“You’ve seen her?” I reach for the ribbon, but he holds it high and out of my reach.

“Ah, ah, ah.” He clucks his tongue. “Now it’s your turn to offer something of value to me.”

I say nothing.

“A long kiss from those pretty lips and a few touches will suffice,” he says. “And then, perhaps, I won’t kill you.”

He steps closer, pushing a few matted strands of hair away from my face. “What do you say?”

“Sure.” I shrug. “Close your eyes first.”

He looks as if he’s about to oblige for a moment, but then he presses his hands against my chest and pushes me. Hard.

The force sends my body flying against the trunk of a tree, and an excruciating pain radiates through my spine.

Undaunted, I stumble to my feet, holding out the dagger once more.

“Foolish, foolish girl.” He moves behind a red stone, laughing.

“Step into the light,” I say. “Come back.”

“You’re about to regret testing me.” His laughter rings out against the night, echoing through the forest, and then it stops.

The only thing I can hear is sap dripping from the branches above and branches moaning under the weight of snowfall.

Slowly walking toward the red stone, I prepare to attack, but a lone wolf steps from behind the rock.

His grey and white fur glistens under the moonlight, complementing his sapphire blue eyes.

I swallow, hoping he’ll walk past me.

I stand as still as ice, not blinking and barely breathing.

Walk away. Please walk away…

My hopes of him forgetting my existence dissolve when three new wolves appear.

No, no, no…

The tiny man’s laughter rises again, this time from a distance, and the alpha wolf licks his lips. His eyes glow greedily as he bares his oversized fangs, but I’m too delusional to surrender.

“Back up,” I say firmly, sucking in a breath as two more wolves appear. “Back the fuck up.”

I step back, making stabbing motions with my blade, but the pack moves forward. Matching me step for step.

They gradually break away, circling me, and my foot catches on a frozen stump.

Screaming, I fall backward onto the snow, dropping my dagger. I try to get up, but I’m far too slow.

The wolves are now within arm’s distance, growling and snarling, so close that I can feel their warm breaths on my skin.

As if he’s entitled to the first bite, the alpha wolf stands over me and opens his mouth wide.

I shut my eyes, giving in to my final fate.

“Get the fuck off of her.” Gabriel’s voice cuts across the air, rendering us all still.

A split-second passes and I peer through my lashes, watching Gabriel push the wolf away from my body with his bare hands.

The pack quickly diverts their attention toward him, seemingly unbothered by the gun he’s slinging around his shoulder.

Swinging it three times, he stabs one wolf in the eye with the barrel before shooting a bullet between its eyes.