Awakening (2 book series)
Awakening – Following Fate Chapter 87

I fly forward without hesitation. I run, at full speed at the back of him and throw myself onto his back as he rears back to deliver a smack to Carmen's exposed underside, while her body tries to repair broken bones. It would be a death blow in her state of vulnerable and she wouldn't stand a chance. I grab him around the head, pulling his jaw left and dodge his claws as he grapples, reaching back to dislodge me, to no avail. Sierra works with me, and swipes under his legs with a fast maneuver that brings him down backwards, almost on top of me. At the last second, I let go and leap away, so his crushing weight misses me or else I'd be squashed. I'm not fast enough to escape though, as he catches hold of my left ankle and yanks me back brutally. He digs his claws into bone and flesh on one of the smallest parts of my body, following with a crushing snap of searing splice that makes me cry out in wailing pain.

I turn impulsively, shocked into retaliation by the instant agony and hit him full on with a powerful ball of energy. I get him right in the face, smack, and it sends him rolling away, releasing my broken and slashed ankle as I crawl away as fast as I can for Sierra. Aiming for her healing help as she closes the gap between us once more.

This is not a plan.... this is not a plan. This is barely keeping our shit together.

Her panicked rambling comes at me in repeated mumbles as she quickly, hands on, tries to heal me as she turns human again. Only too aware he's getting up and already coming for us. Her anxiety rising in time with mine and the sense of urgency becomes almost hysterical in its weight around us.

"No, it's not...... I don't know what else to do but keep his focus. We have to give the witch time." I compel her, hands up in bewilderment of 'what else can we do?

She heals me only seconds before I dodge out of the way, instinct kicking in, his claws miss both her and I, as she turns and leaps back. I know this isn't working. Colton is hard on any day of the week to defeat and even with my gifts, I've never actually overpowered him when he wanted to fight back. He's never actually properly intended to win anytime he trained me and always held back and tried not to hurt me. It's becoming pretty obvious that the advantage in that was what made me think I could always kick his a*s. Like this, with no holding back, I'm barely keeping up and I squeal mid run as my hair is caught from behind me with a brutal tug of ripping roots. I'm dragged backward while distracted by my own stupid thoughts. Panic searing through me that I so easily got myself captured but followed by relief when I realize it's not Colton

Sorry, I didn't know what else to grab.

Carmen growls through the link, releasing my chunk of hair from her mouth as she lets me loose. Right away I see she saved me from a lunge of another wolf who had tried his luck going for me. One who has gone crashing right into Sierra's angry thrust. She head butts him low and then tosses him backwards over her body with little effort and sends him rolling into the forest behind with a crash. What the hell is taking so long with the witch? It feels like it's been hours already.

Carmen snorts, pulling my mind away from her question by pushing me full force, back, as two wolves dive over us accidently when clearing the log and don't see us at all. I realize they are being pursued by enchanted wolves and heading into the mini battle that's pulled Colton away from us while he deals with a group of protective land wolves. This is chaos and the only way to tell who is who is by looking at their eyes. Only Colton is an obvious target as he stands huge and foreboding with being the only black male among

us.

"Where is he?" I blanche, my eyes scanning our surroundings when I stray back to arm myself to take him on again and I realize Colton isn't here anymore. In the blink of an eye, he seems to have disappeared into thin air and it kicks my manic panic button into fury. I span the circle around us, a flurry of worry and anticipation spiking inside of me, dodging another fly attack from a brown wolf that Carmen flips on its side and tosses backwards. My panic rises further, and I spin around, visually raking every space in front of us. I know I can't let him out of my sight, I can't lose the one person who may have ability to chase the witch down.

I take in the trees, the bushes, the rocks, and all around us, frantically searching for a sign, in an effort to locate him then weaken instantly, blood draining from my face when I spot what I seek. Twenty feet to our left, almost concealed by a thick tree trunk. He's holding up a smaller, grey wolf, by the throat, his teeth close to their jugular in a threatening manner and about a second away from tearing it out. There's no mistaking that's his intent. NOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!