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She had not expected anyone would find her, so the sudden shout in the dark surprised her and made her jump. Her heart raced and she whirled around to see a coyote standing a few metres away. She had always known that other vicious creatures stalked the borders of Inferni, but had never honestly expected she would encounter them. She knew Kaena and Gabriel, so she hoped she could drop their names and weasel her way out of this fiasco without getting hurt.
He demanded an explanation and Tayui froze. His voice was strong and tired simultaneously, but she could see he was ready for a fight. He snarled and Tayui fought her instinct to snarl back. She felt her lip twitch in response, but curbed the desire to snarl back and exert her dominance. She also had the instinct to know that as a non-member of the clan, she was no better than a lowly omega. This knowledge was so ingrained in her that she hardly though about it and instead ducked her head low, showing she meant no harm.
“I was going to try and talk to Kaena, but decided against it. I decided to turn around. I mean you no harm,” she explained with a shake of her head. She knew that this battle-torn warrior would destroy her in moments regardless of her minimal fighting experience.
She did, however, have to chuckle when he noted that it was Inferni. “I know,” she replied dryly, trying not to laugh and cower in fear at the same time. He was pulling off the imposing look quite well. “But I hardly reek,” she added distastefully. She didn’t know about the rest of Anathema, but all of the posturing Theodore had done seemed quite unnecessary. She was curious to hear Inferni’s side of the story with the trespassing coyote, but supposed there wasn’t much to ask. He had trespassed so they had treated him like any other: they killed him due to a border breach. She supposed it was a rather draconian response, but nonetheless, it was legitimate. Inferni did the same too – she knew that well.