by Holly Hook
"True," I say as the heavy pressure of being the alpha falls on my shoulders. Our fates ride on me. My legs tense, wanting me to turn back and run, to let someone else deal with this, but the pull to face our enemies tugs me in the opposite direction. My skin itches with a greater intensity and the warmth returns to my chest, the same warmth I felt when I pulled Alex out of the lake. Remus's spirit is still with me, and will be even more if the Russells can help summon him.
The Hunter looks right at me, waiting for my decision. Then he faces the direction of the house, weapons clanking inside his leather coat. "I am ready to hunt some Savages. Callie?"
"I'm ready," she says, reaching into her coat and drawing a silver dagger.
"You're going to need more than that. There's more than just a couple Savages here," I say.
"How about this?" Callie unzips her rolling luggage and pulls out her crossbow and then the warlock's pistol I forgot I gave to her just after she arrived. She nods to Alex, who does the same. We were lucky the driver didn't want to start any crap with us and ignored us to save his own skin. Callie's eyes shine with revenge and I know that if she must, she will shoot some cult members. Other humans. And that could be dangerous.
Alex gives me a curt nod. He's had to kill infected relatives in the past. He'll be able to do this, too.
"You're geniuses," I say. "Alex. The cloaking spray. Please tell me you have it."
The Hunter nods. "No one is going near that place without it." Pulling on his own leather jacket, he reveals several small, glass spray bottles in pockets inside his coat.
He sprays us down with the pine scent, which doesn't quite blend with the surrounding grass and flowers, but it's better than nothing. I can no longer smell the others in our group, and at least pine, no matter where it is, won't stir the Savages up into a frenzy. I hope. We all step away from the road after that, into a cluster of trees. Callie and Alex ditch their luggage as they arm themselves. I watch as Alex and Callie load their crossbows with bolts and Leonora's parents pull her aside. The three of them step away to a small cluster of trees, set far back from the road.
"What are you doing?" I ask her parents.
"Our daughter is not going in there," Mr. Russell says. "The three of us will stay out here and try to summon Remus to you. I took your hair for a reason. We'll extend as much protection over all of you as we can from here."
Remo hesitates before he plucks a few of his. We all pluck a few hairs off our heads. Alex just takes a small one off his beard and Callie is sure to remove several from her head. The faint smell of nervous fear leaks through the spray that now coats her skin. As she draws close to me, I can detect it.
"Thanks," Leonora says, collecting all our hairs in her hand. Her eyes shine as she looks to Remo. She, too, is shaking. I'm not the only one who could lose my mate today. "Remo."
He kisses her, right in front of her parents, and drags it out. Time seems to stop as he holds her, shaking, like the universe itself could rip her away. But at last, he releases Leonora and takes a breath. "I'll be back."
"Promise me."
Brett taps his foot, waiting, but I glare at him to make him stop. So he obeys.
"I...I promise," Remo says.
"Leonora, we need you to sit," her mother says, taking a spot cross-legged on top of some now-flattened tall grass.
Remo backs away, dragging his feet, and looks at me. I want him to be able to keep his promise, and my mouth dries. I should say something to him but the words don't form. Instead, I just nod and go to watching the Russells open their packs, mostly hidden inside the trees.
"No passing cars will see them," Everly says to me. "The Savages won't smell them, either."
"So you approve. And we haven't seen any cars on this road."
"I approve of all of this," Everly says. She holds me in her tough, hazel glare, ready to fight. As I watch, Everly opens and closes her fists.
"The spray," Alex says to the side of me. "I'm not sure it'll hold if you shift, so beware."
"Thanks," I tell him as we leave the cluster of trees.
The roof of the mansion waits. It's a much better, old-world version of the old Hayde mansion back in Colorado and might even be its sister. Orange bricks make up the roof. I lead the way into another cluster of trees, away from the road, sniffing for any changes. No longer can I hear Leonora and her parents huddled in the trees together, trying to work the best light magic they've ever done.
"I'd curse the cult into the ground, but I don't have anything of theirs," Brett says.
