by LeAnn Mason
“Again,” Jason barked as he circled me a couple of hours later. We were back to channeling Ebony. My eyes once again closed. I opened my other senses, using them the way Ebony would. Listening for movement—or lack thereof—feeling the presence of another even without seeing them. Weighing the possibility of threat and responding.
Thwack!
“Owwww.” My eyes burst open with the registration of pain. I rubbed the meaty part of my arm that now stung and throbbed, thanks to Jason’s special brand of teachings. The stick was a multi-use tool, like a Swiss Army knife to the demanding Shifter.
“You can glare all you want. You should have known that was coming.”
“It was too frickin’ fast,” I bemoaned. I really wanted to give him some of what he dished, but I knew I’d never land a hit. Unlike me, he used the instincts of his wolf to evade, to fight, and to live.
I did not. But really, could anyone expect otherwise? I’d had the spirit of a wolf with me for, what, a week? At least I’d slept soundly the night before. I’d had magic-ridden dreams throughout, but they hadn’t kept me awake. My dreamy visions were of witches in black hats with giant warts, little fairies with sparkly wings and fairy dust. Said fairy dust had erupted from Jason as he morphed into a giant grey wolf. You know, the usual.
This morning, Jason started in heavy with the “be one with your wolf” talk. I couldn’t help but think he was grumpy that we’d only be training for half days now that I was to start work at the Archives. Just the thought had me giddy, and I rolled to the balls of my feet. I needed a little expulsion of restless energy.
“Oww, damn it. I’m going to take that thing from you if you can’t use it responsibly, young man.” I glowered at Jason who’d brought attention to my inattention with another strike of the stick.
“We have half the time to teach you all the things you need to know so that I don’t have to watch your back twenty-four-seven. Pay attention, so I’m not wasting my time.”
The way he said that, the dart of his eyes behind me, into the woods beyond, made me think something was up. Would he tell me? “Has something happened?” I pressed, dropping my hands and moving toward the still-circling Shifter. He wore tan cargo pants that fit loosely around the legs, I assumed for freedom of movement as well as ample storage of small weapons. His shirt was cotton and… snug. It hugged his rugged frame a little too well, another thing that had distracted me this morning.
“Nothing for you to worry about. Now, let’s get back to it,” he urged. “Block me.” He swung the switch with lightning speed at the back of my leg. Seeing as I wore athletic shorts, it was going to hurt if the stick connected on bare skin. Somehow, I tracked his movements, pulling my leg away just before contact could be made. I moved to face him, my body in a slight crouch and on the balls of my feet. The position made it easier to react at the slightest movement and in any direction.
“Your eyes are glowing,” Jason murmured, then struck out with the stick, aiming for my arm. His eyes never left mine, nor mine his, but I saw the movement in my peripheral. Felt the switch cut through the air. Heard the slight whistle.
I grabbed the torture device protruding from his hand and wrenched downward. A growl left my lips as the snap of the stick breaking sounded in my ears.
“Let her out,” Jason coaxed. Staring into his eyes, now the bright gold of his wolf, I felt Ebony writhe beneath the surface. She wanted out, itched to come out. I just needed to calm down and let her out. “Come out, Ebony. I want to meet you.”
And then, in a beautiful shower of golden pixie dust, Jason wasn’t standing in front of me. The Hunter was. The animal was massive but almost instantly laid on his belly. Soulful canine eyes peered at me from where his head rested between his front paws. He tried to make himself smaller, less intimidating. Ebony was curious, and she pushed a little harder, turning the itch into a burn. I forced myself to breathe deeply, slowly. To not push back.
If I got worked up, clammed up thinking about the wolf in front of me—the one that hadn’t hurt me—I wouldn’t relax enough to concede my skin. I stared at the wolf, tracing every facet of his lithe body as the fire picked up within my own veins. His ears were more brown than grey, as were his legs, tail, and snout. A long, pink tongue unfurled from between long, sharp, white teeth while the animal panted. It almost seemed like he smiled. I was definitely getting the proverbial “puppy dog eyes.”
