Chapter 173. Protect the Alpha

Adeline POV

My silent prayer is returned with a quiet muttering, “Protect the Alpha at all costs.” That’s when it all clicks together like a giant puzzle—it was the Moon Goddess causing those bushes to rustle. She was the one who gave me the window of opportunity to escape from my captors in the shadows. Now I have to fulfill my duty, whatever that may be. I leap over a thick, rotting log and nestle my body deep underneath it, sinking into the damp forest earth. A sharp branch cuts my fur, drawing a thin line of blood, but my wolf doesn’t seem fazed, knowing that our shifter healing should kick in quickly. I only hope the lingering traces of wolfsbane don’t slow down the natural process.

I stay deathly still, holding my breath until I hear shallow, deliberate footsteps coming towards me over the dry leaves. The footsteps stop, and thanks to my heightened shifter hearing, I hear