Wolf's Wager (Northbane Shifters)

by Isabella Hunt

  I’m sorry, Luke.

  Only, those abilities weren’t working, either.

  In another second, the men had surrounded us, pointing weapons and barking orders not to move. I could only imagine how it looked, a dark-haired girl in a green dress, half-covered in sand, protecting an unconscious black panther.

  “Isn’t this quaint?” purred a voice, and the men parted. A woman stalked forward, flipping her hair and smiling at me. She was a bottle blonde with bright red lips and fluttering eyes. “Hello, are you Ms. Reagan Grace? You’re a hard woman to find.”

  I didn’t answer, and she laughed as Sarrow stalked up next to her, then a man who had to be Jim Terthal. He looked vaguely familiar as he frowned at me.

  “Are we sure this is her? Shouldn’t she be able to wake her sister up?” he asked.

  "From what the Excris said, her powers are sporadic. Otherwise, the vryke wouldn’t have half-formed like that,” Sarrow grunted. “But I’ve seen her in action.” His lips twitched. “Where’s your boyfriend? I’d like for him to see this.”

  “Oh, are you seeing my ex, too?” Lind asked and clapped her hands. “This is truly like a Shakespearean play.” My teeth clenched. I had never wanted to punch anyone so badly. “Anyhow, like I said, it took us ages. First, my fault for not paying attention to dear Billy’s story.” Sarrow made an irritated sound. “And then, trying to find someone who knew the Graces. Dear, dear, do you know all your relatives are dead?”

  My stomach lurched as she shook her head. For a moment, I was glad Cassidy was asleep.

  “Leave my sister, and I’ll come with you,” I said.

  “Oh, is that what this thing is?” Lind asked and wrinkled her nose. “Sure, why not?”

  “Oh, no, a young female panther,” Terthal said and studied her. “Look at that coat. She’s magnificent. We should really take her."

  “No, please,” I begged. “I’ll come with you. I’ll do anything. Leave her.”

  “Oh, I don’t care either way,” Lind said. “All I want is the elder Grace.”

  Mind boiling with panic, I shook my head, trying to think of something, anything, to save my sister. If only she would wake up so she could run, so another Grace wouldn’t have to die…

  My hands gripped Cassidy’s fur, and warmth rushed through my veins.

  “What is she doing?” Lind cried.

  “Get back!” Sarrow shouted.

  It was too late. Power rose up in me, a swirl of gold and crimson, burning against my eyelids. My blood hummed, warmth rolling between me and my sister, a bond that held true and fast. It rang between us, and energy surged into Cassidy, waking her up.

  The excess crackled off, releasing into the air around us and knocking everyone down. I wobbled, a hand on Cassidy’s side as the black-furred creature got to her feet and looked at me. A satisfied growl tore from her throat.

  “Run, Cass,” I said. “Escape. Get help.”

  Instead, Cassidy let out an earth-shaking roar, and the Skrors who were picking themselves up went flying. Power sang through her, and she stalked forward, roaring again. My eyes went wide as Cassidy stood between me and these men, tail lashing, itching for a fight. I could almost—no, I could: I could sense the energy in her, the energy all around us.

  “This is what they wanted,” I murmured.

  But it wasn't quite awake yet. Like there was another click of the key to go. My ears pricked up, sensing a disturbance in the forest. The air rippled and churned.

  “The vryke.”

  A scream pierced the air, which then came alive with shouts. One rose above the rest. Terthal.

  “What are those things?”

  I turned and saw three huge figures stalking out of the forest.

  “Barrowmen,” I murmured, the name jumping to my lips.

  Terthal leaped to his feet and leveled a weapon at them. A gasp of horror escaped me as the Excris stalked by, flicking a finger and turning him into a pile of ash.

  “Oh God,” I said as the vryke hissed at the Barrowmen, and they drew ugly staffs with spiked ends from the depths of their cloaks. The Skrors between us and the Excris were looking dazed, seeking orders, but Sarrow was unconscious.

  Suddenly, Lind appeared, a small shotgun in her hand. “Get up,” she hissed, her eyes wild and her hair in her eyes. “You’re coming with me, or I’m taking your blood. Either way, I win.”

