CEO's Runaway Mate and Her Cubs

WARNING: violence and triggering content.

«If you reach the next inner circle, we won't follow you there.»

The quarters were organised in a structure similar to an onion. The most inner part was where the Alpha lived and worked. Then, in the second circle lived his closest people. Renato used to live there, in a single room. He didn't need an apartment because it was a hassle to keep it clean, and he didn't know how to cook either way.

Then, there were several other circles surrounding the centre. Amanda's family lived in the fourth, close enough to the centre to be respected but not enough to matter in any decision. She liked their rank: they had enough benefits to be happy and avoid overworking themselves. Her parents didn't have much responsibility towards the pack outside of their ordinary jobs.

At that very moment, they were on the outskirts where the lower-ranking members lived. These had no power and would wait in line for their turn when there was some sharing of resources. Their only dream was to advance into an inner circle, be it just one.

Rather than circles, the layers had the shape of squares or rectangles, but the name had stayed since the beginning of time when packs lived in circular villages.

Amanda observed the people around her, and they opened a path for her. They even gestured as to show her the way while Armando snickered.

Seven wolves, chasing her... Her wounds hadn't yet healed, and she couldn't think of getting more time. She had to make a decision because they wouldn't allow her to sit there forever.

«Run!» a girl repeated.

If Amanda remembered correctly, her name should have been Giusy. Yet she wasn't sure, so she didn't test the waters.

Amanda got up, collected all her energy and decided to give it a try. The results wouldn't be any different, so she might as well run.

Instead of following their will and running towards the inner circles, she turned to the forest and used every trace of her strength to reach it. She couldn't transform into a wolf, it would have used precious seconds of her time, and she wasn't good enough to do it while running.

As such, she ran to the trees and disappeared from sight for a few seconds. She felt them chasing her, their feet hitting the ground and getting closer. At some point, some of the steps changed and became paws running on the weed.

She was slow at turning, but some of them were not.

She increased her speed, even more, reaching her limit and thinking only of one thing: getting to her home, possibly in one piece. She wouldn't go out of her room ever again! She wouldn't venture this far without someone by her side.

«Fuck,» she cursed, jumping to avoid tripping over a fallen tree.

She soon got out of the pack's headquarters. Getting out of there meant leaving, and she hoped teens weren't authorised to do so. If the Alpha had spread the orders, they would eventually stop chasing her.

As for her, she didn't even care about being locked for days.

They caught her a few metres before she could cross the border, and a wolf landed on her and immobilised her on the ground.

She had almost made it, yet just a few steps...

«No,» she whined, hitting the ground with her fists. «No! No

«Yes,» said Armando. «You wicked thing, we caught you just in time... Do you really think we wouldn't dare follow you out there? Ha! You miscalculated something... Crossing the border won't save you from us.»

The wolf got off her, letting her sit up. Her palms were sinking in the soft grass, and her nose was filled with the aromas of the forest. She could feel some small animals running around, not scared by the bunch of wolves nearby. After all, no one was going to pay attention to a rabbit that day.

«You really thought you stood a chance to flee?» he chuckled. «You weren't this lucky... But you tried to trick us! You freak!»

Amanda saw his claws getting longer, and she hugged her arm again; it had barely healed, and it was going to get bloody again...

«No,» she sighed, preparing to repeat all that had happened in the outer circle. Just that, alone in the woods, there weren't any witnesses at all. It was even worse!

What an idiot, she thought about herself. Being bullied in the quarter couldn't be worse, and she had never had a chance to escape. Not in this direction, nor in the other.

Armando's fingers wrapped around her neck as he pulled her up. The flow of air was cut, and Amanda started suffocating. But it wasn't enough to make her whine... Not yet.

«This will be fun, I promise,» he whispered before sinking his claws in her body again. This time, on her side.

She shouted, forgetting all about her pride. It was damn hurting, and no one would hear them either way.

As his hand moved up, she heard the shirt tearing and her stomach uncovered for yet another wound. The scratches were ironically precise, like cuts from a knife. Deep enough to be difficult to close, and painful like hell.

«I think it's enough,» someone said from the back.

Amanda didn't even turn to check. She didn't care anymore. They could say what they wanted, but no one intervened to help her before her blood was spilt.

For her, they weren't part of her pack anymore. Or, maybe, she wasn't part of theirs. She wasn't part of anything at that moment. Just a random wolf alone in the world, hurt and weak.

«Let's go; it's almost dinner time. You know we shall be at home by then...»

«Ah, yes,» Armando murmured. «Just a few minutes more. We won't be late.»

While he was distracted, Amanda took a step back from him. She walked the last few feet in between them and the border.

Once she was out, she fell to the ground again, weak and hurting. No one followed her, in fear of becoming a rejected just like her.

She felt them turn their backs and leave, with calm as if nothing had happened.

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