"It's fine," I say, even though it's not. It's far from fine. I breathe in, trying to feel for those protective spirits the Russells have sent with us before. In this place, I can't sense them. Maybe it's the undercurrent of dread that runs under this place for miles, invisible but pumping out from the mansion in all directions, poisoning everything. The closer I lead us to the mansion, the worse the feeling gets. Each time my foot hits the ground, black pulses creep up my ankles.
"A lot of magic has been done here in the past," Karina says, breaking our silence. "Very dark magic."
"The cult's been around for centuries. It's had time to build up," I say, peeking through the trees ahead. I can make out the outline of the whole mansion now, but I can no longer smell the Savages. The wind's changed direction. As if any darkness here wants to mask them from us. "Don't let anything distract you. And it will try."
"Got it," Alex says. He walks behind me, checking the trees right and left with his crossbow out. Callie's doing the same, showing no signs of Romulus taking over. He could do so right now and destroy us all, but Callie's proven to be strong and has done nothing but give him a hard time. But how long will that continue here?
At last, the trees end, and I find myself looking out at a field that surrounds the mansion. Like the grass around the Hayde mansion, it's unkempt and vines grow up the sides of the house. I can't smell the Savages right now, but that doesn't make me feel better. Darkness pulses through my whole body now and I struggle to breathe. The sky appears to go from a bright, happy blue to a dark, storm-like shade even though it's still clear. A few flowers poke up from the ground, but whenever I'm not looking at them directly, they grimace. No birds chirp. I shudder. Even if someone completely normal came here, they wouldn't want to stay for long. Who couldn't sense all this unease?
No one speaks. I sense everyone standing just behind me, waiting for my directions.
"We don't cross this field," I whisper. The quiet unnerves me more than anything. This house is a fortress, with all the curtains inside closed. "Anyone inside could see us coming and attack. Our best bet is to stay under this cover as long as we can."
"Other things have been through this field," Remo whispers, pointing.
I follow his gesture to find several small trails through the tall grass, with stomped-down weeds and flowers. The rotten wood stench rises when I lean down and sniff the closest one. I also catch a whiff of rotting rabbits and their dying adrenaline that stains the field. A dead fox who dared to invade the area. And...I hope I'm not smelling a dead human near the back of the house, somewhere near or just under the surface of a pond. But I know better than to hope.
"We don't cross this field," Everly adds.
"The Savages have marked this place," I say. "Small territory, I guess."
"The cult doesn't want them to extend their guard too far," Alex adds.
"Which means they aren't far," Remo says.
I listen to the house, and though the house is still hundreds of feet away, faint footsteps echo out of it. The place has carpet inside, masking sounds, and the noise of a sink running follows. The inside of the house sounds so ordinary that it's disturbing. Like it's an island of sanity in a world of darkness.
"I have to leave," Karina hisses, turning away.
"Sis. This isn't dad's mansion," Brett says, grabbing her arm.
I don't have to turn around to imagine the looks on both their faces. "We're about to end this," I force
, hating my words. "We can do it. Wait." I hold up a hand, telling the others to silence.
Amazingly, Karina and Brett still. I duck low, letting the leaves of the shrubs hide me as I listen to the back door of the house open. Then I squint, letting my senses pick up everything I can. Two men, both human, are walking to the back of the property. Though I can't see them from around the house, I can hear their robes swishing against their legs and the weeds. Then they must get on a trail that's bare, because feet scrape against dust. One of the men coughs as they pass near where the body must be lying.
"They're never going to get out here," the man says.
It's the guy with the scar, the guy I stole the pistol from. From the sounds of it, they're heading to the victory site, which Brett said was behind the house. Well behind the house.
I turn to the others and relay what I've heard. "There are still some people inside, and it sounds like two of the cult members are going to check on something in the back. We follow them. We can kill them before they can get back. The stench of death will blend right in."
Everly flinches and Remo does the same. They look at each other. "Kill?"
