The dry scent of charcoal and dust hung around the tent. I gave my sleeping redhead a last glance and left her curled up between Regan and Darren. It was so early, not even the sun had risen. But that was how I liked it.

There was something peaceful and calming about the dawn. It was a new day, a new opportunity to live, a sign I made it another night. And I welcomed the morning, in the same way as I always did.

I brushed the shrubbery surrounding the camp aside and descended to the river. The fresh dew rolled onto my fingertips and I guided them to the earth. A gift for the soil that kept me grounded to this world, that gave me time with Danny.

The river gently rippled past me and I weaved my hand through the cool water. A little fish passed through my fingers and danced over the pebbled bottom. The first rays of sunshine bounced off his silver scales and there was something simple, yet beautiful about it.

The stench of piss reached me before the shadow did. A shiver ran down my spine as I slowly turned around. The figure was still hidden in the bush, but I didn’t need to see his face to know who he was.

He found me. The Butcher.

I froze. The ghost of a memory passed through me as he left the safety of the treeline.

“You better tell me now, Jean-Pierre, before I start,” my attacker threatened, twirling the metal clamps around in his hands. With sweat dripping from my forehead and a dirty cloth streaming in the corners of my mouth, I dared to meet the man’s gaze. He was a massive brute that wouldn’t have much of a hard time stopping a running bull. His eyes always held a menacing glint and his smile revealed how much he was enjoying this. He had his signature cleaver hanging from the belt and a blood spattered apron tied loosely around his fat belly. I suddenly realised why they called him the Butcher. It wasn’t meant as an affectionate term.

But this was no ghost, no, this was a man of flesh and sweat. With hands weary from his cleaver and his menacing grin set on his face. The stale scent of piss his favourite odour and brown stains of blood decorating his apron. I could only guess if it was man or beast who bled out under his sadistic eye. It didn’t matter, they were all equal to him. All scum.

Scars that only ached during the worst of nightmares twinged as they set my back on fire. The same fire I had been running from for so many years. The bear of a man gave me a toothy grin, his teeth yellow from decay, his dentures as rotten as his soul.

Why was he here? How did he find me? Where was Danny? Was she safe?

He swung up the cleaver he carried around and the glint scattered goosebumps all over my arms.

I was scared. No, that was an understatement. Terrified. More than I had been in a long time.

“Finally found you, Jean-Pierre,” he rasped, his voice unlocking something I buried deep inside of me. A pain, a terror, a memory of ignorance and innocence. Time rewound and the man I became disappeared as it revealed the trembling boy I had hidden from everyone. Even myself.

“You know, it took a loooong time to find you. But I just had to. You’re special, little bird.”

Cold sweat trickled down my back as I found myself wordless under his gaze. His little beady eyes glinted in the shimmer of the twilight with an obsession and desperation I hoped to escape.

“Do you know why you’re so special?”

A dull buzz rang in my ears and I felt the first waves of panic crash against my chest.

Desperate to hold them back, I clenched my fists so tight I drew little crescent moons in my skin. I couldn’t panic, not now. Not with Danny here. I needed to protect her. But how? How could I protect her if I couldn’t even protect myself?

How dared I call myself her partner if I couldn’t keep it together when she needed me most?

The Butcher spat a big glob of snot on the ground and cringed as I watched the ants drown in his mucus. They must be feeling the same devastation as I did.

A throb beat through my chest and constricted my lungs. I took a deep gasp, but the air couldn’t reach me. Instead of oxygen, I filled with panic.

No.

Stop.

I couldn’t.

One ant, two ants, three ants, four ants.

How did he find me again?

Six ants, seven ants, eight ants.

How could I let this happen?

Nine ants, ten ants, eleven ants, twelve ants.

He was going to kill me. That was why we had come here. To finish the job.

How many ants did I count again? I lost count. One ant, two ants, three drowning ants. I was drowning, why couldn’t I breathe? I needed to stop the panic from taking my body hostage, I couldn’t let it happen. Not this time, not again.

One dead ant, two dead ants, they were all dead. Dead like my mother when the Butcher got his hands on her, dead like I would be if I didn’t move, dead like...

No!

