by May Dawson
“Yes. Nothing stops prophecy.” Her eyes were troubled.
“Do you have any about us?” I asked.
“Yes,” she said, then quickly added, “And about your friend.”
“Maddie?”
She nodded. “We’ve long had prophecy about her. Half-witch, half-shifter, more power than either.”
The description had pride heating my chest. “That’s my girl. Not that it’s made life any easier for her.”
“Well, none of you are destined for an easy life.”
“Destined? An easy life?” I raised my eyebrows as I faced her. “Tell me this is as bad as it’s going to get. Because after this, I think we do deserve an easy life.”
She was silent, which didn’t make me feel very optimistic.
“Okay,” I said, “what’s the prophecy about?”
“Your Maddie Northsea is the Warbreaker,” she told me. “Her powers keep increasing as she journeys through the worlds. Now she’s ready to take her place in history.”
“Warbreaker,” I repeated. “Sounds impressive. What the hell does it mean?”
She smiled. “So many people have wanted to kill her because they think no one should have the kind of power she will—the power to take away someone’s magic. She’s been accidentally thieving magic from others as she traveled through our world and now in the Greyworld, but sooner or later, she must awaken to her own power.”
I stared at her. “She can take someone’s magic?”
“You wolves and witches, you’re more alike than you realize,” she chided. “You draw from the same reserve of power. You simply shape it differently.”
I nodded. “When my friends and I lost our wolves, we started using our magic more.”
“Those witches who despise wolves so much could take that form if they chose…if they even realized they could.”
“Does that mean we can be wolves again?” I demanded.
“If you wanted to waste all that magic making yourself furry, I suppose you could,” she said lightly.
I stared at her, thinking of the shreds of prophecy that Silas had alluded to. How much had he known about Maddie’s abilities? Why the hell were we even scattered through the worlds looking for the damned shield if Maddie could fix us herself?
“One of my friends told me that the Delphine actually supply the prophecy that the Greyworld thinks come from their elders,” I said. Maybe Silas hadn’t known we needed Maddie—not the shield.
“Yes,” she said. “It’s sometimes given us the opportunity to encourage other worlds to do what we wish them to—although it seems nothing can persuade the Greyworld government to do the right thing. They are intent on closing off their world from the Rips, not healing the entire torn universe.”
“Wait, but how could you use prophecy to manipulate them unless…”
She raised her eyebrows at me as light bulbs went off.
I said, “You don’t send them prophecy. You send them directions.”
Maybe Silas had never known the truth about what he was doing when he came to protect Maddie. Maybe the Fae had manipulated the Rebels into sending their best wizard to protect her.
She shrugged. “There’s a good bit of prophecy mixed in there.”
“I have friends who will be headed into the Greyworld,” I said. “Do you think we could twist some prophecy to help them?”
“I expect the Delphine council probably feels pretty fond of you at the moment, Tyson,” she said. “Let’s see what can be arranged.”
“I’d like for them to know the name Maddie Northsea,” I said. “I heard once that there was prophecy the Rebel Magicians intercepted that led them to try to protect her because they thought the Establishment would kill her if they ever found her.”
“But now you want them to know about her?”
“Can we convince them that when they hear that name, they should do whatever it takes to help her, protect her. Give her anything she wants, even their most precious artifacts.” Then she and the others could go back to their own world, even if I couldn’t get to them yet. I hated waiting a moment here and yet, the threat of what the High King would do to my court, to my people, made it impossible to abandon them.
“Why would they do that?”
Because I love her. “Tell them she’s going to save their world.”
She’d certainly saved mine.
And I’d do whatever it took to get back to her.
Chapter Thirteen
Maddie
“Rafe?” Jensen and I called as we headed through the woods. Snow had begun to fall, like a blanket; it was colder here than in the rainy town where the orphanage was.
“Yeah,” Rafe called back eventually. He loped into the clearing, and when he saw the two of us, he frowned. I’d been about to hug him hello, but he demanded, “Where’s Silas?”