I couldn’t help but smile in return… until I doubled over with a gasp, the pain having reached a crescendo in my veins. I couldn’t ignore it anymore. My hands hit the leaf-strewn ground, only… they weren’t hands anymore. I stared—from a distance—at black paws with long, thick nails. Ebony’s paws. I wanted to laugh. So did she. I—we’d—done it.
I was a wolf.
CHAPTER 22
H oly Crap, I’m a wolf! But out came a very canine set of excited yips and whimpers. I watched in an almost detached manner as my vision jumped. Ebony bounded around like a crazy animal. One thing constantly in our vision: Jason. Or rather, Hunter, which I assumed was his wolfie persona.
The substantially larger grey wolf regarded my new form—Ebony’s form—with cool detachment, or so it seemed. Ebony continued her excited laps around the other wolf, using her paws to bat at the animal. When she moved in to nip at his haunches, Hunter turned and returned her bite, lending a warning pinch to her—our—ear. Ebony shook it off and widened her circle, deciding that exploring her new surroundings would have to suffice if the big male wouldn’t indulge her.
Of course, he’s just as much of a stick in the mud in this form, too… I laughed, and Ebony returned the sentiment with a barking huff. I could feel her excitement. I knew what caught her attention, what her hearing snagged on. How the air felt through her course coat… everything. It was surreal. Leave the big grump. Let’s go for a run! I didn’t know if my excitement fueled hers or vice-versa, but I wanted to experience the freedom.
A quick sting to our back leg delayed our departure as Hunter suddenly took off, delivering another playful nip, this time to Ebony’s neck as he passed us in a blur of brown-tinged-grey fur.
Oh, it’s on!
And we were off. Ebony was agile and stealthy. She moved each foot independently if she needed to avoid an obstacle. Leaves didn’t crunch under her padded paws; they flattened silently. The sounds of the forest life were amplified by a hundred, so much more than I’d even sensed with her help in our human form.
How could anyone say that the forest was silent? There were so many distinct sounds, each tied to a specific inhabitant. The frogs’ songs swelled, their wavelike groans and croaks second only to the cicadas and their overpowering chittering. The song was intoxicating. I was lost to the forest, happy to let Ebony pay attention to the wolf while I sat back and took in as much as I could. Bird calls sounded every once in a while, but only to check on each other as we plowed through their perches.
She was fast. We had passed Hunter moments after the chase began, but he was thicker; stronger. He would bat at Ebony with the force of a hammer. I’d hate to be on the receiving end of those punches if he truly fought. Ebony was scrappy, though. She’d disembowel anything that got her on her back as we found out when he used brute strength to roll us. She’d immediately kicked her back legs into his belly, ready to scratch through skin and muscle if necessary.
I was not sure how I knew what she thought. They weren’t thoughts like a human would have, more like… impulses. I felt what she would do and how. It was amazing and extremely informative. I wanted to try something. To see if I could influence her thoughts and actions like she could mine.
Nip him and run. Back to that field of flowers we enjoyed before… She growled in response. Neither of us liked to remember Colin’s encounter. She shook herself like she rid us of the memory before bowing her front legs. As she came up under Hunter, she twisted her head to deliver a quick strike to his throat. With her bite delivered, she gave a canine grin—I felt it—and took off in the dir
ection of the flower field. Or so I assumed. I could still get lost in a paper bag.
I should probably work on that.
The vibrant and variant colors of the flowers enveloped my field of vision, and I instantly felt lighter, not that I’d been particularly heavy this morning. It was a nice change from my previous life, when every day was laced with threats and pain. I could feel Ebony’s sorrow on my behalf even while she currently frolicked through the rainbow of colors. Speaking of… didn’t canines see colors differently? Like, they didn’t? Guess that was something I’d need to ask Jason about once I had control of my limbs again.
“You like this place, huh?”
We twirled to face the velvety baritone, shocked to see Jason striding from the trees, zipping up a pair of jeans as he moved barefoot into the wildflowers. Glued to the spot with infatuation—probably all me—we watched Jason move to where we now sat. Coming to one knee, he extended a hand toward her—us, slowly asking for permission to touch. When Ebony didn’t move away or growl, he brought his hand to the fur of her neck. His fingers rubbed and kneaded the thick rough, those beautiful hazel eyes roving over every inch of our new wolf form.
