“Are you alright?” he whispers, wiping my wet face with his sleeve.
“I think so. Just a bad dream.” I suck a deep breath through my nose. “This time about a hooded wolf-girl. Like a horrible Little Red Riding Hood or something.”
There’s a rustling from the other side of the fire. Ferdinand is shaking Gunther’s shoulder. Gunther rolls over, brushes the mop of dark hair from his face, and sits up to kiss Ferdinand’s lips. Brahm stiffens behind me, and I hold my breath, afraid to let them know we’ve witnessed this intimate moment. Ferdinand grabs Gunther’s hand, and they shuffle away into the forest.
I turn to Brahm with a grin on my face. “Too bad the woods are off-limits now.”
His eyes grow wide as pies at my comment, and he gulps.
“Why don’t you get some sleep?” I squeak out.
He nods and gives me a slow kiss on the lips. “Goodnight, Freckles.”
We switch positions, and Brahm fans the flannel blanket over us. He sinks his head into my chest, nuzzling my cleavage with a mischievous grin on his face.
I playfully slap his cheek. “Get some sleep.”
Brahm tilts his chin for one more kiss and sinks into me. His weight pressing against me is comforting. My fingers stroke his hair until he falls asleep.
A while later, Ferdinand and Gunther return to the camp with flushed cheeks and smiles. I close my eyes, pretending to be asleep. I can’t say I’m happy for Ferdinand, but Gunther’s a good guy. I don’t want to ruin his fun.
“Are you fucking kidding me?” Willa’s voice shrieks. “You and him?”
Brahm stirs and sits up. We both turn our attention to Ferdinand.
“It’s really none of your business. Is it, Blondie?” Ferdinand lifts his bruised chin high.
“It is when you flirt with me the whole time and use me to attack another girl.” Willa walks right up to Ferdinand and slaps his face. “You’re an asshole.”
Gunther steps between them while Ferdinand holds his red cheek.
“Willa, he already apologized for that,” Gunther says, rubbing Ferdinand’s back.
“To her, not me.” Willa crosses her arms over her chest. “And now everyone hates me for something he did.”
Gunther chuckles. “That is not Ferdinand’s fault, sweetie. You made everyone hate you all on your own.”
Willa raises her hand to hit Gunther, too.
“Stop!” Brahm shouts, sitting up. “This is no time to fight. We all need to stick together. Nobody hates you, Willa.” He points to her blanket. “Please go back to sleep. Let’s rest before the fog moves us again.”
She huffs and collapses to the ground, face-down on her embroidered satchel.
Gunther and Ferdinand return to their spot as Brahm leans against me again. Everyone sleeps for a few hours until a howling sound blows through our camp with the wind. I shake Brahm awake. The howls grow louder, closer.
Brahm pats my leg. “Get your dagger.”
I do so as glowing eyes appear between the trees, and low snarls approach our camp. I freeze in place. Terror creeps in, making my limbs shake and breaths shallow. Brahm tugs at my arm. Everyone springs up and scurries toward the path.
Hunched low, a pack of wolves lurks toward us. My eyes widen in panic. Their exposed teeth drip with saliva.
“Run!” Gunther shouts.
As we sprint down the path in the darkness, only a faint glow of the moon peeks through the clouds and trees. I stay close to Brahm with the dagger clutched in my fingers. Adrenaline courses through me as we run. The wolves chase us into a rocky area where the fog has cleared into a wide circle. Willa trips over a small rock.
When I pause to help her stand, I spot something red hanging from a tree in the distance. A cloak?
A wolf pounces and nearly scratches my leg, but Brahm kicks it in the snout. He takes my hand, and we continue running.
I point to some giant boulders ahead of us. “Get to safety!”
Brahm and I climb a tall, narrow rock, hanging onto each other for balance. Gunther, Ferdinand, and Willa go for a lower boulder. I watch in horror as two wolves scratch and bite at Gunther’s calf until Ferdinand lifts him to safety. Gunther sits on the rock and winces as he rolls up his pant leg. Blood drips down from a deep gash. It looks bad. He removes his belt to create a tourniquet.
“I’ll get you the snake-leaves when we can get down,” I shout to him.
The rest of the wolf pack stalks the boulders, taking turns trying to scale the rocks with their scratching claws.
In the corner of my eye, the red fabric ripples in the wind. I point it out to Brahm, who squints his eyes to see.
“That’s what my dream was about. I think it can help.” I take a few deep breaths to collect my courage. “I’m going to get it.”
He grabs my arm. “No. It’s too dangerous. It could be a trick.”
“The wolves aren’t going to back down. I can cross along the boulders to get there.” I point out my path.
Brahm shakes his head, but I hand him my satchel. Crouching low, I leap to a boulder next to ours. The wolves snarl and growl as they set their sights on me. All of them scratch at my rock and bare their teeth. The next two boulders are very low—small enough for the wolves to get me if I linger for too long.
“No!” Brahm shouts from behind. “Just stay where you are.”
I’ll have to be quick. I judge the leaps and steps that must be made to get to the tree while re-sheathing my dagger. I close my eyes and collect my courage. One, two, three.
I take two quick leaps over the rocks and launch myself onto the tree. I climb to the next branch and the next. Only a few more until I can reach the cloak. I make the mistake of looking down; far beneath me, the wolves claw at the bark of the tree. My stomach grows sick, and I squeeze my eyes shut.
“Be careful,” Brahm calls out. “Take your time.”
I climb the next branch and lose my footing. Grasping for the one above me—the one with the red cloak—I hang in the air as the wolves howl. Using all my might, I thrust myself up and swing my leg over the bough. Inching my way toward the red fabric, I try to focus and catch my breath. The thinning bough bends under my weight, so I lean my upper body forward and extend my arm. My fingertips reach to find the velvet cloak, and I clutch it in my fist.
I wrap the mantle around my shoulders when there’s a cracking sound. The tree branch snaps, and I fall forward only to hit sticks and leaves along the way. I crash hard to the rocky ground.
My head hurts even though I don’t think I hit it. My brain feels a bit foggy. Holding my head, I roll over to find I’m surrounded by the wolves, but they aren’t attacking.
“Hang on, I’m coming!” Brahm shouts.
When he leaps to the ground nearby, the wolves turn their attention to him. My chest constricts. Not Brahm. I must do something.
“No!” I roll to a stand, raising my palm to the wild animals.
The wolves perk their ears my way, tilt their heads like curious puppies, and turn toward the other Offerings. Brahm inches his way to me, and I throw the magic cloak over both of our shoulders.
“You sicced them on us, you bitch!” Willa shouts as the wolves jump and claw at their feet. “How’d you do that?”
“I didn’t mean to. Let me try something.” I point to the forest and call out to the pack, “Go away! Get!”