“He made it off the train,” I said. “But we don’t know where he went after that.”
“I hate everything about this place,” Rafe grumbled. I knew he hated being separated just as much as I did. “Let’s go find our wayward rebel magician.”
“Let’s,” I said.
I wanted to know why Silas hesitated back on the platform, as if he knew the person who was trying to catch us. Even if that man hadn’t been able to recognize him, I hoped, given Silas’s changed face and the mask he’d worn over that stubborn jaw anyway.
There was a lot Silas didn’t want to tell anyone about his past, but I had a feeling that wasn’t going to be an option if we were going to get through the Greyworld together. I chewed my lip as Rafe stalked ahead of me, his posture as unforgivingly straight as ever, calling for Silas.
Jensen had given Silas such a sharp look when Silas called me rabbit. I couldn’t get that look out of my head. And why had Silas, who was always so in control, slipped and called me Rabbit at all?
Unless he wanted them to know what happened back in the Coven of the Day.
“You all right?” Jensen asked me quietly, squeezing my hand although I could barely feel it through my thick gloves and his.
“Fine.” Then I admitted, “Worrying about you all is a full-time job.”
“That’s what you get for having seven men. Think how relaxing your life would be if you only had me.”
It was such an outrageous claim that I couldn’t help but smile. Then I called, “Silas!” again, into that black-and-white forest that seemed to swallow our voices, and my smile fell away.
We couldn’t find Silas. It seemed as if the forest had swallowed him too.
The night seemed deep and cold and unending as we trekked through the woods, searching for him. The night was overcast, so we could barely see the moon or stars above the jagged branches of the trees, but unbroken snow seemed to stretch ahead of us. No footprints.
“This would be so much easier if we had our wolves,” Jensen muttered.
That was the constant ache we all felt, although I thought the guys might struggle more than I did. It was never easy for me to be a wolf anyway. It seemed to come more naturally to everyone else.
There might be prophecy about me, but that didn’t keep me from feeling like a failure half the time. I felt stupid that I struggled with something that came easily to others.
“Well, we don’t,” Rafe said, his voice harsh.
If I knew Rafe, he was harsher than he meant to be, because he was worried about Silas. He thrust his gloved fists into the pockets of his jacket; we were all cold through to our bones. Snowflakes had lodged in his dark hair.
Rafe seemed to struggle with his thoughts for a moment, but his voice was firm when he said, “We’ll have to go on without him. We have our designated meet-up spot in the city.”
We’d made plans for what we’d do if we were separated.
Jensen shook his head, his lips set grimly.
“Silas knows his own world,” Rafe said, as if he were trying to convince himself. “We’re worse off without him than he is without us.”
“Unl
ess he got hurt in the jump, and he can’t respond to us, or someone found him,” I said. “Silas has enemies in this world.”
“Silas has enemies in every world,” Rafe said dismissively. “I’m pretty sure that’s a point of pride for him.”
But he looked from me to Jensen and back again, his brow furrowing as if he did actually care what we thought, no matter how dismissive he sounded.
“We don’t have any other options,” Rafe said. Then he started off through the trees, paralleling the distant tracks.
Jensen glanced at me, raising his eyebrows. “He’s probably hoping we’ll follow.”
“I’ll bet he is.”
Rafe made his way into the trees. He didn’t look back at us; I couldn’t see his face, but if I knew him, he looked grim and was resolutely refusing to look back. He expected us to follow his leadership. And maybe we should.
But when it came down to it, I’d follow my heart before I followed any man’s orders.
Jensen and I gave each other a long look, as if it were a debate, then I tucked my arm through his and we headed after Rafe. We didn’t have to talk about it; we each knew that Rafe was in more danger than Silas was in this world. Rafe would never admit it, but he was the one who needed us.
But I still said a silent prayer for the incredible Silas Zip, because the truth was, sometimes he did need us.