"As we've found out, some deserve to die," I say, unable to believe the words coming from my mouth. Trying to avoid looking at Brett and Karina, I continue. "I'm better now. I can handle it so long as I know we're doing the right thing."
Callie looks to me and then Alex, frowning. "Are you sure?"
Everly seizes my shoulder as I move away from the field and back into the woods. "Your weakness is still Cayden. If anyone will make you feel guilty, it's him."
"Cayden tells me things aren't my fault." I pull away from Everly and take the lead through the trees.
Callie curls her finger around the trigger of the warlock's pistol, ready to jump into action, while Alex keeps his crossbow out. He'll shoot me and Callie if things go wrong. And I want him to. There's no need to sacrifice the whole world for us.
"But he's still your weakness. And the cult knows," Everly says right behind me, almost like she's trying to stop me. "If something were to happen to him, you'd never forgive yourself. Brie, listen to me."
I whirl on her. "I am. Believe me. And look." I hold up my shaking hands to make my point. "I've been thinking about this since I got here. Since before that, actually."
Everly softens and frowns. "I just don't want you to do anything Cayden wouldn't want you to do."
I swallow. My throat's dry and painful. "I know."
Behind Everly, Callie shakes. Her uncle stands right behind her, expressionless. He won't look at her. We're all going to face our nightmares at the site.
We continue towards the back of the property and I can no longer hear the warlocks walking down the dusty trail, but I can smell them and traces of the Savages, too. Both reek of burning herbs and acrid poison. And the closer we get to them, the more dark our surroundings get. The sky, though still blue and clear, takes a stormy shade whenever I take my gaze off it. Shadows deepen under the trees, turning into ponds of darkness. But when I check to the left and right, the darkness flees.
I wait for the chest pressure to start in, but nothing follows, and I'm not sure if I like that. The Savage King could be waiting to strike.
At last, after we've walked for almost fifteen minutes through the trees, careful not to snap any twigs, I see the woods clearing up ahead. As I eye the distant lake of sunlight, my heart leaps into my throat and my stomach turns over. Stopping like I've struck a wall with my eyes closed, I gulp. "That's it. I know it."
Callie stands by my side and squints. "I think I can see more light up there?"
"That's the victory site." I can barely get the words out.
The wind shifts, and the stench of Savage Wolves meets my nostrils again. There are a few of them somewhere ahead, probably guarding the clearing. But as if the dark spirits around us have sensed that we're spying, the wind shifts again, carrying all the scent away. Here, the Russells' protective magic isn't working. We're too deep in the dark, just as I feared. What do they think they're doing?
The warlocks speak up ahead, their voices barely audible. They must still be half a mile away, even though we've left the house well behind.
More twigs snap ahead, and I see two dark shapes bounding through the trees. They're about to run ahead of us, cutting over our route like they're on patrol around the clearing. Savages. I backpedal into Everly. "Callie. Alex. Incoming," I hiss.
Alex and Callie both step ahead, weapons raised, though Alex reaches out and pushes down Callie's pistol. It would make noise and alert the cult. So Callie pockets it and snatches her crossbow off her back instead. The pair of Savages, both dark gray Wolves with deep, ugly eyes, stop two hundred feet away and eye us. From here I can see the boiling red evil in the depths of their pupils and the rippling muscles on the beasts. The sight fills me with a primal terror and an urge to fight. My skin itches, begging me to give in to the animal within, but fear wins and I instead grab Remo's arm.
These are Savage Wolves descended from Romulus. They're pure beast with no sign of human left. As one turns and surveys me with hunger, slobber runs down its lower jaw. These monsters will eat us alive.
"Don't shoot yet," Alex tells Callie.
She's shaking. "They'll kill us."
"Don't shoot until they're closer. Save your bolts."
"What do we do?" Everly asks.
"Back up," Brett tells Karina.
The two Wolves growl and slowly approach as if relishing the hunt and our terror. Nostrils flare and growls rise along with hackles. These creatures are pure survival of the fittest. Stupid. All muscle. And they don't care about the cult's plan.
