to make out.
I glanced at the passage to my left, the way out of this nightmare, and
then at the passage to my right, the one with the voices, beckoning me to
follow.
I had the uneasy feeling that I wasn’t here by coincidence. I had no idea
why, but something had pulled me here. My own intentions? Or perhaps
another’s?
While the way out was to the left, it wasn’t the way that led to answers.
“Fuck,” I murmured as I shook off my misgivings and went right, slowly
making my way into the darkness with the voices.
This was how stupid people in horror flicks got themselves killed, I
thought. But something inside of me, urged me to follow the whispers. A
sixth sense.
Or a death wish.
The roots in the walls thickened as the voices grew louder, but still, I
couldn't discern their words. As I pressed further into the underground hell,
the smell of sweat and grime burned my throat. What was that?
My heart pounded against my ribs as I followed the musk, and then I
froze.
Lining the walls of the cave, wrapped in roots, were bodies.
Horror coursed through me as I gazed up at the clusters of suspended
people. Their skin was ashen and smudged with dirt, and apart from the
barely perceptible rise and fall of their chests, they appeared dead.
I moved closer and sucked in a sharp breath when I recognized the face of
a woman—one of the sleepers Jaxson had shown me on his laptop. These
were the shifters who’d fallen under the sorcerer’s curse.
I reached out to touch her, but a familiar voice stopped me: “Savannah,
you know what they say. Let sleeping wolves lie."
My heart clenched.
Kahanov.
I slowly turned as his foul signature buffeted my senses.
“You bastard.” My nailbeds itched, and my wolf stirred.
“I had a dream I would see you again,” Kahanov said. “Funny how
interesting dreams can get when they become real. What brings you here,
anyway?”
I tensed to leap, but he whipped up a hand that erupted in green flame.
“Ah, ah, ah. I could’ve already killed you where you stand, but I want you
alive. We need to talk.”
I froze. How fast could he move?
“Release the wolves,” I snapped, trying to buy myself time to think.
“No. Not until you give me yours.”
What the hell did he mean?
I’ll rip his throat out! my wolf snarled in my mind.
My canines shot down, and hair erupted along my arms. I gasped as my
shoulders started to stretch, but I shoved my wolf back and stopped the
transformation.
“Wrestling with your better nature?” Kahanov laughed. “It’s such a tragic
thing.”
I circled him cautiously, and he shifted, keeping himself out of reach. “I
hate to see you burdened by your wolf, Savannah.”
“You did this to me! You turned me into a fucking monster!” I snarled as
bitterness flashed under my skin.
His lips pulled into a deranged smile. “Me? Not at all. You’ll have to
blame someone else for that. But I can help you get rid of your little wolf
problem, if that’s what you’re aiming for.”
My skin crawled under his gaze. “Fuck you. Stay the hell away from me.”
He parted his hands, though the flames persisted. “Steady on. We can put
our differences aside and help each other. You have something that you don’t
want—a wolf—which just so happens to be what I need. Give me the Soul
Knife, and I can free you from your beastly burden, once and for all.
Everything will go back to the way it was.”
The way it was. What a foreign thought. I wanted that so desperately—to
not be ruled by another spirit, to not have to worry about hiding the monster
that I'd become. She wasn't supposed to be inside me. We were complete
opposites, and she fought me at every turn. I was broken, and maybe this was
a chance to fix that.
Don't you dare, my wolf growled.
But I couldn’t, could I? She wasn’t a part of me—yet she was part of me,
bonded in some twisted way.
Doubts whirled through my mind, and I desperately needed to keep
Kahanov talking until I could figure out a way out of this mess. “Why my
wolf? You’re surrounded by werewolves. Why me?”
“Because you’re different, and your wolf is different.” The flames
surrounding his hands flickered in his eyes, and the air hung with rage.
“Because your family took mine and left me incomplete, forced me to inhabit
this pathetic shell of a body. This is their fault, but you can fix it. Just tell me
where the fucking knife is.”
“No,” my wolf and I growled together.
“Okay, Savannah, how about I sweeten the pot?” He strode toward the
sleeping shifters and drew his fingers through the hair of a man in his
twenties. “You give me your wolf, and I’ll let you and all these people go. I’ll
swear a blood oath on it. If you don’t—well, I can’t ensure their safety.”
My stomach dropped.
I had to do something.
My wolf reared up in my chest, and I stumbled backward. I'll fucking tear
your throat out if you hand him that knife, she said.
“I’m not giving up the knife!” I shouted, both to him and to my wolf, as I
wrestled for control.
“Fine. I guess we’ll have to do this the hard way.” He dismissed the flame
from his hand, drew a vial of red liquid from his pocket, and took a sip.
Magic swirled around him, and he raised a hand. “Stop.”
To my horror, I froze in place. I could feel his magic inside me. In my
blood. My eyes darted to the vial.
