by Holly Hook
"We won't say," the father says. "It's for the good of us all. Go home."
"You're hiding something and you're making things harder for the pack."
"Learning the truth would endanger you beyond what you know."
"The two of you know the truth of why the Savages keep coming to Breck," I say. "Well, they're here now. So what's the point of hiding things anymore?"
"The Savages are here because they followed the Lowes. They don't understand the true reason their kind's been here in the past. If they knew the truth—" the mother starts.
Mr. Russell glares at her and she goes silent.
"Tell me," I order.
"We have to go," Mrs. Russell says.
He walks past me, holding the split logs to his chest. Mrs. Russell follows, shooting me a sympathetic look as she goes. It's clear the two still won't open.
"Get back here!" I shout.
But they keep walking. Neither look back.
Hoping Remo hears them coming in time, I let out a breath and run back down the drive, back towards town.
All I'll get here is a brick wall.
Answers are out there, and they might lie with the strange man in the woods.
Chapter Nine
I pause at the Lowe cabin and watch the front of the house.
I should get the pack for this, but if I do that, Cayden will follow. And then we'll run into trouble. And after that, he might die. What if three is the magic number for this curse? The next pain attack will be worse.
But where do I find that guy?
And should I? The Savages want to draw me out and get me away from Cayden. If I search for them alone, they'll have what they want.
But if I stand by and wait for a solution, they'll also have what they want, and that'll happen after Cayden's death.
I take a breath and debate on going inside. Does he know I'm here? Everly might.
I don't care what she wants me to do.
But I know what I'm planning—and it'll involve confronting the creep. Something tells me that's the right thing to do.
Everly doesn't come out though I smell her and Cayden inside. She doesn't know what it's like to have a boyfriend. This is my job, and mine alone.
Even though I know the Savages will destroy me.
Bolting away from Cayden's house is the hardest thing I've done in a while. He can't know. None of them can know.
Once I'm back in front of mine, and standing in the tire tracks Aunt May left, I pull out my phone and text Noah. Hey. You there?
He doesn't answer. I stand in the cold and watch the phone, but it's blank.
Hey.
I need his input on this situation. If anyone can see the truth about people, it's Noah. If I could have his input, it would make me feel better.
Can we talk later?
He leaves me with that. Maybe Noah's more shaken up about the truth than I thought and he was just great at hiding it. I text, yes.
And I walk across the yard, over Aunt May's tire tracks, and through the field in the back. I leave the tire swing behind and run across the field, getting myself out of breath.
Then I head through the woods, and no one comes after me. I test the air with every breath, trying to find that guy. He can't be far. And when I find him, I'll listen to what he has to say.
Leaving my house behind, and Aunt May at the store, I continue through the trees, finding the trail that leads deep into the woods. Cayden and I took this trail multiple times. My heart aches as I think about it.
I cross it and continue on.
The border to our territory draws closer. Remo's scent still hangs on the trees, but it's fading as if the cold itself is leeching it out of the bark. Taking a breath, I do what Cayden fears and I cross the border.
No Savages ride on the breeze. Their territory, if they have one, must be farther off. We're in the neutral zone where Wolves are open to attack each other and settle disputes. I don't let the lack of scent calm me. Out here, even I have to be careful.
Continuing my walk, I trudge up hills, over boulders, and lock my hands around icy outcrops. The land out here is rugged and wild.
I get a mile out from our territory when I smell them.
The Savages. Rotten wood, decay, and the darkest underbelly of nature. They represent all of nature's worst traits. Survival of the fittest. Dominance. There is no mercy in the Savage Wolf world.
But they're still miles away. And that man I need to talk to must be with them.
With each push of the wind, the scent intensifies. I almost turn back and return to the shelter of our territory. But I take a breath and continue.
Because now I can smell the burning straw scent of the mysterious guy.
The one who knows about Cayden's curse. I'm taking his bait.
"Hello?" I call. The wind stops, leaving the trees silent except for the tiniest creaks. He won't answer.
I smell the adrenaline of a scared deer close by who seems to have detected me. It runs into the trees, darting across flat ground while its white tail bobs up and down. I detect the young man again as the breeze blows to the east. He's somewhere to the west of me, and his scent is stronger than the Savages'. And separate.
He might even be alone.
I continue to walk, finding a small game trail that leads downhill. I'm miles from Breck and safety now. All my muscles tense as I walk, ready to burst into action. The animal inside me begs me to shift so I can defend myself. Instinct rises to the surface, and it takes my entire human side to hold it back. Approaching the man as a wolf will only make him freak out.
The trees clear. There's a fallen one ahead, a giant, rotten trunk sticking out of the ground. Darkness swallows the interior of the tree as if the decay of the Savages has eaten through it. Though it stinks, I can still detect a stale Savage smell. They've marked the border of their territory here.
A flock of birds bursts into terrified flight. I watch the curtain of black feathers change direction and fly into the crisp blue sky.
Beyond this, they have every right to attack me.
Footsteps crunch snow behind me.
I whirl, heart racing in my chest as I curl my fingers, prepared to shift and fight. But a human figure in a leather coat strides toward me, holding up his hands as if begging me to stay quiet. Sunglasses reflect light.
