He nodded. “Take a moment with your friend while we prepare the next test. Then we will continue.”
Ceri grabbed her arm and dragged her toward the room the bear had come out of. Once inside, she handed her a bottle of water.
“How’d you figure it out?” she asked before chugging half the bottle. It was cold and felt like heaven on her throat.
“It was mostly guesswork. How are you feeling?”
She shrugged. “Good enough. Just tired.”
“Are Tommy and Gen okay?”
“Yes. Worried, but fine,” Ceri said.
“I’ve failed two out of five of the tests. That means I have to pass the last three,” she said, rubbing her hands over her face. They were still shaking, and she was so tired from the fight. “I can’t do this.”
Ceri grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her. “You can do it. You would have passed the first two if they hadn’t sabotaged you. Even Donovan believes you can do this.”
That comment brought a smirk to her face. “Well, when you put it like that.”
Chapter 44
AMBER
The crowd was still gathered above the arena, but this time, Jameson and the other alphas were down there with her.
“I have personally inspected the weights. They have not been tampered with in any way,” he said, pointing to the large boulder sitting in the dirt. There were three. The smallest one came up to her knee, while the largest would reach her hip. “You must lift them and carry them across that line. If you drop one, you fail the test and the Trials.” About twenty feet away, a red line had been sprayed onto the dirt.
The outside of the boulders were mottled black and dirty as though they were coated in something. As she approached them, she realized where she had seen something like that before; her grandmother’s old silver. Tentatively, she touched one. Burning pain seared her fingertips as her body weakened. The entire thing was shot through with silver. There was no way to pick the boulder up without touching it. Handling silver like this wouldn’t poison her like it did when it had gotten in her bloodstream, but as long as she was in contact with it, she would be severely weakened.
She had failed the first two tests. That meant that she had to pass the last three or it was all over. In the previous test, while almost getting murdered by the bear, she’d felt something change in the bond. It was more than just sensing her pack’s emotions—they had given her strength.
Taking a calming breath, she tried to think instead of react. This test had to be passable. The strength of an alpha lay with the pack. If she could use the bond to overcome the pain and the weakness the silver inflicted…that had to be it. It was the only way.
Please, help me, she begged the wolf internally. It looked out of her eyes, surveying the alphas watching. Donovan was grinning. He wanted nothing more than to see her to fail.
Walking toward the largest boulder, she crouched down and wrapped her arms around it. This was only going to get harder, so she wanted to get the largest one over with first. The wolf growled in her mind and the pack bond grew inside, stretching taut. Strength that wasn’t her own poured into her muscles. It couldn’t stop the pain, but she could deal with that.
With a pained grunt, she forced herself to her feet. Claws extended form her fingertips, digging into the hard stone to keep it from slipping out of her hands. The pain was almost overwhelming. She could barely breathe. She took one wobbly step forward and almost toppled over.
The crowd gasped and began shouting. Half jeers, and half encouragement. She shut it all out and focused on the pack bond. She couldn’t hear what her pack was saying but she could feel their strength. Tommy, the homeless kid with a heart of gold. Genevieve, an intelligent woman that hid her talents because she was afraid to fail. And Ceri, the white witch.
Her eyes snapped open. She wasn’t sure when Ceri had become a part of the pack like that. There hadn’t been a bite to bind her to them, but she could feel Ceri just like the others.
She took another step forward, then another, and another. The red line drew closer and she was filled with elation and determination from her pack. It mixed with her own, giving her a new kind of strength. She could do this.
The cheers increased as she drew close to the line, drowning out the boos completely. She picked up her pace. Her legs were shaking and it felt like she had no flesh left on her arms, but she didn’t stop. Sweat rolled down her forehead and slipped into her eye. It stung and her vision blurred but she could still see that red line. Angel was floating behind it. He was shouting encouragement too, almost like he cared if she made it.
Grinding her teeth together, she took the final three steps to cross the line. She dropped the stone at her feet and turned back to the other alphas. Donovan’s face was beet-red with fury, but Jameson was smiling.
Straightening her shoulders, she walked back to the next boulder. Success felt damn good.
Chapter 45
AMBER
“Kick this test’s ass!” Genevieve shouted, leaning out from the crowd.
Amber winked at her with a smile as she followed Jameson into the squat building. The rest of the alphas, and Thallan, filed in behind them. The cottage consisted of a single room with roughly hewn floors and old wooden chairs set in a semicircle. It was dark and quiet, a stark contrast to the loud arena.
“Your physical body and your pack bond have been tested,” Jameson said, folding his arms in front of him. “However, an alpha must also be in control of his mind. The fourth trial tests your mind.” He opened the lid of an ornate wooden box and lifted out a smoking pipe. A rich, warm scent drifted toward her.
“Am I meant to say no to drugs?” she asked, raising her eyebrow.
A few of the alphas chuckled, and she even got a smirk from Jameson. “Aconite, or wolfsbane, is a poison that used to be used to kill wolves and werewolves alike in darker times. However, while searching for an antidote for the poison, the first Alpha discovered something. When combined with myrrh and dogwood under a full moon, it changes. Instead of killing you, it opens your mind to the wolf within. It allows you to face your inner demons.”
