by Holly Hook
"That's a classic example right there," I say.
I find the gravel trail a minute later, crunching loose stones that are no longer frozen over with ice. I lighten my step, silencing myself. The wind blows from behind me for a second. Everly and Remo are now a quarter mile back, at the border, and just entering this territory.
I won't think of the dark spirits. I won't feed them. But they're everywhere. Suffocating again...
A mountain presses on my chest.
Breathe, Brie.
"Are you okay?" Callie asks.
"Yes. Fine," I say.
Alex catches up with me. His beard wiggles as he asks, "Are you certain?"
"This place is very relaxing, you know," I say. My sarcasm makes a ripple through the dark, making the dark spirits back off for a second. But they close in again. But at least this time, the pressure stays back.
Alex continues. Now that we have a trail I no longer have to lead the way. All I have to do is watch out. A flock of crows explodes into the sky. Distractions. Pulling my gaze away, I listen as the crack of a breaking branch sounds from above.
I ram into Callie, pushing her into Alex. I shove the three of us off the trail as a branch as thick as an anaconda lands on the gravel—where we stood—and rolls into the trees. Callie's mouth falls open and Alex just nods.
"That's mild," I say, hoping Everly and Remo can get through this okay. They've just heard the crack for sure. But going back now to warn them isn't an option.
"I believe you," Callie says. Her lower lip quivers. She's holding back terror.
We reach the hidden road. I freeze. This time, it has spray-painted graffiti all over it. Runes. Stars. Snakelike shapes within other snakelike shapes, and symbols that look to be from an alien planet. Leonora explained to me that they're sigils, drawings used to symbolize what a magic user wants. I eye one that looks like a blob monster with intestines for a mouth. A chill fills me. It could be something used to make a very dark spirit. I feel sick just looking at it.
"Yikes," Callie says. "This is some Lovecraftian stuff here."
Scanning the road, I try to find one that represents Romulus, but they all look like something from a Lovecraftian story.
"Keep going," I say, crossing the road. "They've done a lot of magic since I was here last."
We continue in silence, passing a couple of overturned barrels and the small clearing where Karina and Brett did a rite to distract Matthew and the Savage pack. I hurry past since a few black candles still circle it, burned down to the nubs. The mansion comes into view as snow continues to melt off the trees. This place smells like the cult for sure. Their scent is even stronger than the Savages'.
A single, large icicle falls off a tree above us. Before it can strike Alex on the head, I shove him out of the way. He nods his thanks. Now's not the time to speak.
I smell the cult, and they're somewhere well behind the mansion. Straining my ears, I listen, but they're not speaking. In fact, they aren't moving either. That means Karina hasn't been spying on me while we walked through the border of their territory. If she had, someone would have come after us already.
I wave Callie and Alex forward, worried someone will hear my racing heart. But as I draw closer to the vine-choked mansion, the darkness retreats. I feel as if I've stepped into a bubble of fresh air. The evil still lingers in the cracks of the world, waiting to pounce, but it's not following me past this point.
Of course the dark spirits don't come to the mansion. The cult doesn't like to feel like crap all the time. They might be dark witches and warlocks, but they're still human. Even they need a safe zone.
A quick listen tells me the mansion's empty. A bit of alternative plays in Karina's room upstairs, but she's not there. The music is a ruse. And the burning straw smell comes from another trail behind the house, a tiny one crushed down by dozens of feet since forever. The cult is down that way, in an area I've never visited.
I eye the sky for a second. A lazy cloud drifts over the sun. No sense of the protective spirits have followed me through the darkness. It's as if all the evil guardians held them back. Great.
I could go in the house right now. It's an excuse I can make to not hurt any humans. "We should split up," I whisper. "The cult is behind the house, and they can't be more than a hundred yards away. I need to go inside the house and look for something that can fix my mate's curse."
Alex glares, silently asking, are you a coward?
This is not the way a Noble Royal should act. But what do I do? Blow my cover and let Alex know he should kill me?
"This might be the only opportunity," I add. Better to be a coward than dead, right?
