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He hadn’t? Where was he? He’d gone ahead of Aden. “I haven’t. I’m sorry. We left the school separately. ”
Dan gave his watch another glance.
“Guess I’ll go do my chores now,” Aden said, though he had no intention of starting them until after he saw to the wolf’s care. He managed only one backward step before Dan stopped him.
“Not so fast. I was also told you stayed after school to talk to a girl. ”
Aden gulped. Nodded. Someone had clearly been watching him, and he didn’t like it. He only wished he’d felt the heat of their stare; a little warning would have been nice. If Dan forbade him to hang with Mary Ann he would—
“You treated her right?”
That was all the man was concerned with? His shoulders slumped with relief. “Yeah. ”
Dan’s head tilted to the side. “Not very talkative today, are you?”
“I’m tired, is all. Nerves kept me up all night. ”
“I can understand that. Go on, then. Do your chores and then make an early night of it. I’ll have dinner sent to your room. ”
“Thank you,” he found himself saying again. He rushed back to the bunkhouse, but didn’t enter. He grabbed the bag he’d tossed out his window and headed back into the forest, staying in the shadows so that no one would see what he was doing.
The werewolf was gone.
The only sign that he’d been there was the patch of blood, still wet and gleaming in the sunlight. While he didn’t see the animal, he did see Shannon, cut up and bleeding and headed toward Dan.
Stomach once again churning, Aden followed and eavesdropped from a distance.
“They were w-waiting for me. A group of them. Th-they jumped me. ”
“Who were they?” Dan asked, his anger clear. “Did you get a good look at them?”
“N-no. ”
Aden frowned. Shannon had green eyes; the wolf had green eyes. Shannon was hurt; the wolf had been hurt. Shannon was here now; the wolf was gone. Had he really been jumped or was that a lie to cover something else? An ability most people wouldn’t understand? Shannon hadn’t limped, though, and that leg wound wouldn’t have had time to heal. Would it?
Later, in the barn while they shoveled horse manure, he tried to question Shannon about what had happened, gently trying to steer the conversation toward Mary Ann and wolves to gauge the boy’s reaction. All he received was silence.
ADEN TOSSED AND TURNED for hours, resigned to another sleepless night. His mind was simply too wired. The souls were asleep, finally, so his thoughts were his own—but they weren’t welcome thoughts. All he could hear was the gasp of shock from Mary Ann when he’d inhabited the werewolf’s body. All he could picture was the werewolf, bleeding…dying? Or was Shannon the werewolf, as he suspected? Had he raced into the woods after school, transformed and sprinted back to Mary Ann before Aden could reach him?
If Shannon was the wolf, Shannon now wanted to kill him. Had promised to kill him, actually. He’d have to watch, study and wait. If he could. By now, Mary Ann could have told someone what she’d seen. Most likely she wouldn’t be believed, but with his past…the accusation would ruin him.
He could pack up, he supposed. Head out on his own. He’d done it before, three years ago. Living on the streets had been hard. He’d had no shelter, no food, water or money. He’d tried to steal a guy’s wallet and, unskilled as he’d been, had been caught and hauled back to juvie.
He was smarter now, he told himself. Older. He could survive. For the first time in his life, though, he had something to look forward to, something to anticipate. School, friends…peace. Running away would destroy even the chance of such happiness.
He sighed, closed his eyes.
“Awaken. ”
The word whispered through his mind, sultry yet commanding. His eyelids popped open. The girl from the forest stood over him, dark hair falling like a curtain over her shoulders. She hadn’t been there a moment ago, but she was a welcome and beautiful sight.
Was this a replay of a vision? Because he’d seen this before. Her, standing in front of him. Soon she would motion him outside. He would follow.
He inhaled deeply, breathing in her honeysuckle and roses scent. No, no vision. This was real.
He smiled slowly and tried to recall the rest of the details to this particular scene. They would walk to the woods and she would close the distance between them. She would reach up, trace her fingertips down his neck. Would her skin be as hot as he remembered or as cold as it now appeared?
He couldn’t wait to get started. “Where have you been? What—”
“Shh. We do not want to wake the others. ”
He pressed his lips together, but couldn’t stop the sudden pounding of his heart. The same black robe draped her, revealing one pale, slender arm. A large opal ring glinted from her left index finger. In the visions, she was always careful not to let that ring touch him.
“I’m glad you’re here,” he whispered.
