by Holly Hook
The whole world expands and contracts, pulsing with evil.
This shouldn’t be happening.
It was only a scratch. A shallow scratch—
“Run,” Cayden says.
Already the moon peeks over the horizon, and the pressure to give in to it builds inside me, too. The animal begs to be set free for the night and I won’t be able to remain in human form much longer. Neither will Cayden. And then we’ll want to fight any invaders in our territory. Callie will be one in a few minutes.
I break into a sprint, jumping over fallen logs and ancient tree stumps. We leave Callie farther and farther behind as she bites in screams of not just physical agony, but bewilderment and terror.
We're going to have to tell Earl--
“Keep going,” Cayden says.
I do. The air cools as the sun abandons us. At last Callie's cries and grunts vanish into the background, leaving just chirping birds and the distant sounds of town. I stop in a small clearing not far from the Lowe cabin, skin itching. I rub my hands over my bare arms.
My mate and I look at each other. A growl emerges from Cayden's throat. He's not going to hold out much longer, either.
“She promised her husband she’d be back home by midnight,” I tell Cayden. “She promised him, and now she’s not going to show up and we’re going to have to tell him.”
“We’ll figure out how to do it,” Cayden says. He grips my arm, expecting me to give in to my ultra-Noble instincts. And those will be to kill Callie.
Far back, she lets out an ear-piercing scream.
A growl tries to rip out of my throat. Cayden tightens his grip and we run together again. This will haunt me forever. We cleaned the scratch. She wasn’t supposed to have the infection.
“I can’t hold out much longer,” I say. The pesky moonlight pokes through the trees, and each beam of silver light makes my skin itch. Pine needles hang in my face as I swat them away, and my phone buzzes with a text that I ignore. We put another half mile…a mile…a mile and a half between us and Callie. I can’t feel my hand anymore with Cayden cutting off the circulation. The pressure builds to a peak as I stop under the first stars of the evening.
“I can’t go anymore,” I say.
“Neither can I.” Cayden releases my hand as he sheds his spring jacket and throws it to the ground. “There’s nothing more we can do right now. Everyone will have to wait.” Cayden kneels and lets the moon overtake him. Black with red highlights sprouts from his skin as bones pop and rearrange. His face shifts quickly into that of a Wolf as he drops to all fours, wiggling out of his baggy jeans. He looks at me with deep hazel eyes, and though I can’t hear his thoughts yet, I can read the meaning. Follow him. Hunt elsewhere. Join the rest of the pack and lead them away from Callie’s secret spot. At least I have control over that.
The pressure inside pushes against my skin and a wave of itching spreads over my whole body. There’s no holding back anymore. I sink to my knees and let the shift overtake me.
I will think only of deer, rabbits, and leading the pack to dinner. That’s all that matters tonight, and all we can do. I lead Cayden, Everly, Aunt May, and Remo through the woods, to the east side of town, farthest from where there's no prey. I won’t even think of her name.
A deer runs terrified through the woods ahead, and we give chase. The doe doesn’t get far and we take her down—
--this could be Callie—
And feast.
The night drags on. Somewhere in the distance, I know the other part of our pack is hunting in Colling, for the first time without Lawrence or Abigail. Earl is waiting—
I won’t think of her now.
Somewhere back in the woods, my phone buzzes again. And again.
And I lead the pack away from it, up to the foothills where the sound can’t reach.
* * * * *
The sun rises an eternity later.
Cayden and I split from the pack and wander back to our clothes, still as Wolves, which we thankfully haven’t ruined. The pressure to hunt eases the higher the sun gets in the sky, and we reach the small clearing where my phone begins a new round of buzzing. It's still inside my pants.
I’m able to reach for the human inside now that the moon has sunk under the horizon, and the pain sweeps over me as I change shape. Now released from the moon’s command, I pull on my clothes as Cayden rushes to do the same beside me.
“Story of our life,” he says. “We don’t even have time to help each other dress.”
I sigh. “No kidding. Something has to block any fun we have every. Single. Time.”