And I needed him.
Chapter Fourteen
Lex
When I reached the alpha’s house, for a split second, it was hard for me to get out of the car.
Just for a second. Then the need to protect my sister, and the need to live up to who I saw myself as, took over. I threw open the car door and Penn and I headed toward the big white farmhouse. It was the nicest house on pack lands.
A thumping sound from one of the upper windows drew my attention.
I half-ducked, ready for a fight, my hand on my gun, as I looked across the row of windows. It might be a trap. But there was my sister, hammering on the glass. Her eyes were wide, her face scared.
She held up two fingers.
“Did you see that?” I asked Penn, suddenly proud of Rosemary for thinking of a way to help us strategize even when she seemed terrified.
“Yep. Looks like we’ve got two friends waiting for us—if she’s been able to get a good count.”
Penn moved to one side of the door, ready to burst in, and I took the other side. We had to expect someone with a gun was waiting on the other side of the door. We’d already have drawn a lot of attention to ourselves; no one ever strolled onto pack lands unnoticed.
Penn pulled the smoke grenade out of his inner jacket pocket and held it up. I nodded.
Then I came around the corner, kicking in the door. There was a crack of a gunshot, but it missed me. I kicked again then threw myself to one side. The door swung in as I whipped back around the corner. More gun shots pierced through the walls as Penn and I both ducked, but Penn was already tossing in the grenade.
It detonated, my heart racing as my ears buzzed, and smoke flooded the room. The two of us dove in immediately. Penn shot the shifter that came toward us, and I shot the one that popped from behind the kitchen doorway.
The smoke choked me and I put my shoulder up to my mouth, trying to smother my cough while I kept my muzzle steady, my finger in the trigger well ready to fire again. The two of us went quickly up the stairs, covering each other.
We found ourselves in a long hallway, but most of the doors stood open; there was only one room locked from the outside. I nodded to Penn, then he covered me while I kicked the door in. The door flew open.
Rosemary said, “Lex.”
Her voice was full of fear and relief intermingled at seeing me, and that was all I needed to know for sure I made the right choice.
“Come on,” I said, grabbing her arm. I pulled her with me out into the hallway. “Let’s get out of here.”
“Now, Lex,” a voice floated up the stairs. “You’ve got to know it can’t be that easy.”
Fuck. That was the alpha. Penn looked to me, waiting for my reaction, and Rosemary’s eyes flooded with tears of panic. I didn’t dare touch her—I needed to be ready to move—but I winked at her, trying to reassure her it would be okay. She was so panicked, she didn’t even see me.
“Just let us go,” I said. “I’m just trying to look after my sister. We don’t need any trouble.”
“I’m not the one with trouble, boy. You’re the one who came back here in pack territory when you’re not one of mine anymore.”
“You’re right,” Penn stepped up next to me, and I frowned, wondering what the hell he was thinking. Whoever was waiting for us down below at the end of the stairs couldn’t see us; I wasn’t sure how many weapons were trained on those stairs right now. There was no easy way out.
And I’d just killed two Kiereny pack assholes, men that I used to know. I’d only briefly glimpsed their bodies to have an idea who they were, but I knew I’d try to puzzle that out later. Their faces would haunt me at two o’clock in the morning as I stared up at a dark ceiling, trying to convince myself they were just a pair of assholes who deserved it.
Penn gave me a trust-me grin that didn’t entirely comfort me.
“Lex isn’t part of your pack anymore,” Penn said. “He’s part of mine.”
“And who the fuck are you?”
“Penn. Alpha of the Carolina pack.”
“Is that so. I knew your dad, and I remember you.” In a quieter voice, the alpha said, “Smartass little shrimp.”
He’d meant to be overheard. But the important thing was, two laughs answered his barb. There might be more, but there were at least three of them, and my sister here too.
“So it shouldn’t be any trouble then if I challenge you for alpha.” Penn’s voice was as relaxed as ever, even with his gun still gripped in his hand. “Should be an easy fight, huh?”