Jolted out of the haze and lucky I had years of training, I narrowly avoided the first swing of his cleaver. The muscles in my side twinged as I turned too fast, but if it weren’t for my reflexes, I would have paid dearly for freezing up like a deer. Maybe that was exactly what I was to him. An animal to taunt and torture.

Stop.

I was no prey, even though I had been hunted for many years, by Chesca, by coyotes, by the wolf clans. And by him. The man of my nightmares. The brute responsible for the scattered silver scars on my back and the panicked dreams.

But I was no prey. I was no longer a vulnerable and defenceless child. I was a man and I had something to protect. Someone.

I wasn’t losing anyone else.

I anticipated his second attack and dodged to his left, slitting his arm with the knife I pulled from inside my sleeve. The Butcher groaned in pain and I couldn’t say I ever heard a more desirable sound. Fresh blood splattered across his apron but this time, it was his. He grunted and spat in my direction, a green gob of mucus splatting on the dirt.

“I see you want to dance, little bird,” he taunted, twirling the cleaver in his hand. The glint of the blade temporarily blinded me and he took advantage of my one moment of hesitation.

My back hit the ground and knocked the air out of my lungs. Desperate to breathe, I clutched at my chest and tried to fill them with oxygen again. A muddy boot ground into my neck and pinned me down. A weird gurgle escaped my mouth and I desperately clamped my hands around his leg. He couldn’t keep me down, down was bad. Down, I was vulnerable. Down, he would torture me again.

The butcher, the man of my nightmares, chuckled sadistically and licked the blade of his cleaver. His repulsive, thick tongue lapped at the steel and I would’ve gagged if it was physically possible.

“Got you now, Jean Pierre.”

Gods, I hated that name. I hated it with a burning passion. There were good reasons why I went by JP and he was one of them.

He forced the last air out of me and panicked, I scratched at the worn leather of his boots. He laughed at my futile attempts and grabbed a fistful of hair.

“Fight, little birdy, fight.”

He brought the cleaver to my face and petrified, I stopped thrashing. I managed to draw in a little whisper of air as I stared at the terrified eyes in front of me. My eyes. Reflected in the blade that terrorised my sleep, I found my own frightened reflection. A set of dark eyes and a face drained of all colour.

This was how Danny would find my lifeless body. This was how she would remember me.

Bright spots danced in front of me and the noise of the water gurgling by dimmed. The world was fading.

No, that wasn’t right.

I was fading.

Was this how dying felt? I always assumed there would be more pain. But I couldn’t feel anything. Just a dull buzz and a tightness around my chest that made me want to cough. But I couldn’t, I had no air to cough up.

Death was interesting. Almost welcoming. Maybe it was finally my time?

A rush of fresh air knocked the lights on and the darkness shifted to an excruciating blinding light. As if all the pain suddenly kicked in, a thousands knives stabbed into me and while I’d been clinging to life before, I wasn’t anymore.

I wanted to be dead.

No, that was wrong.

I just wanted this to stop. It didn’t matter how, but if dead was the solution, I would take it.

Electricity shot through my body and I cried out in pain. I drew in more air and it set my lungs on fire. With the burn spreading through my chest and my cheeks wet with tears, I curled up in a ball. Blood splattered onto the ground as I heaved and dug my fingers into the earth.

The first spots of light danced back as the world returned to a blur. The darkness lifted, but the pain stayed. With every muscle in my body protesting, I crawled up from the fetal position and managed to focus my vision. A whirlwind of fur blazed past me and a flicker of fangs dug deep into the Butcher’s arm.

Danny. She came for me.

Relief washed over me like the oxygen filling my lungs. I could breathe again, even if it was raspy and ragged. It was better than nothing.

The wolf growled lowly, the rumble of his roar sending chills down my spine. I took a second look and my jaw dropped.

This wasn’t Danny. It was Regan.

He came to my rescue. And not just him, his wolf came. The wolf that left a scattering of tiny marks in my arm from the first time I touched Danny in his presence. The wolf that growled every time someone else looked at his mate. The wolf that barely tolerated me in their company. The wolf that always protected Danny. Only Danny.