It's the guy.
And he frowns and holds a finger up to his mouth.
Stay quiet.
What else does it mean?
"How did—" I start.
"Get down," he says, stopping right before me. The guy points. "Get in that tree trunk and stay there. They're coming to meet me here. I knew you'd show up."
"Huh?"
"The Baltic Pack."
The wind changes direction and hits me again, this time, carrying the tell-tale rotten wood stench. I face the line of trees. Twigs snap. They'll burst into the clearing in less than a minute.
"Hide!" he hisses.
It's my best chance of survival if Matt is with them.
I crawl into the disgusting interior of the fallen tree, brushing rotten bark and rubbing its scent all over me. My heart races and I hope the bark's enough to hide my fear. Why didn't I smell the guy before he found me?
His dark shadow steps in front of the trunk opening. "Stay there until they're gone. They might not smell you. If they find you, we both die."
That's a comforting thought. I wiggle deeper into the rotting tree. Footfalls plod closer, and the pace tells me I'm not detected yet. I can fight well, but without the pack, I won't stand a chance against a behemoth like Matthew.
The guy turns and faces the tree line ahead, waiting for the Savages. He shuffles and I smell cloth. He lights something and the faint smell of the herbs fills the air, making me dizzy. The guy needs to defend himself from the Savages even though he's working with them. Great.
He'll reveal me and tell the Savages they have what they want. They'll trap me in here and snap through the rotten bark.
I watch as a large brownish-gray wolf—Matthew—bounds into the clearing, growls at the guy, and stops as he holds up the burning bag of herbs. The smoking bag hangs at the top of my vision. Matthew backs off, wrinkling his nose. He steps away from the fallen tree, standing between me and death. Matthew the wolf stands taller than I do in wolf form, and now he has friends.
Three more wolves, all light gray members of the Baltic Wolves, bound out behind him and stand side by side, surveying the guy. Matt snaps at them, ordering them to stay back. He's the dominant one.
Is he their new alpha?
Why wouldn't he be? He can overpower them all.
"Talk to me in human form, please," the guy says, all confident. "I don't understand wolf snaps and slobber."
I have to admire his guts. He still has that deep voice that doesn't shake in the face of death.
Matthew growls. Though I can't hear the Savage Wolves' thoughts in my head, I know what it means. If the guy didn't have that burning bag for protection, he'd be dead and they wouldn't make it fast.
But Matt obeys once he realizes the guy will not back down. He backs away, forcing his fellow Wolves to move, and then his body twists and pops as he takes human form. As the huge wolf stretches into a bare guy, my hider removes his leather coat, revealing tight jeans and a tucked-in gray T-shirt that hugs an athlete's body. He's built like an Olympian athlete. I can see all but his head from here.
Matthew groans in pain. Fur retracts into skin and paws lengthen into fingers, feet, and toes. Matt stands naked in the cold and swipes the guy's long coat, putting it over his bare skin and hiding himself from the frigid air.
"Do not talk like that again," he says.
The other Savages remain in wolf form.
"I will. You know who my father is," the guy says. His voice doesn't shake at all. Impressive.
"Your father has nothing on us," Matt says. He backs away far enough for me to see his stupid grin. His human side has remained the same. "Just because he can do stupid hocus pocus—"
"He can end you. I can end you," the guy says.
He's the son of the warlock? That explains the bag of herbs and everything else. And how he knows about the curse.
I remain still. If Matt looks in my direction, he might see me in the dark. I can assume Savage vision is just as good as mine.
Matt approaches the guy, still wearing his leather coat. "We won't need you soon enough," he says. "The King knows what's out here. And I'll get rewarded when he has it."
"You need us to get what you want."
Matt backs away. There is power in the man's words and all the wolves know.
And the king?
Who the heck is he? I can only imagine it's not good.
"So, did you come out here to argue with me or what?" the guy asks.
"Have you seen her?" Matt asks.
I shudder. I know who he's referring to. I think back to my fighting skills. What if the Savages want that or think they can turn me to their side? Or worse—use these warlocks to suck the power from me and transfer it to them?
And this is the guy's chance to turn me over.
"No," he says. "I've been looking, but the pack makes her hard to find at times. Even the public records have been tampered with. And my magic can't see through the borders to their territory too well. The Russell Coven has done some powerful work there in the past."
I balk.
Leonora's family had a whole coven in Breck?
"They're nothing but a bunch of has-beens," Matt says.
"You've been a Wolf for two months and you think you know everything," the guy says.
"Brett, I've been in contact with the King. He's impressed by my abilities already. He thinks maybe I had some Wolf in my heritage before I even turned." Matt lets out a fake howl that's cringe-worthy. Even the other Wolves back away, turning their attention to the woods behind them.
"Meeting adjourned," Brett says. "And stay the hell away from my sister. Try touching her again and I will curse you into the ground. Do you hear me?"
Matt walks up to Brett. "Try." His voice is low. Dangerous. But then he coughs on the herbs and backs away, covering his face. He's not bright.
It's satisfying to see, as much terror I have pumping through my veins.
"Go!" Brett shouts. "We'll talk later. And don't touch my sister!"