She swallowed uncomfortably at the word demon. Hopefully Angel wouldn’t be waiting for her in her mind. “Let me guess. If I fail to defeat my inner demons,” she used air quotes to emphasize the phrase, “I’ll die?”
Jameson shrugged. “Not immediately. The ones that fail simply do not wake up.”
“Will I be timed?”
He shook his head. “Not really. If you haven’t woken by dawn, we’ll assume you have failed, but most people pass or fail within less than a minute. Though, it will seem longer to you.”
She nodded and shifted on her bare feet. The movement reminded her she was standing naked in a room full of strangers, but she shoved the embarrassment down. No one seemed to care; they were all focused on the Trials just like she was. “Okay, let’s do this.”
Jameson pulled an oddly shaped lighter from his pocket and handed her the pipe. “Three puffs as I light it.”
She eyed the mouthpiece, hoping they washed it between trials, then put it in her mouth. It felt awkward, and she was sure she wasn’t holding it right. Jameson clicked the lighter and passed the flame in a tight circle over the bowl of tightly packed herbs.
“Inhale,” he reminded her.
She sucked in and her mouth filled with smoke, making her eyes water. She blew it out of the corner of her mouth and tamped down on the urge to cough. Whatever was in the smoke was making her tongue go numb.
Dutifully, she puffed twice more. Her entire body tingled. A loud ringing in her ears drowned out all sound. Gray seeped in at the edges of her vision. She pulled the pipe from her mouth and tried to hand it to Jameson but her body was numb and she was…she was…
Chapter 46
AMBER
“Amber!” Dylan shouted, wrapping her in a tight hug. “Tonight is the night. I can already feel the moon calling to me.”
She rolled her eyes a
nd slapped him on the arm. “No, you can’t. Quit being so dramatic.”
He grinned, his whole face lighting up. “I’m going to find a way to get you in the pack too, I promise.”
“I’m not worried about it, okay? If they didn’t want me, there must be a reason. Maybe I wouldn’t be able to handle the change.” She wrapped him in another hug. “I still think you should tell mom and dad. They’re going to freak when they find out.”
“That’s exactly why I’m not telling them until it’s done. They take bad news better once they can’t do anything about it. Ask forgiveness, not permission. You know how it goes.”
She snorted and buried her face in his neck. “That only works for you because you’re their favorite.”
“No, I’m not!” he protested, pushing her back.
Dark. Cold. Something growled behind her. She turned and found herself looking into the face of a large, ruddy wolf. Its eyes glowed red.
“Weak.” It spoke without moving its mouth, but she knew the words came from it nonetheless. With soundless steps, it prowled around her. “Angry.”
“Who are you?” Her body trembled but she couldn’t move. “Why are you showing me those memories?”
“You let your brother die,” it said.
“No!” Her voice echoed around them, repeating over and over until it made her head ache. “I didn’t know it would kill him. I didn’t know.”
The alpha held Dylan down, one paw on his back, then struck. His teeth sunk in deep. Dylan screamed. He wasn’t supposed to scream. It wasn’t supposed to hurt.
The werewolf jumped away, muscles tense. His tail drooped and he backed up, putting distance between himself and her brother. Then he lifted his head in a mournful howl. The pack’s howls joined in.
Dylan screamed again, clawing at the bite wildly. She rushed from her place behind the pack and shoved her way through the circle. Dropping to her knees beside him, she tried to grab his arms, but his flailing limbs hit her. His eyes rolled back in his head and his body seized.
“Dylan!” She turned to the alpha. “What did you do? Help him! You have to help him!”
The alpha shook his head and turned away.
Crack. Dylan’s arm snapped, wrenched to the side as his body tried to change but couldn’t. Blood poured from the wound. From his eyes. From his mouth. Her hands hovered uselessly over his convulsing body.
More bones cracked and snapped as they were brutally twisted by magic gone wrong. His skin peeled away in random spots, replaced by mottled fur that grew straight out of the muscle.
“Am—ber—” he choked out, blood bubbling out of his lips. “Hel—p—hurts—”
“Someone help him!” she screamed, but the werewolves were all backing away…leaving him to die.
She wrapped her hands around her head, a guttural yell coming from her sore throat. It barely felt like she was the one screaming. The wolf huffed behind her.
Enraged, she turned and swung at it, barely registering that she could now move. “Stop showing me this!”
“You let him die, why shouldn’t I show you your greatest failure?” the wolf taunted.
“I didn’t let him die! I tried to save him. I would have done anything!”
The wolf’s body slimmed, shifting back into a human form. Dylan’s. Bloody, broken, and lifeless. His eyes opened slowly.
“Mom loved me best, and you let me take the bite even though you knew I might die. Why didn’t you stop me?” he asked, lifting his broken and twisted arm toward her.
She took a step back and felt warmth seep through her shirt. “Get away from me.”
“Don’t freak out. It’s just in your head,” Angel whispered. Any other time she would have jerked away, but she was so relieved to not be alone with this horrible apparition that she leaned in closer instead.
“How do I make it stop?” she asked, voice thick with tears.
