Mae POV
I swing the door open and run. I know this place like the back of my hand, and I am sure I can get away from Francesca. The sound of her laughter haunts me as I run, and it pushes me to go faster.
It is cloudy and it looks like it might storm. I wish that it would. It might help hide my scent.
My feet burn against the rocks. I can feel the jagged ones cutting into the bottoms of my feet as I run, but I push the pain aside. The end of the lane is within my eyesight, and I smile. I am going to make it.
A loud howl cuts through the night, and I skid to a stop. My curiosity gets the better of me, and I turn to look back down the lane. The beach house is nothing more than a speck in the darkness, but I can feel Francesca getting closer to me. Her disgusting scent flows on the wind as it blows through my hair.
I spin around on my heels and take off, running toward the main road. But something tells me to change my direction to the beach. I don't question the gut feeling. Stepping off the lane, I run toward the beach.
The ground beside the lane is a mix of sand and grass. Tiny grains of sand seep into the cuts on my feet, and it hurts worse than the cuts themselves. I begin to limp as I run toward the beach.
'You have to go faster,' Celeste pleads with me.
"I am trying," I scream aloud.
'Quiet,' Celeste hisses at me. 'Francesca will hear you.'
'I am as good as dead anyway,' I cry in my mind. 'I was never going to get away. I was too stupid to see it.'
'You can still do this,' Celeste urges me. 'It won't be much longer now.'
'Yeah,' I groan as I run down the sand dune. 'It won't be long until we are dead. Why did I change direction?'
'Keep going,' Celeste screams at me. 'Don't stop until you hit the water.'
I don't know how, but I manage to keep going. My feet slide down the side of the dune, but this time, I stay on my feet.
The saltwater washes up on the shore and hits my feet. 'Okay,' I breathe heavily to Celeste. 'What now?'
'Look up,' Celeste replies cryptically.
'Shouldn't I be running?' I reply.
'No,' she says sharply. 'You will need your energy. Just look up.'
I turn my back to the water and look at the lane. There is a car speeding down the lane. Rocks are flying up behind the car's tires as it skids to a stop.
'Not there,' Celeste scolds me. 'Look at the sky.'
I glance up at the sky, and the clouds begin to part. The light from the full moon shines down on the beach. A funny tingling sensation covers my skin.
The sound of singing reaches my ears, and I snap my head to the left. Francesca is strolling down the beach. The wind is blowing in her hair as she kicks up the waves at her feet.
"Run, little wolf, as fast as you can. You don't want to be caught by the boogie man," Francesca taunts me.
I back away from her, one step at a time. I once read about wolves and their prey drive. I try to remember what I read. Don't run is the only thing that comes to my mind.
Francesca is still humming the tune as she walks along the shore. She is just a few yards from me now. Cocking her head to the side, she looks at me and smiles. Her fangs are glimmering in the moonlight.
"I am so fucked," I whisper to myself.
"You don't know the half of it," Francesca calls back.
The tingling on my skin is becoming intense, and I am having trouble focusing on Francesca. I scratch my arms up and down the skin on my arms. Warm liquid covers me, and I look down to see claw marks.
I hold my hands out in front of me and stare wide-eyed at the claws extending from my fingertips. I flex my fingers as the black claws continue to grow. My gums are tingling. Running my tongue over my teeth, it is pricked by sharp teeth.
"Fuck," Francesca yells. "You are shifting."
Looking back up at the moon, I begin to panic. Pain shoots up my spine. Silver fur sprouts all over my body as I land on all fours.
I try to keep my focus on Francesca, but my vision is getting blurred. I can hear her every movement. The waves splash against her feet as she comes closer.
'Just relax,' Celeste begs me. 'If you let me take over, I can protect you.'
"I don't know how," I scream through gritted teeth.
The sound of my bones cracking overcomes my senses. I manage to lift my head off the sand and see Francesca looking down at me.
"The first shift is always so hard," she pretends to pout. "If only there were someone to walk you through the process."
I try to scramble away from Francesca, but the pain is excruciating. "When will it end," I cry out.
"Let me make your first shift a quick one," Francesca growls.
She grabs me around the neck and lifts me off the ground. I wiggle painfully in the air as I try to break free and shift simultaneously.
Francesca holds me at arm's length and smiles. "You would have been special," she smirks. "I can tell by the color of your fur. Too bad you won't live to find out what your powers are."
I try to speak to Francesca, but only growls and whimpers leave my mouth.
'The shift is almost over,' Celeste tells me.
The pain quickly subsides, and I am no longer in control of my body. It is the weirdest feeling in the world. I can feel Francesca's claws digging into Celeste's fur, but there is nothing I can do about it.
Celeste is pawing at Francesca's face, trying to make contact. 'She is strong,' Celeste whimpers. 'I can't break free.'
'It's okay,' I say through my tears.
The scent of cedar wafts through the air, and I know there is hope for Celeste and me.
"Drop my mate," Kieran yells over the crashing waves.
"How quaint," Francesca laughs. "The Alpha has come for his mate."