At a distant part in the back of her mind, Vivian had known she was foolish to have any hope of mercy from her pack that wouldn't end with her death.
"You have to get up, Vivian," Avery said with urgency again, snapping her aunt out of her despairing thoughts. "They're coming. You have to run."
Vivian wasn't certain she could muster the energy for a successful escape but she knew her niece was right. There was little chance she would manage to outrun the pack as it was and none at all if she was in her human skin.
"Run ahead, Avi," Vivian told her niece, a sad smile on her face marked with burning symbols. "Make sure all the doors are open for me."
Slipping to her knees, Vivian summoned every ounce of her dying strength to force herself through the change. The second she shifted into her wolf skin, she knew she'd made a terrible mistake.
The pain, which had been a dull roar moments ago, flared to life within her, and she howled.
Half out of her mind, Vivian sprinted from the room towards Avery, where she stood holding open the door to the outside. Vivian didn't stop, racing past her niece.
"Run, Vivian," Avery called out after her. "Run faster, please!"
Vivian dashed through the trees, hearing shouts and rousing howls behind her.
The pack knew she was fleeing. They were giving chase.
There was only one place Vivian could seek sanctuary that she knew the pack wouldn't dare to follow.
It would probably get her killed, but what else did she have to lose?
The relentless pain urged her to spur onwards, as did the fear of what the pack would do to her once they recaptured her.
Her father had never been kind in life, nor did he have a single merciful bone in his body. Why would he show kindness and mercy in death?
They were gaining on her; she could hear them; the sounds of their hunting howls and their paws thumping on the ground grew louder as the minutes passed.
Alongside her through the trees, she recognised the silhouette of a smaller wolf sprinting ahead faster than her own legs could carry her.
'Avery...' Vivian scented her niece on the run. Although she was forever grateful for Avery's support and help, her mind reeled from the unthinkable consequences that would befall her niece if the pack discovered she was an accomplice in her aunt's escape.
However, if Vivian trailed off her track right now, she would undoubtedly land Avery in trouble. Her niece was trying to divert most of the pack's attention to another path, buying enough enough time for her aunt to gain speed.
'Thank you, Avi.' Vivian thanked mentally, dashing faster than before through the trees. 'I'm sorry...' She had wished she said those words earlier to her niece, painfully aware that she might never see Avery again.
Vivian caught the scent of water ahead, and she almost breathed in relief, knowing she was closing in on her destination.
When she caught sight of the river through the trees, she increased her pace, snarling through the pain and barely noticing when she left the tree line.
Thanks to Avery's little diversion, she was able to put some distance between herself and the pack, but that would only last for so long.
Hitting the water with a splash, Vivian didn't stop despite the biting cold of the water gnawing on her limbs. The cold forced a weak howl from her throat as she waded her way through the fast-running water.
It deepened in the center as soon as she swam, barely keeping her head above the water. The cold did nothing to alleviate the burn beyond providing a distraction and sapping away her strength.
It was a relief when Vivian's wet paws touched the ground again, and she struggled on.
A series of sharp barks drew her gaze back across the river. Her father, her brothers, and many others were standing on the bank. Her eldest brother waded a few feet into the water, but another sharp bark from their father restrained him from treading further.
Moonborn Pack never crossed the river.
Ever.
That was the territory of cursed Lycans.
To do so would get you killed in a heartbeat, as it had done many before them.
But Vivian was left with little choice and had nowhere else to seek shelter. If death was to be her fate, did it matter at whose hand?
Yes, it did, or else she would not have fled to be killed by something or someone other than her family.
The pack remained watchful on the bank. She knew they would keep an eye, for days if necessary, to ensure she didn't return across the river.
Vivian turned her back to them and caught her reflection in the river. Where she once donned a coat of white fur she was proud of, it was now marred by charred, blackened patches.
Closing her eyes, Vivian raised her head and howled mournfully at the sky. A group of reciprocating howls answered her from across the river. She ignored them with a disdainful growl and continued on, climbing onto the bank and limping away into the forest.
She could never return.
As soon as Vivian was out of sight and certain her pack wasn't going to give pursuit, she sluggishly shifted back into her human skin.
There was an instant easing of her pain, and she listlessly sank to the ground, leaning against the trunk of a tree.
The rough bark scraped her wounds, and she hissed through her teeth.
The worst of it all was behind her. Whatever came after would either be mercy that allowed her to live or a swift death for trespassing into this land her pack never dared to set paw or foot on.
Vivian had only one hope that might allow her to escape with her life: that the cursed Lycans who owned this territory might be far away in the North.