“I knew you’d be beautiful, Ebony. How’s it going in there? Is the girl kicking and screaming yet?” His thick eyebrow lifted in question. Ebony pulled back from his grip and shook her head side to side like she shed water from her coat. Only, I got the feeling she answered the question.
Thanks for having my back, girl. Ebony’s response to my praise radiated from her. Warn him to be nice to us. She nipped his now hovering digits. I couldn’t help my chuckle as Jason yipped and withdrew his hand, narrowing his eyes at us.
“That wasn’t nice,” he chided. “But I’ll accept your loyalty to Red. She needs someone to look out for her. You need to help her when bad things happen. You gonna help me out with that mission, Ebony?”
It was weird listening to him have a conversation about me like I wasn’t there. Being a passenger would definitely take some getting used to. But then, I supposed it would be a bigger adjustment for Ebony who’d been free and wild prior to this new arrangement.
“Time to come back now. Our time is up, and you need to get going to the Archives.” This time, it seemed Jason talked to me, buried though I was in Ebony’s psyche.
There were two problems with his directive. One, I had no idea exactly how to come back. And two, Ebony wasn’t ready to give up her skin just yet.
A sense of blind panic overwhelmed me as we wheeled backward, away from Jason. He tried to banish her again, put her away. She didn’t want to go. She liked having paws on the ground. Literally. This was her first time out since we’d merged. She needed this.
She was terrified she’d never get out again.
So, she tucked tail and ran.
Ebony, please calm down! I’ll let you come out again, I promise! Now that I understood what was necessary to allow the change, I was confident I’d be able to do it again. Maybe even quicker next time.
My thoughts scattered as we plunged into an invisible vise. Ebony barely slowed as she continued her mad dash through the magical barrier surrounding, and hiding, Grimm Hollow from the prying eyes of the normal world. The uncomfortable squeeze was barely felt with the speed and force we hit it. She’d scrambled much further than I’d realized in her panic-crazed sprint. A fierce foreboding flooded my awareness, one I tried to impress upon my other half.
We need to turn back, Ebony. You can keep control, but I—we—must get back inside the ward, I urged, but my fear only served to bolster hers, my warnings going unheeded. I didn’t recognize this area, but Ebony seemed familiar with it. Maybe it had been part of her former stomping grounds. Did she search for her pack? What would happen if she found them? How would they react?
Finally, Ebony slowed, caution dictating her movements. Each paw placed with precision, her ears twitched back and forth as the overpowering silence registered. No insect noise, no throaty bullfrog calls. Even the air seemed to still. I felt the hair along my spine—for Ebony’s bodily sensations seemed to line up with my mental “body”—stand on end in alarm. I felt like a porcupine ready to eject painful quills into whatever had us on edge.
A low, threatening growl emanated from Ebony’s throat. Her body stiff, muscles coiled and readying to strike.
“Now, now Shifter,” purred a sultry voice coated in tarry oil. A curvy female stepped soundlessly around a tree trunk in front of us, sending all of my internal alarm bells blaring as recognition zinged through me. Diana tsked, a slender, manicured finger wagging in reproach. “It’s not nice to growl at people. How about you shift, and we can talk like civilized people?” she cooed in a voice laced with contempt.
Don’t do it Ebony. Right now, she doesn’t realize it’s me. If she learns… we’re dead. Or worse. I tried to project the certainty I felt into the thought. Luckily for me, I knew that, at the very least, she didn’t want to relinquish her control of our form. Not yet.
“Little Wolf, if you do not talk to me, then I will have to send you back as a warning.” Dark eyes flashed red with the warning as silence reigned. Ebony thankfully heeded my warning, staying in an aggressive stance.
But Diana was strong. She was Seth’s chosen consort and second in command. She’d also been Griffin’s mother. He must have been frustrated with the performance of his coven if he had sent her out… or she avenged her son. She was ruthless and truly sadistic, like all of Seth’s loyal lackeys.
