by Holly Hook
Remus leaps.
“Brie!”
Hands shake me and I open my eyes. I'm on my back with a canopy of blue overhead. Cayden stands over me, worry filling his hazel eyes, and right behind him stands Noah, Leonora, and Aunt May. Everly stands on her toes, trying to see over Aunt May's shoulder, and Alex and Edwin both wait behind them, gazes hard and unforgiving. I saw that same look in Remus's eyes seconds ago.
I take a breath. “What happened? And no, I'm not possessed.”
“You slumped over,” Cayden says, rubbing his thumbs over my shoulders. No longer does he have a red and gold glow around him. I can't see the dark spots that torment him, either, or the cord that connects us. “I was shaking you for the last thirty seconds.”
His fear flows into me. But I feel his caring, golden and warm. It fills me, relieving the inky dark that filled me before. The rite must have helped him while I was gone.
“What did you experience?” Edwin asks, leaning forward. If I don't speak, I will pay.
I swallow. “I was trying to put up my barrier when...when I saw the first Wolves. The twins. I saw Remus.”
Chapter Eight
“You saw the twins? Here?” Edwin drills.
“Leave her alone,” Cayden says. “Let her breathe.” He shoos Edwin away, which makes me love him even more.
“I agree,” I say.
“But what did you see? Were the twins here?” Edwin, though he now stands behind Cayden, reaches for his dagger.
“I'm fine,” I say, glaring at him. Aunt May follows my gaze to Edwin and furrows her brows. She's sharp. I haven't told her the truth—if I do I'm not sure what will happen—but she doesn't like Edwin, either. “I was here, and then I was seeing things back in Roman times, I guess. The twins were in human form and ready to fight. It looked like Romulus captured Remus's mate and was threatening her. Like he was trying to get Remus to attack him and make the first move.” I catch my breath. The world tilts like I'm adjusting to it again.
“Remus did not fight his brother,” Edwin says. “He died because he refused to kill his brother. We all know the story. Romulus destroyed him.” He speaks as if I've just said that Remus shifted into a pink Wolf.
“I'm just telling you what I saw,” I say, sitting up. As I do that, the crowd around me thickens. The air gets harder to breathe. Edwin does not want to be wrong.
Cayden kneels beside me and puts his hand on my back. “I believe her. She's the Noble Royal and probably more connected to the past than we are.”
“You feel better,” I say. At least he's in my corner again.
“I'm sorry for how I've been,” Cayden says, looking me in the eye. He frowns. “I was a jerk this morning to you and going back to my old ways. Brett's making all of us go back to our old ways.”
“Except me,” I whisper. I was kind before and then I suggested doing horrible things to Brett.
“I want to know more about what you saw,” Leonora says, pushing through the crowd.
“It was likely just a nonsense vision,” Edwin says. “She probably has too many new ideas going around in her head. Let's not take it with more than a grain of salt.”
Even the Hunters look at him funny. Edwin doesn't notice.
“Look. Romulus goaded his brother into the fight. Remus didn't want to attack him.” I ball my fists. What if this detail is important and I can learn from it?
“Edwin, perhaps we should think about what she saw,” Mr. Russell says.
“This meditation was meant for us to defend ourselves against that young warlock,” Edwin says.
But Mr. Russell has his bravery back. I stand and watch the two men face each other. Others back away from the mini-showdown. Edwin is a statue, old and unmoving, while Mr. Russell looks like a younger version of the man. Leonora's father shifts leg to leg under his uncle's glare. “Sometimes, things happen, and if it happened to Brie, it must be significant.”
“Come on,” Cayden whispers in my ear. “I'm ready to confront Brett again.”
“But will he put you back in that dark place?” I ask.
Cayden hangs his head. “I don't know. I just know he made things horrible for the two of us. I can still feel the curse lingering around me, but at least I've got my energy back. Never thought I'd sit and meditate.”
