“I don’t think there’s anything in the cooler right now, anyway,” she continues. “I heard some of the guys talking about raiding it for snacks to eat while they watch some sports game.”
I pause and turn to look at her. She’s acting strange. “Why don’t you want me to go to the meeting house?”
She shakes her head, but an expression flickers across her face that she’s not quick enough to hide. “It’s not that—I just don’t want you to waste a trip.”
I raise my eyebrows. “You’re lying to me.”
“No, I’m not,” she says, but panic flashes in her eyes.
Any lingering doubt I may have had evaporates. There’s something going on at the meeting house and Lillie doesn’t want me there. Ignoring her further protests, I open the front door and shift before setting off at a run toward the hill at the center of the enclave. Although I’m fast in human form, it’s no match for the speed of my wolf. About a minute later, I reach the meeting house and shift back as I step onto the porch. A glance through the window reveals most of the remaining pack, including Jack and Sawyer. The windows are closed, but when I focus, I can hear the words being spoken inside. It takes a minute for me to realize what’s they’re planning: a mission to rescue Cassandra.
This is why Lillie wanted me to stay at the house. This is why we spent the last hour talking about color combinations instead of going to the gym, and it’s why Jack stopped by earlier to insist I take a day off from training.
I stalk to the nearest door and pull it open. An uneasy silence falls over the crowd as their eyes land on me. I look at Jack. “Is there a reason I wasn’t invited to this meeting?”
After a quick glance at Sawyer, Jack stands from the metal folding chair and crosses to me, smiling all the way. He reaches forward and strokes his hand against my cheek. “We’ll talk about this later, okay? Lillie said she needed you today, so—”
If he thinks a little bit of charm is enough to make me forget how angry I am, he’s wrong. Even though the way he’s looking at me melts my insides and sparks skip across my skin where he touches my face, I refuse to be put off. “You put her up to it, didn’t you? You made her fabricate a reason to keep me in the house.”
The pack members shift in their seats and a muscle in Jack’s jaw jumps. “Now’s not the time for an argument,” he says, his voice low. “It’s bad for pack unity to see the alphas fighting.”
“I’m not fighting with my alpha, I’m fighting with my half,” I grumble, crossing my arms over my chest. Still, I’m not blind enough not to see his point, so I turn to the others in the room. “Would you all step outside for a minute?”
The words feel heavy as I say them, and no sooner have they left my mouth than the group stands as one and walks out a door in the back. The immediate compliance surprises me—especially when it comes to Sawyer. I figured he, at least, would protest. An idea crosses my mind and I turn back to Jack. “I just gave an alpha command, didn’t I?”
He nods. “The power can take a while to get used to. You have to figure out how they work, but you also need to know how not to make everything a command.” He runs a hand down my arm. “We can talk more about it when I’m done here, if you like.”
I narrow my eyes, understanding the subtle brushoff. “You’re not getting rid of me that easily. Why don’t you want me here?”
He sighs. “I asked Lillie to keep you at the house today because we’re discussing a plan to get Cassandra back from the witches, and—”
“I want to come,” I say, not letting him finish.
He closes his eyes for a moment before continuing. “And I knew you’d want to come. Ava, don’t you get how dangerous it would be? Kiara and the other witches on the council made it pretty clear they see you as a threat to the balance of nature. They don’t think you should be allowed to exist.”
I understand what he’s telling me—I was there, after all—but I shake my head. “I’m not staying behind. I want to help.”
He settles his hands on my shoulders. “I need you to help by staying behind to watch over the territory.”
“Sawyer can do that. Or Dakota. She’s beta female now that Mel’s gone, right?”
Jack growls.
“I don’t care what you say—I’m going to help you save Cassandra.”
He stares at me for a beat before sliding his hands down my arms and leaning his head down until he touches my forehead with his. “Okay. If you really want to come that badly, I won’t stand in your way.”
Before I can respond, the back door swings open and heavy footfalls sound as the rest of the pack comes back into the meeting house. “How’d they know we were done talking?”
