Chapter 6

Axon

No, no, no! It can't be raining now! The rain would wash out Ashley's scent and her hu-man body couldn't handle being in the cold rain for very long. If I didn't find her soon, she'd be in real danger of not making it through the night.

Calm down . I told myself. Her scent might be weakening with the rain, but it was still there. Think, where is this path leading?

The well-worn path led to the river and to the kala. We had a stream next to the mountain, so it wouldn't make any sense for her to head to the river, but why would she go to the kala?

I shifted and picked up my pace. My spider legs might look spindly from a distance, but up close, anyone would be able to see how thick and strong they were. They were also fast. It had taken me a while to get used to them when I first shifted as a young hunter, but now I was a force to be reckoned with. My thick spider abdomen could be used as a blunt object to hit predators with if I spun it around the right way, and the webbing that extruded from special veins from under my fingernails worked well to keep my enemies tied up while I finished them off.

I was one of the few shifters who carried a spear with me. It was the most humane way to finish off a predator such as a jagwa. One swift jab to the neck would puncture their main artery, giving them a painless death. Though they might try to hunt and kill us any chance they get, they were still animals and we were not.

The other dekes, however, if they ever tried to steal Ashley like they had stolen Taylor, I would have no qualms about letting them suffer.

My fellow shifters cared very much about giving an offering to the goddess. They feel they must beg for her blessings or forgiveness. I do not. I know I didn't cause the stiffness. I know I'm not cursed. None of us are.

So it would be very foolish for anyone from the other dekes to step up to me. My brothers care if they lose their right to the offering. I do not.

If there ever was a war between our two groups, I would be first in line to strike. Well, right behind Jax. He had the most reason to seek vengeance. What the other dekes did to him was unforgivable.

I turned the corner and breathed a sigh of relief when I saw the tall walls of the kala in sight.

I set the ladder up and ascended it as quickly as I could.

"Ashley!" I called out her name as I ran to what I assumed was her huddled under a drenched fur.

"Axon?" She peeked her blonde head out from under the blanket. Her wet hair was sticking to her face and neck and she was shivering from the cold.

"What are you doing here?" She asked through chattering teeth.

"What am I doing here? What are YOU doing here?"

I automatically reached out to help her up.

Ashley stared at my outstretched hand for a long moment before turning her chin up at me and letting me know, "it's none of your business."

She stood up on her own and draped the fur back over her head.

"I'm not going back."

Was she crazy? "You have to go back. You'll freeze to death out here."

"Maybe so, but I'm not going back. Not yet, anyway."

She stomped off, and I couldn't help but appreciate the sway of her hips as she walked away with her wet clothes clinging to her body, revealing every delicious curve she had to offer.

I shook my head to bring myself back to the present. Ashley was currently climbing up the wall and moving the ladder to begin her descent.

"I see you've come to your senses." I leapt down ahead of her. "I'll lead you back to the mountain."

Ashley looked me up and down, eyeing me with a cross expression. Then she turned and started to walk along the trail in the opposite direction.

"What are you doing?" I jumped ahead of her, blocking the trail.

"I told you, I'm not going back. I obviously can't stay in the kala while it's raining, so I'm going to find some shelter to wait out the storm."

"Wait out the storm? Don't be ridiculous. I can smell that this storm is going to last for days."

The rain carried with it a strong scent, thick enough to let me know it would not be stopping anytime soon.

"So be it." She gave me a wide berth as she walked around me and continued on the trail.

"Ashely!" I growled her name in exasperation as she attempted to keep walking.

"You can't stay out in the forest! You're going to get hurt!"

I blocked her path again, and we stared each other down.

"Move, Axon." she commanded through gritted teeth.

"You need to come home with me right now." I demanded.

"Oh yeah? What are you going to do if I don't? You gonna carry me home?"

She stared at me with an expression that clawed at my heart. It was a mix of longing and pain, an expression I was all too familiar with.

Her words hit me like knives. I wanted to touch her, and the fact that I couldn't hurt her immensely.

A droplet of water trickled down her face as I stood in front of her, not making any move to touch her or hold her or haul her back to the mountain like any of my brother shifters undoubtedly would have.

Anyone else could have mistaken that tiny drop of water on her cheek for rain, but I knew better. I knew Ashley's face. I'd stared at it long enough whenever she wasn't looking. I knew her eyes weren't usually that puffy or red. I knew that droplet of water wasn't rain, but a tear streaming down her face.

Mot! I'd come out here to help her, to bring her back, and all I was doing was hurting her again and again. I had no idea one person could hurt another so much without touching them at all. I hated myself for it. I would not be the cause of her pain, not when I wanted so desperately to be the cause of her joy instead.

"Fine," I relented. "We will go to my moon cave. It's not far from here."

Her eyes grew wide with surprise. "Really?"

She quickly schooled her features to be more harsh. "Good. That's good. I wasn't going back, anyway."

I restrained myself from rolling my eyes at her stubbornness and led the way through the trees to my cave.