Just keep walking.
A sudden gust of wind lifted the edge of my cloak, and I shuddered as cold air wafted up my skirt. My arm began to shake, and the bubble of light around me trembled. The shadows overhead danced.
I dropped my basket. Then the wind gusted, and my lantern blew out.
Two
Terror clutched me like a fist squeezing my rib cage. I froze, afraid to take another step because I could no longer see the path in front of me, and that was when I realized I’d broken two of the rules. My lantern had gone out and I’d stopped walking. But if I kept going without being able to see the path, I might accidentally deviate from it. And if that happened, getting lost would be the least of my worries.
Turn around, Adele. I picked up my basket, fumbling in the dark, and stood slowly. Just turn around and walk in a straight line until you hear the axes. Until you come out of the forest. That would be much safer than pressing on toward my grandmother’s cabin in absolute darkness. So I carefully turned, feeling with one foot for the edge of the path. Then I started walking.
I didn’t realize I’d veered off course until my foot struck something. I screamed as I fell forward, arms flailing. I dropped the lantern. My hands slammed into the ground. Twigs bit into my palms and pain shot through my wrists and shoulders.
My basket landed somewhere to my left. The scent of raisin bread suddenly wafted over me as the cloth-wrapped bundle rolled away, crunching over dead leaves.
I sucked in a deep breath, the cold air scraping my throat raw as I fought panic.
Get up! Run!
No, call for help and wait for someone to find you!
Seconds slipped past as I tried to decide which would be least likely to get me killed. The Thayers and the watchmen might still be close enough to hear me scream.
But the monsters might be closer. My initial scream might have alerted them to my presence, and shouting for help might only draw them to me.
Something slithered over my ankle and a shriek ripped free from my throat. My jaw snapped shut, cutting off the sound, but it was too late. I could feel the forest closing in on me with a cacophony of soft, unidentifiable sounds. I slapped at my leg and the vine released its grip on me then rustled through dead leaves.
I sat up and concentrated on my breathing, trying to slow my racing heart. To hear something other than the rush of my pulse and the rasping sound of my own panicked inhalations. The quieter I managed to make myself, the more I could hear from the forest around me. Twigs snapping. Branches swaying. The rustling of what sounded like leathery wings. The wet sound of something large breathing. Snorting.
Two points of light appeared to my right, and I gasped. They blinked. Then blinked again. My heart slammed against my ribs with the realization that I was looking at a glowing set of eyes. And that they definitely were not human.
The beast took a breath, and the wet, rasping sound seemed to last forever, as it filled its huge lungs. The soft rumbling swelled, and I realized I was hearing a growl.
A wolf.
Not a normal wolf. Loup garou.
Fear washed over me like a bucket of frigid water, leaving goose bumps on every inch of my skin. My stomach twisted as I watched those two points of light. They blinked again. Then I heard a soft oof of breath and the pounding of massive paws in the underbrush as the wolf lunged.
Every muscle in my body tensed. I swung the lantern, aiming at those bright eyes as they raced toward me.
A scream tore from my throat as the lantern crashed into the wolf’s skull, little more than an inky blur against the greater darkness. The metal frame broke in my hand. Something warm and wet splattered my face, accompanied by the scent of blood. The wolf whimpered—a sound like the fletcher’s dog makes when he kicks it—and I heard the beast stumble to the side.
I shoved myself to my feet and took off running, still clutching the broken lantern. Unseen branches slapped my face and arms. Roots and vines snagged my feet, as if the forest floor were trying to trip me. I stumbled several times, but I kept going, tearing through the woods as quickly as I could. I had no idea where I was headed. But I was headed there fast.
My legs felt oddly powerful, propelling me through the woods at a speed I’d never attained before, and what should have felt like an abuse of my muscles suddenly felt like a relief. Like scratching a desperate itch.
My legs wanted to run.
My arms pumped at my sides now, maintaining the rhythm of my stride. Aiding my balance. My lungs expanded easily, fueling my body so efficiently that even though I’d never moved that fast in my life, I wasn’t huffing. The speed felt natural.
I felt like I was born for this.
Yet despite my speed, within seconds, I heard the wolf crashing through the forest behind me, so close I could practically feel its breath on my neck. Fresh terror fueled my muscles, and my legs gave me another burst of speed, carrying me even farther from the path. Even deeper into the dark wood.
And suddenly I realized I could see.
The trees were little more than skeletal shadows, some of which actually seemed to be reaching out for me, but I could see them. Which meant I could avoid them.
For the first time in my life, the impenetrable darkness of the forest had begun to loosen its grip. But the wolf was gaining on me at a terrifying pace. I would not be able to outrun it.
I would have to fight.
That realization should have sent me screaming in terror, yet it seemed to calm me. To focus my thoughts. I squinted into the dark as I ran, looking for . . .
I had no idea what I was looking for, until the moment I saw it. A fallen tree. A big one, with a trunk broad enough to shield me for a second. I swerved to the right and leapt over the trunk as if I’d grown up jumping hay bales with the village boys, then I hunched down against it, my red cloak bunched up behind me. I shoved my hood back and as I lifted the broken lantern, I realized I could see better with every passing second, even without a light.
Something was happening to me. Something strange and miraculous.
The lantern was suddenly nearly as visible as it had been before I’d stepped into the forest. Though it was useless now. The metal frame had come apart, and—
One thinly hammered metal panel had come loose, exposing a sharp, wickedly jagged edge.
As the wolf thundered toward me, its huffing breath growing louder with each passing second, I ripped that small panel from the frame and clutched it in my right hand, ignoring the pain as an edge bit into my skin. Distantly, I realized I could smell my own blood as it rolled down my palm.
An instant later, the fallen tree rocked against my back as the wolf launched itself off the trunk. The beast flew over me to land in the underbrush a few feet away, and as it spun to face me, I got the first good look at my opponent.
It was huge, its narrow muzzle pulled back in a snarl, revealing sharp teeth I could see alarmingly well. Its claws gripped the dirt as it prepared to leap. Its fur was like fresh snow, pale and gleaming.
The wolf pounced, driving me to my back in the dry underbrush. I screamed as massive paws landed on my shoulders, claws digging into my skin through the thick wool of my cloak. My pulse raced fast and loud, and my vision swam. The wolf snarled, and the odor of rot on its breath wafted over me. Then its massive muzzle opened, and the beast lunged for my face.
I shoved the metal panel into its neck.
Sharp teeth froze inches from my nose. Saliva dripped from its muzzle, and I turned my face so that it hit my cheek instead of trailing into my mouth.