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nose bright red—her
breasts too small and her hair too mousy. No wonder he couldn’t
love her. There was no way she could return to her pack. She never
quite fit in and now it would only be worse. If she released Honey
from the cage, he’d force her to return home. She began
straightening the cabin, working on autopilot, and then undressed
completely, her mind set. Grabbing what she needed, she walked out
the door and crossed to the truck. Honey looked up and for the
first time she saw a reaction that wasn’t anger. Disbelief and then
horror shown in his eyes, but she refused to back down. She lifted
the gun.
    “ Mandy, you don’t want to
do this.” His hand came up.
    “ This is exactly what I
want.” She fired. He tried to turn, but it didn’t matter where the
dart hit him, it only needed to puncture the skin, and it did. He
gave a quizzical look and pulled out the spent tranquilizer. She
shot him again, but he didn’t have time to reach for this one, his
legs could no longer hold him up.
    “ You bitch.” He
fell.
    She waited a few minutes to be sure he
was out and then calmly walked to the door and used the combination
on the lock. The key still rested inside the cage. She turned and
walked into the trees. Her feet quickened as she made her way
further into the forest and then she fazed to wolf and began
running.

Chapter Eight
     
    Mandy ran past the river and kept
going. She would live as wolf, forget the rest of the world, and
just survive—her broken heart would never heal. There was nowhere
for her to go, no one who understood her needs. She didn’t want to
live with the Northwest pack any longer. Seeing her sister so happy
would drive her insane. She knew she was selfish, but she didn’t
care.
    Eventually her pace slowed. The moon
was high in the sky, and exhaustion overwhelmed her. She finally
came to a fallen tree and slithered between the branches. She
pulled her tail around her body and curled into the tightest ball
she could manage. Sleep finally descended over her worn-out
mind.
    She awoke several hours later. The moon
was lower and daylight would soon be streaking over the mountain.
She continued to feel incredibly tired, but forced herself to run
again. The trees cleared slightly and a rocky area gave way to
large boulders. Her nimble frame managed the incline. Right before
she made a leap to a rock a few feet away, a loud metallic clang
sounded and at that exact moment excruciating pain shot through her
ankle. Her wolf let out a high-pitched howl as she fell to the
ground. Through her pain, she saw the steel-jawed trap secured
tightly to her foot. Her wolf form gave way to human and her hands
went to her ankle. Blood pooled below her leg, and using every bit
of strength she possessed, she managed to pry the sharp teeth of
the trap apart. She lay back, breathing hard, trying not to
cry.
    The low grumbling voice momentarily
snapped her from the pain. “Well, guys, what do we have here? It
stinks like a dog and it’s stupid enough to get caught in a wolf
trap. It must be one of Nicolas’ pack that escaped when we killed
the rest of those sniveling mutts.”
    Mandy stared at three enemy cats, and
wondered if her life could get any worse.
    ***
    Honey came awake slowly, a splitting
headache pounding across his temples. Darkness continued to pour
into the back of the truck. He had no idea what time it was. That
damn she-wolf shot him with a tranquilizer gun, but why? He moved
his hand slightly and felt the key at his fingertips. Standing on
shaky legs, he let his beastkind eyes adjust to the darkness, and
then looked at his surroundings. The first thing he noticed was the
lock pulled in the opposite direction than he’d left it. He turned
the key in the lock and it made a small clicking sound.
    He opened the door, grabbed the gallon
of water, tilted the jug back, and started drinking. There was
maybe two inches remaining when he finally quenched his thirst.
Leaving the truck, he gazed at his