The first thing Amara registers is the feeling of rocking and the sound of an engine. There's a pounding in her head and a haze she's struggling to clear. Sensation in her body begins to return and she realizes she's laying down on a hard surface. Most likely a car from the sound and feel.

Cracking her eyes open despite the pain in her head, she momentarily panics because she sees nothing but darkness before scratchy fabric rubs against her cheek. There is a cloth or bag of some kind on her head. Trying not to move and keeping her breathing steady Amara listens for any clues.

Binding of some sort cuts into her wrists securing them together and tape or something has been smoothed over her mouth. She is surprised they didn't take the time to restrict her legs as well but she will take any small mercies at the moment.

The last thing she fuzzily remembers is Lyam’s still face. By smell alone, she can tell Lyam isn't here and she feels some relief, hoping somebody found her friend and made sure he is okay after that blow. Amara gets the feeling they are well into the night considering no light is finding its way through the weaving of the cloth. Will the party have started? Have they realized she's gone? Are they looking for her? All these are the questions that run through her head.

She pictures everyone's faces, especially Maddox her beautiful mate, and almost wants to cry. She needs to get back to them. She will save herself, there is no other option since she refuses to give in and give up. She centers her mind and concentrates. From the sounds of it, two of the men are up front while the third is there in the back seat sitting beside where she has been tossed.

The fog that had occurred the few times she had the vision-like experiences is encroaching on the edges of her mind. Her hand's tingle as if they’ve been under a heating pack for too long and instinct is driving her actions. Still pretending to be unconscious, Amara allows her fingers to make contact with the man's ankle who is sitting next to her. The moment their bare skin makes contact, the fog descends and images fill her head.

She recognizes some of it. A wolf with pitch-black eyes and fur of silver and black waits for her. A trap set to take and deliver her to him in a beautiful clearing. Some of it had been metaphorical but now she is seeing the reality of it, and what it leads to is Amara getting handed over to the ulfhednar’s Alpha and a fate worse than death. She can’t allow that to happen, they must never reach that clearing.

Thankfully, the men are still none the wiser so Amara bides her time until she feels the car turn into a more secluded area, the sounds of the forest once again surrounding them. Timing it just right, she tenses all of her muscles. She will need an immediate burst of strength to take advantage of the element of surprise.

With all of her strength, Amara kicks the rogue beside her, his head cracking the window behind him. The car jerks and there is shouting but without missing a beat, she kicks the disoriented man so he collides with the driver. The impact makes him lose control of the steering wheel and sends them into an embankment. The car rolls until it comes to a violent stop as they collide with a tree.

Amara was tossed around during the crash and not having her sight or use of her hands leaves her frazzled, not to mention her injuries from before and after. Still, she is eternally grateful for her parent’s training because she is able to use the spike of adrenaline to fall into a hyper-focused state. She doesn’t let the rogues get their bearings before she is slamming herself against the door and sprinting away from the wrecked vehicle.

There are shouts followed by thundering footsteps chasing after her. One has a severely injured leg by the sound of how his foot drags along the ground but it doesn’t stop him. Nothing will stop them and Amara can only run for so long before they catch up and she doesn’t have the strength to fight them right now.

The sound of rapid rushing water grows louder and a desperate plan forms in her head. It’s stupid and reckless especially if the river is flowing as violently as it sounds but she has to take her chances with it because she will not be a fucking pawn for these assholes. It’s a plan crazy enough that her mom would come up with it and in some strange way, that gives her the courage to go through with it.

Deviating her path slightly, Amara puts everything she has into running full speed towards the river the men are cursing and she can feel them at her heels, way too close for comfort. She takes a running leap and her body plummets. Seconds later she hits the freezing waters. Amara tries to catch her breath but the tape covering her mouth gets in the way.

She is tumbling violently, being swept away by the vicious current. In the midst of this, she's finally able to grasp the bag on her head and yank it off. The night is dark without even the moon's reflection as a light source being hidden behind stormy clouds.

Ripping the tape off, she manages a big breath before she's dragged beneath the surface of the water again. The struggle continues and she has become so disoriented she can't tell how long she has been in here or how far it washed her away.

Honestly, she doesn't even know where she is and it is taking all of her strength not to drown but at least she is away from them and some petty part of her feels vindictive glee at having thwarted a part of their plans.

Unfortunately, Amara can tell her body is getting sluggish with nothing but adrenaline fueling it at this point. Suddenly, she's thrust against a large rock hissing in pain at the impact. Regardless, she holds on for dear life using the sliver of moonlight that has appeared to help her see where the bindings on her hands are weak.

Using the jagged edge of the rock to try to saw her way through the rope, slowly but surely the rope is fraying away but her hands are also being rubbed raw drawing blood. She can’t afford to stop so she grits her teeth and thinks of the people she loves, giving her the will to keep going.

Finally, it snaps and Amara climbs on the rock using her bloody hands to climb out of the turbulent river and onto dry land. She is battered, bruised, and tired. Looking around from her position slumped onto the ground she doesn't recognize anything which isn’t surprising. She could be anywhere considering it was early afternoon when they took her and it's the dead of night now.

Coughing up any of the water she swallowed, Amara wills herself to move. She can't just stay there in some unknown secluded place where the ulfhednar may find her. It’s unlikely but not impossible. The pain in her head is thumping painfully and a touch of her fingers reveals it is indeed bleeding. Her hands are injured along with what feels like every other part of her being.

At this point, Amara feels tired, defeated, and angry. She could lay there and wait to die or she can keep moving. She once again thinks of her mom, who may possibly not be her birth mother but is certainly the mom that raised her. She imagines what Elsie would do and knows her best chance of surviving is turning herself over to her wolf. Mom always said that when you can’t keep going, your wold will always be there to protect you.

Amara lets that calm her and feels her wolf giving her the strength to keep moving even though her body doesn't want to. Letting the shift come over her, she releases full control to her wolf. She can feel the pendant against her fur and is thankful the chord attached to it is long enough that it did not snap when she shifted.

Allowing her wolf's instinct to guide them forward, they start running even if she has no clue where she is leading them. At some point, her mind shuts off and the wolf takes full control. They run and run only stopping for a quick drink. Time becomes irrelevant as they run but she's vaguely aware of the sun coming and going.

Exhaustion finally does them in and they collapse, her wolf can take no more and a shift is forced leaving Amara dirty, bloody, and naked on the ground. Twigs, leaves, and mud stabbed into her flesh. Her vision is blurry and unfocused. Wherever they ended up is apparently a place her wolf considered safe for them but Amara is nowhere near coherent enough to lift her head let alone take in their surroundings.

She tries to demand that her body move but it can't. It has been pushed to the absolute limit and it has given all that it can. Dark spots begin to cover her vision and everything loses focus. Through the dense murk, a figure approaches but she can only see their booted legs. There is no time to think or feel anything before darkness completely consumes her vision.