“Is what it’s saying true?” Angel asked.
She shook her head. “No, I didn’t know. I would have stopped him.”
“Then convince it you’re innocent,” the demon suggested, drifting to her side and taking his warmth with him. “I can’t help you in here, not even for a demon’s mark.”
“You blame yourself!” Dylan’s ghoulish doppelganger screeched. “The guilt gnaws at you every day like cancer, spreading through your mind.” It shifted back into the wolf, red eyes boring into her. “Why should I join my soul to such a pathetic creature? Even you don’t think you deserve to be an alpha.”
She took a step back. “You’re…my wolf?”
The creature cocked its head and stepped closer. “Did you not recognize me?”
“No,” she said as she lifted her hand toward it. She hadn’t realized it was a completely separate creature. “I don’t understand. I thought you were just…instincts. Maybe something more, but not like this.”
“That is how we begin, but as you grow, I grow. You will not be able to see or hear me like this again for many years. If you even survive,” the wolf said, circling her.
"Is the aconite killing me?" she asked.
The wolf huffed. "No, but I might."
She tensed, readying herself for an attack. "Why?"
It ignored her question and turned to the demon instead. “Why did you let the demon inside you?”
She glanced at Angel who was circling the wolf curiously now. “I had to in order to find a sponsor for these Trials.”
The wolf watched the demon for a moment, then swiped at it. Angel shrieked and disappeared with a pop.
"What did you do to him?" she asked, alarmed.
"Just sent him away for a while. This is not for him." The wolf went back to circling her. “Why do you want to pass the Trials?"
"I have to protect Tommy and Genevieve. They're depending on me, and if I let them down, they'll be stuck in the System," she said, edging away from the wolf. It was too close; she wouldn't be able to move out of the way if it attacked.
"Would you defend them against anything?"
She furrowed her brows. "Of course I would."
"Even him?" the wolf asked, stepping aside to reveal an apparition of her brother. This time it was how she liked to remember him, young and smiling.
"Dylan is dead," she said, shaking her head.
"Yet everything you do is still centered around him. Your choice in career, your hatred of me, and your avoidance of your family. They were your pack once, but you abandoned them. Will you abandon this pack as soon as you make a mistake?" The wolf bared its teeth at her with its hackles raised.
"No!" she shouted, infuriated by the old memories and the accusation.
"Then choose. Your past, or your future?"
"What does that even mean?" She threw her hands in the air angrily.
The wolf vanished and Dylan's expression grew dark. He looked up at her with glowing red eyes. "I should have been the alpha and we both know it. So, if you want it, you have to defeat me and take it."
She bared her teeth at her twin, and for an instant, intensely hated every choice that had led her to this moment. Werewolves and their obsession with proving yourself, as if it mattered if she measured up to some stupid ideal. Donovan and his lust for power. And herself, for ever thinking she could do this.
Dylan lunged at her. She knew how he fought, and the wolf must have known, too. Or have been able to see it in her memories. She dodged the first punch and struck back. They threw elbows and kicks, and she bit him, even though they were fighting as humans.
She'd been running and shifting all day. Her body was exhausted, and so was her mind. Dylan caught her with an uppercut and she stumbled backward, spitting blood.
"Come on, little sister! You used to be tougher," he said with a sneer.
She growled and lunged at him, ducking down low at the last moment. Catching him around the waist, she lifted him from his feet and slammed him down. He wheezed as all the air was driven from his lungs.
He grabbed her hair and yanked her
head to the side, but she dug her fingers into his face. He dropped his fistful of hair and tried to elbow her. She caught it and forced her way on top of him. Her elbow slipped through his defenses and cracked against his temple.
The strike dazed him, giving her the barest opening. She struck again, and again, bloodying his face. A vision of him dying, with blood bubbling from his lips, made her hesitate. He reared up and head-butted her.
Enraged, she punched him again as blood dripped from her nose and over her lips. He fell back and she pounded her fist into his face, his neck, anywhere she could reach. His struggles slowed until he lay underneath her, barely moving.
She stopped, horrified, and stared down at him.
His eyes opened, the red glow of the wolf shining through. "Finish it. Kill him."
"No," she sobbed, shoving off of him. "I won't kill my own brother. This isn't right. Why are you doing this?"
"Don't you want this? More than anything?" the wolf demanded, crawling toward her still wearing Dylan's face.
She shook her head. "I didn't want this at all. This was forced on me, and I'll do everything I can to be a good alpha, but no, I didn't want this."
The illusion fell away and the wolf sat before her. "You are strange."
She laughed, sounding hysterical even to her own ears. "You just had me fight my own dead brother, and you're calling me strange?"
The wolf huffed and she got the impression it muttered something unflattering under its breath. "Your pack submitted to you that day in the woods. To us."
She nodded. "Yes, I felt it. They chose me to be their alpha. That's why I can't abandon them."
"But you did not choose me," the wolf said. For a moment, she thought it sounded sad.
"No, I didn't," she said, honestly.
It rose to its feet. "Will you choose me now?"
She looked up, meeting its eyes in surprise. "Choose you?"
Misfit Pack (The Misfit Series) Page 19
