Page 45 of Squirrel Hunt
Hours passed. Dahy couldn’t tell how many, an eternity. He was cold and hungry, and his body ached. Since he hadn’t shifted back into squirrel, he was stuck in the same position with his arms and legs.
Their captors had allowed them to use the bathroom once. They’d taken them out one at a time, and Dahy was horrified when the light fell on Gustav. He was nothing but skin and bones, and Dahy feared he’d starve to death within days.
“It’s not much longer now.”
Dahy jumped at Gustav’s voice. “What do you mean?”
“The hunt or whatever they plan on doing to you, it’ll happen soon.”
Dahy might not like being a prisoner, but he bet it was better than what was coming. “How do you know?”
“Hear the steps above.”
Dahy listened. There were several people walking on the floor above theirs. “Yeah.”
“Must be at least ten people. There are never ten people unless there’s an event of some sort. I’ve been here for months. I don’t think I’m the event.”
“Months?” Myka’s voice was nothing more than a whisper.
“You won’t be here for months, for good or for bad.” He sounded tired.
“Maybe Konrad will come?” Myka didn’t sound convinced.
“You know Konrad? From Doson?”
“He’s my mate.” Dahy’s heart ached.
There was a rusty chuckle coming from Gustav. “A squirrel.” The chuckle grew. “Ah, I bet he’s pleased, the bastard.” Then he sobered. “They don’t know, do they? To kidnap another alpha’s mate is…bad. Wars have been fought for less.”
“It’s new.”
Gustav laughed, and this time he almost sounded invigorated. “Oh, hell, I’m almost sad I won’t get to see when he slaughters Varg. Fucking coward.”
“He has to find us before he can slaughter anyone.”
Gustav snorted. “I’ll be surprised if he isn’t in town already. Make sure you survive, boy. You scurry up into a tree, and you go high. Wolves can’t climb.”
Dahy would, except…“What about Myka? She can’t climb to the top.”
“You weigh less than they do, wolves are usually big and brawny, and I’m gonna go out on a limb and guess it won’t be the entire pack participating in the hunt. It would surprise me if Varg has invited any of the females to join, he’s too much of a misogynist. You climb, girl, and you get as high as you can go, and then you go a little bit higher. The tree will hold.”
“But they’re faster.” Myka’s voice was hardly audible in the dark. “I’ve seen how fast wolves move. I can’t run as fast as they can.”
“If it’s a hunt, they’ll give you a head start. No fun in chasing something if there isn’t a challenge.”
Dahy shivered, and it had little to do with the cold. He’d never wanted to star in a squirrel hunt. Especially not one as organized as this one. He’d run from wolves before, but then he hadn’t been held captive and let out into an area they were familiar with, and he hadn’t had a friend he desperately wanted to keep alive with him. One small squirrel could disappear into the treetops, like Gustav had said, wolves didn’t climb well, but Myka…He couldn’t abandon Myka.
“What makes you think Konrad is here?” He’d rather focus on Konrad than on a pending hunt.
“We always have people in each other’s packs. Someone is always reporting back. I bet Konrad has grown stealthier with having spies since Varg took over. A new alpha means you need eyes and ears nearby to make sure things don’t get out of hand. There will be people in town.”
“Roan.” Myka spoke on a sob. “I believed he was here on a job. Is that why I’m here? I mated a spy?”
“Hey.” Dahy wanted to go to her, but he didn’t want to waste energy shifting when he most likely would need to later. “Roan was back in Doson before any of this happened. You’ve lived there for some time now, right? You have a job and have made new friends. This isn’t because of Roan.”
“They never would’ve known about me if it wasn’t for him.”
Dahy made a noise that could mean anything. She wouldn’t have been here if she hadn’t met Roan, but it changed nothing.