by Jody Morse
“Or how about I just kill you right now?” Jason sneered, lunging himself at her.
“Run, Samara!” Luke hissed at her, as he punched Jason in the jaw.
Samara just stood there in awe for a moment; she couldn’t run. It felt like her body was frozen in place, rooted in the cold Alaskan ground.
“Aww, that’s a real cute move, lover boy,” Jason mocked him with a laugh. “Unfortunately, it’s nothing like the moves I have.”
And just like that, Jason’s body started to turn transparent until he disappeared into thin air, yet again.
“Run! You have to throw him off! He might be trying to get closer to you!” Colby screamed at her, and Samara didn’t hesitate this time, now that she had been reminded of what Jason was capable of.
She ran, unsure of where she was supposed to be running to, her legs carrying her body as fast as they could. Leaping over logs and rocks on the ground so as not to trip on them, Samara began making her way down a wide dirt road.
Glancing over her shoulder, she noticed that the rest of the Vyka was coming up behind them, ready to attack. Even from far away, she was able to tell that most of the guys—except for Declan and Seth—were tall, muscular, and probably weighed about two hundred or more pounds.
Her pack members took one look at them before following after Samara. They, too, realized that there was no way they would be able to win this thing right now—not when they were outnumbered by a bunch of beastly-looking teenagers.
Leave it to Jason to find pack members who looked like they already killed a few people and swallowed them whole. Samara wondered if that was just to intimidate her.
The one thing that the Ima pack had on the Vyka was that they were much faster—probably because their bodies were much lighter, so there was less for them to carry.
They were all down the beaten trail when Samara realized that they had completely lost the Vyka. But where was Jason? He wouldn’t just disappear like that and let them slip away from him for no reason. He had to have other motives in mind . . .
And that’s when his face began to appear in front of her, his fluid body changing back to its normal state, right in front of her.
She stopped, unable to move any further. It was as though he had put up some type of invisible barrier that prevented her from moving forward.
Samara stood there, stuck in place, unsure of what to do. She glanced around for Luke, but she didn’t see him. Everything around her became a big, fuzzy blur . . . and it felt like she had overdosed on some sort of medication or something.
“W-what’s going on?” she stammered, unsure of why she couldn’t see any of her pack members faces and why it felt like she was being surrounded by some sort of white cloud.
“How does it feel now that your pack members can’t help you, Samara? How does it feel to face me all on your own?” Jason laughed hauntingly.
She was beginning to feel dizzy—so dizzy that she was positive that she was going to pass out. What was Jason doing to her? It felt like he had made her inhale something, which was leaving her feeling sick.
“Leave me alone!” Samara screamed at him.
When his lips twisted into a smile, she regretted shouting something so lame at him, but it was the only thing she could muster saying.
Jason’s arms came down around her neck in a grip that choked her, leaving her gasping for air. “I promise I won’t use the silver bullet in the gun that I have in my pocket to kill you. I’ll give you a fighting chance. We’ll do this in wolf form, just you and me. It will be more fun that way,” he sneered at her.
Before Samara could respond, she felt her feet falling out from under her, as everything went black.
*
When she woke up, Luke was carrying her, and he was tiptoeing through the woods. She looked up at him. “What happened? I think . . . I might have had a bad dream.”
Luke shook his head, looking down at her with his emerald green eyes, which looked relieved. “No, that was no dream. That really happened.”
Samara paused, trying to remember everything. All she saw was Jason choking her and telling her that they were going to fight fair, but then everything had gone black.
“What exactly happened?” she asked Luke.
“Jason must have put some sort of spell on you,” Luke replied. “We tried to get to you, but we couldn’t . . . and it clouded our vision. When you passed out, he was hovering over you in wolf form. Colby pulled out his gun—”
Samara interrupted him. “Colby has a gun?” The fact that Colby even owned a gun was surprising enough in itself, but the fact that he had been carrying it around with him since they’d been in Alaska—and had somehow made it through airport security without any of them knowing about it—was even more shocking.
Luke nodded. “Well, that’s because he didn’t get it through airport security,” he replied, obviously listening in on her thoughts. “He told me today that he bought it when we first got here. One of the security guards at the hotel was willing to sell him a gun for five hundred dollars. Colby was afraid that the other pack we smelled at that time—the Koto—would want to kill us, so he bought it when we were getting ready to leave.”
“Oh.” Samara wasn’t sure how she felt about guns in general, but it had probably been a smart move on Colby’s part. “So, what happened with Jason? I’m so confused.”
“Colby pretended that he was going to shoot the gun at Jason while he was in human form,” Luke explained. “And it must have freaked him out because he disappeared into thin air again. The funny thing is, the bullet—if there was one—probably wouldn’t have been able to break through the wall he made to keep us from getting to you. Either way, he hasn’t been back since, so it must have really scared him off . . . for now.”
“There’s not even a bullet in the gun?” Samara asked, trying hard not to laugh. Colby had spent five hundred dollars on a gun that wasn’t even loaded?
Luke shook his head. “No, it’s not loaded. The hotel security guards aren’t allowed to use loaded guns. Their guns are only for show.”
