hating family or the psychopath sorcerer or my condition. If only I could just
forget it all and start a new life.
Or we'll be a wolf all the time, and you can be a human when the moon is
full.
Deep down, we both knew there was no escaping things.
The chatty old guy dropped me off at a strip mall in a small town called
Forks. He even gave me twenty bucks to grab a bite to eat.
I ordered a large turkey club from Subway and put on my best smile
when I asked the cashier to borrow his phone. Thankfully, he was a teenage
boy, and I could tell he had the hots for me. He unlocked the phone, and I slid
into a booth and pulled up Google. I hadn’t memorized Jaxson’s or Casey’s
numbers, so I looked up the number for Eclipse.
As the phone rang, I prayed to God that Jaxson was there and not still
stuck in the Dreamlands. Just the thought of that place had my mind
wandering, and I couldn’t shake the image of Jaxson's lips pressed against
mine as his fingers worked me in all the right places. Had that really
happened, or was it all just a dream?
My cheeks blazed when I realized that my skin was flushed and there was
a mounting tightness in my center.
Jaxson's rough voice answered, and tingles worked their way up my
thighs.
“Jaxson, thank fuck,” I blurted, clenching my legs together.
“Savannah! Where are you?” His words vibrated with agitation and
exhaustion.
“I’m in Forks, Washington,” I answered. “And I found the bastard.”
43
Jaxson
I pulled into the crowded parking lot of the strip mall, my frustration
mounting. Why was this small town so packed? Who’d ever heard of Forks?
I ground my teeth.
Savannah was close. The bond between us was taut and pulling
uncomfortably in my chest.
I had to get to her. She was hurt and alone, and it was all my fault. I’d let
my guard down. I’d lost my focus while drunk on wine and lust, and I’d let
her fall asleep. After she’d disappeared, I’d nearly turned Cavra’s revel into a
bloodbath before getting a hold of Sorsha and exiting the Dreamlands. I’d
woken in the tent, but Savannah was gone.
I’d been almost overcome with relief when I’d heard her voice on the
phone. She’d survived, but that didn’t absolve me of anything.
“Do you think she’s still here?” Neve asked. As soon as I’d gotten off the
phone with Savannah, I’d grabbed Sam and headed to Neve. She’d used her
planes-walking powers to teleport us to SeaTec airport, the closest location
she was familiar with.
“Yes, she’s here,” I growled as I wedged the rental SUV into a handicap
spot.
Sam raised her eyebrows and glanced at Neve. “Somebody’s in a rush. I
think we’ll give you two a mo—”
I was out of the SUV and striding across the lot before she finished.
The bell of the door rang as Savannah stepped out of the Subway. She
was barefoot and dressed in black leggings and a poorly fitting sweater. Her
gaze instantly locked on me, and my heart missed a beat.
She’d known I was here. Was she also feeling the pull of our bond?
I wove through the parking lot. A car slammed on its brakes and squealed
to a halt in front of me as I crossed the street. The driver blared the horn, but I
paid him no attention.
Savannah leapt into my arms as the driver gave one last defiant honk. I
shot him a look that stilled his heart and had him throwing his car into
reverse. I pulled Savannah close, burying my face in her hair. Her familiar
scent wound around me, and my wolf stirred, excitement filling us both.
“Glad you’re here,” she whispered.
I set her down, and anger surged through me when I noticed the swollen
red welt on her cheekbone and the scrapes on her skin.
“Are you hurt?” I gently cupped her cheek. My voice was ragged,
strained by the emotions flooding through me—relief, contentment, desire,
anger. And most of all, guilt.
Fuck, it was too much.
“Just a little bruised and tired.”
Exhaustion pulled her shoulders down, and I could tell she was lying
about the severity of her wounds.
My chest churned with guilt and shame. I should have been more careful,
should have protected her.
I shook my head. “I’m sorry—sorry you had to face Kahanov alone, sorry
I let my guard down, sorry for what happened in the fore—"
Her cheeks flushed and she lowered her eyes, cutting my words short.
“So that did happen.”
My pulse raced.
Gods, the woman was getting under my skin. What had happened
between us couldn’t happen again. I knew I was playing with fire, and I
needed to shut this down before it got any more complicated.
We’d deal with Kahanov, then we’d cure Savannah. Once she was no
longer a wolf and the mate bond was broken, we’d be free of these irrational
emotions.
Lies.
“The Dreamlands is just that—a dream that’s best forgotten. Kahanov
almost got you, and every second we linger, he might slip away. Come on.” I
nodded toward the SUV and walked away. She trailed behind, and I could
smell her offense and anger.
Good. It was better if she hated me. It’d be easier for both of us.
The SUV’s taillights went on as we approached, which meant Sam had
slipped into the driver’s seat, forcing me to share the back with Savannah.
Shit. It wasn’t the time for her to play matchmaker. The emotions
flooding me were too intense, and I needed space. That, and I needed to heal
Savannah, and sitting side by side wasn’t going to make that any easier to
deal with.
