The Mating Run by Leeka

Chapter 48

Thoughts

My head hurts, throbbing like a drum beaten by invisible hands.

Darkness surrounds me, a heavy shroud that muffles the world. I try to open my eyes, but they feel glued shut. Slowly, I manage to pry them open, squinting against the harsh light. I see Zeke’s worried face hovering above me, lines of concern

etched on his forehead.

“Alina, can you hear me?” he asks, his voice a distant echo in my foggy mind.

I nod weakly, unable to find my voice. Everything feels fuzzy, like I’m floating in a dream. My body aches, and my limbs feel heavy, as if they’re made of lead. Zeke’s hand presses against my forehead, and I flinch at the cool touch.

“You’re burning up,” he mutters, more to himself than to me. “We need to keep moving.”

Moving? Where are we?

My memories are a jumble of disjointed images, like a broken movie reel playing in my mind. I remember Victor, his teeth sinking into my flesh. The pain was searing, intense, but now it’s just a dull ache, a distant memory.

Zeke helped me escape, but from what?

Where are we running to?

Zeke lifts me effortlessly, cradling me in his arms. The world tilts, and I close my eyes against the disorienting sensation. When I open them again, we’re in a

―

different place a dimly lit room with a flickering lantern. Zeke eases me onto a makeshift bed, and I can feel the scratchy fabric beneath me.

“Drink this,” he says, holding a cup to my lips. I glance inside and see clear liquid. Water, maybe? I take a sip, the coolness soothing my parched throat. It’s a small victory, a step toward clarity.

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Thoughts

“Where are we?” I manage to mumble, my voice hoarse.

“Somewhere safe, for now,” Zeke replies, his eyes scanning the room as if expecting danger to burst through the walls. “You have a fever. I thought it wouldn’t get worse, but it did.”

“Oh…”

Zeke sighs, his jaw clenching.

can’t stay in one place for long. We need

blurs as Zeke lifts me again, and we’re outside, the night air cool against my skin. I cling to him, feeling a strange mix of gratitude and vulnerability. We walk, or rather, Zeke walks while I’m carried like a fragile

mind.

lays me down on a narrow cot, and I watch as he rummages through a bag.

I ask, my

medicine,” Zeke replies, his gaze steady. “It’ll help with the

Victor’s bite.”

and injects the medicine. I flinch, a sharp sting coursing through my arm, but it fades quickly. Zeke watches me carefully, his eyes searching for

“Better?” he asks.

come from?” I ask, my voice a whisper.

Zeke changes the subject,

20

“I know you are,

but I’don’t deny it.

admit, my stomach rumbling in

beside him, and the aroma of porridge fills the air. I glance at him

of mischief in his eyes. “I have my

eyebrow, my curiosity

sound that carries a

have a knack for

ladles the porridge into a bowl, I can’t help but wonder about

in front of me is too inviting to resist. Zeke hands me the bowl, and I take a hesitant spoonful. The taste is surprisingly comforting, the simple flavors a welcome reprieve

decent cook,” I tease, trying to lighten

smirks. “I have my

us filled with the clinking of spoons against the bowl. The porridge is a balm to

can’t shake the feeling that there’s more Zeke isn’t telling me. The air is charged with unspoken secrets, and I wonder if the darkness

empty bowl aside, “There’s more to this, isn’t

eats

At the beginning of the Mating Run, I had simple dreams. Dreams of days spent with Ettie, the sun warming our faces as we laughed. Maybe even with Victor, his cocky grin and charming words filling the air. But now, everything is different. The twists

Her eyes, once filled with warmth, now hold a glint of something darker. I never expected that. We were supposed to navigate the challenges of the Mating Run together, support each other. But as the days passed, something changed in her. Maybe it was the

ally, has become a threat. I don’t know when it happened, the shift from trust to trepidation, but it’s there, a lingering shadow in the corners of my mind. The person I thought I knew so well has become a stranger, and the

gnaws at me.

never would have believed that he would betray me. His charm, his smooth words – they were a mask hiding the true nature of the predator within. I trusted him, foolishly believed that he might be an unexpected ally in

memories replay in my mind like a broken record. Victor’s smile, his whispered promises, the moments when I let my guard down. It all seems like a cruel joke now. How could I have been so blind? How did I not see the danger lurking beneath the

beginning, he was a presence, a force that seemed untouchable. Now, he’s a threat, a reminder that even the ones who seem the least likely can be the

out, would I have taken a different path? Would

Thoughts

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