Contract Marriage With Alpha Snow - Chapter 426

Chapter 426: The Serpent Crane and the Kraken
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CHAPTER 426

~Zara’s POV~

My mind raced. If we moved, we’d fall straight into the Kraken’s pit. If we stayed, we’d be devoured by the Serpent Crane.

There was no winning in this scenario.

Think, Zara. Think fast.

The serpents weren’t attacking us yet. They were watching, assessing like they were waiting for something.

Movement.

Was this a test of patience or a battle of instincts? I forced my breath to slow and my muscles to remain still.

But Kaid—he was already gripping the hilt of his dagger. I shook my head subtly, my fingers tightening against the rock in warning.

Don’t fight. Don’t move. We need another way.

Kaid’s eyes flicked to mine, his expression hard, but he gave a barely there nod.

The serpents hovered above us, their heads weaving in slow, hypnotic motions. The wind picked up, carrying their scent further into the marsh.

And that’s when I realised something.

They weren’t just sensing us. They were waiting for something else. Something more dangerous.

A low rumble vibrated through the cliffside. Not from above. From below. The water shifted.

My blood turned to ice.

The Kraken.

It had felt the presence of the serpents above. And now? It was stirring once again.

No. No, no, no, no!

Before I could warn Kaid, the smaller of the two serpent heads struck.

Not at us—but at the water below.

And in that instant, all hell broke loose.

“Duck, Kaid, and transform!”

Our claws extended, and our fangs protruded out as we dove to the side immediately. Using our strength, we lifted ourselves up and immediately threw our bodies upward on the cliff.

Our little movement caught the attention of the Serpent Crane, and immediately he turned, its enormous body moving swiftly along with it, forgetting the Kraken.

‘Kaid, behind that big rock,’ I called, and immediately we rushed in that direction. Thankfully, the serpent’s movement caused a mist of dust, briefly masking us from its eyes.

But I knew that was very little, given its enormous head. It didn’t take long for the bigger-headed snake to locate us, and it hissed.

Thankfully, Kaid and I had already approached our destination. “Jump!”

We both jumped and rolled over, hiding behind the rock with our bodies pressed tightly against it.

A sharp, elongated hiss sliced through the heavy air again, vibrating against my skin like a warning.

I dared lift my eyes, and I saw its massive two heads clearly, their scales dark as night, hovering above us. Their forked tongues flicked out, tasting the air, desperately trying to sense us.

Beside me, Kaid shifted ever so slightly, his back pressed against the rock. He wasn’t breathing. Neither was I.

We were trapped.

“The serpent,” Kaid mouthed.

I barely had time to process his words before the two monstrous heads lowered slightly, their golden, slitted eyes locking onto us.

“Fuck,” I barely breathed, my throat tightening.

Their long, sinewy bodies slithered over the rock face, coiling effortlessly like silent, deadly ropes. Their weight made the ground beneath us tremble slightly, and small pebbles broke free and tumbled toward the marsh below.

The marsh where the Kraken still waited. Earlier on, the serpent crane had escaped the Kraken’s trap when it chased after us. That alone gave me the idea of how to escape this snake fully.

One wrong move, and we’d either be eaten whole by the serpents—or we took the other way of plunging back into the water, where another nightmare awaited.

Kaid’s gaze darted toward me, then downward. He was thinking the same thing. “Options?” he mouthed, his fingers twitching ever so slightly toward his weapons.

I swallowed hard. We could fight. But fighting would mean movement. And movement would mean noise.

Noise would be our death sentence.

Siona’s warning burned in my mind.

“You must not disturb the waters, or you will not leave it alive.”

That meant falling into the marsh was not an option. And it seems the Kraken was more deadly.

My breathing slowed as I carefully analysed the creatures before us. The serpents were waiting just like before.

And that was when I realised it. I was wearing Snow’s protective necklace he gifted me for Valentine’s. Quickly, I reached for Kaid’s hand and held it.

Whatever was protecting me protected Kaid. The Serpent Crane moved their heads from side to side, meaning it was working a great deal.

Good.

“My necklace is masking our scent I believe,” I mouthed back. “Stay still.”

Kaid nodded minutely, his eyes flickering with both understanding and frustration. Seconds passed. Then minutes.

The wind howled through the ravine, brushing against the damp rock. The serpents’ tongues flickered again, their heads lowering slightly, searching.

They weren’t leaving. They were waiting. For one of us to make a mistake—for me to make a mistake.

Because I was already shaking from the cold, my muscles were cramping from holding myself still.

The larger of the two serpents turned its massive head, the golden slit of its pupil narrowing slightly.

It sensed me.

Panic spiked in my veins.

Kaid must have noticed because his fingers—on mine—curled slightly in a warning.

“Don’t move. Don’t panic,” he mouthed.

But before I could calm myself, the wind shifted—just enough to carry the scent of blood through the air.

I sniffed, it was my blood.

I had minor injuries from the fight with Vera. The scent must have clung to me, mingling with the salt and dampness in the air.

And now, the serpent knew.

The beast’s jaws opened slightly.

I had to act.

With a barely contained breath, I slowly reached for my dagger, keeping my movements excruciatingly slow.

But just as my fingers brushed the hilt, the second serpent struck.

“Zara!” Kaid lunged just as the monstrous head dove toward me, its fangs gleaming in the moonlight and straight away, he fired a shot at the serpent’s head.

Bullseye.

But in saving me, Kaid drew the bigger-headed serpent to himself. Immediately, he dashed away from the rock we hid. “Don’t you dare follow me!” he yelled as he stepped back and immediately dashed off.

My heart skipped several beats, and I held my breath the second I saw Kaid leap as the big snake dove its head on teh ground at him.

It missed and Kaid roleld on the dirt ground, standing up only to continue his race back to teh same danger we recently escaped.

“Bloody hell no,” I muttered.

I already knew what Kaid was about to do. That idiot Lycan King was about sacrificing himself as bait to lure the Kraken and the Serpent Crane into a fight that would spare us.

“Kaid, fucking come back,” I yelled as the Serpent Crane moved again, lifting ist head high into the air before thrusting his head forward, ready to swallow him whole when Kaid was at the edge of the cliff.

I had tried to focus and channel my powers, but right now, I had no control, and it wasn’t working.

“Fuck it,” I growled, dropping my bag and chasing, only to stop when Kaid disappeared from sight and the Snake dove also.

“No!”

Its large head and body fell over the cliff, slamming into a rocky cliff across the big hole above the marsh, and then straight away it fell over.

The same deafening deep roar echoed throughout the whole landscape as the ground beneath me trembled while both humongous creatures battled in the water below.