Matt, taking Brett's expensive leather coat, stalks into the trees and waves the Baltic Wolves with him. They follow like obedient dogs while Brett watches. He holds up the bag of poison as they go, just in case they come back.
"Monsters," he mutters.
I breathe a sigh of relief as my heart calms. That gives me hope. I hear no lie in Brett's words. And Brett doesn't like Matt. It's not that I can blame him. I know what Matt's like and I know he tried to do something to Brett's sister.
I wait for minutes, watching the trees from the shelter of my rotting log. The smell's overpowering and blocks everything else, even the herbs. I wait inside for Brett's instruction to come out. If he wanted to out me, he would have done it right here.
At last, and without taking his gaze from the trees, he speaks.
"Brie. You can come out now."
His voice is unreadable. I hesitate. Matt's best bud or no, he still tried to follow me through town in a stalkerish manner. He creeped out Ellie and Leonora and most of all, I now know he's the son of the warlock who cursed Cayden.
"I know you don't trust me and I don't blame you. I'm not the coolest guy out there. How can I be, with the company I have to keep?"
I crawl out of my gross hiding place, wiping bits of fungus and rotting wood off the sleeves of my coat. At least my bare skin didn't have to touch the interior of that. I sniff. "They're gone," I tell him. Maybe I owe the guy for pointing out the hiding place and I hate that. "How did you know I was out here before I knew you were behind me?" That disturbs me the most.
"Magic might have lined things up perfectly for us to meet again. That, and your mistake at the hunter's cabin. I knew you'd be back because of that," he says, keeping his gaze on the trees. "I came out here to meet the pack this morning. I meet them every morning and deliver my progress report."
"Do you always sound so official?"
"My father has me searching for you."
"The warlock?"
Then Brett looks at me with a pair of dark brown, exotic eyes. "Yes. He is the head priest of the Hayde Coven."
"So, you're like, a witch." I don't take my gaze off the trees, either. "Is that how you snuck up on me?"
"A spell might have helped provide distractions to take your attention off me."
The deer. The birds. It makes sense. Leonora was onto something.
"You say that so matter-of-factly."
"How else am I supposed to say it?" A smile teases the corner of his lips as he runs a hand through his steely blond hair. It's dyed, and faint brown roots peek out from near his scalp. His original hair color matches that of the warlock. It's as if Brett has tried to erase his father's presence. But he shares the man's rounded cheekbones and his pointed chin. He didn't win there. "You want answers, don't you?"
"And how do I know I can trust you to tell me what's going on with my boyfriend?"
"I thought the term was 'mate?'"
"You know what I mean." If I saw this guy anywhere else, he'd be hot, but right now he's testing my temper. Maybe it's his way of luring me in. It sure worked back in the woods when he walked off with the Savages. Make something forbidden, and someone will want it. I'm so stupid.
"Well, haven't I proven that to you already? I hate Matt because he tried to touch my sister, and I hate my father because he wants me to work with Matt. I called you here so we can discuss how to get back at them both. Evil, huh?"
"I want to remove the curse from Cayden."
Brett grins. "You do."
I ball my fists. "You're not making this better. You got me to walk out into the edge of Savage territory and now you'll give me answers."
/> Brett paces, lowering the bag of herbs. The wind carries the smoke away from us, sparing me from the effects. "This bag carries a mixture of wolfsbane and foxglove," he says. "Both herbs are toxic. I use them to keep the Savages under control when I meet them. The entire coven does. Otherwise, they'd tear out our throats. They're worse than animals. At least animals kill with a purpose."
I dig my fingernails into my palms. "I know how they are. It's no wonder they infected Matt. Now spill the other thing."
Brett puts his hand on his chin, tickling it and turning his gaze up to the bare sky. "I've been practicing magic since I was five."
"You're testing my patience," I say, a growl creeping into my throat.
"Do I need to use this on you?" Brett asks, holding up the bag.
"The way you're going, you might have to. Now tell me how to release Cayden from that curse." I hate resorting to threats, but Brett knows how to push all the right buttons. "You hate Matt, so tell me so we can fight them for you."
"Now that's what I was getting at," Brett says, throwing the bag on the ground and stomping it out. One last curl of smoke escapes and blows in my face. "Follow me and I'll spill. Just not my guts in a literal sense."
"If you weren't so annoying, you'd almost remind me of my friend." The last thing I want to do is follow this guy deeper into Savage territory, but it's clear I'm on his turf and have to follow the rules. I think of Cayden, still resting back at the Lowe cabin and unable to come out and help me. But if I linger out here too long, he'll come. He'll fight for me, and then he'll die.
"Follow or no? We both want the same thing. It's your choice. If you don't help me, then I will find someone else. Cayden might take the job."
"He can't," I say.
Brett gives me a devilish grin that under other circumstances might be sexy. "Exactly."
"You're an ass."
"It comes with the territory."
I can take his offer or I can leave it. If I leave it, Cayden will take my place. He'll go up against the warlocks and Savage Wolves to protect me and then we all know what will happen. Brett dangles the idea in front of me the way someone would dangle a toy in front of a cat.
"I don't trust you."