  I slowly stood up, hands held up in a gesture of peace, and Cassidy snarled. “No, Cass.”

  As I moved forward, Lind nodded. “Okay, now—”

  A growl tore through the air from beyond the tree line and rumbled through the earth. The Skrors began to run, while even the Excris cowered.

  Lind’s jaw was sagging as she looked around, the gun pointing at the ground. I took advantage of her distraction to deliver a quick jab to her wrist, sending the weapon flying.

  As Lind looked around at me, my fist was already coming towards her face.

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  Luke

  Bursting out of the trees, with Ayani and Lazu on either side, the first thing I saw was my wife-to-be laying out my ex with a knockout punch. Lind went down, and Reagan shook out her hand, wincing. Next, I saw the black panther growling and pacing in front of her, brimming with energy.

  Her power is burgeoning, Lazu said. I think you can decide this, Lukas.

  Leaping over fallen Skrors, I shifted back and grabbed Reagan, pulling her close. “You okay?” Then I turned and faced the beach. Skrors, a vryke, Barrowmen, and the SB. “This is not how I pictured today going.”

  “Sorry,” Reagan said with a rough laugh. “Yeah, I’m okay. Luke, Lind…”

  I glanced around for Lind, but she was running for the boat, a hand over her face. When she looked back, her eyes were wide and fearful.

  “She’s gone.”

  “Everyone is after my stupid abilities,” Reagan said. “Luke, maybe I should—”

  “No,” I said. “Reagan Grace, you are one of the keys to Winfyre’s survival. To its future.” I pressed my lips to her forehead. “To mine.” I pulled back and took her shoulders. “I’m going to shift, and I want you to dive into that power, to remember who you are and what you’ve been through. Just like you did for Cass. The second you become a fully realized Riftborn, none of these fools have a chance.” I gripped her harder as she stared at me, bewildered. “I’ll explain the rest later. Trust me.”

  “I do, I just don’t know—”

  “No, you do,” I said. “You made it here on pure grit, with a flicker of your power. Imagine what you can do when it wakes up. Don’t be afraid. Me and your sister are here for you—just like you were there for us.”

  Cassidy let out a growl of approval.

  Reagan looked at her, then at me. Finally, she nodded and stepped back. She lifted her chin high as the vryke twisted through the air and the Barrowmen lifted their weapons. Her eyes sparked with gold lights, and the air began to burn around her, dancing with flickers of light.

  The clash of one world against a new, Lazu said.

  We will distract the Barrowmen for as long as we can, Ayani said. They can weaken us. If that happens, we will lose our hold on these forms. But we won’t leave you.

  The two wolves streaked down the beach, faster than any animal, and hurled themselves at the Barrowmen. There was a horrible screeching as the two clashed and whirled, the wolves growing bigger and snapping their jaws around the staffs.

  I shifted, throwing myself into the wolf, and the world around me leaped to life.

  Reagan hummed with power behind me, as bright as a star and as wild as the ocean. She dug her feet into the sand as she tugged on her power, trying to feed it to me. I could vaguely sense her connection to her sister, but ours wouldn’t catch.

  Skrors rushed towards us, whipping out the weapons of the Rotted, while a few pulled out crossbows. Cassidy ran up to them, moving almost too fast to be seen, and then she roared, knocking several off their feet. The reverb almost made me
dizzy, and I dug my paws in.

  Now I see why everyone was after Reagan, the goddamn Holy Grail of Winfyre.

  While Cassidy went on offense, I stuck to defense, keeping close to Reagan and easily dodging the clumsy Skror attacks. With the Excris looming behind them, none of them were paying attention, and several had fled back to the boat. Cassidy was also a factor.

  Reagan let out a cry, and I whipped around, spotting the vryke hovering next to her. One tendril had wrapped around a wrist, and another was launching itself out. I raced forward and knocked it back. It skittered, end over end in the sand, now with more of a form. It was hideous, flashing in and out of existence, something with grasping fingers and gaping maws.

  Panting, holding her wrist, where a red welt had leaped up against her skin, Reagan looked up at me. “I’m okay. I can do this. I have to do this.”

