Bite Back
Ryanna POV
Cedar and amber pulled me through the canopy like a siren song. Every breath brought him closer, richer, warmer. My muscles stayed loose, my steps sure, until the moonlight caught on him again, the golden wolf, striding through the forest like it belonged to him.
Arrogant. Confident. Perfect target.
I tracked him from above, matching his pace branch for branch, until the trees ahead opened into a small clearing. That’s where I’d do it. No cover for him. No warning.
When he stepped into the open, I moved.
I dropped from the canopy in a blur, the shimmer still clinging to me until the last second. My boots hit his shoulders hard enough to knock him forward, his startled grunt vibrating under me. We hit the ground in a tangle, my knife at his throat before he’d even finished cursing.
“Miss me?” I asked, leaning close enough that cedar and amber filled my lungs.
His eyes locked on mine, molten gold flaring hotter. “Bold move, little queen.”
“Not a move,” I corrected, pressing the blade just enough to nick his skin. “A message.”
He didn’t flinch, but I felt the subtle shift in his body — the awareness that he wasn’t the one in control right now. My grin widened.
I pushed off him in one fluid motion, springing back before he could grab me. “Next time,” I called over my shoulder, “I won’t leave you breathing.”
By the time he rolled to his feet, I was already in the trees again, the shimmer swallowing me. His low, frustrated growl followed me into the night, but under it, I heard something else.
Laughter. The bastard was enjoying this.
I barely made it two branches away before another scent slammed into me, sharp, metallic, like moonlight on steel.
Silver eyes.
I cursed under my breath, crouching low against the branch. Through the leaves, I saw him prowl into the clearing where the golden wolf still stood. His gaze cut over the scene, taking in the scuff marks, the faint scent of my blood where my knife had kissed skin.
“She got you,” silver eyes said, the smirk in his voice razor sharp.
The golden wolf just rolled his shoulders, the movement slow and deliberate. “She’s quick. And smarter than you think.”
“Oh, I know exactly how smart she is,” silver-eyes murmured, turning his head… and locking eyes with me.
Shit.
I moved before he could call out, springing to the next branch and then the next, the forest rushing past in streaks of green and silver. His footsteps exploded through the undergrowth below, fast and relentless.
But this time, I wasn’t just running to get away.
I let him get close. Close enough that I could hear his breathing, close enough that his scent tangled with mine. Then, I’d veer sharply, vaulting over a branch, forcing him to adjust.
“You’re slowing down!” I called, grinning into the night.
His growl rolled up through the trees. “You think you can keep this up forever?”
“I think I can keep you chasing until your pretty little ego cracks,” I shot back.
He surged forward, claws scraping bark as he leapt for the same branch I’d just vacated. I was already three steps ahead, swinging around the trunk and launching in the opposite direction, doubling back so smoothly he almost collided with the golden wolf barreling in from the side.
The cursing that followed was music to my ears.
I didn’t wait to see who recovered first, I was gone, a shimmer in the canopy, leaving two pissed off alphas in my wake.
The canopy swallowed me again, cool air rushing over my skin as I moved. Every branch, every leap was calculated without thinking, my body reading the forest like it had been written just for me.
Behind me, silver eyes and the golden wolf were still snapping at each other, their voices fading as I put distance between us. I couldn’t catch every word, but the tone was clear, I’d just given them both something they’d never admit out loud. A bruise to their pride.
I grinned, my breath steady despite the sprint. “Score one for the little queen.”
The wind shifted, bringing a new scent. Musky, heavier. The fourth alpha. My pace slowed without conscious thought. He was close, and unlike the others, his approach was almost silent.
I scanned the forest floor from my perch in the branches, but he wasn’t there. No shadow moving, no shape slipping between the trees.
That’s when I heard it, not movement, but sound. A short, sharp whistle. From the west, another answered. Silver-eyes. Then one from the north. The golden wolf. And finally, from the east, a deep, resonant call that made the hairs rise along my arms. Black eyes.
They weren’t chasing me individually anymore. They were signaling. Communicating. Coordinating.
My stomach knotted, but not with fear, with the knowledge that the game had just changed. I’d been playing with them one at a time. Now I was going to have to deal with all four at once.
I crouched low, testing the shimmer again. It came easier now, rolling over me like a second skin. My edges blurred, the colors of the forest seeping into me until I vanished into the branches.
Voices carried faintly through the trees, too low to make out words, but I could feel the direction shift, like a net tightening. They were driving me somewhere.
The smart move would be to slip out the side, vanish before they could close in. But smart was boring.
Instead, I angled toward the faint scent of cedar and amber, threading my way silently through the canopy. I wanted to see what their coordination looked like. I wanted to learn how they worked together… so I could tear it apart later.
The first one I spotted was the golden wolf, moving at an easy jog through the undergrowth, head tilted to catch sound. He was angling east, toward black eyes’ position. I kept parallel above him, matching his pace.
From the opposite side, I caught glimpses of silver-eyes, weaving in and out of the moonlight. He was fast, but not reckless. And somewhere ahead, a deeper shadow moved, the fourth alpha, massive even at a distance.
They were converging.
I swung into a higher branch for a better vantage point. The forest opened into a shallow basin ahead, and I realized with a jolt exactly what they were doing.
They were herding me toward it.
If I entered, the sides would be too steep for a clean jump out. It was a trap, designed to cut off the canopy route and force me onto the ground.
I stayed where I was, crouched and hidden, letting them get closer. Watching. Learning.
The golden wolf passed directly under me, his scent so strong I could almost taste it. My fingers itched to drop down on him again, but I forced myself still. This wasn’t about one alpha anymore. This was about all four of them.
A soft growl rumbled in the distance, the signal. The final piece of the net was moving in.
My heart thudded once, sharp and sure. If they thought I’d be the one caught tonight… they were about to be disappointed.
I turned away from the basin, springing into the deeper canopy before their trap could snap shut. Behind me, the first frustrated howl tore through the trees, followed by another, and another, until all four voices blended in a chorus of fury.
They knew I’d slipped them again. Good. Let them get angry. Let them lose patience. Because the moment they did, I’d be waiting.