Beca's POV
The moment Chloe's scream erupts from her, I go crazy. Thrashing my whole body, I attempt to break free only to earn a punch to my stomach. I breathe through my nose, trying not to vomit. The wolfsbane they injected me with flows through my veins like thick sludge, making me dizzy and everything seems to move in slow motion. My heart breaks as I watch Chloe scream over and over until her voice goes hoarse. It's all overwhelming and I hate that I'm useless.
"Well, I guess it works," Doctor Lewis comments, watching Chloe. Sweat pours down her face, soaking her hair which hangs in front of her eyes as she hangs her head. Reed laughs, pissing me off even more. What did I get us into? What's going to happen to us? To Chloe? I can't be at fault for something happening to her. I couldn't live with myself. My hands clench as anger takes hold of me, livid at what I've gotten us into.
My chest suddenly feels tight and the wolfsbane doesn't seem as present anymore. Everything seems sharper, the lights brighter, sounds louder. My head starts to pound and my face aches as it seems to stretch. One of my bones pop and I quickly glance over at Reed and the doctor, but neither are paying attention. I'm pretty certain I'm shifting which should allow me to get Chloe out of here. Assuming I'm strong enough, that is.
Taking a deep breath, I focus on one ache at a time, starting with my feet. I slowly let my joints pop out of place, getting ready to shift back into position for a new form. Once my body is on fire and every part of me feels like jelly, I growl. That gets their attention. I can tell the instant they realize what's happening because Reed's eyes widen as the doctor runs to his drawer. No way in hell are they stopping me this time.
With one last deep breath, I roar and everything happens so fast. My body rips out of its constraints, everything popping into place until I'm on four legs instead of two. A deep growl rumbles from my chest, putting fear into Reed's eyes. I slowly stalk him as he backs up, attempting to reach the door. Right before he gets there, I lunge for his throat. The doctor intervenes, sticking a needle into my neck. Before he can press down on the plunger, I place my canines on his throat and bite down. Blood floods my mouth, but I'm not disgusted. I'm elated and I feel stronger somehow. The blood must make me stronger thanks to my vampire side.
That leaves Reed who frantically tries to swipe his card to get out. Unfortunately for him, his key card is covered in blood splatter from the doctor and isn't registering. If a wolf could smile, I would've right then as I go for Reed. He screams, pulling something out of his pocket last minute as I sink my claws into his chest. A sharp prick in my side makes me whine but I don't let it stop me from using a claw to slice Reed's throat.
Everything goes silent except for Reed's gurgling as he chokes on his blood. When he stops, I let myself relax knowing that he is at least taken care of. There's still the matter of getting out of here, but I'm sure we'll manage. Huffing, I make my way towards Chloe, who is still slumped over in her chair. I press my nose against her cheek in an effort to wake her up and thankfully, it works.
"Beca?" Tired blue eyes meet mine and a small smile reaches Chloe's face. "You're so beautiful and fucking huge. Who would've thought for someone so tiny, you could be something this big?"
Letting out a huff, I quickly slice her restraints and do what I can to help her up. I would shift back, but I'm stronger this way and don't know if I could shift again quick enough if I needed to. I show her to the key card which she cleans off with shaky hands. Crouching low, I let her onto my back before she swipes the key card, opening the door. We make our way down the stairs slowly, getting wide stares as we get close to the training area.
"What the fuck are you guys doing? Get them!" Bumper screams and everyone moves into action. Chloe's hands tighten in my fur as I run, hitting people aside as I go. We manage to make it out and into the parking garage but with the amount of guards chasing us, we won't be able to get into my car. So I do the only thing I can think of. I keep running, dodging bullets that are suddenly flying past us and swerving around cars that are going for us.
When we break out of the parking garage, guards continue to chase us in their black suvs. Some shoot out the windows at us, making me hope to god that Chloe is safe from the flying bullets. As we run, I can't see a way out of this other than one option but with no way to tell Chloe, it won't work. Concentrating the best I can, I attempt to speak with her, knowing what I've read about wolves and their mates. Most can speak telepathically to each other, but it's usually after they're both marked and the bond is completely formed.
Chlo, can you hear me?
What the fuck? How are you doing this? Chloe's beautiful voice fills my head and I silently thank Darren for telling me about this.
I'll tell you later but for now, I have an idea to get us out of this. You're not going to like it but it's the only way. When we come around the corner, I'm going to throw you off and into an alleyway. They won't be able to chase you in there with the big suvs and they'll be more distracted by me anyway.
No! Beca, I'm not leaving you.
Chloe, it's our only choice. I'll be fine. I have an idea of where to go to get away but I need you to trust me. I'm going to throw you off and I want you to run as fast as you can. Go to the place we first kissed. I'll meet you there.
