by Holly Hook
I wait for her to speak, but she doesn't.
“Did Edwin banish you out here?” I ask.
“Lucky guess.” Callie looks at me and frowns, her eyes full of worry. She stops behind a bunch of dead mint plants.
“That was wrong,” I say. What else do I tell her?
We stare at each other for what feels like a full minute, when in reality it’s probably just seconds. “Last night was weird,” Callie says. “I…don’t remember parts. I blacked out, and then I was out in the woods, and then I blacked out again…”
I shake my head. No. Just no. This is what Mr. Saffron said happened to him when he got possessed, right? That he didn’t remember anything when the Savage King took over. This shouldn't be happening.
But Callie does have the right blood, just like me and Mr. Saffron. She's also descended from the Savage King.
“I don’t understand,” I say, joining Callie in pacing around the greenhouse. “This shouldn’t have happened to you. No one ever did a ritual on you, did they?”
“Does this mean I’m possessed?” she asks. “That the full moon let him come through and now he could come through at any time?” Callie grips a flower pot, fingers trembling. “Should I run away and leave? How do I go back to my husband now? Earl’s going to be devastated. I’m a Hunter. This isn’t supposed to happen. If the other Hunters find out, I’m sentenced to death.” All the color drains from her face.
“Well, Romulus isn’t coming through right now, and I’m standing here, so maybe that’s a point in your favor,” I say. “And you smell completely human. I’m not lying about that. Can you smell anything new around you that you couldn’t before?”
Callie sniffs. “No. I don’t think so.”
“If you don’t think so, you’re not a werewolf,” I say. But that doesn’t stop people from getting possessed and Callie knows. The Savage King just has a harder time taking over humans than other Wolves. But why attack Callie? He wants me. And how did this happen?
Then again, I gave him a hard time. I chased him away twice. Maybe he’s given up on me and decided he’s just going to kill me through someone else—someone I care about. At the thought, every muscle in my body tenses again and begs me to run away.
“Good to know. Or not,” Callie says. “I haven’t called Earl yet. What’s he going to think? What if he doesn’t find me sexy anymore?” A new pain creeps into Callie’s words. As she speaks, my chest hurts. I, too, have worried about how Cayden would see me if the possession started taking me over. He might not even be attracted to me anymore--
“Earl loves you,” I say, crossing the greenhouse and embracing Callie.
And my distant cousin leans on my shoulder and lets tears fall. I shouldn’t be hugging her. The Savage King could come through at any time, but I don’t let her go.
“I hope so,” she says.
“Do you want me to call him?”
“Yes, please.”
“Brie, what are you doing in here?”
It’s Cayden. He grabs both sides of the doorway, giving off metallic fear and anger. His pupils are dilated like he expects to lose me at any time.
I release Callie, renewing my dislike for Earl. “She’s fine right now. I smell nothing wrong. Do you? And Callie’s not a Savage. She might have a problem like Mr. Saffron had, but that’s nothing we can’t figure out how to deal with. Mr. Saffron got cured. So should Callie.”
“He only got cured because he got infected,” Cayden says, lifting an eyebrow.
“That’s not what cured him,” I say. “Getting close to death did but he survived because I bit him. It’s like what you did to Remo.”
“I’m not liking this conversation,” Callie says. She forces a smile despite her red, wet eyes.
“Sorry,” I tell her. “We’ll figure out what did this to you. Are you sure the cult didn’t get into your house in the middle of the night and do the binding ritual? At least, I think that’s what Leonora calls it.”
Callie dabs her eye with the blanket. “I’m sure. Hunters stand guard around Colling every night because the Savages won’t like it if they know we’re gathering in the area. Neither will the cult. There’s no way they got inside. And the rest of your pack are looking out, too.”
She’s right. I haven’t talked to the Colling Wolves since yesterday. “I’ll ask Don and the others if they saw anything. And I’ll talk to Mr. Saffron. I’ve left him alone, but I don’t think we should anymore.” I pick out the phone to find a bunch of texts from Earl. “Your husband will be happy to know you’re okay. Do you want me to make something up?”
