As promised last week in my Hump Day Hook post, I am revealing the WHOLE first chapter--including prologue--of my WIP, Wolf Sanctuary.
Good news is, it will be ready for submission within a day or so!!
So, for those of you who are dying to know the whole picture behind the weekly snippets I have been sharing, enjoy!
Prologue
Tehya shook away the fat raindrops
that had collected in her bangs and kept dripping into her eyes. Her clothing
clung to her body, heavy and weighing down her gradually slowing steps. She
felt utterly bone weary, her feet dragging along as she kept on through the
night. Even though the small backpack slung over her shoulders had seemed
lightweight when she donned it only hours earlier, in this downpour, the couple
of changes of clothes and handful of other personal items she couldn't bear to leave
behind, felt like a sack of bricks as it bounced against her shoulder-blades
while she trudged through the muddy undergrowth edging the unsealed road.
There hadn't been a single
car pass her since she started walking. While that was a blessing in some ways,
her swollen and aching feet and calves protested her good luck with each
increasingly shuffled step. Only the occasional distant hoot of an owl and the chirping
of crickets kept her company, as she picked her way through the murky gloom the
ungodly hour of night offered.
A deep chill had worked its
way through her muscles and sank straight into her bones as the wind yet again picked up and buffeted against her. Just a short break to
get warm, to put her feet up and eat would have been a blessing—a respite that
her whole body ached for—but she still had a ways to go and her spirit guides
wouldn't let her dare rest until she was safe...both her and the precious cargo
she carried. She couldn't risk Uri finding her. If he did...well...she just
couldn't let that happen.
It was in the primitive
heart of a boar bear's nature to wipe out the bloodlines of a defeated Alpha...and
Uri had challenged Marcus—her mate and Alpha of the Redclaw bear clan—and not
only won the challenge, but had killed Marcus outright. He planned to force her
to bond to him instead, to have control
of her gifts for his own purposes. She had to get as far away from the clan as
she could, before he twigged to the fact that she had given him the slip and
escaped...but her time was running out so fast. With her bond to her life-mate severed,
her own death was only days away. She had to get the only thing in the world that mattered to her now to safety,
before that borrowed time ran out.
Drawing deep on her bare inner
strength, Tehya drew the thin soaked sides of her coat around her shoulders a
little tighter, bent her head against the rain and kept going. Her guides lent
their energy, pushing her to the east...so that is the way she would keep
heading until she found the help they insisted they were pulling her towards.
Some days, though, it really sucked to be clan shaman.
Chapter
One
"Would you mind telling me why on earth we're
driving around at this disgusting hour of the night...and in the rain I might
add?"
Reece shot Sean an irritated look. "I already told
you, my damn wolf wouldn't let me sleep. It kept haunting me with stupid
images...really stupid images every time I closed my eyes. It was almost as if
the temperamental shit didn't want me getting any sleep at all. Then when I
finally gave up and left the bed, it kept shooting me images of the car keys
and this road. Who am I to argue with the beast when it wants me to take it for
a drive? Besides, I didn't invite or make you come. You jumped into the damn truck
on your own."
Sean snorted. "Do you hear yourself? You're talking
as if your beast is a separate entity to you. It's a part of you, not an
individual presence just hitching a ride inside of you like some fucking
parasite. If your wolf is bristling and demanding...it's because your own
psyche wants you out here. And anyway...would I let you get in trouble by
yourself?"
Reece blew out an exasperated breath. "Whatever.
All I know is that I need to be here if I want sleep any time soon. And I don't
need any lectures about my wolf either. I know it has its reasons, I'm just
pissed it chose the middle of the night to get its point across. You know I'm
grumpy as hell if I don't get enough sleep. I'm not surprised I kept you awake
with all the tossing and turning."
"Oh, you kept me awake all right, you great lug. I
was hoping it meant you were horny, not wanting to take a midnight cruise
through the deserted neighbourhood." He ran a palm up Reece's thigh,
edging closer to the apex and squeezing. "Although you could make it up to
me, you know. I haven't fed tonight, and with all this angst flooding through
your system, I bet you would taste...delightful." Sean's husky murmuring
was doing wicked things to Reece's nerves. His skin tingled, goose bumps
spreading like wildfire across his limbs as Sean's breath ghosted along his
neck, tickling and teasing his senses into a frenzy. Sean's' fangs grazed along
the thick vein that seemed to throb just for his hybrid. His cock thickened and
answered with a throbbing all of its own. "Just a little sip is all I
need...enough to take the edge off, baby."
His cock jerked and leaked a trickle of pre-cum against
the material of his jeans, liking Sean's train of thought. His lover lifted one
of Reece's arms and scooted under it, plastering himself to his side. Reece leaned
in and arched his neck to chase more of those tantalizing nibbles. Making a
quick decision, he started to slow down and pull over with the intention of
telling his half-vampire, half-wolf mate to feed, when a movement in front of
the truck at the side of the road up ahead drew his attention.
A dark form separated from the shadows edging the road. An
eerily white gentle glow ghosted the outline of the figure, which seemed to
stumble, before wavering back and forth a little. Reece slammed his brakes on
and threw an arm out to hold Sean back, the braking screech echoing through his
teeth as the seatbelt bit into his hips and chest. The lights of his truck bounced
off the muddy ground in front of the vehicle, illuminating the figure only feet
in front of the grill in vivid detail. A smallish woman, completely drenched
and paler than a sheet of paper, stared into the headlights. Her deep blue eyes
were huge, her pale mouth dropping open as she shook so hard he could actually hear her soaked clothing squishing
together from the shivers wracking through her body, even from inside the cab.
Reece threw open his door, sliding out and around the
front of the dark blue four-wheel drive before he could think it over. Sean
joined him on the other side of the woman as she tilted her small angular face
towards his. A shaky smile kicked up the sides of her pale lips as she reached
out and snagged his open flannel shirt in her small frozen fists. It took her a
couple of tries, but when she could finally form the words, her voice sounded
weak and raspy. "I'm here." Her eyes rolled back as her legs gave
out, Sean catching her from behind and swinging her up into his arms, the backpack
on her back and all. He swiftly carried her out of the headlights beam and to
his side of the truck.
"Damn, she's icy cold. It looks like your little
inner debate with your wolf was for a reason, love. Let's get her into the
truck and pump up the heat. There's a picnic rug behind the seat if you want to
help me wrap her in it too."
Reece nodded, rushing the passenger side door of the
truck open. Sean slid in, jostling the woman slightly until her head rested on
his shoulder as he nodded for Reece to close the door. Climbing into his seat, Reece
reached over the back and pulled out the rug Sean had mentioned. He shook it
out as best he could in the confined space of the cab and wrapped it over the
top of Sean, tucking in the edges so that the woman was fully covered apart
from her small damp head. Leaning against Sean, she reminded him of a child
with her petite size and small defined features. Her hair stuck to her face in dark,
dripping clumps, as he leaned over and pulled the strands out of the way. Even
in the dimply lit cab, her face almost glowed with a sickly pale pallor. His
wolf chuffed in his mind, as if pleased it had gotten its way and was thrilled
with the result. She was definitely what his beast had wanted...but why?
"In case you were wondering, she's as wet as she
looks. I'm already soaked through." Sean's forehead creased as he reached
up with the arm that wasn't wrapped around his bundle and pulled the blanket a
little tighter, stopping when he tried to tuck the fabric around her hips.
"What the fuck?"
Reece turned on the interior light and watched as Sean
ripped back the blanket, revealing a large prominent bulge hidden beneath and
now exposed to their eyes. The bulge jerked beneath their stares.
Sean gulped. "Is that what I think it is?"