  If that thing gained a form inside of Winfyre, it could end it, I remembered. The wolf guides had elaborated on that. It would continue to seek out energy, sucking up all the greenery, destroying fields, and going after shifters. If it got a hold of Xander…

  Stupid, interdimensional parasite.

  “Luke!” Reagan warned.

  I whipped around. One of the Barrowmen was past the wolves, charging down the beach towards us. I stepped closer to Reagan. Maybe I should get her and her sister out of here, maybe—

  I whipped around, and Reagan was there.

  She fell to her knees, extending her hands to me. One pressed against the side of my face, while the other went to my chest. Her eyes closed, and sand whipped up around us, faster and faster. Inside, however, it was a calm oasis. Suddenly, slowly but surely, a liquid gold light began to pour through me. Pure energy, as bright and potent as sunlight.

  It then rolled over me in a wave, energy waking up latent abilities and making me as strong as if I’d been a shifter for a thousand years.

  As the sand fell, I gave Reagan an affectionate lick, and she laughed.

  Running towards the Barrowmen, I glanced back at Reagan as her eyes flashed with light, her powers bursting into bloom. Light and energy rolled over the beach, warming my blood and eviscerating the vryke. The Barrowmen tried to flee, but I knocked down one, then caught the cloak of another. The last, Cassidy had caught.

  As Reagan’s power rushed over them, dampening their powers and rendering them useless, the excess blast reduced them to ash. Their screeches wailed away on the wind.

  Ayani and Lazu glowed more brightly, their eyes going to me, then to Reagan. Then they turned and went back into the woods.

  Thank you, I thought.

  Lazu gave me one last look before he disappeared into the trees.

  Skrors were picking themselves up and running for the ocean, hurling themselves in. At the same time, shifters burst from the trees, Rett, Kal, and others. Abruptly, I shifted back, and Cassidy did, too. Reagan’s younger sister flopped into the sand and closed her eyes.

  “Oh my God, that was insane,” she said. “And also kind of a ride.”

  “You know it’s not always like that when you shift, right?” I asked. “Reagan’s abilities amplified your powers, and—”

  My words were cut off as Reagan tackled me and hugged me, then got up and rushed to her sister, hugging her and squealing. They rolled in the sand, laughing and almost crying.

  “Graces don’t do anything halfway,” I said.

  A shadow fell over me. “You can say that again.” I looked up and saw Xander. His eyes traveled over the beach and back to me. “What happened here?”

  I held out a hand, and he pulled me up. Before he could say a word, I pulled him into a rough hug and clapped his back. Xander stiffened, giving me a wary look when I stepped back.

  “Reagan, Cassidy, and I, but mostly the Grace sisters, took care of the vryke and the Barrowmen.” He gave me an incredulous look. “No need to pay tribute.”

  Reagan scrambled to her feet, sand in her hair and stuck to her cheeks. Her eyes were wide as she studied Xander, and he swallowed, giving her a wary look.

  But she smiled. “Xander, we’re family. Don’t worry.” In a whisper, she added, “Badass.”

  “You know?” I asked.

  “I know,” she said and held out her hand to Xander. He tentatively took it, and I saw the flash in his eyes as he received her memories. “Bloodtamer. Interesting.”

  “Alternately, Amplifier, or Kinetic,” I said.

  “Kinetic,” Xander said and glanced at Cassidy as she came over, looking curious and awkward. “That’s the one that suits you. Winfyre is lucky to have the Grace sisters.”

  “What are you going to do about them?” Cassidy asked and nodded at the ocean, where Skrors were flailing around, and shifters were taunting them from the shores. “Prison?”

  “We never keep Skrors for long—they tend to spoil,” Xander said and folded his arms. “Eh, let ’em go, Northbane,” he called out and glanced at Reagan. “They’re not coming back.”

  “So,” Cassidy said. “Should we go back to the party?”

  Reagan and I looked at each other. “I am pretty hungry,” she said.

  “And Winfyre parties go all night,” Xander added.

  “They do?” I asked.

  “Sure, why not?” Xander asked, and something of his old grin was on his face.