Instinct tells me to get away from the oncoming storm. As Cayden and I walk back towards the house, I look back to find Mr. Russell still facing off with his uncle. The others, including the rest of the pack and the Hunters, part, Alex included. Noah, Olivia, and Leonora follow in our general direction.
“Brie,” Alex calls.
I freeze, still looking over my shoulder. Cayden grabs my hand.
“Did you see any of Romulus's weaknesses?” he asks.
Alex is legit curious. He walks over to me, daggers shifting and clinking under his leather coat. Everly, Remo, and one of the Colling Wolves, Ron, follows him. For the first time, I read desperation in Alex's eyes. This Hunter who tried to kill me fears Romulus as much as I do. Like me, he's descended from the bad guy and knows he can be possessed, if only the cult gets ahold of him.
But he believes my vision, unlike Edwin.
“Well, being the coward he is, he had to bring a whole pack of Savages with him to the fight,” I say. “That's his weakness. The moment he thinks he's in real danger, he tends to go away.” I want to leave Alex here and confront Brett now that we might have a defense. “Remus was fighting alone.”
Alex nods as he turns dull and stony again. “I was hoping for something new.”
We need to go. I rub my thumb along Cayden's hand to tell him.
“Well, we're off to see the wizard,” Cayden says.
“Is Noah rubbing off on you?” I ask.
“I think it's just some relief from whatever Brett did. You don't know how good it feels. Maybe now we can protect ourselves.”
Once Cayden, Leonora, Everly, Remo, and me are back to the cabin and standing in the living room, away from the chatter outside, I realize that unless we want to break into Edwin's house, we need the guy to get to Brett. A sinking feeling fills my stomach and I look at Cayden. “We need the guy who's ready to...who hates us,” I say.
His expression hardens. “We should go without him. If Brett drains you too badly and he's there, you could start to get possessed, and then I'm going to have to kill him.” Cayden's anger washes over me. It's that red glow I saw around him, I'm sure.
“I don't want to see that,” Leonora says.
“You're going to kill Brett and let Romulus run free?” I ask. “And rot the Nobles?”
Cayden looks me in the eye. The hazel forest god within is dark and determined. His devotion to me is so strong he'll sacrifice the Noble species to protect me. And that's dangerous.
“I'm afraid I will.”
I breathe out as my throat hurts. “We...we have to think of everyone else.”
“What are you trying to tell me?”
I wish I could blurt the truth about Edwin and the fact that he has my blood. “Exactly what I told you.”
“You're so selfless, Brie.” Cayden wraps me in a hug and kisses my forehead. I shudder with the brief pleasure of feeling his perfect chest and hips through my clothes. “That's why I love you and am going to protect you. You might be alpha now, but that drive to keep you safe is still there. To be truthful, I don't think it's faded since we switched places.”
“That's why we need to bring Brett to our side and save him.” I can do that, right? It worked with Alex and was the only thing that brought the Noble King's spirit to me. Perhaps, just maybe, we can pull Brett from darkness, too.
Ha. Fat chance.
Cayden releases me. Everly and Remo, who have stood at the edge of the room the whole time we were talking, step closer.
“Cayden, maybe Everly and I should go,” Remo says. “You two could stay here and we'll try to wrestle how to remove Cayden's curse from Brett.”
“But I'm needed,” I say. “Only I can boss Br
ett around effectively. Even Cayden can't do that.” I look to my mate as his shoulders slump in barely-hidden shame. “Sorry.”
We don't need to say the rest. If I go, he goes. It only feels right that we face Brett together.
* * * * *
At least Edwin is still distracted in the log circle, arguing about the importance of my vision with his nephew. His self-importance is going to be his undoing soon enough. As we leave the cabin, the two still face off while the five Hunters watch. The rest of the Colling pack watches, too, as do the Russells. What a waste of time.
But as me, Cayden, Everly, Remo, and Leonora leave the cabin, we find Alex waiting beside the greenhouse. He twirls a keyring on his finger.
“Edwin told me that if you are going to get answers out of that warlock you turned, that I should go with you to supervise,” he says.
