Chapter 6

Maxwell POV

The girl's eyes are wide and alert with pure anxiety. I watch as she rips her hands off the hood and darts into the woods.

I hook my fingers into the door handle. “Wait!”

Her knobbly knees attempt to carry her as fast as she can move. The smell of fear drips off her with every step she takes. It blends with her scent and leaves a sour taste in my mouth.

The last thing I want is to scare her further, but it’s clear she needs medical attention.

It doesn’t take long to catch up to her with my long legs. She’s strong, but she’s full of adrenaline and is likely using every last drop of energy. Her brunette hair is a matted mess as it cascades down her back and over her shoulders.

“Please, stop,” I say gently. “I want to help you.”

Her breathing hitches at the sound of my voice echoing across the trees. Somehow, her legs pick up speed, her feet dodging the roots that have overgrown and are protruding out of the ground.

I managed to catch up with her, but I knew better than to touch her right now. I have no idea what she’s been through or where she’s come from.

Her wide eyes look up at me in shock as she stops in her tracks. The loudness of her lungs is all I can hear, along with the heavy thumping of my heart.

Now that I can finally get a good look at her, she’s severely malnourished. The clothes she’s wearing are hanging off her bones, dirt marks smearing across what’s left of the fabric. There is a large gash that covers her abdomen, along with other bruises and wounds that look infected.

As I take one cautious step forward, she takes a small, shaky one back.

Her bare foot crunches on a fallen branch, and it cracks under her weight. I blink, and her whole body loses balance. She falls onto her backside, a quiet hiss escaping her mouth.

My hands hold up in defense, somehow trying to prove that I’m not going to harm her, but something tells me it’s not going to be easy. She scurries backward on her hands until her spine hits the stump of a tree with a thud.

Those petrified eyes glisten with tears which soon fall down her cheeks, rolling over her pale skin. “P-please don’t hurt me,” her quiet voice begs.

I lower down to her level, attempting not to seem intimidating, but she flinches anyway. Her body curls into a ball as if she’s trying to protect herself by hiding behind her knees.

“I’m not going to hurt you,” I whisper as I drop my tone.

The girl's breathing becomes harsher. Her gaze hesitantly wanders over my face and studies my body language.

“It’s okay,” I say. “I’m not going to hurt you.”

I glance over my shoulder for a split second to gauge how far we’ve moved from my parked car. Out of the corner of my eye, I see her scramble and run off with a strangled cry.

“Please, stop.” I stand and follow after her. “I want to help you. You’re hurt.”

Before she can get too far, I lean forward and wrap my hand around her wrist to stop her. I know I shouldn’t have touched her. It’s the last thing I should have done, but I can’t let her go—not after my wolf’s discovery.

As soon as our skin touches, tingles race through my arm. It paralyzes my body for a moment, and I resist the urge to close my eyes at the new sensation—a feeling that is all too familiar yet completely different.

“I’m sorry,” I say, my heart straining. I released her. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have touched you.”

“Please,” she whimpers, her body trembling with panic. “Please, just let me go.”

Her bottom lip quivers as tears continuously fall from her red eyes.

“You’re hurt and clearly in danger.

Please let me help you. I’m not going to hurt you,” I plead, but I realize how hard it must be for her to trust a stranger.

My wolf is clawing at me to do more, but I don’t know what else I can do. I refuse to force her and bruise her trust further. It’s the last thing she needs. I can’t let her run off into the night, not knowing if she’s safe or if she’ll make it.

She shakes her head vigorously. “I’m not going anywhere with you.”

I sigh. Ava. I need your help. Right now. I demand through our mind link.

My eyes remain focused on the girl my wolf screams as our mate. I’d be a liar if I said my mind wasn’t a mess right now, but I can figure everything else out later.

Her well-being is a priority, not my newfound emotions. Mate or not, she needs help.

“I’m not going to hurt you,” I say again. I could say it a million times, but I know she’s not going to believe me. I dread to think what awful events she’s been through. “I would never hurt you. I won’t touch you again. I promise.”

She scrunches her eyebrows together, her head pulling back slowly. “I don’t believe you.”

What’s wrong? Are you okay? Ava’s voice echoes around my head.

I quickly take in my surroundings and tell my sister where I am. She’ll see my car on the edge of the road. Despite my wolf screaming at me, I ignore the lightbulb flickering in my head.

Okay. It'll be five minutes.

“You don’t have to believe me right now,” I say gently, even though she continues to tremble with what must be intractable fear. “But I promise you can trust me.”

Her expression twists into a look of horror. I curse in my mind.

“You don’t know me!”

The words she screams are pure distress. It makes my wolf wince to even imagine what she’s endured. I choose to push it to the back of my mind for the sake of not losing control.

“I know I don’t know you, and you don’t know me, but I can get you to safety. I can get you the help that you need. I know it’s a lot for you to trust me right now.

I’m a total stranger, I get it. But please, I won’t hurt you,” I try again, but it’s like I’m at a dead-end. “I only want to help.”

“Please, I don’t want this,” she sobs. “I just want to get away. Please. Please.”

I open my mouth to speak, but the sound of Ava’s voice floats through my head. Maxwell, we’re here. Is it safe?

Yes.

My eyes stay trained on the terrified girl when I hear footsteps behind me. The hairs on the back of my neck stand as I sense Ava and Sebastian’s scents. “What’s going on?” my sister demands.