Jack shrugs. “It’s been a minute. Sometimes commands can be interpreted pretty literally.”
I can’t help smiling. “I bet you’re wishing your alpha commands worked on me.”
The corners of his mouth twitch. “Maybe a little.”
* * *
Jack’s gray wolf leads the pack forward. The sunlight slants through the trees at a steep angle. The sun will set soon.
He comes to a stop and we all freeze in place. An instant later, he shifts back to human form and pulls a necklace out from beneath his shirt to consult it. He explained to me before we left that he’s worn this talisman for decades. Cassandra gave it to him before the time of telephones when the two of them still moved around a lot, so he could always find her, no matter what. I wanted to ask just how long they’ve known each other and what kind of relationship they’ve had over the years, but it wasn’t the time.
Jack points and I hear his voice in my head. There’s a cabin up ahead. Cassandra must be in there. First wave, get ready.
While Jack finally relented and allowed me to accompany them on this mission, I had to promise I’d stay hidden from any witches who might be around. I know it’s for the best, but it hurts knowing I can’t do anything to help. Cassandra is only in this situation because she wanted to stand up for me. I owe it to her to rescue her from her imprisonment.
Jack and six other wolves move forward. In the back of my mind, I’m aware of what’s going on through my alpha link with Jack. He told me it’s something we could experience in human form too, but it takes more effort to locate it, because the human mind is so much more complex. But now, as a wolf on the hunt, part of my mind is in constant contact with his. Even though I’m too far back to see, I know there’s movement in the window. I feel the sharp sense of betrayal when Jack recognizes Stephen, one of the witches from the council. The scent on the air is enough to confirm there are only two people in the building. With that knowledge, Jack nods, and the first wave descends on the cabin.
My muscles tense as I wait. It feels like an eternity before I hear glass shattering. The plan is for the first group to break into the house and distract Cassandra’s captor before the second wave moves in to rescue her. Even though Jack prepared me for it, the howls and stabs of pain that shoot through my system nearly take my breath away. The witches wouldn’t leave the cabin unprotected, of course, and there are traps set with magic that have impacted four of the wolves who went in for the first distraction. I can sense from the pack bond that while they were hurt, they will be all right. I sense through my link with Jack when the second wave moves in.
I promised to stay out of sight, but I need to see what’s going on with my own eyes. I creep forward on silent paws, careful to keep myself hidden among the bushes. The cabin comes into sight just as Jack shifts back to human form. He’s at the front door. He kicks it open, but when he goes to cross the threshold, he can’t. It’s like there’s an invisible barrier keeping him out.
A murmur spreads through the link binding all of us together. Silver dust. I’m able to glean from the minds of the others that witches can enhance the dust with magic and use it to form an impenetrable barrier for werewolves. Stephen must have sprinkled it across the threshold and on the windowsills in case any weres came for Cassandra. No matter how hard the
y try, none of my pack members will be able to get into the house.
Except me.
Jack’s voice is in my head, telling me to stay where I am, begging me to give him a minute to figure this out, but I ignore him and emerge from my hiding place. I’m the only one who can save her. Waiting doesn’t give us the upper hand—action does. If we stand around, it only gives Stephen more time to cast spells against us. If we retreat, he can hide Cassandra somewhere else. He might even be able to hide her with magic to keep us from finding her again.
I run full out and pass by Jack in an instant. When I leap over the threshold, Steven’s eyes widen. I take advantage of his shock and run to where Cassandra sits tied to a chair. As I bite through the ropes, a familiar scent greets me. Wolfsbane. The bindings have been soaked in it, but it doesn’t slow me down.
As I’m tearing through the last rope, a searing pain shoots through my back. I don’t have to turn to know what happened: Stephen stabbed me. A howl tears itself from my throat, and I hear Jack’s voice yelling, swearing, threatening Stephen with the violence that will befall him once Jack gets his hands on him.