I'm not sure how I feel about that. Cayden steps in front of me. “This might be unpleasant for you,” he says.
Alex remains stony. “I will cope. We'll just focus on Edwin's mumbo-jumbo and see if it works.”
I know Edwin's sending him for a reason. And what that reason is. Cayden will kill him, too, if the Savage King comes close to taking over again. And there's no way he'll recover from that.
“Come on,” I say.
“I had Nan bring us the SUV,” Everly says just as the Lowes' SUV pulls up the drive, with Nan in the drivers' seat.
“You're awesome,” I tell her.
Nan gets out and hands Everly the keys. I nod my thanks to the older woman. Alex sits in the back, right behind me, but Cayden turns in his seat and watches him the whole way to Edwin's small rental house. No one's home, of course, but I smell something new when we pull into the driveway.
The burning hay scent is still there, wafting out from under the front door, but there's something else, too: a new foresty scent and fresh grass that indicates the presence of a Noble Wolf. Brett has turned. How he is remains to be seen.
I get out of the SUV and march to the front door first, determined to get some answers for Cayden and Callie both. Once I open the door, the scent hits me full force: nature mixed with anger. I've never smelled anything like this. I'm about to face some kind of strange hybrid who's never been on the face of the Earth before. And maybe, since Nobles don't like to turn people like Brett, he's the first Wolf like this. It's going to be an interesting situation.
“Let me go first,” Cayden starts, but then he frowns at me once he realizes what he's saying.
We stand in the doorway, blocking the way for Leonora and the others. “I'll go,” I say. “I've dealt with Brett before and know what a jerk he is. If he sucks the life from you—and I'm sure he still can—then you're going to suck the life out of me. No offense.”
Cayden grimaces and forces the words out. “None taken. Leonora, you have a way to defend us?”
“I don't like being in Edwin's house,” she says quietly, looking around at the living room and kitchen.
“Neither do I,” I say, realizing it for the first time. Brett's not up here on the ground level—he's in the basement—but Edwin's house carries a strong sense of you're not welcome. Though it looks ordinary in every way—tan carpet, white walls, an old green couch that doesn't match—the feeling lingers in the air. “We'll just focus on our bubbles or whatever so he can't feed off us. Maybe Edwin's made some spirits to watch his house while he's gone.” I'm not confident about that one, but I'll try. Blinking, I imagine a bubble of light around me, holding off the darkness. The vision's hard to hold onto. It's going to take practice.
Alex snorts.
“Actually, that might be the case. I feel like we don't belong in here,” Leonora says. “Edwin doesn't trust us, after all. He might be working with my parents, but he's still looking down on them.”
“Then let's get out of here as quick as we can. Did anyone bring Brett's spellbook? I'll order him to translate.” I hope he can hear us. He should be able to. Brett should have hearing as good as Cayden's and the rest of the pack's, though he won't have hearing as good as mine. I've never encountered someone like him before.
And then he shifts down below, chains dragging across the basement floor.
I march across the kitchen—which is dark and decorated with nothing at all—and open what I'm guessing is the basement door. Marching down, I call out, “Brett.”
He says nothing. I almost feel sorry for the guy. Almost.
Once down, I find Brett still underneath the stairs with four sets of chains binding him to the walls. He's in a seated position, draped in his black robe with the red trim, and he won't even look up at me at first. The others descend the steps as dust rains from the stairs and onto Brett's dark hair, dirtying his head. Alex practically breathes down my neck while Cayden stands at my side. Leonora, Remo, and Everly hang back. At least I don't have Edwin here and that magic pain spell he was doing. It's just Alex and he's less likely to hold off three Wolves if things go south.
Already, I feel tired. Brett's draining us already and my bubble isn't doing much good. It'll only get worse as time goes on. For a second, I close my eyes and grab Cayden's hand. I feel his energy for a second, warm and tingly, before it wavers. Maybe we're tolerating his presence a little better?
“Brett,” I say, focusing on putting on that golden shield Edwin mentioned. “You need to tell us how to remove the curse you placed on Cayden and how to detach Romulus from Callie and me and everyone else you might have helped bind him to. Is bind the correct word?” I look at Leonora and force a smile.