A faint crackle preceded the Witch’s next words, hinting that she drew on magic. We’re out of time! We need to make a move, now! I screeched from within Ebony’s noggin. Immediately, she took a brisk step backward. It was smooth but noticed by the Witch, who drew a hand in front of her smoky-clad eyes. Curling her fingers to make a fist, she twisted—just as Ebony lunged.
A pain-filled yelp tore from our throat as Ebony’s right front leg wrenched, twisted so violently that the bone not only snapped but now peeked a jagged end through a tear in the previously unblemished skin. The injury caused her lunge to stop well short of her mark. Hopping on her good front leg, Ebony whimpered and attempted to apply the damaged leg to the ground. Bright bursts of light exploded in our vision, the pain blurring our senses.
We couldn’t give in. It would only get worse before this “message” was complete. Where was Jason? Had we really outpaced him by that much? Oh, how I wished Ebony hadn’t freaked out and left the sanctuary of Grimm Hollow. This pain was my fault. Fight, Ebony! Fight, and then run! I had no idea how far from the warding we actually were, but getting back to it our only hope. I felt her resolve solidify, and she again gathered herself, this time more subtly. We were close to the Witch, because even though she now circled us, eyeing her prize, she hadn’t moved away.
Stupid of her, really, but then, the coven had always been overconfident, which was exactly how I’d come out the victor and Griffin had ended up dead. We needed to channel that same instinct now. When Diana had completed several perusing circles, babbling about how I needed to shift, we waited until she looked away—for just a moment.
Ebony grabbed the opening with her teeth, literally lunging for the nearest leg of the circling Witch and sinking her teeth around an ankle. Using the same method that had been used on her, Ebony wrenched her head to the side with teeth firmly clasped around the weak joint of our oppressor. Back and forth, she shook her prize, violently pulling Diana from her feet. The wet sound of teeth in flesh was interrupted by a harsh snap.
The shocked Witch screamed with anguish and surprise, her cloudy, pink-tinged-black aura pulsing with her growing anger. Why she thought we would go quietly, I’d never understand. We needed to take advantage of her distraction. It wouldn’t be all-consuming for long, and retaliation would be swift… and final.
Go, now! Call Jason! Get back to Grimm Hollow!
She turned on her haunches, but our speed was hindered by the damaged front leg—a front leg that needed to bear weight to run swiftly. Every f
ew strides, she dropped the limb to the ground—sending blackout-inducing pain shooting throughout our body with every attempt. But she powered through, forcing it into use so our escape might be possible. This bitch was tough.
When I didn’t feel any noticeable magical retaliation, I thought that maybe Ebony had damaged Diana enough that her focus wasn’t enough to subdue us. Or, maybe we’d gotten far enough away that her magical reach was too short. It didn’t keep my mind from repeating three words over and over: Get to Jason.
CHAPTER 23
T he pain was winning. We were slowing, our minds muddling, vision blurring. Are we safe? It didn’t matter; we couldn’t take another step. If Ebony was a wild wolf, this injury would be a death sentence. The leg was beyond useless now. I would probably never fire a bow again. Lucky—somewhat—for me, I was left-handed and that limb unmarred.
“Ohmigod, Ebony.” I heard the deliciously deep voice as if underwater. It sounded far away… a little distorted. Jason.
We’d made it. Ebony’s eyes closed again, taking too long to open and take in our rescuer. It just took too much energy to pay attention to his bright, gorgeous eyes, that furrowed brow, and those pinched lips belying just how worried he was. If I’d had more energy, I’d probably have been worried, too. Everything was heavy, and I couldn’t feel the leg anymore. It seemed like a good time to let the world go dark.
“Don’t you do it, Allya. Don’t you quit. You still have too much to learn and a revenge to deliver. I will do everything in my power to give you your justice, but that means you can’t give up.”
Fire burned in my veins, bringing me back to awareness in a blaze. Whimpers tore from my throat—no, Ebony’s—as we smoldered in the midst of transformation. Ebony receded, shrinking from the pain she endured. My consciousness rushed to the fore just as a scream erupted from the deepest part of me.