“Penn.” I shook my head frantically. The alpha had taken my dad’s eye long ago. I didn’t want to see Penn hurt.
“I’ve got a plan,” Penn mouthed at me.
“That doesn’t mean it’s a good one,” I mouthed back.
“Oh really?” There was a laugh in the alpha’s voice. “Okay, fine. But I win, I’m staking Lex out in the yard again and making sure I don’t waste any time finishing him off. That was my mistake last time—giving the little brat time to weasel his way out of chains.”
My body was taut with anger, but I just nodded. I knew what would happen to me if they got their hands on me and thought that no one from the Northsea pack or Penn’s pack or the academy could interfere. Right now, no one else could shift except for packs like the Kierneys that had aligned with the witches. They thought they had all the power.
I didn’t see how Penn could beat a wolf that could shift either, for that matter, when Penn was trapped as…Penn…all the time. My friend with the ruffled dirty-blond hair and slender but athletic build. He was definitely not a shrimp, but the alpha of my pack was bigger.
And a whole lot meaner.
“You can come on down the stairs, all three of you,” the alpha said. “You’ve got my word that nothing will happen to any of you. Yet.”
Chapter Fifteen
Silas
As I headed through the woods, I skirted along the train tracks, keeping sight of the dark metal through the pines. Maddie and the others would want to come with me, but I had to face those who were tracking us alone.
The thought of killing my best friend was bad enough. The thought of killing him while Maddie looked on was impossible, because Maddie knew who he was to me. She’d seen him in my memories, lifting me out of the mud at the orphanage when I was beaten bloody.
I rubbed my hand across my face. Keen’s words were in my ear: Take nothing with you, and leave no trace. You’re a ghost. Didn’t that apply to our memories just as much?
I murmured a word, and the snow behind me was crisp and fresh as if my boots had never crunched through it. Until I met Maddi
e, it had always felt better to be a ghost than to be myself.
I was getting worse and worse at leaving no trace, it seemed. I liked being the incredible Silas Zip, rebel magician; I’d wrapped that persona around me like a warm blanket that protected the cold, lonely kid I used to be, until I was nothing but swagger and one-liners and completed missions. I’d made the incredible Silas Zip, and then I’d grown into him.
And then I’d wrapped Silas Adelphus, dreamy, geeky werewolf around me like a second blanket. I could let that Silas fall in love with Maddie and become part of the team and jostle with the guys, and know that deep down I was someone else, someone who could walk away. It was just an act.
Maybe I wasn’t actually any of those people anymore. The lonely kid, the cocky rebel magician. I sure as hell wasn’t a werewolf.
Nothing would ever turn me into a shifter, and as much as I loved Maddie, nothing would ever turn me into her fated mate, either. I was just…human.
And now it was time to leave it all in the past, because I’d seen Frederick wearing an Establishment magician uniform, and no one knew me better. He knew how I operated because he’d been trained the just same as I was.
And he’d be tracking me unless I tracked him down first.
Part of me hoped he wasn’t following me at all. Maybe our friendship meant something to him, and maybe he hadn’t been recruited to track down other Rebel Magicians. Maybe he was some kind of double agent, not a traitor.
All those possibilities were unlikely.
And if I were true to our training, I’d eliminate the threat before I could lose control of my mission.
I retraced my way toward where we’d leapt from the train. The others should go to our location in the city; they might lose some time looking for me, but Rafe would make sure they stuck to the plan. As long as they did, they would be safe while I dealt with this threat. Then we could return to our mission.
The faint tremble of the snowy ground underfoot alerted me to the snowblazers even before I heard the whine of the engine. I leapt up and caught the slick branch of a tree overhead; snow came loose and fell in my face, sending cold, damp trickles down under my jacket. As I moved swiftly into hiding in the tree, my magic was already erasing any sign I’d ever been there.