Callie looks at the foggy wall of the greenhouse. “You can tell him to bring me some clothes. But if I’m possessed, could I hurt him?”
“We don’t know the whole story,” I say, looking at Cayden. “Or how it works yet.”
“You didn’t have a ritual done on you so it doesn’t make sense that Romulus is able to target you. And what good what it do him?” he asks. He’s back to trying to help, because with my order, it would be very hard for him to kick the crap out of Brett. “Maybe we should ask our new hostage that.”
“I’m close to Brie and the Savage King knows,” Callie says. “You can’t be possessed. I can. The best the cult could do was put that pain curse on you. You got the lite version of the evil.”
“The lite version,” Cayden snorts. “Have you ever felt the pain curse?”
Callie glares at him. “Last night, I got a taste before I blacked out. I felt like…like someone else was trying to take over. There was a horrible pressure on my chest—“
“Then the Savage King was trying to claim you,” I say. “And it sounds like you were able to hold him off at least a few times, if you remembered pieces of your night. You must have given him a hard time. And then you woke up in Savage territory.”
“In my birthday suit. It was awesome,” Callie says.
“Explains a lot,” I say. “Except for how this happened in the first place.”
“Come on.” Cayden takes my arm and I let him pull me out of the greenhouse, leaving Callie alone. There’s no more question. Callie is the Savage King’s new target and I don’t even know why. But so far, he and his cult have done nothing without purpose.
“This doesn’t make sense,” I say.
“I know it doesn’t.” Cayden closes the plastic door to the greenhouse. Not that it’ll do any good if Romulus takes over. “Somehow, the cult bound Romulus to her. Maybe they got one of her hairs or a fingernail. She did go into their territory and the cult saw her and Alex.”
“Once I call Earl, we’re interrogating Brett.” I pull him up on my phone, step away from the greenhouse, and give him the deal. The real deal, because as much as I like Callie, I can’t put him in danger. And Callie wouldn’t want that, anyway.
“Tell her I’m coming,” Earl says. “I’ve been throwing up all night, worrying about her. And tell her I’m not leaving her side when I get there.”
Chapter Four
Earl collects Callie half an hour later, after bringing her a change of clothes. I leave the two in the greenhouse and head back into the cabin, keeping one ear on the outdoors in case Romulus decides he wants a taste of Earl’s blood. But the greenhouse stays quiet as the couple speak in low voices that even I can’t make out well.
“You took a long time out there,” Edwin says once I’m back inside.
Brett lies on the floor still, and I search the house to find no one here but the three of them. Leonora sits on the couch and shifts nervously. She’s paging through Brett’s book, and it’s just as confusing as before. Even a whole coven hasn’t been able to make sense of his symbols, doodles, and horrible handwriting.
Another wave of pain jolts through my arm at the sight of Brett. I’ve been battling them for over an hour now, some worse than others. I’m definitely not healing any faster than a human for this wound. But I force myself to keep a straight face even as my ears ring in response to it. If I pass out, that will give
Brett some satisfaction. And I can’t let him have that.
“How you feeling?” Brett asks, grinning. “Is that shoulder burning a little bit?”
“You didn’t get me too bad,” I say, hovering over him. “How’s life? Did you like that broken arm Romulus gave you? I see it’s healed since you’re not in that cast anymore. Romulus must give you lots of vacation time, too.”
That gets to Brett. He scowls at me and tilts his head up so his sunglasses slide down his nose. But then he speaks with an infuriating calm. “How did you know about that? And you’re responsible for me going over to the other side. I could have helped you. But now my sister’s over there. So I need to be, too.”
“That was your choice. Her choice. Trust me, Karina made her own decision to work with the cult. Does she wear the pants in your family? And you just tell yourself you need to protect her to make you feel better about yourself?”
“You know, Brie makes some good points,” Cayden says. He looks at me and asks a silent question. Can I handle this?
Brett’s face reddens. His cheeks deepen to the shade of the blood caked under his nose for a second. I’m getting to him. If Noah were here, he’d award me a point. Brie, one. Brett, zero.