I smile at Cayden and try to lift the mood, but now that our night of mindless hunting is over, we have business to attend to. And that business is Callie. If the chains held—and I have no reason to believe they didn’t—she will be out there now, bare and in the cold. I swallow as my throat dries and my stomach turns over, threatening to heave out deer and rabbit. While in human form, I don’t want to see that.
Once dressed, Cayden frowns at me. The broody guy is back.
“Let me check on her first,” he says.
“You’re always trying to protect me,” I say.
“Well, I’m your mate. And something has to make me feel like a man.” He flexes his biceps.
“Are you learning from Noah?” I ask.
We’re stalling. My stomach threatens another heave as saliva fills my mouth, warning me I might be sick.
As the alpha, I’m in charge and I know what I should do, but this is Callie. My only family on my mother's side. And the fact that Alex, also my only other family (though he doesn’t know it) will kill her if he finds out about this. Alex is still staying in Colling with a camp of other Hunters, and Earl will have a hard time hiding Callie’s absence from him. Sure, I made Alex swear not to hurt Callie or me, but even us saving his life might not stop him from doing his job.
Callie could be—
“Brie, let me check her first,” Cayden says.
Give me back my purpose.
But I don’t say that out loud. So I nod. “I would love that. Thanks, Cayden.” I kiss him right on the lips and drag it out.
“That gave me the guts to proceed,” he says. “Brie, we don’t know how things went with Callie after we left. I’ll soften the blow as much as I can, but I have to warn you, I can be blunt sometimes.”
“Trust me, I already know.”
I should tell him that I give him permission to face Callie for me, but I keep those words back and let Cayden lead the way back up the hill. I sniff, but smell no trace of Savage. That alone sets some of my nerves at ease but ignites others.
My heart races faster and faster as we scale the hill we fled down the night before. Sweat forms under my clothes, making me lightheaded, but I continue and take deep breaths. Soon Everly and the others will be up, and Everly will not like this. Neither of us let the rest of the pack know about Callie failing the test. Or even about the fact that she got scratched by a Savage.
To protect her, I’ll have to lie to Everly. To everyone.
“Callie? It’s me,” I ask as I’m climbing the final hill.
“Brie, let me go first,” Cayden says. “Remember?”
I stop on the hill and face him. “Oh. Sorry.” Curiosity grows and begs me up the last of the hill. Something's not right. There's no sound and I should hear breathing, but I don't. And I smell nothing but the woods, either.
“Callie?” Cayden asks, louder.
No answer.
Just that alone propels me to the top of the hill despite Cayden's protests. I stand there, eyeing the pair of concrete slabs we poured two weeks before, and the warped silver chains that lie on the ground, broken and bent. Beside them, Callie's torn clothes lie as if they exploded away from her.
And worst of all, Callie is no longer here.
Chapter Two
Cayden and I stand there, eyeing the four chains and manacles that lie on the ground, victims of incredible violence. No Wolf should have b
roken out of this.
“She...” Cayden says. “Brie, why didn't you stay back?”
“Because I knew something was even more wrong than what we knew,” I say. I cup my hands over my mouth and scream, “Callie!” My phone buzzes again, which puts me into rage. I pull the phone out and silence it. I don't have time to tap out texts.
“She broke out,” Cayden says. “Don't tell me she's another Matthew. That means she might have run into Savage territory and to top it off, she couldn't help herself. I bet she doesn't even remember what happened by now, and she's in danger.”
I eye Cayden and let my jaw drop. Just like Matthew, Callie's descended from the Savage King. She would be close to his strength, and even our whole pack had trouble casting Matthew out of town. Theconsecrated chains didn't hold as the Russells guaranteed they would. “If the Savages see her over there, they'll kill her. She's a Hunter and they know. Callie shouldn't have gotten out of these.”
“That's my fear,” Cayden says. “We need one of the quads. Then we roar in and get her out.”
“What if Callie went in another direction?”
“She could have.” Cayden paces around the broken chains and sniffs.
