And when I open my eyes, everything is sharper and clearer. Including the blonde fur covering my legs.
My wolf. I shifted. And I don’t know what to do. What am I supposed to do now? A high-pitched whine comes out of me, and I back away from Declan and Zeke, toward the house. I don’t know what to do. What happens now?
“Calm down.” Declan holds his hands up in surrender. I still understand him even when I’m in this form. “Remember. We have to find Cole, and Tara. You shifted because your mateis in danger, and your wolf knows what to do. You need to trust yourself now. Can you do that?”
I can’t speak, of course. All I can do is nod, still trembling, still breathing hard like I ran for miles. My wolf. I’m a wolf, after all, covered in fur the color of my hair.
Quickly, the guys strip down before shifting into their wolves. Big and black, like Cole. Declan looks at me—he’s a little bigger than Zeke, but not by much.“Can you hear me?”His voice fills my head, even though his mouth never moves.
“Yes,”I think, and the way he inclines his head tells me he hears me, too.
“Do you know where to find them?”Zeke asks, pawing the ground like he’s anxious to get moving.
Yes, now that I’m my wolf, I can almost pick up Cole’s scent on the breeze.“I think I can follow his trail,”I tell them, looking around, trying to find where the scent is strongest.
Then I find it, and I take off into a run without saying anything. This is incredible—maybe one day, I’ll be able to take it all in, to appreciate the feeling of running like this. My body is strong like it’s never been before. Fast, powerful. For the first time ever, I’m not small and weak.
I use that to my advantage now, pounding the ground with my paws, cutting through the woods that start at the edge of Cole’s property. It’s getting darker by the minute, but I can see clearly, thanks to my new vision, and between that and Cole’s scent getting stronger all the time, I move with confidence.I’m coming, Cole. I’m coming.My mate.
By the time we reach the clearing, the scent is so strong, I would think he’s right here next to me. I skid to a stop and hear Declan and Zeke crashing into each other behind me, butit’s the sight in front of me that makes me stare, panting, confused at first.
Two wolves are lying in that clearing, neither of them is moving. They barely look like they’re breathing.
No! Not Cole, not like this. An overwhelming sense of fear and dread overcomes me, and I realize if I lose him… if he dies, I’ll die. I’ve never been so sure of anything in my life. I can’t live without him, I can’t!
I take two steps, just two, before Declan gets in my way. Baring my teeth, I snarl.“Get out of my way.”
“Just wait,”he urges, eyes glowing.“You need to calm down now. It could be a trap.”But there’s blood in the air, and I can’t tell whether Cole is breathing or not. I would know if he died, right? I would have to. I don’t feel anything like that, but still, it could happen. Every breath I take, the blood smell gets stronger.
“We need to be careful,”he tells me, then turns away and takes a few slow steps into the clearing with Zeke and me behind him.
He’s barely passed the tree line when a gunshot rings out.
The three of us jump back in unison.“I’m fine,”Declan assures us, scanning the area in the direction the shot came from.
I see it, too. A flash of metal in what’s left of the day’s light. Someone has been waiting for us and using Cole and Tara as bait.
Forget being careful. I have to run. I have to be there. Whoever is holding that gun harmed my mate and fired at us. They won’t get away with it. Not as long as I’m breathing.Zeke and Declan are close behind, grunting and growling and panting like I am.
That blood scent is getting stronger, too, pulling me along until I have no choice but to skid to a stop because there’s a gun pointed at me. And it’s held by my brother.
“Who are you?” he demands in a tight voice, and I notice how the gun trembles while he licks his lips like he’s nervous. “I don’t know you.”
“Be careful,”Declan urges, but I barely hear him. Derik is in front of me, and he looks scared. I can smell it on him, the sweat that leaks from his pores reeks of fear. I wonder if he’s always smelled that way, but I only know it now, as my wolf.
“Why? Why?” The broken sobs coming from my left make me glance in that direction. A woman cradles a man’s body in her lap, rocking back and forth as she wails. “What am I supposed to do? How do I live without you? Why?”
I can barely believe my eyes. It’s Serena, and the man whose head she kisses… is Dad. Someone tore long, slashing wounds across his chest, but it’s him. Jessa is on her knees beside them, also weeping until she looks up and spots the three of us.
I wish Derik would shift. I want him to know who I am. Who he’s facing down now. “Whoever you are…” The gun steadies as Derik takes aim between my eyes. A growl sounds in my throat, getting louder, my muscles poised and ready to strike.
Movement from my right distracts both of us. Something huge and brown lumbers our way, crashing through the brush before letting out a roar and taking Derik down. His screams are high-pitched and full of agony that’s quickly cut off when the bear kills him, shredding his flesh in a wet, sickening symphony.
There’s no time to process that before Jessa jumps to her feet, scrambling for the gun. I’m lunging for her before I know it, catching her off guard, knocking her to the ground before she can take hold of it.
“Leave my family alone!” Serena’s enraged scream barely registers, but Declan’s growl sure does before the two of them collide. They were warned, weren’t they?
How many times have I wished to be in this position? Pinning my heartless sister to the ground while she screams and writhes, kicking and clawing.How do you like it? How does it feel to be the smaller one? The weaker one?Her body begins to shift under me before I can immobilize her and in that moment, all I can do is remember every kick. Every punch. My human memories and wolf instincts merge, giving me no choice.