I struggle to get to my paws, but the pain in my back is too severe. I can’t support my own weight—but I have to. I have to get to Jack.
Cassandra jumps to her feet and Stephen lunges for her, but she picks up the chair she was tied to and swings it with enough force to knock him backward. I hear the sick crack of his head on a countertop, but I can’t turn to assess the damage. I look up at her, willing her to understand I want her to leave, to get somewhere safe, but she doesn’t. Instead she crouches down, and with a strength I’m shocked she possesses, picks me up and takes slow, heavy steps toward the door.
As soon as she crosses the threshold onto the porch, she crumples, and the two of us collapse onto the weathered boards of the porch. Jack drops to his knees, diverting his attention between the two of us to check if we are all right.
“I’m fine, Jack,” Cassandra murmurs, her voice weak. “Tend to your half.”
Jack leans in close to my face. “I’m going to pull out the stake,” he says, his voice even.
I whimper in response, clenching my teeth as he grips the object. A sizzling sound reaches my ears and the scent of burnt flesh overwhelms me, but I don’t understand what’s happening until Jack drops a silver spike to the porch beside me. There’s no protective grip anywhere on the weapon, and Jack pulled it out with his bare hand. Even now, he breathes heavily through his teeth as he studies the damage on his palm.
An engine rumbles, getting closer with each second. A Jeep hurtles through the trees and Jack lifts me in his arms. Another pack member—a white and gray wolf named Angela—shifts to human and lifts Cassandra, following Jack to the car. Jack deposits me in the back seat before thanking the driver and climbing behind the steering wheel. Once Cassandra is safely in the passenger seat, Jack puts the engine in gear and drives away from the house. Through the window, I see the other wolves running back into the forest.
A stinging burn sears through my back, and I know the spot where I was stabbed is already healing. When I feel strong enough, I shift back to human form and check on Cassandra. She’s weak. I don’t know what the witches did to her, but she’s missing much of the vitality I’ve grown to associate with her presence.
“She’ll be okay,” Jack murmurs. “She has to be.”
While the words comfort me, I get the feeling he’s trying to convince himself most of all.
Chapter Eighteen
There’s a bed waiting at Maggie’s house when we get back to the enclave. No sooner does Jack deposit Cassandra onto the mattress than Maggie shoos him out of the room, insisting she needs to do a preliminary examination before she has any idea what kind of treatment Cassandra might need.
Jack growls, but he allows the submissive wolf to push him out the door.
Lillie enters the house as we step out of the hallway. Her brown eyes widen when they land on me and her hand flies up to cover her mouth. “Oh my gosh—did they torture her?”
My brow knits. “I don’t think so. Why?”
She points. “Whose blood is all over you two?”
The front of Jack’s shirt is smeared with red, and gory streaks stripe the fabric covering my stomach. I sigh and shake my head. “It’s mine. A d-bag he-witch stabbed me in the back with a silver spike.”
Just when I thought her eyes couldn’t widen any more, they go full-on circular. “Why are you still on your feet?” she demands, crossing to me. “Why isn’t anyone checking you out?”
Before I can stop her, Lillie is pulling up my shirt to expose my back. Her thin fingers press gently but firmly against my skin as she examines the area still sticky with blood. “I don’t understand—I’m not seeing the wound.”
I reach for the hem of my shirt and tug it back down, hoping she gets the hint. “I’m fine.”
After a brief struggle, she removes her hands and comes around to face me. “Are you sure it was silver? You haven’t been gone that long. If it was really silver, it would still be mending.”
Jack holds out his hands, palms up. The flesh is shiny and red—still healing from the scorch marks left by his contact with the spike. “It was silver, all right.”
When Lillie turns to me, brow furrowed, I shrug. “Perks of being a hybrid?”
Her jaw drops and she shakes her head in wonder. “I can’t believe it. I’ve never seen a were heal from silver that fast.”