“I’ve never killed anyone,” Brett says.
So this is still about his father. I step back as if he’s slapped me. We’re even now.
“It was self-defense,” I say, forcing my thoughts away before the guilt can get me. But Brett's making my chest hurt and my heart race. “Do you like working for the Savage King and helping him possess people? That was almost a death sentence for my poor drama teacher and who knows how many others. I see you’ve found a way to get him to possess people without a ritual, too. How did you screw over the Hunter girl? I’m curious.”
Brett looks away, staring at a crack in the wall. He’s about to lie. My sharp senses can pick up almost everything. And now that he’s off his turf and on the floor in our territory, he’s powerless. I hope.
“How do you think it worked?” he asks.
“So you admitted it.” Leonora joins me, standing on the opposite side of me as Cayden while Edwin continues to rock and let us do all the work. The noise repeats itself over and over, upping the tense atmosphere. This probably isn’t Edwin’s first rodeo.
Brett grins. “Maybe.”
Hot rage explodes in my chest. How does he get under my skin so well? “I’m not in the mood for this. Let’s put one of his hands under the recliner.” I have to force out those last words. My Noble nature doesn’t like this and it could even bring Romulus back. “Every time Edwin rocks, it hurts your hand. We might stop if you give us some hints. And if it turns out they’re wrong, we start on the other hand.”
What am I doing?
“I approve of this message,” Edwin says, rocking a little harder. The feet of the chair tap against the floor again.
“Let me handle this,” Cayden begs, sidestepping to push me out of the way. “It's too risky for you, Brie.”
Brett bites his lip. He’s trying to act tough, too, but if I listen close enough, I can hear his pulse increasing. Fear’s creeping in.
Cayden unties Brett’s wristsm and lifts one off his chest. Brett takes the opportunity to punch Cayden in the side with his free hand. Cayden bites in a grunt. By then, I can’t help it. I seize Brett’s free arm and squeeze.
“Do not hit him.” I lean close to Brett, half-expecting him to spit in my face. But he holds back.
“Last chance,” Cayden says, letting his voice descend into a growl. Brett’s bringing a monster out and I shudder just listening to the sound. While I’ve heard Cayden growl before, lots of times, this is something different.
“Cayden, breathe,” I say. “We just need to do this to get answers.”
To my shock, Brett nods and slides his legs up into a bent position even though ropes still bind his ankles. He’s bracing for the pain. But then he looks up at Cayden, turning his dark gaze away from me. “Listen to her. You don’t want to become like the Savages, do you?”
Cayden bites his lip. “You’re responsible for this. Now talk.”
“The curse—“ I start.
But Cayden’s already shoving Brett’s hand under the rocking chair’s leg. Edwin puts all his weight into rocking forward and the leg comes down on Brett’s hand. The dark warlock tries to curl his fingers, but decides against it last second and flattens them out.
Crunch.
Brett seethes as the chair rises. Edwin puts his foot down to stop the chair’s motion. The older man stays expressionless. If this is bothering him, I can’t tell.
“This is awful,” Leonora says. “I can't watch it.”
“I thought we were too nice,” I say to Brett. “How’s that cruel nature for you?”
Brett curls his fingers in agony. They’re not broken, but they’re flushing red. “What does this have to do with nature?”
“Please. Do we have to do this?” Leonora asks. She covers her mouth with her hand and paces around us. “Can’t we just make him translate his book for us so we can fix Callie and Cayden both?”
“Then he’ll give us the wrong info or a spell that will backfire on us,” Cayden says.
Brett regains his composure. “Very good. If I could clap, I would.”
I turn away, taking a breath. This is going to take a while. Brett will hold out long enough to goad me. He’s hoping Romulus can return and take me over, and he thrives on hatred and guilt. This warlock knows what he’s doing. He might even sacrifice his life to help his master win. This isn’t an environment where the spirit of Remus can return to me. In fact, I haven’t felt him since pulling Alex from the pond.
“This might be too dangerous,” I admit.
“You think?” Brett lifts his head and faces me.