She nods. “Right word. You're learning.”
Brett doesn't look up from the floor when I open my eyes again. He just keeps eyeing it like it's the most fascinating thing ever. He's not going to be easy to crack. Even now, I feel resistance to my commands. But if Lawrence cracked and gave me the location of his grandmother, Brett has to give me answers eventually.
“It's not for you to know,” he forces at last, pulling against the chains that bind him to the wall.
I have to use more force. Releasing Cayden's hand, I step closer and square my shoulders. I'm in charge. “Tell us how to remove both. We can't read your chicken scratch, and I'm sure you made your handwriting like a doctor's on purpose, so tell us.”
Everly snorts with suppressed laughter. I know what she's doing and it's trying to keep the mood in the dark basement up. Brett shifts again. His limbs tremble with weakness and helplessness.
But the drained feeling stays in me. The longer I stand here, the darker the basement seems, and the weaker I feel.
“Tell us,” I order. “And stop trying to drain us!”
Brett looks up, training his sunglasses on me like he's shocked we've figured out what he's doing.
“I can't help it. It happens on its own now. And these chains are sucking the life out of me, so I have to get my energy somewhere.”
A negative pressure starts in my chest. It's not like the threat of possession I've felt before. This is my lifeforce leaving my body.
“You know, you could always have a meal,” I say, glancing at Cayden. I detect no lie in Brett's words. His body must be so used to doing this by now that it's his default. “Tell us how to remove the curses. Then we'll bring you some food. But until then, you're sitting here.”
Brett glares at me. I can barely see his eyes behind his sunglasses, and for the first time I see his veiled fear. Brett's doing such a good job at hiding his terror that I can't even smell it, but it's there. Maybe he doesn't even realize it yet. After all, we've ripped out his whole world from under him and he could still be in denial.
“You might as well,” Everly says, joining me. “You can't go back to Romulus now or he'll destroy you. Even if he doesn't, letting him take over Brie will hurt you, too. You'll become like the Savages you don't even like.”
Brett flinches. Everly has some good points. We're getting to him.
“No,” he forces.
“You have to do what I tell you,” I say. But my comman
d falls to the floor. The negative pressure, like there's nothing in my chest, continues. We're standing very close to Brett, so close I can barely breathe.
“I...just can't!”
“That's progress,” Cayden says. But he winces as he speaks and steps back.
“Stop draining my mate,” I order, speaking at just under a shout. “I don't care how you have to stop.”
“It's happening automatically! I've trained so hard that I can't turn it off anymore.” Brett bites his lip so hard he draws blood. The metallic scent fills the basement and makes my stomach rumble. A tremor of rage starts in my limbs.
I focus again on that shield of light Edwin told us to put around ourselves. The awful sensations ease, but not enough. Behind me, Remo and Leonora breathe in unison, focusing.
“Time is running out,” Alex says. “You need to tell her what to do.”
“And kill my sister?”
Oh. I'm never breaking through that wall. I feel the barrier already. Maybe I need to approach this differently. That could mean being too nice again, but being cruel hasn't gotten me very far. So I kneel beside Brett.
Brett looks right at me. As he does, his draining talent hits me full force and I gasp for breath. So much for that light bubble.
“Brett,” I say. “Why did you have to learn how to do this?” He has weaknesses and I need to exploit them, even if it's dirty. I need to understand him.
“Because you killed my father.” His words stretch out, strained and hurt. As he speaks, his chin carries a sight wobble. “Sure I didn't like him, but in case you're stupid and didn't see, I don't have a lot of family. My mother was already gone and now he's gone, too.”
“Don't talk to her like that,” Cayden says. Balling his fists, he advances on Brett.
“I've got it,” I say as Cayden's anger sweeps over me. “Back up.”
Cayden does, grudgingly, and stands on the other side of the basement. His anger fades. I want him by my side but I know what will happen if he stands too close.