“Wait.” I turned and stopped Savannah as she approached the SUV. I
placed my hand on the small of her back, and she gasped as I poured a short
burst of healing magic into her. Though it weakened me each time I used it, it
would cure a few of her cuts, and hopefully, her exhaustion.
Her eyes dilated with surprise, and I could smell her undeniable arousal.
“Did you just…heal me?”
“You need to be on your A-game for what’s coming. I could tell you
weren’t.”
Savannah’s eyes turned cold, and the scent of her desire waned. Good. It
was going to be hard enough to think just sitting in the same car as her.
I opened the door for her, and she slipped into the back seat without
sparing me a glance. I kicked Sam out of the front, loaded up, and gunned it
out of the parking lot.
We headed out of town, looking for the place where Savannah had been
picked up. My fists tightened on the wheel at the thought of her hitchhiking
alone, but I pushed it from my mind.
Sam hefted a cheap gym bag onto Savannah’s lap. “I brought you some
spare clothes.”
“Thanks,” she said as she met my eyes in the rearview mirror. “I don’t
think I’ll change right now, but I’d kill for some shoes.”
“There’s a pair of old sneakers.”
I heard a zip as Savannah opened the bag. “Thank God, my feet are
killing me and super gross. You’re a sai
nt, Sam. I owe you…like, a new
wardrobe.”
“Deal. We kill the sorcerer, and then you take me shopping. But for now,
tell me how you lost your clothes in the first place.”
As Savannah yanked on Sam’s old sneakers, she gave us the details of
everything she’d seen and what Kahanov had said.
“Apart from Kahanov and the sleeping shifters, did you see anything or
anyone else in the cave?” I asked.
Savannah shook her head. “No, but I wasn’t in there long. It looked like
the place might go quite a ways back, though.”
“If he’s expecting us, I’m betting he’s summoned some backup,” Neve
said.
I tightened my grip on the wheel. “He’s expecting us.”
The bastard had been one step ahead of us the whole time. I hated going
into his fucking lair, but I had to find my pack members before he learned the
extent of what Cavra had done.
About thirty minutes down the road, Savannah leaned forward. “This
looks familiar. I think I saw it on my way into town.” She’d unclicked her
seatbelt before I even finished pulling over. “Once we get to the beach, I
should be able to find the cave again. It was crazy looking.”
We climbed out, and I reined everyone in. “Okay. Backup is on its way,
but for the moment, it’s just us. We need to go in quietly and take him out as
quickly as possible, or drive him back further into the caves, away from the
sleeping wolves. Savannah, can you cloak us in shadows once we’re inside?”
She nodded and led us past a few cabins along the forested slope toward
the ocean. I could have followed the path just as easily myself. Her wolf had
come this way, and the scent drove my own wolf to the edge of madness.
Savannah slid down a sandy rise onto a deserted beach. Stacks of sun-
bleached driftwood scattered the waterline. After we’d walked at least a
quarter mile down the rocky, empty stretch, she whispered, “There it is.”
A chill ran up my spine.
A twisted, storm-hardened tree clung to the eroding coastal bluff, its roots
framing a dark cave that looked like a hole leading to the heart of the earth. A
steady breeze blew onshore, smelling of kelp and fish, and Savannah shivered
as she stared at the entrance.
“I hate caves,” she said.
Sam snorted. “You and me both.”
But this place wasn’t just a cave. It was an entrance into something far
worse. I could feel the magic radiating from the opening—a low, hypnotic
pulse. I’d felt a similar pulse in the Dreamlands.
It was some kind of portal or rift between that strange realm and our own.
It had to be, and that must have been how Savannah was able to physically
exit the Dreamlands.
We began to move toward the cave, but I held up my hand and froze. A
sickly-sweet scent of rotting fruit burned my nostrils, and my adrenaline
surged.
I knew that smell all too well. A noctith demon.
In the darkness of the cave entrance, a shadow twisted and unfolded.
“Watch out!” I grabbed Savannah’s waist and yanked her aside as the
dark shape burst out of the cave.
Sam cursed and dove out of the way, while Neve launched skyward.
The monstrosity reared up on its six legs, and its head split open,
revealing rows of pointed teeth. A pink gas billowed from its throat and
spread across the ground.
I pulled Savannah along. “Sleeping gas! Run!”
Sam scrambled to her feet, but just as the gas was about to consume her, a
wind tore across the muddy beach.
Neve. She floated in the air, hands outstretched, and called a gale.
Flying sand and grit cut into my skin, and I had to brace myself to hold us
upright, but the gas dissipated instantly.
The noctith demon staggered back and dug its clawed feet into the earth.
Then it shrieked into the howling wind.
Savannah clutched her ears and doubled over in agony, and as my
eardrums burst, I felt a warm trickle of blood seeping down the side of my
neck.
