I hear the sound again, like a whimper. The sun is setting soon, but in the forest, the brush seems darker. My legs pivot and I run deeper into the woods. The sounds get louder now, and Joey's scent grows stronger. I try not to think about the worst-case scenario and panic. And then I find him.
In wolf form—he's tiny. His paw is bleeding, like he got it caught in something. "Joey!" I cry. Kellen and Cynthia are right behind me. Cynthia skids to a stop in front of Joey, and she kneels down to inspect his foot. She tries to ask him questions, but he won't shift back to answer. She gives me and Kellen a worried look.
"I need to get him to Doc." Then she shoots me an anxious look. "Why don't you come with me, we can run and be there in twenty minutes." The hospital is a little further away from the heart, down the mountain.
"You go," I urge. "We'll head to the cabin and call ahead. The cabin is five minutes away. We can call Doc and Heather and have them ready. He should be—" I pause, shifting from side to side. That ache in my chest, like I felt around Andrea—it returns, urging me to reach out to Joey. I wrap my hand around his hind leg, near the injury, and it's like his wolf takes a deep breath of relief.
"He should be healing by now," Kellen finishes. "She's right. We'll head straight to the cabin and stay there. I'll call Eli, he can come stay with us. We're still in lockdown, these woods should be full of enforcers."
Cynthia's face pulls tight. Itshouldbe full of enforcers. So, where are they all? But with another push, she nods, lifts Joey,and after offering strict instructions that we return immediately to the cabin, she's off.
We race back through the woods toward the cabin while worry pulls tight in my chest. I'm sure Joey will be fine. He's a shifter, he's strong.
We hadn't gone far, so with our quick pace, it isn't long before we reach the clearing. I burst through the wood's edge, but the sudden silence is jarring—there's only the sound of my feet hitting the dirt road, my labored breaths as I try not to panic. Especially when the faint scent of sulfur wafts toward me.
Pausing, I turn around, finding the path empty. Anxiety claws up my throat.
"Kellen?" My voice shakes. "Kell?" The answering silence makes my skin crawl.
My gaze darts between the woods and the bend up ahead, the cabin just past it. Every second I hesitate feels like a ticking bomb. He's probably right behind me. But what if he's not? What if something happened to him?
I call his name again, louder this time.
Instinct tells me to run to the cabin. I'm not an alpha or an enforcer. If something hurt Kellen—
I swallow the worry, the fear, and I run. But when I round the bend and approach the cabin, I find Andrea on the front steps. I skid to a stop.
"What are you doing here?" I ask suspiciously.
She snarls, lips curling back, revealing sharp teeth. Her blond hair is full of dirt. Blood smears on her arms. It seems as if her shoulders grow an inch as she sways, like she's manic. Footsteps behind me make my shoulders drop in relief.
But when I turn, it's not Kellen behind me.
It's Stance.
"What are you—" the words disappear when his fist lands hard across my temple, followed by a second across my chin. Istumble back, then land like a heavy sack. I think he broke my jaw, but it's the instant headache that steals my attention.
Beep tries to shift, the sensations crawling up my hands and arms, down my legs. The sulfur scent gets stronger, and then Beep's efforts stop abruptly. "Beep?" I whisper.
Something is blocking me. Her.
"What—" I try to roll over, to get up, but my mouth hurts, my head is killing me. I try to help her shift, even though we learned that doesn't work, but I have to dosomething. But my shifter magic is quiet and heavy. Sluggish, like it's carrying silver through my system.
I feels faintly like I did my whole life before Beep found me.
The gravel scrapes at my back as Stance drags me by one leg toward the back of the cabin. My vision darkens at the edges. Just before I pass out, my head lulls to one side—and I see Andrea, knocked unconscious, being carried by a second rogue wolf.
Chapter 38: Mona
Idon't know how much time passes. My body aches like I've been beaten, but I know it wasn't as bad as last time. This feels different. Heavier, more subdued. It's dark, the floor beneath me rumbling.
I try to roll over, but knock into another body.
It's Andrea. She's awake, and her hands are tied. With silver, probably, judging by the stench of burning flesh steaming up from behind her. I'm tied, too, but not with silver. Still, I can barely move.
Andrea's eyes widen, her eyebrows making expressive gestures, but I don't know what she's trying to tell me. I can barely keep up with current events. I try calling for Beep, but she's not answering. I can still feel her, but it's like… the door is closed.
A cloth is wrapped around Andrea's mouth. She's trying to mouth something to me, but I can't understand.
