Total pages in book: 33
Estimated words: 31025 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 155(@200wpm)___ 124(@250wpm)___ 103(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 31025 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 155(@200wpm)___ 124(@250wpm)___ 103(@300wpm)
She was about to agree with him, when all of a sudden there was a roar, and the bushes began to shake.
“What is that?” Calliope asked.
“No time to waste, we’ve got to run.” He didn’t let her go, and the thick bushes made it impossible to run, but she did. She found the strength to keep moving, even though she felt afraid. She didn’t stop, nor did she turn around.
Her heart raced, and she had a horrible feeling she was slowing Jaxson down. This is what she hated and why she was tempted to just go ahead, be done with it, and mate him. It would be so much easier than allowing them both to die.
She let out a scream as a bear suddenly appeared. The fear gripped her and Jaxson pulled her around him, and then his stance changed. She realized he had gone into defensive mode.
“Jaxson?”
“It’s fine. This is all part of it.” He let out a howl of his own, and the bear growled right back.
She felt the bear was well over seven foot tall and massive. There was no way it was real. The bear didn’t take Jaxson’s howl as a threat and she gasped as it suddenly charged them.
“Don’t move, Calliope.”
There was no way she could if she even wanted to. The fear was real. Terrifying. He was the one in control. Not her.
She watched, wanting to jump in and protect him, only Jaxson made impact with the bear. The bear sprung back, but it didn’t go far. It came in, swiping at Jaxson, but didn’t make a connection. It was relentless, and she realized it was aiming for her. The bear was attempting to get around Jaxson, to get to her. He wouldn’t let it.
At one point, the bear’s swipe made contact with Jaxson, and she couldn’t stand watching it anymore.
As if by magic, leaning up against the tree was a crossbow. Jaxson had loved crossbows when they were children, and they both spent a lot of time outside doing target practice. It had been years since she fired one, but it was like riding a bike. She never forgot, and lifting that crossbow into her arms, she locked, loaded, and then stared down the target. The bear was coming at Jaxson, and he was moving too fast.
Taking a deep breath, she focused on the bear, and then shot. The first connection landed, and it was enough.
There was no whimper, and the moment she hit the bear, it was like it exploded into nothing. Just glitter and dust, only nothing landed on her.
Jaxson groaned and headed toward her.
“It just ... exploded?” Calliope asked.
“Each element is a test, and they are going to attempt to push us both to the breaking point.”
“But that means the bear didn’t exist, right?”
“Yeah, it does. It’s all part of the magic of The Hunt.”
She looked down at Jaxson. “Then why are you bleeding?”
“They’re magical. We’re not.”
“I hate to break it to you, but you’re a werewolf, you’re a magical, mystical being.”
He laughed and started to remove his shirt. “Just not fast enough.”
“Don’t say stuff like that. You did what you had to do, and it was enough.”
“I didn’t save you.”
“I don’t have a single scar on me, and at least now we have a weapon.” Calliope looked behind her, only to find the weapon was gone. “Oh, come on, are you insane? This is not fair. I know I sound like a child, but to put it frankly, this is not fucking fair!” She let out a scream and stamped her foot.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
“No, no, fucking hell no, I am not okay! I’m not even close to being okay.”
Just then, Jaxson laughed.
“What? What are you finding so funny?”
“You cursed. It’s rare for you to do that, except when you’re scared or panicking, or you don’t know what to do. You curse. It’s cute. I’ve not heard you curse in a while. It’s nice.”
“You know this isn’t funny, right?”
“I know, but come on, it’s kind of funny. Now, stop being a pain in the ass and help fix me. Hopefully, they don’t have anything against werewolves receiving medical care.”
She went to their backpack, the one that hadn’t disappeared, and sure enough, there was a medical kit. “You’re in luck.”
****
The stinging of the cuts had long gone. Jaxson peeled back the bandage Calliope had applied and saw they were healing nicely.
“How are you doing?” she asked, moving toward him.
She hadn’t wanted to continue their journey, but he knew after the encounter with the bear, they were good. Rather than keep moving, they made camp. Calliope had even gone down to the small stream she found and gotten them some water.
More food had appeared in the backpack, and she was cooking it for them. She wouldn’t allow him to do a single thing. He was to sit back, relax, and try to heal.