I do the same. My terror blocked out my ability to pay attention and sample the environment. I breathe. Rotting wood lingers on the underbrush and the trees, even though it's fading quickly in the evaporating dew. I follow the scent trail for a few feet, and my fear's confirmed when it veers straight towards the Savage territory.
“We need the quad. Now. Text Remo and have him drive it to us,” I order. As we stand here, time's running out. “Two quads would be better. And tell Leonora I'm not making it to their meditation this afternoon. She'll know what that means.”
Cayden gets on his phone and calls Remo. Remo picks up, having already made it back to the cabin and dressed. “Two quads. Now. North of town and up the hills. The wind's blowing from our direction, so you should smell us. We'll explain later.”
“We're not going to hide this from them,” I say, pacing.
“You, me, Earl, your aunt, and Callie are the only ones who know,” Cayden reminds me.
“The others will smell that she's changed. And that's if we get her back,” I say. “Callie lives in Colling with the rest of the pack. And we still don't know them all that well.”
My heart races as we wait for the others to bring a pair of quads. I've never driven one before, but as Remo and Aunt May drive them into the clearing and stop, I feel more confident. Cayden drove one like a pro without ever doing it before, and as a Noble Royal, so should I.
“Why do you need quads?” Remo asks, getting off his. “Is this not Everly safe? I had the feeling.”
“Then you know me pretty well by now,” Cayden tells him. “No. It's not Everly safe, or safe, period.”
He didn't have to say that last part. Aunt May eyes me and frowns. “It was Callie, wasn't it?”
“How'd you guess?” I eye the broken chains.
“What's going on?” Remo asks. This is news to him. “Why are there busted chains on the ground?”
I speak with finality. “Callie's missing and we have to get her back. Do not tell Everly or anyone about this. Leonora and her parents know but that's because we needed the chains and had to tell them. I mean it. Tell nobody.”
Remo flinches from my order. “I won't. Why didn't Leonora tell me Callie got infected?” Hurt and confusion come over his face. This mess is getting bigger by the second.
“She will if you ask her,” Cayden says quickly. “We have to go. Now.”
I take Aunt May's quad. Her blue eyes billow with worry for me, a worry she hasn't been able to let go. But I have to turn away and board the quad.
I take a second to figure out which lever to push forward, but after watching Cayden do it, I rev and speed ahead, crushing branches and underbrush. There is no trail here so the going is slow at first.
But we cross the border to our territory and into the neutral woods, leaving the familiar scents of Cayden, Everly, Remo, and Aunt May behind. I dodge trees as we trudge uphill and over boulders, but these quads that used to belong to Lawrence get the job done.
“We shouldn't have left Callie,” I shout to Cayden.
“It was all we could do,” he yells, revving over some small boulders and over the top of a hill.
The morning sun rises higher as we near Savage territory. I sniff and catch a whiff of Callie ahead. She smells like pancakes and bacon. Her restaurant. She's alive and even has a hint of Earl's aftershave. It could be wishful thinking, but I pick up no rotten wood from her. Her scent's gone as soon as it came.
“We're coming up on the other border,” I shout several minutes later.
The ground levels out here and the trees get farther apart. The stench of rotting wood overtakes us for a second. I've never seen this part of the border before, but it's unmistakeable. I gag on the stench and continue, even though darkness dances at the corners of my vision. The cult's still busy guarding the area with dark spirits but I don't care. All I want to do is get Callie out of here.
“Do you smell her?” Cayden shouts.
It's all on me. I sniff and detect, over the quad fumes, the smell of pancakes again. At least some part of Callie remains. But then the scent banks to the right, and I see a figure running through the trees far ahead. A human figure, wrapped in a cammo blanket. Dirty blond hair waves as she bolts in terror.
Callie.
And then the rotten wood smell overtakes me. At first my stomach turns over, thinking it's her, but other figures run behind her, low and menacing. Wolves. Four light gray monsters. They close the distance by the second. My fear that the Savages will kill her are confirmed.
