Page 169 of Tears for a Broken Sky

---

I heard him before I saw him. Hoofbeats—fast and hard. Coming straight for us.

Then Caelen tore through the trees like a hellfire storm, reins clenched, one arm raised.

“Mount up!” he shouted. “We’ve got company!”

The second horse veered toward us, barely reined in. I grabbed the bridle then turned to Slade.

He was already moving, teeth gritted in pain as he heaved himself up. I caught his arm, steadied him—just long enough to hear the whistle of an arrow.

“Shit—go!”

I leapt up behind Caelen, grabbing his shoulder for balance as the horse lunged forward. Hooves pounded the forest floor like thunder, branches tearing past in a blur of green and shadow.

“Couldn’t have been quiet, huh?” I drawled, breath short.

“Want me to throw you off this damn horse?” Caelen snapped.

I smirked, ducking as a low branch whipped overhead. “Try it. I’ll take the reins with me.”

He muttered something creative under his breath and kicked the mare faster.

Behind us, I could hear Slade pushing hard—too hard. His mount was fast, but not fast enough. And the bastard was injured. Again.

“Left!” Caelen barked. “There’s a stream ahead—we can lose them in the water.”

I twisted in the saddle, catching a glimpse of red cloaks closing in.

“Make it fast,” I said. “They’re gaining.”

A growling sound behind me stilled my heart in my chest.

I turned, barely—

Shit.

Wolves.

Not wild ones. Shifter-kind. Bigger, faster, smarter. Five of them at least, flanking the soldiers—tongues lolling, teeth bared, eyes gleaming with bloodlust.

“Fuck!” I yelled. “We’ve got shifters!”

Slade cursed somewhere behind us. Caelen glanced back—just long enough to assess, not long enough to panic.

“How close?” he barked.

“Close enough to tear out your spine if you slow down!”

One of them leapt, claws flashing as it surged from the underbrush. It clipped a tree trunk, snarling, and dropped to all fours again—still chasing.

“They’re driving us toward something,” I said through clenched teeth. “This isn’t a hunt. It’s a funnel.”

Caelen grunted. “Then we break the damn funnel.”

He jerked the reins hard, veering left. I nearly lost my grip as the horse banked, hooves skidding in the loose dirt. Behind us, howls split the air.

Slade caught up on our flank, pale and sweating. “Tell me there’s a plan,” he growled.

“Ride like hell,” I said. “And don’t stop for anything.”

---