"Splitting up can be death," Alex says.
Callie comes to the rescue. "What can she do against the cult? They have wolf-repelling herbs that not even the Royals can cope with. She told me."
"Exactly," I say. Two against one. It's the fight before the fight.
Alex stands as if in indecision. He shakes his head. "Women."
"Cayden would agree," I say. I'm not sending Alex to the cult alone, but I can't tell him that. Remo and Everly stand in the trees a good hundred and fifty feet back, but close enough to jump in and help if they need to.
"I'll stand guard out here," Alex says at last. "You two go inside and look for this thing you need to find. Then we join together again and spy on this cult."
I don't hesitate. Another sniff confirms the mansion is empty, so I pull open the door, breaking the lock, and step inside. The place is dark and musty as it's always been, though it looks like Karina's made an effort to hang garlands of dried flowers along the edge of the ceiling. The scent's almost comforting. I've forgotten she's a girl about my age who got caught up in the worst kind of magic, just as Brett had.
"What are we looking for?" Callie asks.
"Brett's Book of Shadows. Or Mr. Hayde's, so we can fight Cayden's curse. Leonora says every good witch uses one."
"The curse?" Callie asks.
"No. The book." I march upstairs to the bedrooms and open a random door. Karina's room is decorated in blue, with a canopy bed and bright blue curtains. This doesn't look like it belongs to a dark witch capable of spying on me with a single hair.
Brett's room fits the mold better. Black sheets, a messy camouflage curtain, worn carpet. A bookshelf contains survival guides, old gaming magazines, and painted figures he probably used for tabletop RPG's before his father sucked him into this. Brett was a normal geek at once point. Not a cult member. I changed all that when I killed—
Despite being in this bubble, the pressure hits me so hard I grab my chest and sink to my knees.
You are still weak. Nobles are weak. They need humans to help them.
"Shut up!" I shout at the walls.
Callie kneels beside me. "Get out of this room," she demands, grabbing my arm and pulling. "It might be cursed."
Her fingernails digging into my skin snaps me out of it. I shake my head and cast the pressure of Romulus away. "I was doing it again," I say. "Feeling bad about doing horrible things to rotten people. Doesn't that sound like a really long song title?"
Callie forces a smile. "Keep it up, Brie. You need to keep the darkness out."
I'm shocked she's not mad about the problem I'm having. Maybe this Book of Shadows will have a way to disconnect the Savage King from me, too. Without another breath, I dive and look under Brett's bed.
"That's where he's going to keep his, uh, magazines," Callie says.
"Those are probably under the mattress," I say, finding nothing but a few old hunting knives. Brett's not stupid. After spending time around the Savage Wolves, I can't blame him for collecting weapons. "Wait. You're right. Under the mattress." I stand and flip it up.
A single leather-bound book rests on top of Brett's, um, magazines. I snatch it, letting the mattress flip back down. It's not a big book, and after my dumb mistake at the hospital, I open it to make sure I've got the right thing.
Brett's book looks li
ke it was bought at a normal store because it has a barcode on the back cover, but the rest is filled with handwriting, diagrams, and those things Leonora calls sigils. My heart rises into my throat. We've hit the jackpot. Some of the ink still gives off a gummy scent. It's new. Brett must have copied some of the cult's rituals into this book, and with luck, the curse his father put on Cayden. And with more luck, the way to remove it.
I stuff the book into the waist of my jeans. "Come on," I say.
Callie shakes her head. "We can't have you attacking the cult. With this Romulus thing you have, Alex will kill you. Or you'll kill us."
I shudder. I shouldn't be standing there with untainted people. "This is a scout mission, right? We're not doing any fighting today."
"Right," Callie says. "But we don't know how you'll react."
"We'll need the whole pack for attacking the cult," I say. "No way we're doing it with just three of us. I know you two are super skilled, but no."
"We've seen what we've needed to see," Callie says. "And you got what you've wanted for months. And you can smell where the cult meets, so we have enough information to figure out our plan of attack. I'll convince Uncle Alex we need to go."