Gritting my teeth against the pain, I ran and leapt into Neve’s torrent of
wind and sailed through the air. The second I landed on the demon’s back, I
sank my claws into its segmented carapace. The thing was momentarily
shocked by the impact, but then it let out another shriek, and its body
thrashed.
I dug my claws deeper and began tearing off pieces of its hard
exoskeleton. It screeched louder and bucked, and one of its hairy legs reached
up and gripped my calf. I snarled as its claws tore into my muscles. My grip
loosened, and I was thrown sideways. I slashed one of the beast’s wings
before I hit the ground hard, my shoulder screaming.
The demon tilted its head back and opened its razor-lined mouth, but its
shriek was cut short.
“You guys go! I’ll take care of this thing!” Neve roared. Her voice shook
the air like a thunderclap, and her eyes burned with fury. Her hand stretched
toward the demon, whose neck was throbbing and spasming. She slammed
the beast down onto the ground, and it clawed at the sand and rocks with its
legs and tail.
She was suffocating the thing with her magic.
Savannah gaped in horror. I grabbed her hand and towed her into the cave
after Sam.
Darkness enveloped us.
44
Savannah
My ears rang, and I shook with fright at what I’d just witnessed.
Between Neve and the demon, I didn’t know which terrified me more.
Kahanov.
I sucked in a slow breath to steady my nerves as we moved deeper into
the cave. What the hell was I doing? I’d just escaped from this nightmarish
place, and now I was headed back in.
I rubbed my ears, but nothing would get rid of the pain. Suddenly, I felt
the light touch of Jaxson’s hand on the base of my back. I took a sharp breath
and closed my eyes as his magic pulsed through me. The pain in my ears
subsided, but my heartbeat still pounded.
“Stay close,” he said gruffly as he flicked on a flashlight and stepped in
front of me. His woodsy pine scent wrapped around me, and a deep ache
settled in my chest at the memories that rose in my mind.
Sam pulled out two flashlights and gave me one as we followed behind
him.
Jaxson’s power to heal me drove me to the edge of fury. I hated the way it
aroused me, the way I suddenly found myself warm and wet and breathless.
Fuck.
I bared my teeth at his back. He’d made his position clear: what had
happened in the Dreamlands stayed in the Dreamlands. Wasn’t that what I
wanted, too?
What an idiot, I thought. I should have known better than to have opened
myself up to him like that.
Do you ever stop thinking about him? my overly snarky wolf asked.
She was right. I needed to get my head in the game, but that was the last
place it wanted to be. As long as I distracted myself with Jaxson, I wouldn’t
have to think about walking into doom.
I could smell it on the air. The cruel death the fates had planned for me. I
didn’t care anymore. Just as long as I got to take Kahanov down.
; The dripping of water grew louder as we pushed deeper into the cave.
I glanced back toward the entrance, fear fluttering in my stomach. We’d
left Neve to deal with the noctith demon, but after seeing what she could do,
something told me she could take care of herself even if its friends showed
up.
Jaxson stopped abruptly.
“What’s that?” Sam whispered behind me.
I inclined my head and listened. A low, faint scraping noise came from
the passage ahead.
“It sounds like something scratching or digging,” Jaxson said.
Hope and dread flared in my chest, and I cautiously stepped around
Jaxson. “Maybe Cavra’s spell woke the shifters. They might be trying to get
free.”
It was a long shot, but if there was any chance, we had to get them out of
there before Kahanov noticed. I drew the shadows around me and sneaked
ahead down the hallway.
“Savannah, wait,” Jaxson hissed as he grabbed for my arm.
I slipped out of his grasp and pushed forward, moving toward the fork in
the cave that I knew was ahead. I flicked off my flashlight. “I’ve got this. I’m
practically invisible.”
“Damn it,” he growled behind me, and I could smell his frustration. But
he wasn’t my alpha—or at least he wouldn’t be for long—and he held no
power over me.
I ignored my wolf’s snicker and paused where the tunnel split to let my
werewolf vision adjust to the darkness. The stink of sweat and bodies was so
strong, I almost gagged.
I peeked into the cavern, and my heart dropped. The sleepers still hung
from the walls, roots snaking around their bodies. They hadn’t awakened.
Their chests still rose and fell softly like they were deep in a dreamless sleep.
The strange scratching sound wasn’t coming them, but from the roots digging
into dirt.
I covered the end of my flashlight with my hand, flicked it on, and let a
thin ray slide over the cave walls.
The sorcerer wasn’t here, just slumbering wolves.
I breathed a long sigh of relief, and waved Sam and Jaxson into the room.
“The coast is clear.”
Sam froze as the beam of her flashlight illuminated the suspended bodies,
“My gods…”
A dark rage spread across Jaxson’s face as he shone his light from one
body to the next. The muscles in his arms twitched as his signature boomed
Untamed Fate (Magic Side: Wolf Bound Book 2) Page 30