“Maybe you should check on Callie again,” Cayden says. “We’ll keep drilling.”
“But the curse.”
“It hasn’t hit me yet here. Don’t worry. We’re on the Russells’ home court, so Brett here is at a disadvantage.” Cayden raises a hand, ready to give Edwin the signal to rock again. “What did you do to Callie and how did you do it?”
I watch Edwin move his foot and let the chair fall again. Brett grunts as the leg makes contact. A rush of satisfaction washes over me, only to be replaced by an image of Brett’s father lying in the shack, bloody and very, very dead—
Pressure settles on my chest and I let go of Brett's arm, rising.
“Out,” Leonora says, shoving me towards the door. In my distraction, I let her push me right out the front door and I barely keep my footing as I stagger along the cobblestones.
“Thanks,” I tell Leonora.
“He's nasty and he's getting to you,” she whispers.
“I know he is.” I hate admitting it.
“Brett was getting to me, too. When I was in there, I felt like failure, like I could never do anything right. And I feel like I haven't eaten in a week. Something's wrong with him.”
My shoulder burns again and I grab it. My stomach turns at the thought of doing what I just did. Taking a breath, I face the greenhouse. Callie and Earl stand just inside, and Callie’s now dressed in jeans and a sweater. She leans on her husband, who strokes her hair with love and affection. The pressure vanishes from my chest, and I’m tempted to hold onto it just so Callie doesn’t have to worry about possession. The Savage King can’t control two people at once. He’s only one spirit.
Earl doesn’t look vengeful. There’s nothing but love and comfort on his face as Callie leans on him. She faces me and waves.
Inside, Brett grunts in pain.
“How do you like that?” Cayden asks.
“I don’t like how Cayden’s acting right now,” I admit. He can hear me from inside, but I don’t care. I hope he does even if I wasn't much better. We need to get info out of Brett, and there’s no easy way to do it, but torture isn’t the Cayden I know. After two good weeks, he’s letting the hurt win again.
&nb
sp; “He’s doing this for you,” Leonora says.
“That doesn’t make me feel better.” I watch as Callie and Earl, supporting each other, walk down the dirt road and to Earl’s car.
Inside, Brett grunts again. I hear his finger joints straining. They make a horrific sound between a crunch and a grind.
“Did you have to do with Romulus possessing Callie? She’s not a Savage Wolf. She wasn’t infected. How did you do it?”
Edwin stops rocking. “You had better tell this young Wolf.”
I eye the house as Earl starts the engine.
“I’ll see you later, Brie,” Callie calls. “And I'll be careful.”
She's leaving, knowing she could be possessed at any time. I don’t like that she’s leaving with Earl—Romulus could hurt him, would hurt him—but maybe getting away from me is what she needs for now. What do I do? She’s making her decision and Earl’s making his, knowing what kind of danger he’s in.
“Are you sure about this?” I ask.
Callie looks at me, silently begging me to let her go. Even though she stands a good fifty feet away I read everything I need to in her gaze. “I'll figure it out. I have a plan.”
She doesn't sound happy.
“But we're interrogating Brett,” I say. “He might know how to help you.”
She pauses. “I have to help myself and everyone else right now. Earl's driving me to a safe place. Call me when you know.”
She gets into the car and they back down the driveway.
Another grunt sounds from inside the cabin as Brett gets another rocking chair treatment. “This isn’t working,” Edwin says. “My magical knowledge is limited or I’d extract the truth from him right now.”
“My parents will be home in a few minutes,” Leonora says. It’s clear she’s not comfortable with this. But who is? “Is it still ugly in there?”
“Yes.” I listen as Earl's car gets farther away.
“I hope they’re okay,” Leonora says.
“Ouch!” Brett shouts. “I can’t feel my hand anymore, okay? You smashed every goddamn nerve in my fingers. We got a sample of that Hunter girl’s blood when one of our Savages scratched her. It was under the dead Wolf’s nail. Then we used it to do the binding ritual on her. All those Hunters don’t want to admit where they come from, so we wanted to remind them. Now can you stop smashing my fingers into the floor?”
