I blinked several times as my sight returned, but as I looked around, things were far from normal. The outside world was muted, painted in shades of gray, while the people swirled with vibrant color. My panicked gaze jumped from one person to the next.
This can’t be happening. I don’t have time to deal with new abilities right now. I need to get out of here and warn Caelan.
The hands holding me tightened painfully, their frustrated snarling a sharp note as they struggled against my amplification. The two men snapped at one another, growling as if they were ready to tear the other’s throat out.
“Control yourselves!” Huxley ordered. “She’s influencing you! Keep your heads straight! Bring her now! We need to move her before she alerts her alpha. Get her to the camp. The sooner I claim her, the sooner no one can stand in my way.”
I glanced at him. Alpha Huxley was painted in inky blacks, murky browns, and a deep, bloody red. I shook my head, blinking my eyes and trying in vain to make my vision go back to normal. I needed to focus if I was going to make it out of this.
What did he say again? That’s right. They want to move me. They want me out of range so I can’t reach Caelan.
“Caelan,”I whimpered through the mind-link as they dragged me toward the tree line.
“I’m coming, Shade,”he assured me.
But as we slipped through the trees, I feared that he might be too late to keep Huxley from forcing his mark on me.
The Resulting Chaos
CAELAN
A FEW MINUTES EARLIER
I nodded politely to Briggita, Alma, and Zia as they walked by on their way into the party. Taffy was with them, but she paused, reaching out and giving my arm a reassuring squeeze.
“She’ll be here in just a moment,” she remarked with a sly smile. “Try not to pounce on her the second you see her.”
“No promises.” I grinned, and she gave me a wink before joining the others. I’d been waiting for this moment all day, excited to finally see Shade again. After tonight, nothing would ever be able to keep us apart. But as the seconds turned into minutes, my excitement shifted to anxiety.
Where is she? Taffy said she was right behind her.
And then I felt it, the sheer power of it forcing me backward as it rushed against my skin and penetrated through every part of me like a tidal wave crashing against the shore. I knew that energy.
This was Shade’s gift.
Chaos erupted all around me as her ability spilled over every wolf in the party. Fights broke out, mating squabbles escalated, and lovers embraced passionately, losing themselves in the intensity of the moment.
Some screamed, terrified by the sudden shift in emotion. Some cheered, their excitement giving way to dark desires.
It was absolute mayhem.
My father barked orders, trying his best to control himself and the situation. My mother remained calm, trying to rein in the pups as they went wild with childish abandon.
I started forward to help them when I heard it.“Caelan,”Shade called weakly through our mind-link.
“I’m coming, Shade,”I assured her.
I didn’t waste another second. I took off in the direction she should have been coming from, following her scent. It muddled with the cacophony of smells filling the pack house, making tracking her more frustrating than it should have been.
Crap. I can’t tell which way. Why did I have to demand so much cherry pie?!It would be a long time before I allowed it to be cooked in the pack house again. The only cherry pie scent should be Shade’s.
I hurried out the back doors just in time to see a group of wolves I didn’t recognize disappearing into the trees.
Outside the air was clearer, and three familiar scents met my nose. I took a deep breath, inhaling the stink of pungent pollution, the overly acidic scent of citrus right before it spoils, and the alluring aroma of cherry pie.
Alpha Huxley, Sunny, and Shade.
I rushed into the trees after them without a second thought. Two wolves jumped on me from behind, the three of us crashing to the ground as several more surrounded me. I threw them off, calling for Dillon, Taffy, and Oliver through the mind-link.