“Over here!” I shout at Cayden. She must be a quarter mile away. We might not reach her in time. “I'll get Callie and you drive in front of the Savages. Distract them!”
“Got it!” Cayden veers off into the trees.
I duck to avoid a branch hanging near my face. It brushes my hair and as I close in, Callie turns towards me. The four Savage Wolves trail her, closing the distance between her and them. Despite the change, she's not running as fast as she should. If I didn't know better, it seems Callie's still human.
I close the distance, and Callie opens her mouth and shouts, “Let me on!”
I pull on the quad's steering wheel and bank to the side, spinning up mud and stopping just feet from Callie. Cayden cuts in front of the small group of Savages and kicks up mud in their faces. The noise of the quad gets them to snap and back away for a second, which gives Cayden a precious second to turn around and race back to me.
“Go!” he yells as Callie, bare other than the blanket, scrambles on behind me and hangs on.
Arms and blanket envelop me as I rev the vehicle. I smell Brett on the blanket. She raided his room for it. The burning hay scent alone sends me into enough anger to make me speed through the narrow openings between trees, but I keep control. Cayden joins us as the Savages fall back.
He points in the general direction of our territory. No crap.
A tree branch falls to my left, and I dodge to save Callie from impact. It lands in the mud and dirt beside us and rolls away into the underbrush. Darkness keeps dancing. Those spirits can end us for being here. Cause an engine to die. Maybe they can even make the earth open and swallow us at this point.
Or they could send Brett.
My least favorite warlock steps onto the trail a hundred feet ahead, dressed in a black robe with red trim.
“Watch out!” Callie shouts.
My old enemy, steely and unmoving, holds up a bag of herbs and lights it. On either side of him, the ground drops off so much I'll never control the quad over it. He has us trapped. A grin spreads onto Brett's face as he tosses the bag in our direction, where it explodes on the trail in a cloud of poison.
“Stop!” Cayden shouts.
I do, and Callie mashes into me as I skid to a halt right in front of the burning bag. It giv
es off thicker and thicker smoke, obscuring Brett from view.
I hop off the quad. The evil pulses continue under my skin. The dark spirits won in distracting me from the real danger again. I stand the poison spreads across our entire escape. There's no way around unless we abandon the quads.
And far back, the Savage Wolves approach. They'll be here in a couple of minutes. My heart races with panic.
“We can't stay here,” Callie whispers. She's hoarse from running.
“Brie. Let me deal with him,” Cayden whispers, getting off the quad.
And he does what Brett expects the least and leaps through the greenish smoke.
“Cayden!” My jaw drops. Cayden gags once. My protective instinct kicks in and I jump through the smoke, too, closing my eyes to keep out the poison. It's not as bad when I'm in human form. But even without breathing in, I know this stuff is meant to kill or at least make me pass out. My skin burns. Rashes break out. The burning on the outside of my nose is unmistakable. But at last the air cools and clears around me.
“Brie!” Callie shouts, full of panic.
I force my eyes open to see Brett's widening in shock as Cayden lifts his fist. And then Cayden, growling with rage and protectiveness, decks Brett across the face.
But his curse--
We still haven't made sense of Brett's spellbook enough to reverse it--
Brett turns his head from the impact, staggers in place, and goes down. Cayden starts to grin in victory, but as I reach him and take his arm, the darkness attacks.
“Ah!” Cayden seizes his chest and goes down, writhing on the ground, as Brett falls unconscious behind him. We're in enemy territory. Even with the Russells protecting him with magic and even if he thinks good thoughts, he's in agony here. Cayden rolls over, and I glimpse a terror even deeper than Callie's in his eyes.
I may have sacrificed him for Callie.
“Cayden!” Despite the poison cloud billowing next to me, I throw myself over him. Closing my eyes, I imagine we're on a beach or running through the woods together. Anywhere but here. Brett groans next to me as I try to force Cayden to still. He grasps at my ribs as I pin him down, raking his fingers down my sides.