I manage to smile, but my amusement is tempered by the gnawing sensation growing in the pit of my stomach. It’s not as bad as the burning I know will come soon, but it’s impossible to ignore. I haven’t had blood since Jack helped me catch the doe the other night. I’m not sure whether it’s simply time for me to feed again or if healing from the injury burned through whatever was left in my system, but one thing is for sure: I’ll need more to drink soon.
Lillie disappears down the hall and I assume she’s going to check on Cassandra and Maggie. Jack stands still as a statue, staring straight ahead, his eyes slightly unfocused. His expression is dark, haunted. I wish I knew what was going on in his head. If I knew more about how to use our alpha bond, I’m sure I could find out, but I’d rather he said it out loud if he wants me to know.
Lillie returns, a woven basket in her hands. She nods toward the couch. “Have a seat, Jack. I want to look at your hands.”
For a second he doesn’t move. It’s not until Lillie opens her mouth to repeat herself that he complies. She perches on the cushion beside him and takes up one of his hands in hers.
She’s too close. I don’t like the way she’s touching him. She’s bending down over his palm, her long blonde hair spilling around her face, brushing against his leg. My muscles coil, ready to spring, and my lips curl. I want to pull her away, to teach her never to lay a finger on him again.
I squeeze my eyes shut. What’s going on? Lillie is my friend, and she’s obviously just tending to Jack’s injuries. So why do I want to fight her?
My eyes begin to prickle and I realize what’s happening. I’m not upset about what’s going on—my wolf is. I sigh, releasing a breathy chuckle.
Jack’s attention flickers to me for the first time in minutes. “What’s so funny?”
Heat rises in my cheeks and I shake my head, feeling silly. “Nothing. It’s just… maybe I should leave until Lillie’s finished.”
Lillie turns to me, too, and the burning on my face intensifies. “My wolf doesn’t like how close the two of you are,” I explain.
She leaps backward, putting an entire cushion of space between herself and Jack. “I’m so sorry—I didn’t even think…”
I shake my head. “Seriously, don’t worry. Take care of him. I’ll go. I should probably get changed anyway.”
Before either of them has a chance to say anything, I head out of the house. As I follow the curve of the road to my house, I try to make sense of what just happened. If I hadn’t caught myself, would I have fought Lilli
e? All because she was touching Jack?
Half.
The word echoes through my mind, making me jump. I spin in a circle, scanning the area to make sure no one saw me, but stop short when I realize how silly I must look.
I’ve never felt jealousy like that before in my life. My wolf doesn’t understand the same complexities and subtleties I do, so seeing Lillie close to Jack angered her. Because he’s my half.
I’ve done my best not to think too much about the implications of the two of us sharing two parts of the same soul. I can understand intellectually how it’s a huge deal—but I struggle with the personal implications. Do I love Jack? And if I do, is it because I want to, or because I have to?
I shake my head as I climb the stairs to my porch. I can’t think about it right now—not with the hunger building inside me. I change quickly, throwing the ripped and blood-stained shirt in the garbage and setting the jeans aside to inspect later, before heading back outside.
My eyes sweep the tree line, inspecting it for the best place to begin my trek into the woods. I’m not sure how far I’ll have to go before I run into an animal large enough to satisfy my need. Birds and squirrels skitter in the branches, but in addition to the fact that I’m not sure I could catch one, I’m afraid if I did, I’d drink too much and accidentally kill it.
I’ve just stepped off the porch when Jack appears from around a curve. He smiles when he sees me, the darkness that haunted his face earlier evaporated—at least for the moment. The fire in my belly is growing by the instant, sending prickles of pain through my chest and into my arms, but I steel myself against it. I can’t simply run into the forest now.
Jack’s grin grows as we near each other. “On your way back to make sure Lillie isn’t using her wiles on me?”
I’m about to defend myself, to remind him how new this whole werewolf thing still is to me, when I catch the teasing glint in his eyes. “You think this is hilarious, don’t you?”
Fate Bound (Fate Bound Trilogy Book 1) Page 12