He grinned as a trickle of red slipped from his lip. “You forget—I’m a
blood sorcerer, and I have your blood. Now, let’s start with something
simple. What are you doing in the Dreamlands?”
“Visiting Cavra,” I said before I could even attempt to resist. I clapped
my hands over my mouth.
His eyes widened. “Cavra? You little minx…” Suddenly, he stiffened as
a realization struck him. “What did she ask of you?”
“The bloodstone,” I replied through clenched teeth, willing my voice to
be silent.
Kahanov swore and spat, then stepped closer to me and lowered his
voice. “Tell me where the Soul Knife is.”
“It’s here,” I heard myself say.
He laughed. “Really? Clever girl. Show it to me.”
I fought his control, but my blood began to boil.
Help me, I begged my wolf.
I felt her strength rise within, a snarled torrent of rage. Tell that bastard to
—
“Fuck off!” we roared together as my body shook with her fury.
“So much stronger now!” Kahanov hissed. Then he gritted his teeth and
pointed his finger at me. I felt his signature surge, a vile, dominating presence
pushing down on me from every direction.
I let out a single sob of frustration as my resistance broke, and I
summoned the Soul Knife. The cursed thing materialized in my hand in a
swirl of purple smoke.
My heartbeat raced. It was happening all over again, just as he had
dominated
me in my room. Every muscle strained in protest.
He opened his palm. “Give it to me. Put it in my hand.”
He was so powerful, I knew that even with the strength of my wolf, I
couldn’t resist.
But his words gave me a slender opening.
“Here, asshole!” I lunged and put the blade in his hand—point first. The
vial shattered in a burst of glass and blood, and he screamed in rage.
A green wall of fire erupted from his hands. The shockwave seared my
skin and threw me backward. I crashed into the wall and gasped as roots dug
into my spine.
“Give me the damn knife!” Kahanov sprang forward and grabbed my
wrist, but I kneed him in the groin.
He roared and, seizing me by my waist, threw me to the ground.
I screamed as the rocks jabbed into my side, but I kept my hold on the
Soul Knife.
A crazed grin cut his face, and he lifted his arm and pointed at me.
Run, Savy. Get out of here, my wolf shouted in my mind.
The panic in her voice sent a fresh wave of alarm through me. I rolled
onto my knees, but as I was climbing to my feet, his magic slammed me back
against the wall. Piercing pain shot through my wrist, and the Soul Knife flew
from my grasp. It clattered against the ground, and Kahanov laughed, delight
clear in his voice, as he raced toward it.
Get out of here. NOW! My wolf pressed against my ribs.
No. This had to end.
As Kahanov bent down to scoop up the knife, I launched forward,
crashing into his back. The force knocked him off balance, and together, we
hurtled to the ground.
He grunted and cursed, then swung his elbow back, catching me square in
the cheekbone. My adrenaline and fear dulled the pain, though, and I grabbed
a fistful of his hair and slammed his face into the dirt. "Die, you psycho
prick!"
He roared and swung his arm around. I didn't see the blade until it sank
into my thigh. Searing pain shot through my leg, and my vision doubled.
As Kahanov pulled the knife free, I slammed my hand into him and
released an uncontrolled burst of magic. He flew back as I scrambled
backward across the floor of the cave. My chest heaved, and I shook my
head, trying to quiet the tortuous noises in my mind.
I can still summon—
Before I had time to act, pain shot through me as the bones in my body
began snapping. A scream tore from my throat, and I couldn't be sure who it
belonged to, me or my wolf.
When the agony subsided, I looked up at Kahanov through wolf’s eyes.
He was laughing like a goddamned maniac.
We're injured, and he's too strong, I said to my wolf. We need to get out
of this cave.
But she didn't respond. Not to me, at least. She bared her teeth and
snarled, then attacked. The metallic taste of blood filled our mouth as she
sank her teeth into his skin.
Her elation mixed with my panic. Kahanov still had the Soul Knife.
Get us out of here! I screamed to my wolf.
But it was too late. The blade sank deep, and we howled in agony. Then a
wave of magic burst into us, and we were hurled backward through the air.
The wall of the cave broke our flight, and the impact sent a wave of pain
through our ribs.
Yet my wolf climbed to her feet and met Kahanov’s murderous gaze.
“Come here, little wolf. You belong with me,” he growled. “Savannah
doesn’t respect you, but I will. You can be free, just come to me.”
For a second, terror seized me, drowning out the pain. I was helpless and
out of control.
But then my wolf turned and bolted down the cave.
Green flames licked at our heels, but we were faster than him, even cut
and bleeding.
We didn’t slow. The fork in the passage appeared ahead, and the scent of
briny sea air pulled us forward.
She darted down the passage that I should have taken from the start, and
after a few minutes, light appeared, then the azure blue of water.
Thank God.
