Then the pain hit. The feeling was sharp and blinding, like my body was being torn apart cell by cell.
Darkness surrounded me. Endless. Suffocating. I couldn’t see. Couldn’t move. My eyes refused to adjust, no matter how hard I blinked.
I was no longer home, but in a strange empty void.
And then a wounded and desperate voice called to me, over and over, pleading. Demanding.
Mate.
Mate.
Mate.
I tried to run, but there was no direction. No floor. No ceiling. Just black.
I dropped to the ground, if there even was one, and curled into myself, hugging my knees tight.
The voice got louder. Frantic. Screaming my name now.
Rowan.
Rowan.
Mate.
The sound tore through my brain, like claws raking against bone.
I tried to cover my ears, but it was inside my mind.
Then came the pain again, slicing through me, searing and hot. I screamed.
In the distance, something stirred.
Two glowing yellow eyes blinked open in the dark, staring straight into me. They were bright as fire.
And I knew, somehow…
It had found me.
“Rowan!”
A voice screamed. This one was different. My screwed-shut eyes flew open, searching for the source of the voice, and landed on two warm brown eyes staring back at me.
Cade.
A soft ache pulsed in my arms where he gripped me tightly, his fingers digging into my skin. His expression was etched with concern, and he gave me another firm shake, just to be sure I was fully awake.
I looked around the room, scanning for glowing eyes.
There were none. A harsh light from the lamp on the nightstand burned my vision, and I rubbed my eyes, trying to shake off the lingering clutches of deep sleep.
“What’s going on, Cade? What happened?” I asked, still groggy.
My thoughts were a foggy mess as I tried to gather my bearings. My heart was racing, my skin clammy with cold sweat, and my stomach twisted with nerves.
“You were screaming, Rowan. You were having another nightmare. I tried to wake you up, but you were stuck in it until I used my bark. Are you okay?”
“I don’t know. I guess so. I’m trying to remember it… but I can’t. It’s like it just gets further and further away the more I reach for it.”