Samara smiled. “Well, I’m glad that Colby bought it, anyway.”
“Me, too,” Luke replied, leaning down and giving her a small kiss on the lips.
“He’s lucky that Jason didn’t bring out his own gun, though,” Samara commented, remembering how Jason had threatened her about the silver bullet in his pocket. Unless he had only been trying to scare her. . . .
“That would not have been good,” Luke agreed.
“Umm, I think I’m good to walk,” Samara told Luke. Being carried was beginning to make her develop motion sickness, similar to the type that she always used to get in the car on windy roads when she was a child.
Luke gently set her back down on the ground, and she wrapped her hands around his waist. She was about to lean up and kiss him, when she heard someone shout, “There they are!”
Glancing over her shoulder, she found that the Vyka were standing behind them, pointing at them, looks of fury on their faces.
“Run!” Colby shouted from ahead of them.
Samara ran again, wondering how much running they were going to have to do from the Vyka before they made it out of Alaska. If they made it out . . . And even if they did, what difference did it make? The Vyka would probably follow them right back to Pennsylvania, anyway.
Even so, she continued to run, following her pack until the Vyka were out of sight. And that’s when she heard the noise.
A helicopter, its light beaming at them, whirred above their heads, circling the area. It looked like it was about to land next to them, and a gut-wrenching feeling formed in the pit of her stomach.
Chapter 20
The helicopter lowered itself to the ground about fifty feet away from where they were standing. Samara turned to Luke. Who do you think is inside?
I don’t know, but I guess we’re going to find out now, he replied. He ran over to the helicopter and climbed inside. The rest of the pack began to fol
low him.
Kyle turned to her. “Are you coming, Sam?”
Glancing back at the forest behind her, she knew that she had to act quickly. The Vyka had to be getting closer, and if she wanted to escape from them—with everything that her grandfather had left behind for her—she had to get out of here now. “Yeah, I’m coming.”
Samara darted over to the helicopter. Glancing over her shoulder, she scanned the area for Jason and the rest of the Vyka. Luckily, she didn’t see them.
Once she was inside the helicopter and it was rising from the ground, she allowed herself to breathe normally for the first time that night. It felt like she was safe—or at least, safer than she had been on the ground. Samara settled into the leather seat next to Luke and gasped when she saw Josh’s arms wrapped around Kyana in a tight embrace.
“Kyana? What are you doing here?” Samara asked, hoping that her surprise wouldn’t be mistaken as disapproval.
Kyana glanced over Josh’s shoulder, her golden honey eyes smiling. “Akar agreed to let me become an Ima. He thought it was in my best interest—that I would be safer there with all of you, since Papa is no longer able to care for me. The doctor of our pack said that it would take many weeks for his injuries to heal, and Akar is afraid of what might happen to me if Norm and Martin come back. He thinks it’s safer for both of us if I’m with you.”
Josh glanced over at Samara, beaming. “Isn’t it exciting? We can be together now. We don’t have to worry about never seeing each other again.”
“It’s very exciting.” Samara forced a tight smile. She wasn’t about to tell him that she did have doubts about him and Kyana since mates were only supposed to happen once in a lifetime. She wondered if he had told Kyana anything about Lilly, or if she thought there was a chance they could be mates because he’d never had one before. “So, how did you get this helicopter to pick us up?”
“Akar’s pilot friend is flying it,” Kyana explained. “He’s dropping us off in Anchorage, where we will take a plane to New York.”
“Oh.” Samara knew it was necessary for them to go home, but she didn’t feel completely ready to go back to Pennsylvania. “But, I thought there were no flights available for today. At least, that’s what Colby’s dad said.”
Kyana shrugged. “I found tickets on my sister-in-law’s computer. I don’t know what website Colby’s dad was using, but there were available flights.”
Samara nodded, wondering why Mr. Jackson hadn’t been able to find them if this were true.
Something dawned on her. “Wait, we have a problem. Nuka is still at the cabin. Who’s going to take care of her if you’re coming with us?”
“Don’t worry. She’s already been taken care of,” Kyana replied with a small smile. “I had my sister, Margie, drive Nuka to the airport. Nuka is all ready to be transported back to Pennsylvania with us. All we need to do is get on the plane and retrieve her when we collect our baggage.”
“You really have thought of everything,” Samara murmured.
“Yes, she has. Everything’s going to be okay,” Luke said, grabbing her hand and squeezing it. “So, just relax.”
Samara squeezed back and sank down into her seat. “That’s much easier said than done.” She wanted to feel relaxed, but she was still worried that they weren’t going to make it out of Alaska without having a run-in with the Vyka. And she still needed time to come up with a way that her pack could defeat the Vyka’s much larger pack.
*
When the helicopter landed in a park not too far away from the airport in Anchorage, Samara quickly climbed out. She transferred everything that her grandfather had left her from her purse to her duffel bag; she didn’t want to pay extra for if everything would fit in her carry-on bag.
Fifteen minutes later, they were all in their seats. Security seemed to be more relaxed today than it had been when they’d boarded the flight to Alaska, which Kyana explained was because one of her werewolf friends, Pete, was a security guard, so he let them bypass some of the security measures. Colby had also disposed of his gun before entering the airport so that there wouldn’t be any setbacks.