We head down the stairs again when I freeze.
Footsteps approach the mansion. I hold up a hand to Callie.
"Who's coming?" she asks, tightening her grasp on her crossbow.
I listen. A dozen—maybe thirteen—sets of human footsteps approach the mansion. The cult's returning, and we left Alex outside to deal with them alone. Alex, and Cayden's siblings.
Chapter Thirteen
Even as I stand there, I can hear their faint conversation from three hundred feet away.
An old man: "Someone came through the border."
Brett: "I don't see anybody."
A woman: "You have a lot to learn. Your father was right. Meditate more and you'll start getting visions, too. Stop playing on your phone during sessions."
The dark spirits have alerted the cult to our presence.
And Brett's still a stubborn jerk.
But they're all coming, and I hear a lighter flick. I should've known this was going to be too easy.
"Who is it?" Callie asks. Her eyes widen as her jaw drops.
"The cult. No Wolves. Yet." It's my turn to pull her down the stairs.
We find Alex waiting beside the front door, tucked between a shrub and some hanging vines. I slap him on the arm, not caring that he has a weapon. The air reeks of burning hay and acrid poison.
Alex responds by raising his crossbow.
"There are thirteen of them," I hiss.
"Wolf or human?"
"Human."
Alex frowns. He doesn't want to shoot people. This is a man used to shooting savage animals. Who hates the Savage Wolves. And I sense the pressure going on me with that frown.
"We need to leave," I whisper. The trail leading to the cult might be on the other side of the house, but they'll get here soon enough. "They're only a couple hundred feet away."
Twigs crunch on our side of the house. Everly and Remo sense them too. A Wolf gives off a low growl only I can hear. They've already shifted and crept closer, ready to burst into action.
"It's too late to run," Alex says.
"Bull. Come on." What is his problem?
My skin itches. The animal within wants to take over. It claws at the inside of my skin, begging to come out. I can run faster as a Wolf. But the animal doesn't understand the danger the cult poses. With the thought of burning poison, I subdue it.
Alex steps away from the house. He points his crossbow in the direction of the other trail. Through the trees, I spot robed figures approaching, all draped in black with red trim. So they meditate in their costumes. The funny thought at least keeps Romulus away.
Run.
Cayden's voice pops into my head. Just the tone tells me everything. He's coming back to Breck right now and he doesn't care what Lawrence thinks.
"Callie," I say. If Alex is going to be stubborn, we have to let him. He'll figure it out soon enough. I wave to her and we bolt to the tree line, running together. Callie might want to fight Savages, but people are different.
One of the cult members shouts, "Intruders!"
They've spotted us.
Callie and I run across the yard, stopping on the gravel trail as a black wolf and a huge blond Wolf step out of the trees to meet us.
Callie gasps and raises her weapon. Remo growls and backs into the tree, curling his tail.
"Everly and Remo," I say, grabbing the bow and shoving it down.
Callie seethes as I push the bow against her thighs with force. She whirls and lowers her weapon. If she feels bad about her mistake, she doesn't show it. "Alex," she whispers.
He stands near the house, pointing the bow at the cult. The robed members stare him down from far across the yard. One of them backs into the woods, while others hold burning cloth bags at the ready. They expect Wolves. Not a Hunter.
Everly growls, ready to fight.
"What is he doing?" I ask, slipping into the trees. An urge to protect sweeps over me. Alex is related to me somehow. Family. He's not a Wolf, but he's still human. My skin burns as fur tries to poke out, but I tremble and hold it back. Attacking the cult is suicide. I'll hand myself to Romulus.
"I don't know, but we have to help him," Callie says.
Everly growls. I know what it means. Stupid idea, and she's right.
"He can get away," I say.
Remo pushes in front of me, waiting for my order. I'm not sending them out to the cult. We're outnumbered. A tall member in a hood—Brett, because he has sunglasses—steps forward and stares Alex down. Brave, looking into a crossbow like that. It's clear he doesn't know what to think.
They're stunned.
"Alex!" I shout.
