Chapter 207: Hunting Season: Part One

Aila sprinted down the dirt track and towards the cover of the forest. She did not know where she was, but if she could lose him in the woods, recover from her injuries, then shift, that was her priority. Escaping from Clint and the hunters. Her head whipped back behind her as she heard Clint laughing maniacally; he was in front of the log cabin, dabbing at his chequered shirt.

"The more you run, Aila. The more I like it." He said darkly, knowing well that she could still hear him. Aila looked forwards, her eyes scanning the area. Deeper into the woods, that's what she needed to do. She gritted her teeth as she heard the pounding of footsteps from behind her. He was seriously chasing her!

He would never keep up. Although Aila was not at her full speed, it was still faster than the average human. Even still, she pushed on, letting her legs and arms burn from her increased speed, yet her chest was the worst out of all her pain. Figures, she had been shot a few days ago and had wolfsbane in her system. She didn't even know how she could run right now, but it felt bloody incredible getting away from the suffocating cabin with the psychopath.

BANG!

Aila ducked her head, her breath hitched as she looked back at the gunshot. Clint must have been at least 100meters away, and he somehow nearly hit her. He was a scary mother*****. He was the one who shot her with a sniper rifle, but from what she could tell, he was not running with such a big gun. Were all hunters that good at shooting?

BANG!

Aila yelped and jumped out of the way; she had been foolishly following one of three dirt tracks in the woods. She needed to get lost further into the coverage of trees. Clint seemed highly capable of shooting her at long range.

Aila raised her hands as she jumped through two bushes and kept going in the direction away from the path. The further she went, the thicker the forest. Good, there would be more coverage, more concealment. After minutes of running in all directions, trying to lose the hunter, she slowed down to listen out for his steps, his breath and heartbeat.

Aila made sure to keep herself hidden further as she crouched and continued to walk through the forest. She scanned her surroundings; though her senses weren't fantastic right now, she was sure her hearing was much better than his still. But it was very quiet in the forest, making her feel even more on edge. Forests were full of wildlife, so why were the birds at least not chirping or flying around. Was Clint closer, or was the wildlife wary of her?

She was, after all, a predator as well. An injured one, but the birds should know she wouldn't go for them. Her instinct was telling her something was wrong. Aila held her breath and crouched further down into a bush, hiding from sight as she surveyed her surroundings more. She wanted to keep moving, to put as much space between her and Clint as possible.

The minutes she waited in the bush felt like hours, though she knew it hadn't been after glancing at the sky through some of the leaves of the trees. But her body was aching and felt weak. Not only because of the wolfsbane and gunshot wounds but because she had not eaten in four days. Her metabolism was extremely high; the cooked breakfasts and mountains of food she ate on a daily basis were to keep her energy up and her 'hangry' self in place. Now, her stomach felt so empty and her body weak, she could only hope, if she escaped, to hunt soon or find a store. 

Aila almost chuckled at herself. She was in the middle of nowhere!

The Luna also did not know where she was. So, if she were to run off into the wilderness, she would have to survive like a normal human until her wolf came back and-

Her thoughts froze as the quiet sounds of footsteps traipsed through the forest from the right side of her. Aila gulped and held her breath again as she heard the pounding of a heartbeat and the smell of excitement radiating off the man. It was definitely Clint. The psychotic murderer. Was being a hunter only an excuse for him to kill?

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SNAP!

Aila flinched but kept her tense body still. She watched from in between the leaves as Clint walked in her direction from across from her. He was scanning the area, his gun in hand ready. She could see the excitement behind his cold eyes. This was a game of cat and mouse to him, and she knew cats liked to play with their food. Clint had no intentions of killing her; he just wanted some fun before returning her to the hunters.

He came closer and stopped in front of the bush she was crouched in. Aila's widened eyes were now looking at his jeans, her anxiety creeping up her body as her palms became damp. Aila prayed to the Moon Goddess that he would not see her. All he had to do was look down and, if he paid attention, would most likely see her white hair through the small gaps of the leaves.

"Aiiiiilaaa…." He shouted in a singsong voice that made a shiver go down her spine. Aila watched his hands rest on his hips, the gun pointing down in her direction from how he held it. 

"Oh, Aiiiiilaaa.. Come out, come out wherever you are!" She could hear the smile and delight in his creepy voice.

"Hmmm, I can't wait to get my hands on you.." He murmured under his breath. He stepped to the side and turned his back on the bush. His retreating footsteps didn't cause her to relax. Aila waited another five minutes, or so she guessed. She was locked in the position she was at, not wanting to move for fear of being found.

But the conflict between moving and not moving was making her a scaredy-cat. Snap out of it, Aila!  She slapped her cheeks lightly and slowly moved out of her position. She kept facing the direction Clint went and stepped backwards in the opposite direction, all the while scanning her surroundings. She couldn't hear his footsteps or heartbeat, so that was something at least.

Aila released her breath and turned on the spot, beginning to quicken her steps. Maybe she should run across the tracks again and go to the other side of the forest. Clint did, after all, follow her here? Yes, that's a good plan.

Aila did not run yet; she wanted to keep her footsteps as light as possible. She was still fearful that he was nearby; even if her senses weren't picking up on anything, she couldn't rely on them alone. Right now, she had to think of herself as only human.

Huh?

Her foot landed on some type of a metal spring?

SNAP!

"AHH!" Aila cried out instantly, and she collapsed to the ground. Tears fell from her eyes at the excruciating pain; her hands shook as she looked at what was around her leg. Her leg seemed broken, with blood already coating the metal bear trap piercing through her skin.

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