As the plane rose from the ground, Samara laid her head on Luke’s shoulder. “I’m not sure if I’m ready to go home. It feels like we’ll be even bigger targets there.”
“Do you want my advice on what I think we should do?” Luke asked. “Or should I keep quiet since you’re the Alpha?”
Samara hesitated. “Well, if you think your advice would be useful, then yes, you should share it with me.”
“I think we really need to work on expanding our pack,” Luke told her. “You saw how many guys the Vyka have now. There’s no way we can compare in terms of numbers.”
“You’re right,” Samara agreed. “But I also don’t think we should just go on a biting spree and make innocent people become . . . like us,” she said, making sure to avoid the word werewolves as a stewardess passed them with a tray of beverages. “I wouldn’t have chosen this life for myself, so it’s not in my hands to choose it for someone else.”
Luke nodded understandingly. “I agree. Maybe . . .” He trailed off. “Maybe we could find something to trade with other packs. If we could find something valuable enough, they might be willing to give us some of their pack members.”
“Maybe,” Samara said doubtfully. “When we get home, we’re doing an initiation.”
“I think we should wait a while before we let Kyana go through initiation,” Luke said, shaking his head. “What if she changes her mind? I think she just thinks she’s in love with Josh right now, so she’s willing to sacrifice her own pack for him.”
Samara shrugged. “If Kyana thinks she’s ready to initiate, I think we should let her do it. It’s better than biting random people so that they can join our pack, at least, and it will give us an extra member. If she really misses the Koto pack, I can always let her go back to them later on.”
“That’s true, too,” Luke agreed. “Seems fair enough.”
“Kyana’s initiation isn’t going to be the only initiation we do, either,” Samara said, tapping Chris, who was sitting on front of her, on the shoulder. “Once we get back to Pennsylvania, let Rain know that we’re doing her initiation tomorrow night.”
Chris raised his bushy eyebrows. “I thought you wanted to get to know her first to make sure she was a good fit for the pack or whatever.”
“Well, I did,” she said slowly. “But we need to build up our numbers really bad right now. So, as long as she wants to become an Ima, we’ll do the initiation tomorrow night.”
“Cool,” Chris replied with a nod, quickly turning his head away from her. Samara could tell that he was nervous, and she had a good idea of why: he was probably worrying about whether or not Rain was his mate. She couldn’t even begin to imagine how hurt he was going to be if Rain wasn’t his mate; they’d known each other since they were kids and had been in love for a long time, from what Samara understood.
She glanced over at Luke, who was staring out the airplane window into the sky. For the first time, it felt like their relationship was truly uncomplicated.
*
When they got home early the next morning, Samara felt jet-lagged from all the traveling they’d done over the past few days. She invited the pack to sleep over at her house, but Chris and Steve decided that they were sick of sleeping on the floor and wanted to sleep in their own warm beds. Kyle wanted to let Rae know that he was home, and he also took Nuka with him. Rae had agreed over the phone to allow Nuka to live at their house. Josh and Kyana headed back to the Jackson’s house with Colby to figure out their new living arrangements.
Before they all went their separate ways, she’d instructed them to put their wolfsbane necklaces in a safe place, so that they would have them once they needed them again. She was afraid that they might have to go back to Alaska for more wolfsbane eventually, unless they could find somewhere that sold seeds.
When Luke and Samara got back to her house, they crawled straig
ht into bed.
“You should probably call Emma,” Luke told her. “Let her know that we’re doing her initiation tonight.”
Samara nodded, reaching for her phone. “I’ll text her.” Once the text message was sent, she relaxed back into Luke’s arms. They were strong and felt icy, but warm, against her skin. It sent shivers down her spine—and that’s when she knew that she couldn’t take it anymore.
She couldn’t resist him.
Leaning over, Samara pressed her lips against his. Luke pulled her closer to him; it was obvious that he wanted the same thing as she did. He lifted her shirt over her head, tossing it to the floor, and she tugged at his zipper. Luke pulled his pants off, revealing the bulge that was visible through his boxer shorts.
Samara pressed her hands against his chest, kissing his lips again. A tingly feeling pulsated throughout her whole body, sending another wave of shivers down her spine as their tongues met.
“I want you so badly,” Luke murmured, as he kissed his way down her neck. When his lips were just above her heart, he looked up at her, his emerald green eyes filled with an intense lust. “Are you sure you want to do this?”
Samara nodded, reaching behind her back and unhooking her bra. She didn’t just want to do this; she had to do this. It felt like she was drawn to Luke, and the only way to give into that magnetic pull was to give in to what she wanted---what they both wanted.
Luke’s lips came down on hers again and when he pulled away, he whispered, “I love you.”
Samara’s heart skipped a beat, and she felt her skin growing warmer as her stomach did cartwheels. This was the first time Luke had told her he’d loved her since she’d said it the night of the accident, and just hearing those words made her feel even more tingly inside. “I love you, too,” she whispered back, kissing him back and pulling off his boxers.
They moved together as one, their bodies electrified by each other’s touch, into the afternoon.