Her eyes narrowed, but he could still see the crystalline glow of them. She doesn’t know you the way you know her, he reminded himself. He had to be careful with his praise.
“Come. ” She beckoned him with the crook of a finger and walked—no, floated—to the window. Then, without moving another inch, she seemed to disappear. A breeze brushed over him.
He was standing a second later, his body compelled to obey on a level he didn’t understand. And hadn’t expected. He’d walked in his vision, yes, but he hadn’t realized he would not be the one in control. His feet moved of their own accord, maneuvering him in front of the opened window. Could she possess other bodies? He didn’t sense her inside him, but…maybe.
Not even when he climbed through, his bare feet pressed against the dewy grass, was he able to grasp the reins of control. He didn’t panic, though. He was with Vision Girl. That was all that mattered.
He scanned the area, finally spotting her a few yards ahead, in the line of trees. She hadn’t possessed him, then. But what was she doing to him?
“Come. ” Again, she beckoned him with a finger. Again, she seemed to disappear—but not before her gaze raked him from head to toe.
He fought a wave of embarrassment. The only piece of clothing he wore was a pair of boxers. At least they were plain black rather than the red-and-white pair that were covered in Valentine hearts.
What did she think of him?
Part of him felt as though he already knew her, and that part of him was already comfortable with her, already half in love with her. After all, that part of him knew the taste of her lips, had heard the way she sighed his name and felt the way she melted in his arms.
But the rational side of his brain was growing a bit wary. Last time she’d truly spoken to him, she’d wanted to know things he had no answers for. Last time he’d seen her, she’d been with another boy.
The night was cool, the sky painted with clouds. Crickets chirped, and in the distance a dog barked. Both soon quieted, leaving only silence. Utter silence, thick and dark.
Until his companions began to wake up, yawning inside his mind.
Outside? Julian asked sleepily.
“Yes,” he whispered.
Ugh. We’re not running away again, are we? Caleb demanded.
“No. ”
Eve sighed with relief. Thank God.
Want to tell us what’s going on, then? Elijah asked.
“We’re living a vision. ” Finally, he reached a clearing, foliage surrounding him, hiding him from prying eyes. But where was Vision Girl? Again, there was no longer any sign of her.
“Stop,” she said. Her voice came from behind him and he spun around. And there she was, his beauty. His…killer? She held a dagger in each hand. His daggers. The ones he’d dropped earlier when he’d slipped inside the wolf’s body.
He frowned.
A beam of moonlight peeked through the c
louds and swathed her, illuminating the thick blue streaks in her hair—not an illusion caused by the sun, then, as he’d supposed last time he’d seen her—as well as the daggers. Surely she wouldn’t stab him. She looked too innocent in the haze of shadows and gold, dainty, harmless.
“Where’s the boy?” he asked. Now there was someone who wouldn’t mind cutting him up. He hadn’t forgotten the anger that had radiated from the male. “The one I saw you with?”
She remained in place, head tilting to the side. “Had he come tonight, he would have killed you. ”
Points to Aden for having figured that out already. “Why?”
“He’s jealous of you. Besides, I’m not supposed to be here and had he known where I was headed, he would have stopped me. I had to come alone. ”
A thousand questions seemed to rush through his mind at once. Someone was jealous? Of Aden? Why? And why wasn’t she supposed to be here? In the end, he asked the one he felt had the greatest chance of being answered. “How did you get me here? You spoke and I was forced to obey. ”
She lifted a delicate shoulder in a shrug. “A little gift of mine, you could say. These are yours, I believe. ” Steps measured, she approached. When she reached him, she stopped and extended the daggers.
Aden was proud of himself. He didn’t flinch or even crouch to attack.
Who is she? Eve asked.
I have another bad feeling, Aden. Elijah sounded panicked all of a sudden. I think you should leave.
“Quiet,” he mumbled.
“Don’t tell me what to do,” the girl snapped. The more she spoke, the more he detected an accent. Not English, but close.
“I wasn’t talking to you. ”
Confusion washed over her lovely features. She gazed around the forest. “Who, then? We are alone. ”
“Myself. ” In a roundabout way.
“I see,” she said, but it was clear she didn’t. “Here. Take these. ” She placed the weapons in his hands before he could take them…touch her. “I’m sure you will need them in the coming days. ”
Nope, she had never meant to hurt him. He looked down at the sharp metal, fingers curling around the hilts. “You aren’t afraid I’ll use them on you?”
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