Chapter 25

Wild Man

Iclench my jaw and suck in a short breath of air as I try to force my body up off the ground. A grunt of pain blows through my teeth when a sharp pain pierces my side. It feels like I've been stabbed between two of my ribs and the knife is still wedged inside. Even the lightest of movements has my vision going blurry. My whole body hurts, like a big bear chomped on me and aggressively shook me, banging my body against trees.

It doesn't matter though. I have to get to my feet and go after her.

They took my momor.

I know it was her family. Her father and brothers. Even if one of them hadn't whispered in my ear that I would die for hurting his sister, I would have still known.

And now they're going to pay for taking her away from me.

When I told momor that I would kill her family if they attempted to take her, it was the truth. At the time, at least.

Now, they'll pay, just not with their life, but with a lot of pain. I want to rip their heads from their necks. To use my knife and gut them like I do the animals I kill for food. To filet their skin from their bones and toss their carcasses to the side to let the other animals feast on them. But I can't kill them because momor loves them. It would hurt her, and I know killing them is something she would never forgive.

I try to open my eyelids, but I can only crack them open into slits. It's barely enough for me to make out that the sun is either going down or coming up.

I don't know how long I've been laying here, which means I don't know how long momor has been gone. I've woken up a couple of times, but each time I did, the slightest movement had blackness swallowing me up again.

Slowly, I lift my arm, testing the movement. When the blackness doesn't fill what little vision I have and the pain is barely tolerable, I bring my hand to my face. The skin around my eyes feels different, puffy, which is why I can't open them. There are also several deep cuts on my face. The blood from them is dry and not fresh, which means they're are no longer bleeding.

There's a rustle of movement over where I think the opening is. My first instinct is to get up and defend my home, but that'll take more strength than I have right now. So I lie here, tracking the creature by its movements. I can tell by the sound of their steps it's an animal and not momor's family coming back to finish me off.

I feel warm breath on the side of my face. Before the whine comes, I know who it is.

"Teeja," I grate between my teeth.

He answers by swiping his tongue on my cheek. The lick stings, and I want to push him away, but what little strength I woke with is going away.

"Teeja, no," I say. Even talking is painful as my throat is dry and scratchy.

Familiar black spots move into my vision and my hearing sounds muffled, like something is covering my ears. Little pricks poke along my scalp, almost like something is crawling around on my head.

I decide to close my eyes for a moment until the feelings go away.

* * *

I don't knowhow long my eyes are closed, but this time when I open them, I can see a little more. The sun is directly above me, shining through the trees way up in the sky. My body feels like it's on fire, the pain different than it was before. Each breath I take in sends a sharp pain through my side, but I force the air into my lungs anyway.

I turn my head to the side and see Teeja only a couple of feet from me. He's lying on his stomach with his head on his paws.

"Teeja," I grunt and the wolf's head pops up.

He doesn't get up, but stays lowered to the ground as he scoots forward on his paws until his face is close to mine. He whines, flicking his tongue out to lick across my forehead.

With effort, I test my legs, the muscles tensing as I try to lift them. I can move them, but it makes the pain in my side worse. I try my arms next. They're easier to lift, but it's still not enough to get me off the ground.

My mind screams at me to get up and go after momor, but my body won't allow it. Anger coats my insides, making my skin feel hot.

I have to be strong to get her back, and right now, I'm as weak as a baby and can barely move.

I know her family won't hurt her. She's safe with them.

And that's the only thing that gives me peace of mind.

But once I heal and get my strength back, I'll be taking back what's mine.