"Aim at their skulls," I say, body tensing. "Between the eyes. You have to kill them in one shot."
The first Wolf, though I'm sure it can no longer understand human speech, lets out a snarl and bolts straight towards us.
Chapter Nineteen
Callie fires. A bolt zips through the air, landing inches from the first Wolf. It closes the distance between her and Alex as she reloads.
Behind me, Remo pops and snaps as he enters a shift. He has no time to tell me to pass any messages to Leonora if he doesn't make it. A second later, a huge blond Wolf steps away from ripped clothes, charging past Callie and at the first Wolf. But Alex fires at it, and the bolt whistles and then lodges between the Savage Wolf's eyes.
The monster falls and thrashes as if it's struck a wire. A yelp escapes as the pure Savage rolls on the ground, trying to dislodge the bolt with its massive paws. The creature continues to roll as Remo pounces, snapping for its throat. The Savage isn't dying. It's like Matthew. Hard to kill, even with silver. And it's fighting Remo, pushing him off as he tries to get to the vulnerable, soft flesh of its chest and throat.
I have to jump in.
But Callie steps in front of me as my skin starts to tingle and burn, stopping my shift in its tracks. She fires two more bolts at the second Savage, which is cutting around the first without regard for its friend's life. She fires a third and a fourth, both of which impale flesh with disgusting wet thunks. The Wolf collapses, wrestling with pain, as Callie looks back at me with a confident grin. "Remo's holding them off. Come on."
Alex and Everly cut around me and run around the struggling Wolves, the second of which has two bolts sticking out of its throat. But the monster is still rolling around, reeking of blood and rot, trying to dislodge them. As I run around the pair, the darkness around me dances, and I say, "The other Savages in the area will smell this. Go!" I shove Callie forward to join the rest of us.
Remo, the blond Wolf, looks at me for a second. His eyes are full of hard, noble sacrifice. Then he turns to the first Savage and digs his teeth into the weakening Wolf's throat.
I turn away, leaving him to finish the first and move on to the second.
When the rest of them get here, Remo won't be able to hold them off.
He might die.
The clearing gets closer and the tree
s farther apart. I smell the cult's presence here once we leave the dying Savages behind. Lots of poison, and not all of it comes from them. The clearing ahead is large, and almost takes me back to that vision. There are posts in a ring around the center of the field, closing in a stomped-down area. A central post rises from the center of the ring, a large wooden one with a figure chained to it, shirtless and bruised. His arms are chained together over his head with bright metal manacles. A glint comes off the metal and I know I'm staring at silver.
I sniff.
Adrenaline mixes with pure wilderness, fresh air, and spring leaves and I stop as an invisible boulder strikes me in the chest. I take a sharp breath and breathe, "Cayden."
He's against post in the like a sacrifice, with scratches crisscrossing his chest and bruises of every color on his face. My mate is breathing, but he hasn't healed from the injuries he's sustained. Boiling rage pumps through my veins and I tense. The cult have used silver weapons on him and the chains are weakening Cayden, leaving him unable to heal.
And then I notice the two warlocks standing before Cayden, about ten feet away, and one of them is holding a dagger that carries that terrifying glint.
They've come back to hurt him some more, to drag out the physical and emotional pain as much as possible. As if she can sense when I'm about to do, Everly grabs my shoulder again, squeezing so hard it numbs my shoulder.
"Let go," I tell her, pulse roaring in my ears.
"You can't go out there yet."
"The cult's done a number on him," Brett says, joining me and raising his hand to his face. "They've been torturing him."
I want to vomit as my ears ring, seeing my mate staring down at the dusty ground like he's given up. Cayden's arms slump against the silver chains as his body hangs there, legs free but weak and shaking. As I watch, he swings back and forth, unaware that I'm here. The cult has taken everything that makes Cayden who he is.
He's going to be Allia and I'm going to be Remus. Callie will be Romulus. I look to Brett, Karina, Callie, Alex, and Everly. No one speaks. I will fight for Cayden and I'll die for him. I know it.
