She sighed. “As long as Mukesh lives,there will be a darkness in Gavin. It will continue to grow as the darkness onthe earth grows. Without the twelve anchors, the darkness will overtake theworld and all that is good will be gone. Humans will be most affected by thisdarkness, which is why they have turned on the wolves now. I’ve seen it. Gavinwill be lost to the darkness. He will become Mukesh.”
Well, shit. How was that for manipulatingsomeone into doing something? Her words made my stomach tighten and the acidlurch into my throat. Why were my mate and I always trying to escape death!? Ithought back to the night we were told the story of Gavin’s birth mother. ThatMukesh raped her while on her spirit quest at the tender age of thirteen. Itmade my bear rear up inside of me and threaten to take hold. I would never letthat happen to Gavin.
“Why me?” Couldn’t someone else be abetter replacement?
Lina smiled this time and brought herhand up, waving it in front of the air as if she could see something I couldnot. “It’s in your soul. A bright light, unwavering, full of love, passion,strength. You were born to anchor, as was I. Your mother had it too, but it gotbroken when life became too cruel. Anya, I’ve seen things, horrible things, andI’m afraid that if you do not accept my gift at this time, then all is lost.”
How could I deny such a heartfeltrequest? But I feared she was making the wrong decision. I wasn’t all brightlight and strong inside. I was somewhat insecure and scared like everyone else.But there was a fierceness inside of me, a strength that could not be matchedif you messed with my family or anyone I loved. Gavin was my family, all thewolves were, and so if doing this protected them, I would.
“I accept,” I muttered, before I couldthink too much more about it, and with those words, tears streamed from Lina’seyes.
“Come find me,” she whispered andsuddenly her translucent figure became a large ball of light that explodedright in front of me. The light fell like glitter and settled on my skin, bringinga warmth and love with it.Lina.
The drumming was closer now and I knew Ineeded to get to it. Shaking off my conversation with the ghost of Lina Istarted running again. Left, right, hit a wall and turned back, left again,when suddenly I turned a corner and skidded to a stop before a woman holding asmall child. The child must have been only two or three. She was tiny and mystomach sank when I saw the child had no hair, not even peach fuzz. She clearlyhad some type of cancer.
The mother was a wreck. Her eyes wereringed red, hair a matted mess, but when she saw me she looked up.
“You!” she screamed. I froze, wonderingif this was real or a dream. She wasn’t a voice like my parents had been or aspectral ghost like Lina had been. She seemed real.
I didn’t move, didn’t breathe, couldn’tsay a word.
“You can help me!” she cried out,stepping closer to me just as the little girl roused in her arms.
“Mommy? It hurts,” the little girlwhimpered in a delicate voice.
Jesus Christ. I had a certain thresholdof tolerance for things and two-year-olds dying of cancer broke me. I couldn’tdeny her even if it was only a vision and I had no idea how to help.
“How?” I whimpered as the mother’s facepeered at me with agony.
“Heal her.” The mother closed thedistance between us in an instant and suddenly the child was thrust into myarms.
“No, no.” I tried to give her back, butthe girl’s body sank into my arms as I struggled to tighten my hold and notdrop her. My God, she was so frail and thin, she barely weighed as much as my latecat Luna.
Sobbing, the mother collapsed to herknees and I stood there stupidly hoping this vision would hurry up and movealong.
“Nahuel!” I shouted, wondering if I justset the little girl down and ran if that would have dire consequences.
When I peered down at the girl, wonderingif I should ask her a question or something, I noticed her hair was growing. Itwas peach fuzz now and her body seemed to be getting heavier. She looked up atme with bright blue eyes and I saw a rosiness in her cheeks.What the?Some movement on my arm caught my attention and I gazed over to see a puresilver light pumping from my veins and traveling down my arm and into the girl.
“I feel better,” the girl said and I juststood there in shock. Suddenly I felt a presence at my back. Turning, I sawAvery. My best friend was smiling, arms outstretched for the little girl. Mymouth was open in disbelief. What was this? I handed the girl to Avery andwatched in astonishment as Avery’s veins lit up with the silver light andpumped into the little girl as well. This girl looked nearly normal now with short,cropped blonde glossy hair and full pink cheeks. Then suddenly Avery’s canines descendedand her mouth morphed into the shape of her wolf muzzle. What the eff? Before Icould process it, Avery bit the little girl on the arm, sending a child’s wailinto the labyrinth as the little girl shrieked.
