The island clearing went quiet as the gryphon slowly folded its wings and tossed a wary gaze around the wolf shifters, narrowing its piercing yellow eyes at all of us.
My heart raced as fear and awe gripped me--and it wasn’t the only thing gripping me, either. Eric still had a firm hold on me, pressing me against his chest like I was something precious to be protected.
Maybe he does think that way about me now,I thought.Since he knows I’m an omega.
Suddenly, the great beast opened its mouth--and spoke.
“Wolf shifters of the Lake of Four Directions,” he said in a deep, masculine voice, “where is the omega?”
Any previous tension among the four different packs vanished, replaced instead by wary vigilance directed towards the gryphon. When a few wolves glanced in my direction, the gryphon followed and his yellow eyes landed on me. My knees trembled and I swallowed the thick lump in my throat. I was seriously grateful that Eric was holding me up right now, otherwise I might have collapsed into a frightened ball like a pup.
The gryphon took a step towards me, his talons sinking into the sandy dirt. But before he could get close, shifters from all four packs surrounded us, forming a barrier of half-human, half-wolf. Even Dan and Gabrielle, who had been arguing with my parents just a moment earlier, had banded together to protect me.
But that might not really be their intention,I realized grimly.They could just be protecting a resource, not me personally.
“I mean you no harm,” the gryphon said.
Eric’s arms tightened around me and I bit back a yelp. His arms were strong, and surprisingly warm. Colton and Ramsay had closed in on us, too. They stood just inches away on either side of us, all bristling and ready for a fight.
“What do you want with my son?” Dad growled.
The gryphon paused, then let out a whistling noise that sounded like a sigh. He sat back on his lion-like haunches and swivelled his feathery ears back.
“I am Noro,” he said. “I am the Keeper of magic in my pride.”
Ramsay crossed his arms. “And we’re supposed to care, because?”
“It seems you wolves were unprepared for this awakening,” Noro said quietly. He gestured to me with a talon. “Am I to assume the small one is the omega?”
“It’s none of your damn business, gryphon!” Eric shouted.
“Please listen,” Noro insisted. “I’m not here to hurt any of you, especially not the omega.”
“Well, excuse us if we have a difficult time believin’ that,” Ramsay muttered sarcastically.
His father, Dan, added in a growl, “Yes, especially since the last time we wolves saw a gryphon was in a bloody battle.”
Noro shook his head. “I am not like the others of my kind. As a Keeper, I’m loyal to magic first and foremost, even above my kin. The last thing I want to do is hurt the omega.”
“I have a name,” I said loudly, trying to keep the tremble out of my voice.
Noro gazed at me without blinking. His eagle eyes were unnerving, but not unkind. I wanted to believe that he was telling the truth.
“Matheson, of the East Pack,” I told him.
“You don’t have to tell this beast anything,” Eric growled in my ear. Despite the situation, I found myself shuddering at the sensation of his breath touching me so closely.
“It’s okay,” I murmured. “I don’t think he’s going to hurt me.”
Eric frowned and didn’t reply. He didn’t loosen his grip, either.
“Matheson,” Noro said, giving a slight bow of his head. “Your awakening must have startled you. There hasn’t been an omega in these lands for a long time.”
That surprised me. “Not even among the gryphons?”
“No.” Noro chose his words carefully, casting a slow gaze over the shifters in front of him. “And unlike wolves, the situation for us is very grave.”
“How so?”