He remains unmoving, aiming as if he has a deer in his sights. And then he fires.
The bolt flies, taking a straight path to Brett. The click echoes off the house and bounces off the trees. Brett dodges, and following his lead, the cult splits, but not before a man jolts from impact and grabs his leg. The bolt now pins the robe to the man's leg, and the wind carries the strong scent of blood to me.
You are a coward. Romulus and Alex speak together, voices merging into one.
Coward.
He's goading me for standing here. I take a breath and back into Everly. The sight of Cayden's twin reminds me to reach for him.
He doesn't speak, but I know his intent. He's coming back to take care of this for me, even if I am in charge.
"We can't just stand here," Callie says.
"We have to leave him," I say, facing Everly and Remo. "Come on. Before the Savages—"
I smell rotten wood and death.
The cult must have alerted the Savage pack, and now they're closing in from the direction of the border, cutting off our escape. I suck in a breath as Brett's book pushes against my ribs. If I shift, I lose it.
Brett bolts forward and throws a burning mass at Alex. It lands beside him, exploding and giving off acrid smoke.
The wolfsbane fumes work on Alex, too. He coughs and backpedals into the house, covering his face with his leather jacket. Only vines and shrubs protect him now. As Alex struggles, Brett draws a dagger from his robe and charges him.
"No!" Callie shouts, running to the only piece of her heritage she knows.
I whirl in a circle, heart racing, struggling to decide. Everly and Remo wait for my word. The Savages close the last five hundred feet between us and them, crunching up the gravel trail. They're crossing the road and the sigils. Darkness also dances at the edges of everything. The dark spirits are back. We're trapped. Everly growls in fear and lowers herself to the ground, looking up at me with hazel eyes. I have to decide what to do because of Alex's stupidity.
"Callie!" I need her to hold the book, because my best chance of surviving depends on me shifting. I snatch the book out of my jeans and from under my shirt, throwing it down. Pull
ing my shirt off, I let the animal take over.
Fiery explosions fill my being as the world stretches and laughs. But the pain ends in just a second, and I stand as a Wolf on top of my clothes. My clothes. The cult could use them against me—
Two light gray Savage Wolves charge us through the trees, and I leap in front of Everly and Remo. We can take them. We have to fight them before we help Callie.
Rot joins blood. I charge the Savages, growling a warning, and despite my size, one stops. A female. She looks to the male, who snaps a warning at us. And then he charges me. The new alpha. He's not Matt. I can take him.
We collide, going down in a ball of snapping fur and claws. I scratch at him, and he closes his teeth around my ear. The pain's distant, the blood dripping into my eye in another world. Protecting Everly and Remo means everything. The Savage pins me down before I buck him off. The Wolf's breath is revolting, like he's eaten vile carrion, and the dark spirits swirl in his presence. He shoves me against a tree, but Remo jumps on him, and though the Savage rolls onto his stomach and claws at the massive blond Wolf, I leap and sink teeth into his throat.
Romulus has never been more distant.
The new alpha struggles, makes a gagging noise, and goes still under my teeth. Blood fills my mouth. The female snaps at me, helpless, as she watches who might be her mate die to the cruel nature he loves so much. I lift my head and look into harsh gray eyes. My guts turn over and rage sings in my ears. She's one of the Wolves who helped to kill Cayden's parents.
Everly growls and leaps on her, and the two go down to the background of bolts clicking and things exploding. A human fight takes place a hundred feet away.
Remo and I leave the bleeding, now-dead Savage Wolf on the ground as a paw begins to curl and fur creeps back into skin. Like all dead werewolves, he's reverting to human form. I turn away and join the fight against the female. I've never fought with this much intensity before. Getting Romulus out is everything. I've got to expel any Savage...
The Savage bucks Everly off. Ramming into the female, I throw her against a tree. A bone breaks. She yelps, but no sympathy rises in me. Not for a Savage who cares nothing for human life. But Remo beats me to the deed. He closes in, closing his jaws around the back of her neck. I back away, giving my permission.
