The sun was just now starting to rise in the sky, casting shadows across every piece of furniture in my living room. Yet it was still dark enough outside to hide Artemis and Morgana, who I hoped were making their way into the yard now.
I froze. If not for the sickly-sweet smell of maple syrup, I would have thought the entire phone call was a dream. A rustling noise came from my mother’s back bedroom, and I advanced that way only to shriek in surprise when a ghost wolf lunged into my path. Her head was to the ground, hackles up as if she were ready to pounce on me. She might look ghostly, but I was pretty sure if she did in fact bite me I would feel it.
Novus stepped out of my mother’s room then and I pulled on my power, building up a shield around my body.
“I want to talk to her. Make sure she’s alive.” My voice shook.
It was terrifying to make eye contact with him, half man, half creature, but I did. I looked into those black eyes, the antler rack protruding from his forehead, and watched him grin, inhaling through his nose. He nodded. “You are the heir of the Elder Faeanda Greywolf. This will round off my collection.”
Crap. He could smell all that? No wonder he was after me.
“Did you come alone?” he asked.
Don’t lie, I warned myself, then envisioned myself parking the car in the driveaway alone. “Yep,” I said with certainty.
The wolf who’d been blocking my path advanced and I backed up just as a snarl ripped from its muzzle. My brows knotted together as I looked at the white wispy cord floating from the wolf’s back, connecting into the navel of Novus.
They were linked in this way. I hadn’t really thought much about it, but something inside of me wanted to explore it some more. Could I cut that cord with sunlight magic? If I did, what would happen?
‘He’s controlling me. I don’t want to hurt you,’an older female voice said directly into my mind.
I cocked my head to the side and looked at the wolf.
Did she just…?
The other spirit wolves stepped out into the room then, five in all, and started to surround me.
‘Run,’the woman said, again speaking into my mind like Brayden did.
‘No, that’s my mom,’I told her, totally freaking out at what was happening. How could she talk to me? And did Novus know it? Obviously he didn’t. He was looking happily at me as his wolves advanced, probably about to pin me down and prepare me for him.
‘I am Brayden Greywolf’s grandmother. Trust me, I have a plan. Run!’
Chills broke out onto my arms at the mention of Brayden and I decided in that moment to trust her. Turning, I bolted for the front door, crossing the living room in three quick strides and threw it open. The sound of Novus laughing behind me sent chills down my spine.
“Bring her back to me. Alive!” he called out, and the second I hit the porch I veered left, running around the side of the house and towards the backyard, which looked out over the water. There was no way in hell I was leaving my mom with this bastard, but it would buy Brayden’s granny time to explain to me what the heck her plan was. I reached the outcrop of trees at the back of the house and spun, yelping when the five wolves surrounded me. They snarled and snapped, clearly under the control of Novus. This was stupid. Why had I listened to her?
Brayden’s grandmother was the smallest of the wolves. She moved to the lead position as they made a V-formation before me. The wispy cords were floating from their bodies all the way inside of the house and through the walls.
‘You see the cords?’she said into my mind.
Stunned, and unable to speak, I just nodded.
‘I knew the moment I smelled you at the fight night that you had the power to break them. Your fae-Greywolf hybrid magic makes it possible.’
I cocked my head to the side.Whatthe whatdid she just say?
One of the wolves lunged for me then and she stepped in front of him, knocking him out of the way with her muzzle. His body arced through the air and then hit the ground with a thud.‘Hurry, we don’t have much time,’she told me.‘Sever the connection we’ve been forced into with him and we will fight for you.’
This lady was insane.‘What? I don’t know how—’
One of the wolves had gotten loose from the formation and bolted forward. In an instant, his jaws clamped down on my ankle and pain flared to life up my entire leg. A blood-curdling scream ripped from my throat and I reached down by instinct, picking the wolf up by the scruff of the neck and yanking him off of my leg.
Surprisingly, there was no blood, but a hell of a painful burn that felt like it had done internal damage. Weird ghost bite. If I wasn’t already a werewolf, I would be worried that would turn me into one.
Pissed off at the wolf, and confused by what Brayden’s grandma had said, I reached out with my free hand and grasped the cord tying the wolf who had bitten me to Novus. The second my fingers touched the wispy cord, power jolted into me like I’d grabbed an electrical wire. I almost let go, but Novus’ yelp of pain that came from my house spurred me on.
‘Sever it!’Brayden’s grandmother snarled, lunging for me.