“No!” I cried out lunging for Avery, butshe and the child dissolved into nothing as a bright white light enveloped them.Before I could wonder where they had gone, a harsh chill came over me sproutinggoosebumps up and down my arms. Behind me, I heard the mother cry out.
I spun fast, not liking the familiarsmell I had just picked up, and sure enough, standing before me was the Skin Walker,Mukesh, nearly naked with a bear skin hanging over his shoulders, wearing a wrygrin. His blond hair fell to his shoulders in stringy waves. He was never clean,always covered in some mixture of blood and dirt.
“I’ve missed you, mylittle cub.” His words were like acid to my ears andit killed me that I didn’t have a weapon on me right now. I had the sinkingfeeling that even though this was just a vision, he could hurt me here. Helooked far too pleased to have found me and I could feel my bear rising to thesurface as a low growl rumbled in my chest. Suddenly a black mist leaked fromMukesh’s eyes and ears and as it touched the child’s mother, she was gone. Justlike that, blinked out of existence. Out of all of the nightmares I’d had in mylife, Mukesh leaking black mist from his eyes and ears topped the list. I wastotally watching cartoons after this vision was over. Assuming I survived it.
‘Jaxon?’I tried my twin bond.Nothing.Crap.
‘Gavin, wake me up!’I shrieked to my mate, but it felt likemy request hit a brick wall and bounced back at me. Shit, plan B.
The black mist was coming for me, keepingme from going forward and finding Nahuel and the safety of those drums. Iwasn’t sure if this was supposed to be part of my vision or if the Skin Walker hadsomehow broken in. I was thinking the latter and something told me that if thatblack mist touched me, I was done for somehow. I slowly took a few steps backas Mukesh let his eyes rake over my body.
“How’s my son?” he purred, and I revoltedas I realized he was talking about Gavin. His cheek bones were so prominent helooked like a ghost. This was pretty much my version of hell. Being stuck in avision with this creep. I had to figure out a way to get past him withouttouching the black smoke. I slowly reached my left hand out and gently touchedthe hedge wall to get a feeling for how strong the branches inside were. Theblack mist was coming faster and so I took a calming breath and called to myown inner witch’s magic.Please Universe, let my magic work in this god-forsakenplace.As the tingle built in my chest, I grinned and let my own white mistpour out of me and meet his dark magic halfway, like two warriors on achessboard. They encountered each other in the middle and pushed at each otherin fury. As my white mist brushed against his black mist I felt his awfulessence squirm against me. It was death, fear, and loneliness. This man had nosoul.
“He’s not your son and I’m not yourlittle cub.” Staying to have a chat with this douchebag was a stupid idea. Soinstead, I crouched, and in one leap I jumped up onto the side wall of thelabyrinth, glad to find that the branches were thick and strong. My fingers grippedthem for dear life not caring that my arms were getting cut up. Trying to findstrong footholds, I climbed up quickly. I noticed in my peripheral vision thatthe Skin Walker had lunged for me, but I was faster and my white mist held himoff just long enough. Once I reached the top of the hedge, I craned my neck andlooked out.There!Just a few rows over, Nahuel was sitting in themiddle of the labyrinth as his warriors played the drums around him. I clumsilyran across the top of the hedge, cutting my ankles and shins up with the stiff,poking branches. I was trying desperately not to lose my balance, keeping myarms out to steady me. A whoosh sounded to my right and I turned to see a largeblack crow. The Skin Walker could take the shape of any animal, and dammit, ofcourse he could be a freakin’ bird.
I was running like a drunken fool,wobbling along the uneven tops of the hedge, but when that bird dove for me, I leapt.My body flew across the open space below until I crashed onto the wall thatsurrounded the center of the labyrinth and held the people I knew I needed toget to for safety. I was five feet from Nahuel and the warriors, but theydidn’t look up. Nahuel seemed to be in a meditative trance and the warriorsjust stared at their drums, drumming louder and louder. But the flapping ofwings had me panicking.