I love you Beca.
I love you too baby. With that, I suddenly round the corner and buck Chloe off into a nearby alleyway. The suvs follow closely behind, having no idea that I threw her off yet as they didn't see it happen. Out of my peripheral vision, I see a blur shoot past from behind the suvs. Sighing in relief, I continue my path with a specific destination in mind. Years ago, a bunch of other trainees convinced me to sneak out one night with them. We went on this path through the woods until we got to a cliff that below was filled with rocks and water. The kids pushed me off and although I got torn up, I survived. Later I learned that Reed had purposely let the kids do this, knowing their plan to try and hurt me.
If I could get to that path, they shouldn't be able to follow me as it's too narrow for their suvs. When I reach the path though, some take off on foot, following me into the woods. Damn, I really didn't want to have to jump. Groaning as I near the cliff, I look back and notice how close they are to me. I'm slowing down, running out of energy and now fueled by adrenaline only.
Not wasting a second, I make one last stride toward the cliff and jump, ignoring the bullets whizzing past me. Closing my eyes, I let myself fall, knowing that no matter what I do, it'll hurt. Sure enough, I smack several rocks on my way down before I hit the water. For a minute, I let myself sink, hoping that once they see me limp and floating, they'll assume I'm dead. It's so tempting to let myself just keep sinking, let exhaustion take over but images of Chloe stop me from doing just that.
Pushing past the pain, I focus on the people above and what they're saying. Several are shouting that they can't see me until eventually, one familiar voice yells out that he found me.
"The freak is dead!" Bumper exclaims and everyone oohs and ahhs over my 'dead' body.
"Should we take her body back?" Someone asks.
"No, leave her to the elements. She deserves to rot." With that, they all leave, no longer caring for my broken body that is currently floating down the river. Exhaustion plagues my body but I know that Chloe is waiting for me. At least, she is if she managed to escape which I have no doubt that she did.
Dragging myself out of the river, I make my way to where Chloe waits, trying to ignore the pain that threatens to overcome me. It feels like forever before I make it to the abandoned building where I took Chloe to drive my car. Memories of her hair whipping back as the wind hits it, a beaming smile on her face. It was that moment I was for sure head over heels for her, despite only having just met.
At first, I don't see Chloe until I remembered that we kissed a little aways from the building in the woods. Using my better, newfound senses, I seek her out until I spot her sitting up against a tree. My heart starts to pound as she doesn't turn around even though I'm not being quiet. Is she…dead? She can't be. Taking a deep breath, I shift, pushing away the pain to get to Chloe faster.
"Chlo?" I crouch in front of her, taking in her too pale skin and closed eyes. Blood covers her shirt, darker in some areas than others. I press my head gently against her chest, listening for a heartbeat. It's when I hear one that she moves.
"Beca?" Chloe asks weakly and I lean back, sighing in relief. "You look horrible."
Despite the pain, I laugh and look down, realizing that I'm naked but not caring. Bruises and cuts cover my body, making it difficult to distinguish what's bad and what's not. My eyes catch on a pile of clothes next to Chloe and I look at her in question.
"Oh sorry. I grabbed these for you on the way. Figured you might need them." Grinning, I put them on as quickly as I can, holding back groans as cuts stretch and bruises ache. The t-shirt and sweatpants are a little too big, but they'll work.
Once again, I crouch in front of Chloe. "How hurt are you, baby?"
"A couple of bullets hit me. They should've…healed by now." With each word, Chloe's breathing gets more shallow and I try not to panic. She needs blood. Closing my eyes, I think. Will my blood work for her? Do I even have enough to spare with all my wounds? I'm not even sure how bad I'm hurt and won't until I have a moment to focus on them. Chloe won't let me give her blood if she knows I'm hurt. It's worth a shot though.
Laying down, I set my head on Chloe's lap, making sure my hair is not on my neck. For a minute, Chloe just stares, her eyes dulled by the pain. When she finally gets it, she refuses.
"Beca, I can't do that to you. I don't want to do that to anyone. I hate that I'm like this."
I stare at Chloe and reach up until my hand rests on her cheek. "I don't hate that you're like this and you know why? If you weren't a vampire, we would never have met. I would never have found the best thing in my life, my other half. If you weren't like this, you would be dead right now and I would not have a reason to go on. Please, do this for me Chlo. I need you."
Swallowing audibly, Chloe kisses my hand. "I love you."
"I love you too." With that, Chloe gently lifts my head up a little before leaning down and pressing her lips to the base of my neck.
"I promise this won't hurt." Chloe's lips move against my neck, making me shiver.
"I trust you." A second later, she bites down.