Regan threw the Butcher to the ground, blood leaking from his menacing snout. He snarled, his grey lips rolling threateningly as he exposed his flickering teeth. He flicked his tail tentatively from side to side, lunging at his opponent fast like lightning. He burrowed his fangs deep in the Butcher’s wrist and my previous attacker crumbled to the ground.

“I yield, I yield!” he called out. Regan released his arm and he immediately clutched it tight. He wrapped his dirty apron around the wound and I hoped he would catch an infection from it, not that it stopped his bleeding.

I had no mercy for this man. He whipped that out of me a long time ago.

The massive wolf in front of me dug his massive paw into the ground, spraying the Butcher with dirt. He held up his bloody hands and crawled away, in a seemingly surrendering move. He pulled a face and spat some of his broken teeth on the ground. Like a beaten dog, he backed away into the forest, but not before throwing me a look that made it clear we weren’t done.

Not that I expected anything else. He wouldn’t stop chasing me until the end. Mine or his.

But for now, I was okay.

Every part of my body ached as I drew in a shaky breath, hoping to steady the tremors running through me. I wondered just how many seconds I’d been away from death. Maybe three? Five?

It didn’t matter, Regan hadn’t come a moment too late. All my limbs cried as I pushed myself up and carefully walked towards Regan’s imposing wolf form.

“T-Thank you,” I whispered, the words rasping over my tongue like sandpaper.

Regan’s head snapped towards me and for just a moment, flicked his tail threateningly in my direction. But for once, I wasn’t too worried.

I held out my trembling hand and hovered it in front of his head. He growled lowly, but it was different than usual. Less… Real.

With a sudden rush of courage, I made a decision that could’ve cost my hand. Regan’s fur was surprisingly soft. A growl rumbled from his chest and I felt the impressive muscles of him flex under my fingers. He surely was a beast, wild, scary, untamed.

But for the first time in the years I knew him, I patted my friend.

“S-So you d-do care f-for me.” I smiled. Not even my almost-death could ruin this special moment I had with Regan and his wolf. Even if he saw me as his dear friend, his wolf never got over the fact that I was with his mate. At best, he tolerated me. At worst, he drove his teeth in my flesh.

But now he was here, to protect me. He even left Danny with Darren to do so. There was no gesture more beautiful than the one he just made.

“Thank you,” I groaned, my muscles protesting with every step I made. The hill to the campsite wasn’t even steep, yet it felt like the worst climb ever. Painstakingly slow, I dragged my beaten body up the pathway. The only thought motivating me was the warm embrace I knew my redhead would give me.

My foot caught behind a root and my useless body fell hard into the ground. With a mouth full of dirt, I pushed myself back up. My arms betrayed me and I slammed back into the earth.

Except that I didn’t.

A rag of fur broke my fall and with a low rumble, Regan pushed me back up. Almost supportively, he nudged my legs and I stumbled towards the camp. Every step took energy I didn’t have, and yet, I couldn’t stop. I wouldn’t stop until I was in her arms.

Regan broke my fall twice more before I managed to drag myself over the hill.

“JP!” Danny’s panicked voice trumpeted through me and I smiled. She was here. Drained, I gave in to the pain and exhaustion. This time, not even Regan could prevent my body from crashing into the ground.

“What is going on? Are you okay?” Warm arms wrapped around me and with the last of my strength, I curled into my woman.

“What happened? Why is Regan in his wolf form? Are you hurt? Someone tell me,” she cried, brushing the hair away from my forehead. Her fingers swiped gently across my skin and a hot tear fell on my cheek.

“A-Are you c-crying?” Pain shot through my arm, yet I had to lift it to brush away the tear from Danny’s face. Even when sad, she was the kind of beautiful that took your breath away.

“You’re in pain. Who did this to you?” she mewled, her voice shaking with anger and concern. A darkness flitted through her eyes and I felt the chains containing her wolf quiver. She was seething and losing control, even though the bond with her wolf had become more stable over the past months.

Regan placed a hand on her shoulder and the darkness lifted. There was no doubt he felt her distress and came to temper her wolf. Now that was the power of a first mating.

Gently, I patted my neck and winced. I’d be black and blue tomorrow, but I couldn’t say I wasn’t used to that.

I glanced up at my woman and even with every muscle in my body crying out, there was only one thought I had in my mind.

What if the Butcher had gotten his hands on her?