42
Savannah
The sun was high in the sky, and the brightness in contrast to the darkness
of the cave was painfully blinding. Fresh air had never tasted so good. Relief
flooded me at being out of that cave, but where the hell were we?
My wolf sniffed the air, then took off down the pebble beach. She was
remarkably quiet, which was unusual.
Are you okay? I asked. Where are we going?
Now you’re concerned about me? she responded. You were ready to hand
me over to that asshole.
I would never! I insisted, but I sensed she didn’t believe me, and maybe
she was right not to. She stumbled slightly but pushed on, despite the pain of
our open wounds.
Where are we going? I asked.
Getting help. Be quiet. I need to focus. She sniffed the air, then hurried
onward.
I guessed she was giving me a taste of my own medicine. I shut up and let
her guide us down the beach. We were tired, and the wounds on our thigh and
shoulder throbbed.
Fear tore at me. Kahanov will be hunting us.
Silence.
Finally, a few cabins appeared among the pines along the shore. She
limped into the trees and sneaked through the shadows toward the closest
cabin.
What are we doing? I asked.
Get clothes. Become human. Find Jaxson. Her thoughts were tired and
broken.
At least she was willing to hand over control.
Guilt tugged at me.
She slinked behind a bush, and then I saw where we were headed. A
clothesline was strung between two trees, loaded with at least ten sets of
clothes. Mercifully, there was a pair of leggings and a sweater that looked
vaguely close to my size. My wolf leapt up and grabbed them with her teeth,
and then slunk back into the bushes.
Once she’d put some distance between us and the cabin, she stopped and
dropped the clothes. Your turn, she said, utterly exhausted.
Never had she been so willing to shift back to human form. I was both
shocked and saddened. That fight had taken a little of the fire out of her.
Let's do this. Quickly, this time, I told her, worried that it might not work
without Jaxson here. But what choice did we have?
My wolf lowered herself to the ground, and then our body strained as the
shift took hold. I gritted my teeth as I jerked and bent, and the horrors of the
shift began. I had to stifle a scream as I felt the ligaments and muscles in my
legs and arms tearing, and the wounds in my skin reopened.
Pain blotted out my thoughts. Why wasn’t it over? The shift to wolf form
had been fast.
But the agony only increased. We were stuck between forms. Dread
coiled in my chest.
We need Jaxson, my wolf snarled in pain.
Like hell we do! Jaxson wasn't in control of our body.
I tried to calm my mind so I could let the shift take me. My wolf seemed
to sense my cue and settled, and we both embraced the pain that worked
through our body.
This time, when our joints popped and sinews stretched, the agony eased
until it was gone.
Panting, I finally opened my eyes and stared up at the tre
es. The pine
branches swayed in the ocean wind.
“We did it,” I whispered and rolled onto my hands and knees.
I was exhausted and achy, and pangs of hunger knotted my stomach. I
glanced down at the wound on my bare thigh where Kahanov had sliced me
with the Soul Knife. The skin was red and inflamed, but the bleeding had
stopped. Maybe my wolf's healing power was kicking in.
“Well, we could have gotten off worse,” I muttered as I inspected my
naked body.
Speak for yourself, my wolf piped up. I need food and rest.
I smiled. “You and me both, sister.”
My shoulder was swollen, my ribs bruised. There were cuts all over my
body, but the only ones that weren’t healing quickly were those made by the
Soul Knife…which Kahanov now had. I tried to summon it, but nothing
happened. I could still feel my bond with the blade, but I was too far away.
Shit!
I’d failed to kill him, and now I’d lost the knife. My stomach clenched as
the weight of failure pressed upon my heart. I wiped the tears from the
corners of my eyes.
Hey, we lived. We broke that vial of blood. And we can get the knife back.
Focus on the task at hand. Find Jaxson, my wolf said calmly.
My heart warmed. If she could think clearly, then so could I.
I staggered to my feet. I needed to call Jaxson to tell him where I was—so
where the hell was I? My ears picked up the sound of cars on a road, so I
headed that way.
When I finally reached the highway, I stuck out my thumb. I was
barefoot, scraped up, wearing twigs in my hair and clothes that clearly didn’t
match. I looked like a survivor of a plane crash.
Hey, at least you’re cute enough to make it work, my wolf chirped.
Where was this positive attitude before? I asked, annoyed.
You didn’t need it then.
I wasn’t sure how to interpret that.
Thirty minutes later, I caught a ride with an older man in a Crown
Victoria. Old Savannah would have never hitchhiked, but the man seemed
harmless, and if he’d turned out to be a serial killer, I would have just clawed
him to pieces.
Luckily, he was genuinely nice and helpful, and I learned that I was in
Washington. I'd never been to the Pacific Northwest, but I decided I liked it,
and so did my wolf.
Lots of good smells in the woods here. Let’s not go back to Chicago.
It was tempting to hide out here so I’d never have to face my werewolf-
Untamed Fate (Magic Side: Wolf Bound Book 2) Page 29