The smell of campfire smoke and roasting meat slowly woke me up. My body felt heavy and weird. When I opened my eyes, I saw tree branches and stars overhead. I stirred sluggishly, trying to wake up more.

"Looks like she's finally waking up."

The gravelly voice wasn't familiar, although I knew I'd heard it recently. I turned my head and saw two heavy-set men and a thinner one sitting on the other side of the campfire.

I tried to sit up and saw my hand press against the blanket. My hand. Not my paw. I blinked at it, my wandering mind not comprehending how I was human. What was I doing in the forest with strangers? Especially at night? Where was the rest of my pack? And why wasn't I in wolf form?

I tried to shift back, and my muscles trembled, but nothing happened. Something else seemed to be missing, and it took me a moment to realize that it was the packlink. Even if my Comforter abilities disappeared when I was a human, my mindlinking shouldn't have been affected.

Then I remembered.

With a gasp, I struggled to sit up and finally managed it, although my arms shook, still not fully recovered from my involuntary nap. There was a tree right behind me, and it prevented me from trying to shuffle away from them. I stared at my kidnappers in shock and fear, not sure how to react or what to do. The lanky man watched me, although the other two remained focused on roasting some skewers of meat.

My mind slowly began working again, and I looked down, still trying to get over my shock. Oddly enough, I was sitting on several blankets while the men sat on logs. The ropes on my wrists were gone, although one was still tied around my ankle. My eyes followed the rope, and I realized they had tied the other end to a tree to keep me from running away.

I looked around but nothing was familiar. Not that I had expected to recognize any landmarks. My forest skills were about as good as my sewing skills. In other words, non-existent.

"We ran hard today and didn't stop until the sun began to set," the lanky man told me idly, "so there's no chance of you getting back to the ashes of your packhouse. I probably don't have to point out the odds of you escaping three rogues in the forest. Even if we don't find you, something else will."

I wrapped my arms around myself, shivering, although not from the cold. "W-why?"

My voice was raspy and faint, although he still heard it.

"Some packs will pay a lot for a Comforter. Or Omegas. Normally, we watch the less tolerant packs and help Omegas escape if the pack or leading members become abusive. Or if they just want to join a different pack and their pack doesn't agree. Doesn't happen often, but it still occurs. We escort them to a distant pack that'll treat them better, and the pack pays us for guarding them along the way."

That didn't match what I had just gone through, and I just stared at him.

He saw my disbelieving expression and elaborated, "Your case was a bit different. That young Alpha was about to get himself into deep trouble. Not only was he trying to sell you, but he was also trying to hire assassins to take out the Alphas in neighboring packs. He would have gotten the entire pack killed for his stupidity."

"If you killed him, why didn't you leave me there?" I just wanted to go home. I could only imagine how hard this would hit the pack.

"There was no one else in line for the Alpha title, and to the best of our knowledge, those assassins were coming. We arranged for the Alpha to clear out the packhouse, although he wasn't aware that we planned to burn it. No one else should have died, so they'll scatter and join neighboring packs. Those packs either wouldn't have let you in, like the Delvier pack, or they already had a Comforter. I know it's mean to tear you away from the people you've known all your life, but we know there are packs wishing they had a Comforter."

"T-there's a pack by the Greenvale river. Greenvale Pack. I know some people there, and they want a Comforter, but don't have one." If I could get them to take me to Mazie and Anabel's pack, they could let my pack know I was still alive and safe.

"Greenvale river, Greenvale river... Ah, that one. Sorry, girlie, we're going the other way. Besides, we never stop at nearby packs since they would probably kill us the moment they realize what we did. Wherever we take you, they won't have even heard of your pack. The farther we go, the more we'll get paid since no nearby packs will have any claim on you."

My hopes were once again dashed. I doubted his story was entirely true, but a few things couldn't be denied: my Alpha had tried to sell me, he was dead, this group was motivated by profit, they were going to take me far away, and there was no way I could successfully escape these three in a forest.

