A large explosion shakes the foundation, and the chanting abruptly stops. Light pierces through the darkness. The beings shriek and flee. I force my heavy lids open. My mates are attacking! Relief and gratitude war for supremacy.
Cadoc and Kirk are in wolf form. Bo in partial shift tearing at the fleeing people with elongated claws.
Fell heads toward me, lantern in hand. The bright glow is unnatural. I wince.
“Are you okay?” he kneels beside me and I nod. Somehow, I stave off my tears.
His sharp nails make quick work of the bonds on my wrists. “Liar. Hold this.”
He shoves the lantern toward me. I force my clumsy fingers to grip it tight. He lifts me into his arms.
“How did you find me?”
“We made a deal with the Wolf King. Hold tight.”
“Wait, where is he?”
“Who?”
“The leader with the burned face.”
“Didn’t see him.” Fell takes off. We emerge from the brick wall. The night air has never tasted this sweet.
“Bo’s sundial gave us coordinates,” he explains, carrying me to a waiting SUV. He puts me in the passenger seat, and hurries to the driver said. Starting the car, he slams his foot onto the gas, he peels off.
Turning back, I watch the others emerge from the smoking building. They run beside us. Passing a small fleet of cars headed toward the house they move faster than any wolf I’ve ever seen.
“Who the hell is that?”
“The pack doing their job and dispatching a threat. Losing you on his watch made Alpha look bad. He’s furious.” Fell grins.
Spent, I slump back against the seat. “I don’t know who they were, but they knew things about me — personal things, Fell.”
“They’ve been watching you for a long time. Alpha came clean after we realized you’d been taken. He brought you home before they could capture you.” Fell’s explanation is straight out of a horror film.
Doubtful I frown. “And you believe him?”
Kirk examines the rope burn on my wrists. “We saw the letters.”
“Letters?” I close my eyes and rub my throbbing temples. “I don’t understand.”
Kirk applies a cream that dulls the sting. “They knew what you were before he did. Their interest in you made him dig deeper.”
“But he said the Volva told him.”
“We haven’t seen her to ask.”
Fell’s sarcastic response make me snort.
“What the hell is going on?”
Kirk wipes my face off with something cool and damp. “I can’t tell who’s friend or foe, but for now, we’ve reached a truce with Alpha. At least, while we face the same enemy.”
Fell pulls to the side of the road. The others appear besides us. Climbing in, they fire off questions I try my best to answer.
“The minute we arrive home, we’re sealing this bond officially,” Cadoc whispers. “All of us need to bite you so we can mingle our essences, Brat. We’ve waited too long as it is.”
“And then we’re going to hunt these bastards down and make them regret every laying a finger on you.” Kirk’s voice is deadly. The agreement of the others is a solemn oath.
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
Magic surges inside me like a wave lapping the shore. Saliva floods my mouth and my stomach rolls.
Coldness sweeps over me, and my teeth chatter.
“Ylva?”
“Stop the car.”
I rip off the seatbelt and escape the confining interior of the car. I take off in a run as the strange feeling builds inside me.
Desperate to find a safe space to unleash everything I’m holding back, I hurry between trees, leap over logs, and let the nagging feeling in my gut guide me.
The ticking bomb detonates inside of me. Back arched, I lift off the ground. A brilliant streak of light bursts from my chest.
My bones shift violently. My muscles rearrange themselves in a way that’s foreign to me. My hand becomes a massive paw.
I try to stop the shift, becoming stuck in a half form. Pain runs through my body and I twitch as I phase from human to wolf.
