A shift could be good.
I’ll just have to ensure my presence isn’t sensed by anyone nearby. Or maybe go several miles away for my run so I don’t lure anyone back to the cave.
Hmm. I stretch my arms over my head, then go check on Ashlyn again. She’s still tucked into a ball, sound asleep in my bed.
It’s the only one in this lair.
Which means we’re going to have to share it.
Fortunately, it’s big enough for us both.
But I can’t join her in my current mood. I need to run off some steam.
So a run it is,I decide, pulling off my shirt and laying it on my couch as I return to the living area. My pants and boxers follow.
Fully naked, I find a notepad and a pen to write a note for Ashlyn—letting her know where I’ve gone—then grab Cael’spresentand shadow to a nearby tundra. The terrain makes it easy to spot potential threats. The terrain could also be useful for “losing” this precious piece of metal.
Alas, Grey’s right.
So I slide the damn thing onto my wrist and growl as the magical metal melts into my skin. It feels like a damn noose around my neck, reminding me of a previous life.
Of a collar that suffocated my aura.
Growling, I engage my shift, aware the device will transition with me. Fortunately, it doesn’t throttle my powers. It just… aids them. A different kind of tech.
My white paws touch the earth a few seconds later, my wolf eager and ready for a sprint.
So I let him go.
Enjoy the wind in my fur.
Free my mind.
And simply…exist.
4
ASHLYN
Silence greets my ears.
Eeriesilence.
I felt Grey leave, his presence a blanket of security I already miss.
Will he be back?I wonder, shivering as I curl tighter into my robe.
I know the answer isyes.
Because we have seven days before the mayhem begins.
Seven days before my world ends.
Seven days before his life begins again.
My stomach clenches, the prophecy swirling through my mind as a myriad of chaotic visions assault my mind.
It’s strange knowing what will come to fruition, yet not knowing exactly how it will all unfold. My foresight is usually clearer than this. Alas, all Iseeare the same gruesome fates.