  “This is the first party we’ve ever had,” I said, putting an arm around Reagan as we walked up the beach. Kal and Rett caught up. “Are you makin’ a new law, Head Command?”

  “A new tradition,” Xander answered with a laugh.

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  Reagan

  One month later

  “Good,” Olenna said. “Again.”

  Lightning crackled between my fingers and dove into the ground, blackening individual blades of grass. Then I coaxed them back to green.

  “Phew,” I breathed out, wiping sweat off my forehead. “Yeah, not bad.”

  “You’re doing excellently, Reagan. I hardly even need to check in on you,” Olenna said. “Unlike my other students.”

  “I hope the Coven doesn’t mind if I stay in Cobalt,” I said and glanced back at the house. “But this is where I should be, with the Alphas and my future husband.”

  “If you’ve found your place, far be it from us to tell you to come to Veda,” she said and stood up from the back steps. “Besides, I also think you’re needed here. Things have been running a lot more smoothly since you came to Winfyre.”

  I smiled at her. “Thanks. But part of that is that more Riftborn are coming into their own.”

  “With each passing year, the old world will dissolve more and more,” Olenna said. “They’ll be fantastical stories for our children, whimsy for our grandchildren, and legends for the future generations. Until, one day, we’re myths, and then, maybe the world restarts.”

  “Olenna, I love it when you get esoteric on us,” Luke drawled, coming around the corner with the dogs. “How’s my firestarter?”

  “One tiny burn,” I said and rolled my eyes. “I told you to be careful.”

  “Mm, as much as I enjoy watching you two be the perfect Winfyre couple, I have to get back to Veda.” Olenna stood up and stretched. “In fact, I might not be seeing you for a while. So, continue on as you have been, okay?”

  “Are you leaving Winfyre?” I asked, alarmed.

  “If I do, it will be at Xander’s request,” she said and smiled at me. “The Coven might need to look into some things. The Stasis Bureau seems to be in the wind. With old powers dying or dead, there’s a vacuum to fill. We need to know who that might be.”

  “Have you heard something?” Luke asked.

  “Yes,” Olenna said. “It might not just be Excris who got free.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “That’s what I would find out,” she said and grinned at us. “Have a good night.”

  Luke came over and wrapped me in a hug, inhaling the scent of my hair. “I love it when you’ve been back here practicing. You almost
smell like cinnamon and firewood.”

  “I think you mean sweat,” I said with a grimace. “You smell like sawdust. What are you doing? Working on your secret project?”

  “Come here and see,” Luke said and led me around to the front of the house.

  There, on the lookout, was a new bench, sanded down and carved with loving details—flowers, wolves, and trees. I walked over to it, marveling, and then looked back at Luke.

  “You did this? You’re a secret carpenter?”

  “Hey, you were a secret blood magician,” Luke retorted.

  “One, you need to stop calling me that, and two, you need to let it go. You found out what I was before I even did,” I said. “Ayani and Lazu, remember?”

  We hadn’t seen the two wolves in a month, but we knew if we needed them, they’d be there.

  Winfyre was safe, the Skrors hadn’t been seen on our borders or in any neighboring territories, and there hadn’t been even a whiff of the Rotted or a raid. It looked like the three Barrowmen were gone for good, too. I glanced down at my hands.

  Graces don’t do anything halfway, I thought with satisfaction.

  I ran my hand along the back of the bench as I thought about that and everything that had happened over the last few weeks. Cassidy had finally come to terms with our grandfather’s death. He’d died helping several shifters escape an SB facility. Lately, we’d been making up for lost time, talking and walking along the shore, planning our futures in Winfyre.

  “What about rain?” I asked and looked at him.

  “I knew you were going to ask me that,” Luke groaned. “There’s no sealant that’s come in, yet. Outside shipments have petered out, so me and Tristan are going to explore some old-school, ecological ones. It’s not staying out here—I just wanted to see if you liked it.”

  “Of course I like it,” I said. “May I sit on it?”

  “Yes, Reagan, that part is done,” Luke said with exaggerated patience.

  I laughed as I plopped down and tipped my head back. Luke made a face and kissed me upside down, causing my head to spin. “You drive me crazy.”