Hey all! I could give you a long list of excuses as to why this update is so late, but the honest truth is ultimately, I'm just lazy. Hope you all enjoy this chapter!

Disclaimer: The only thing I own is the ideas swimming around in my head. Characters and settings belong solely to Ms. Armstrong and her lawyers.

Chapter three

I screamed as loud and as long as I could, but no amount of noise could detour my attacker from his goal. I turned to run, but the werewolf was much faster, and before I had a chance to get away, he pushed me up against the tree with the weight of his huge body. I struggled as hard as I could, but that only made the bulge pressed against my backside more prominent, so I stopped squirming and waited to see what he would do.

"You were a hell of a lot harder to find than I would have imagined, girly." He whispered raggedly into my ear, his breath almost causing me to bring up my dinner. "But I could find you no matter where you go, did you know that? Girls your age," he paused to sniff my hair, "have a unique scent; sweet, like all girls blossoming into womanhood." I blanched at that, and felt him smile against me. "That's why I like them young, you know? Only once in her life does a woman have this scent, and with our sense of smell, werewolves are some of the only creatures that can smell the subtle change. Lucky for you, it's my drug of choice."

With every word he spoke, I felt myself grow more and more frightened. How could anyone consider themselves lucky when an unwanted man intended to have his way with her? I forced myself to take deep, calming breaths to keep from passing out. Part of me thought slipping into unconsciousness was a mercy and that at least I could pretend the whole thing was a dream, but a determined, more panicked side was demanding that I fight. That I could get out of this. Throughout my thoughts, Liam kept talking, telling me things he'd like to do to me.

"...and if you scram loud enough, maybe I'll keep you for a few months until the scent wears off. I could always eat you later if I get bored..."

Think! I had to find a way out of this. I could keep screaming, but I was so far away that even Derek with his superhuman hearing wouldn't be able to pick up my cries from the house. Guess I shouldn't have told him not to follow me, I thought bitterly.

Slowly, I tested my ability to move, trying not to draw attention to myself. I could move my legs from the knee down, but he had my hips pinned beneath his, so running was out of the question. My forearms were also unheeded, and when I moved, I could feel a small bulge in my pocket. My knife! If I moved slowly enough, I might be able to reach it without him suspecting, and...

"Hey! Are you listening to me, girl?" Liam rasped, his body pushing harder against mine and causing the bark of the tree to scrape my face. "If you're so bored with my conversational skills, maybe I should just show you what I'm going to do you."

With that, he spun me around so I was facing him. The hunger in his eyes was beyond anything I'd ever seen from Derek. With Liam, there was no love in his expression, no tenderness, just raw lust and a predatorial twist of his mouth that almost made me scream. He pushed me down to the ground, but as I fell I let instinct take over. I twisted just enough towards my left side, which allowed me the few precious seconds I needed to reach inside my pocket to grip the knife in my palm.

With a snarl, he jumped after me, straddling my waist and reaching wildly to capture my hands. "That's it, fight me you little bitch." He growled. "The first time is always the sweetest, and I fully intend on enjoying it." He lowered his face as he held on to mine with his free hand, completely forgetting about mine. He forced me to look at him, his teeth bared and nostrils fanned, his eye dark, holding a malice and an eagerness that should never have be present together. "Are you going to scream for me like a good girl, or," He tightened his grip on my wrist and I barely contained a whimper. "Am I going to have to force it out of you?"

I took a deep breath and shut my eyes. The knife was still in my free hand. I can do this. I told myself. Just one move, don't think about it. "Well, is the little bitch so scared she can't even open her mouth?" He turned to let out a maniacal laugh. I snapped my eyes open and swung blindly toward his head. I felt the knife hit something solid, and watched as Liam reared back in a furry of blood and screams, clutching at his face and throwing the knife far into the dark wood. I took the opening to turn and run, hopping he was in too much pain to realise what direction I had gone.

The forest, which had before seemed so mystical and inviting, now seemed bent on keeping me trapped inside. As I ran, branches cut at my face and arms and, I'm sure, the blood from the cuts made my scent all the easier to track. Clouds were forming overhead, blocking out the only source of light I had left. The darkness only served to enhance my fear, causing me to become careless and trip over a root. I felt my right ankle twist as I crashed down towards dirt, causing the fallen leaves to betray me with a horrible crunch.

"YOU BITCH!" A voice yelled from not too far away. "Do you know what you fucking did?!" I screamed as a pair of invisible hands latched on to the front of my shirt and pulled me towards a stinking, now wet body. I felt warm liquid drip down on me, and I looked up into the blackness, praying its source was something causing him great pain. There was just enough light to make out the shape of his ugly face, his one eye was shut and blood poured from a deep gash just above it. I felt a growl rumble throughout his chest as I tried to push him away. "Just a little lower and you'd have taken my eye you little skank." He snarled. "I was going to go easy on you, keep you around, but now..." He shook his head. "Now I'm going to take you like I've been dreaming about every night. By the time I'm done, you'll wish you were dead, if you're not already."

I thrashed harder, screaming like he'd commanded me to earlier. "There's no getting away this time, girly. I can taste your fear just as surely as I can taste your sweet scent."

He reached down and tore at the bottom half of my shirt. I couldn't get away, couldn't move. Fear webbed through me, and my body trembled so hard it rattled my bones. I whimpered, wishing this would all go away, that someone would come and help me. It couldn't let it end like this, there was too much to do. I had to defeat the Edison group. I had to let Tori know just how annoying her loud mouth was. I had to see Derek, just one more time.

If I hadn't ran from him, I would right now be safe in his arms. I focused on that thought, trying to ignore the man on top of me as he reached back and removed my left shoe with a knowing smile. We could be curled up by the fire, me snuggled up to him and listening to his heartbeat, the steady rhythm calm and soothing. I needed him, needed his scent and his taste. Liam had no right doing this to me! I belonged with Derek, and only he had the right to touch me this way. With a new resolve I looked up at Liam, my eyes burning with hate and my mouth twisted in a scowl. He looked at me with surprise as I opened my mouth to scream with everything I had in me, praying this wouldn't be my final breath.

"DEREK!"

A/N: Only one chapter to go! Does Derek save the day, or is he too late to save the woman he loves? Kind of cliche', but you all know you need to find out!