Sage wanted was to curl up somewhere warm and remember what it was like not to feel so much pain. Her body crumpled. Her knees hit hard against the low wooden frame of the bed. Falling onto the comfy old cot, Sage buried her face in her hands, pulled her bleeding knees into her chest and blocked out the rest of the world. Darkness prevailed, and with its mantel of shameful despair came the nightmares and the haunting howl of the alpha's call.

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  Chapter Seven

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  Streams of winter sunlight poured through the cabin. The harsh golden glow struggled against the damp chill that came with being so far north. Sage wasn't quite sure how far she’d travelled, and from where she lay buried under the scratchy hessian throw, she didn't really care. She'd escaped Khurn's clutches and had her first uninterrupted sleep in days. Yet, as she attempted to stretch out the length of her body, the scream of her pain tore through her insides. The damage from being beaten and raped required more than a night’s sleep. She needed medical attention, but didn’t dare visit a human doctor.

  Sage needed time in her wolf form where she could spend a good few days healing. She shivered and drew her knees back into her chest as the first round of racking tears broke through the dam of her mental walls. As the memories flooded back, Sage wished Tobias was there to hold her and promise her everything would be alright. But, she was in the real world, where the haunting nightmares of Khurn's face would remind her every morning she woke up that her life would never be the same again.

  When the last tears turned into muffled sobs, Sage decided it was time to find out exactly where she was and where to go next. She had to keep moving. That presented the first of the day’s problems. She was no longer as comfortable with being naked as she used to be. Khurn and his brutality had driven that out of her. And, in the human world, it wasn't like she could stumble out of the woods naked and not cause a storm by walking around in the buff. The humans would have kittens. Looking around the cabin, she noted the rustic appearance.

  It was obviously someone's hideout from the stresses of modern day life, somewhere they could escape for some quiet time. If Sage lived in the city as a human, she'd have loved something similar as a hidey-hole. But, she wasn't human and a home was something Sage would never have again. Not with Khurn and the others out there hunting and tracking her scent. God, if they found her…

  The panic attack slammed into Sage. It took her breath and left her gasping, covered in panic induced cold sweat that slithered down her spine. Grasping the small table to steady herself, Sage felt lightheaded and weak. After feeding the previous night, she should have felt a little stronger. The fact she didn’t told her she needed to shift and the sooner the better.

  Taking long, deep breaths, she rode out the attack. She hated feeling so weak. She was wolf, a wolf for fuck’s sake and an Omega. She was stronger than this. The fact she'd survived and escaped proved it. So, why was she whining and wishing for Tobias to hold her hand?

  Refusing to accept the weakness, Sage vowed to herself she'd never need anyone again. With the adrenaline of her fear kicking in, Sage rallied her thoughts and looked around the cabin again. She was scared, terrified of what lay in wait when she stepped out of the door. The sensation of panic refused to leave her. The acrid bitter scent of her fear tainted the air as she scurried barefoot around the small cabin in the hope of a minor miracle.

  Relief flooded her, and Sage even managed the semblance of a smile. Whoever owned the cabin must have used it a lot. She found men’s clothing, way too big but clean and folded, in a small closet. In a drawer, she found socks. Sage nearly sang at the thought of having warm, dry feet.

  After scrubbing her face and hands and using her fingers as a toothbrush, Sage dressed in the smallest of the clothes. The shoes were a problem. They looked like canoes on Sage's much smaller feet. With them and the turned up jeans and rope belt, she looked like a one person advertisement for Goodwill. But, she was warm, or warmer.

  The prize of the search came in the form of instant coffee. She had to have it black, but it was hot and so damned good. She drank it while devouring a packet of oatmeal cookies. After having no human food for nearly four days, the coffee and cookies felt like a banquet. She'd been running on pure adrenaline and fear for too long. However, as she scarfed down the dry brittle cookies and burned her still bruised and swollen mouth on the coffee, Sage felt a little more positive.

  Wary as she left the cabin, Sage drew the freezing air deep into her lungs and sighed in thankful relief when the only scents she tasted were those of the local wildlife. None of them would come within a mile of her. Her innate scent was a natural repellent to animals of the wild. There was no fear of being attacked by any territorial beasts as she worked her way through the back woods that circled the town.

  Silence fell across the small town diner when Sage entered. The bell over the door announced her arrival as good as any P.A system. Everything stopped. The few locals catching their early morning coffee and bacon before setting off for the day turned their heads to stare. They watched in shock as Sage
walked through the few small tables decorated with red polka dot cloth and fresh napkins. The coffee and cookies she'd had at the cabin had been good, but the smell of pancakes, syrup and bacon made Sage and her wolf growl with hunger.

  Approaching the food-laden counter, Sage kept her head low and tried to hide the marks on her face from the prying eyes of the patrons. As with many small towns, the locals didn't like strangers. They liked to keep to their own. Sage with her ill-fitting stolen clothes and shoes that dragged on the floor was the epitome of what humans hated to face. The real world where monsters looked just like their best friend and their sick twisted minds made mincemeat of their wives or girlfriends behind the privacy of their own front doors. Sage shivered.

  “Excuse me. You can't come in here. We don't serve…oh. Oh my!” The old woman behind the counter stopped mid-sentence when Sage lifted her face. The obvious shock and distress at seeing the state of Sage’s face was clearly evident across the deep creases of her weathered face.

  Keeping her head down, Sage moved a little closer. She received a smile of such pity it bought tears to her odd colored eyes. People, especially of the human variety, always took their rudeness to the limit with Sage. Born with paper white skin and hair to match, Sage's eyes stood out in startling contrast to her pale complexion. Only, it wasn't her eyes holding the stare of the smiling waitress.

  Sage waited as the female took in every one of the marks on her face. Even though they'd faded dramatically over the last day or so, the purple black marring and swelling were still clearly evident against her skin. The fact she looked so dainty in her human form just made Sage sag inside her own skin. God, she wished she could just shift into her wolf form and bathe in the strength of her beast.