Drantos had ordered her to get to the other side of the river but it just looked too dangerous. She hadn’t even learned how to swim until her eleventh birthday, when her mother had signed her up for an after-school program. She couldn’t even remember the last time she’d been in a pool. It had to have been at least ten years.

Vicious sounds of a fight began and terror motivated her to rethink her fear of going into the river. Those animalistic snarls and growls were scarier than the possibility of drowning.

Guilt ate at her, too, because she’d accused Drantos of being insane. Multiple times. But that thing she’d seen in front of him wasn’t a typical animal. It was some really fucked-up looking monster.

A horrific pained scream erupted from behind her. It was the final straw. Her terror over what was happening next to the river overrode her fear of drowning. She waded into the icy water.

Her feet instantly sank into muddy earth, slowing her speed, but she trudged forward, motivated to live. Her shoes got stuck but she didn’t have time to bend and try to find them when the mud held them prisoner. She just stepped out of them and kept going.

The current pulled her in deeper once it was at her thighs. She lost her balance and pitched forward, completely going under the freezing water. She desperately kicked her legs, finally remembering she needed to, and used her arms in her fight to reach the surface to draw air into her lungs.

Her head broke the surface and she opened her eyes. The current pushed her along but she caught sight of the trees on the other side to help her know which direction to go. She struggled to swim toward them. The loud river drowned out any more sounds from the fight.

Is Drantos still alive? She didn’t know, and that weighed as heavily on her as her soaking clothing did. She panted, urging herself to keep swimming. Her survival depended on crossing the river. She battled on, ignoring the way her limbs didn’t want to respond as easily as before. The temperature was so cold it was swiftly numbing her body.

Finally, after what seemed like forever, her foot touched something and she realized her toes dug into wet earth. She bounced up, got better footing, kept wading through water until she was able to crawl out. The urge to collapse was strong but she kept going, knowing she needed to get into the thicker trees to get out of sight. One quick turn of her head assured her the current had swept her far enough downstream that she might escape that beast thing if it got past Drantos.

The cover of the woods was welcome when she finally stopped crawling, just collapsing onto her side. She panted, trying to catch her breath. Chills racked her soaked body. Her clothes were stuck to her and icy cold. She listened but only heard the moving river. No more terrifying animal sounds penetrated the woods. Is that good or bad?

Drantos’s face flashed through her mind when she closed her eyes. He’d stood up to that horrible beast instead of running away with her. The sight of those fierce claws shooting out of his fingertips hadn’t been a trick of the light.

He’s really a VampLycan. They exist.

Her grasp on reality might be skewed by fear but she didn’t think so. Everything Drantos had said taunted her. She’d thought he needed medication but she was the one wishing for drugs at that second. It also made sense now why he’d refused to shift forms in front of her, if he looked anything similar to that hellish beast she’d seen. He’d predicted it would terrify her, and he’d been right.

She finally caught her breath and pushed up to her knees, stumbling to her feet. The loss of her shoes became clear immediately as she felt the loose dirt stick to her feet. She’d also forgotten to grab her discarded panties before she’d run. That was the least of her worries. The biggest would be freezing to death or being found by that horrible creature. There were also other predators out in the woods. She wasn’t about to forget their near run-in with a bear.

She hugged her body, shivering. A hiding place would be good but she had no idea where it would be safe.

Dusti glanced up at the sky, dreading the coming night. The bears suddenly seemed tame in comparison to that hell beast she’d seen. It’d had an almost humanoid form except for the hair and wolf like features. It almost made her wish someone had dumped illegal chemicals in the area that had affected the wildlife, turning them into some kind of radiated freaks. She’d read stories of things like that happening. That sure hadn’t been some two-headed turtle though, nor caused by anything so simply explainable. The beast had been huge, a monstrosity.

A VampLycan. Vampires and Werewolves were real.

She stopped and leaned against a tree, breathing deeply, fighting hysteria.

She suddenly wished Drantos were with her. As much as she had hoped to get away from him, wandering around in the woods while wet and terrified was turning out to be so much worse. She was torn on how far to go from the river’s edge, too. How would he be able to find her? It was probably for the best if she stayed in the same area, to help him locate her. She had to have faith that he’d be okay and come looking. The alternatives were too much for her to consider. Drantos couldn’t die.

She bumped into a tree, distracted. A soft curse left her mouth as she paused, taking in her surroundings. The large, intimidating shapes of more trees spread out as far as the eye could see. The ground wasn’t level, plenty of large stones were littered around the area, and a few fallen logs blocked her path.

“I hate the outdoors,” she whispered, coming to the conclusion that she’d likely die on her own. Either the exposure would kill her or the animals would. Her gaze lifted to the tree branches as she wondered how she’d fare if she climbed one to get off the ground. The sun would go down at some point and she needed to make a decision.

She walked to one of the trees and wrapped her fingers around the lowest branch. It was a sad attempt, trying to pull her weight up. She was too exhausted. Frustrated tears blinded her until she blinked them back. Climbing was out of the question. She just didn’t have the strength.

Think, she ordered her mind. She took some deep breaths and slowly stripped with trembling hands. There was no way to dry what she had worn but she squeezed out as much water as possible. It was chilly being naked but worse when she redressed. She hoped the clothes would help her avoid cuts and scratches, at least. Her bare feet would be a problem but it was pointless to grieve the loss of her shoes.

She huddled next to a fallen log, trying to get warm. It was impossible to do but she was low to the ground and partially hidden. Chills shook her so hard that the fish in her belly threatened to come up but she resisted the urge. There was no certainty she’d see another meal. It would also probably draw predators.