Tears ran down my cheeks silently. I wiped them away, fervently wishing that this was a bad dream, but I knew it wasn't. I had no idea what to do.

The oddly chatty man stood up and grabbed a skewer of meat. He walked over and held it out towards me, ignoring how I flinched slightly.

"Here, it's rabbit."

"Thanks," I replied automatically, sniffling slightly.

I gingerly took it from him and took a bite, chewing the hot meat quickly. It was overdone, but I wasn't about to complain. When I finished the meat, he brought me another skewer.

"Eat all you want. There are plenty of rabbits around."

The greasy meat sat heavily in my stomach, slowly convincing it that it wasn't hungry anymore. I finished the meat on the skewer and began looking at the forest around us.

"You need to take a bathroom break?"

I nodded slowly, and he came over and untied the rope on my ankle.

"We'll give you a chance to prove you're trustworthy. Go as far as you need to but come back when you finish." He passed me a handful of toilet paper.

"Thank you." I got to my feet shakily and stumbled in the direction of the bushes. It was a small miracle they were letting me leave their sight, but I was also certain we were a long way from any pack border.

I hesitated as I neared the dark bushes and shrubs. Taking a deep breath, I went deeper into the shadows, wishing the moon wasn't just a small sliver in the sky. It was so dark out here, and my imagination was painting vivid pictures of the dangerous creatures that could be lurking in every shadow.

I stumbled far enough away that it felt like I had some privacy. If nothing else, I couldn't see the glow from the fire or hear it crackling. Was there a proper way to pee in the forest in human form? It wasn't a subject that I had ever heard discussed. I took a chance and went between two bushes, leaving the toilet paper under the edge of the shrub once I finished.

Crickets chirped around me and helped calm my nerves, but the faint rustling in the plants sent my heart racing. I really hoped it was just rabbit. It didn't sound big enough to be a fox.

I began walking back and tripped over a fallen log. There hadn't been a log on my trip out. I looked around, but it was difficult to make out anything in the darkness. If I needed any proof that I wouldn't be able to find my way back home on my own, I had just found it – I had no idea where I was, nor did I know how to get back to the campfire. My cheeks flushed, embarrassed that I had gotten lost on a bathroom trip.

"Uh," I tried to raise my voice. "Where are you?"

"Over here," the lanky man's voice called out from the side.

I got up and sheepishly began heading in that direction, relieved to see the glow of the fire as I got closer. My cheeks were probably still red when I entered the small clearing. The three men were sitting right where they had been before. I went and sat on the blankets, pulling one around my shoulders to keep the nighttime chill at bay.

The lanky man poked the fire with a stick, stirring it up some. "I was wondering if you'd get lost. Most do the first few nights. Just call out so we can guide you back."

I wasn't sure how to reply, so I just nodded.

"The journey is going to be rough, but we're babying you, so you won't really be doing anything."

As much as I wanted to point out that the long trip wasn't necessary, I remained silent. He seemed patient and amiable enough right now, but I had seen him almost kill Sorrin. Without my senses, I had no way to determine his mindset or if I pushed him too far. Nor did I have my aura to help me if any of them got upset.

"I know you slept all day, but you might as well try to get some shut-eye since we'll be getting up early. The three of us will take turns keeping watch. If we snarl at something, your spot is the most protected, so stay where you are unless we tell you otherwise."

I nodded again and lay down, pulling another blanket over me and rolling a corner up to act like a pillow. As I watched the fire flicker, I tried to think of a way out of this trap, but to no avail. My mind rolled in circles – as much as I wanted to get away from these men, I knew I wouldn't last long in the forest. It pained me to have to go with them willingly, away from my pack and the only life I'd known.

The idea of trying to sneak away was tempting, but I knew I wouldn't get far. No man's land was huge, and pack territories were just polka dots across it. I had no idea where these packs were or how to find them. From the books I had read, I also knew that things like cougars, bears, and other predators lurked out here.

The situation left me emotionally exhausted, and I fell asleep almost as soon as I closed my eyes.