Page 4 of Legacy Elite

He looks at me for a full second longer than the question actually needs.

"Large," he says.

I wait. He doesn't add anything.

"Large? That's it?"

"Very large."

"Oh, very large. Great. Really vivid. I can picture it perfectly now."

The corner of his mouth moves again. "You were substantially larger," he says, "than any shifted wolf I have seen at this academy."

Because I felt enormous. I assumed that was just what shifting was, that everybody feels like the world has gotten small. It didn't occur to me that everyone in that clearing was looking at an animal they'd never seen.

"Huh," I say.

Not a good response. It's what I've got.

A knock. Not a polite one.

And Jon barely gets the door open before Sophia comes through it saying my name.

Then all of them are in the room at once, and the whole cottage changes temperature.

Torres gets to me first. He's across the floor before I've untangled myself from the chair, hands on my face, my neck, my ribs, down my arms like he's taking inventory.

"Hey," I manage.

"Shut up." His forehead comes down against mine. He's shaking a little too. "You scared the absolute shit out of me."

"I know."

"I felt all of it. I was three ridges over and I couldn't—" He stops. Breathes. Pulls back to look at my shoulder. "How bad?"

"Twelve stitches."

He isn't looking at me like a museum exhibit. He's looking at me like Jessica, who is bleeding and mouthy and his, and I realize that's what I've been starving for even more than the chicken.

I get my good arm around his neck and breathe him in.

“Move, Torres, some of us have medical training.” Declan crowds in, practically blocking out the room as he frowns at me. “How bad were you hurt? Did they clean it properly? Did you need stitches—”

"They cleaned it."

"Did they give you—"

"Declan. They gave me everything. I've been given so many things."

Freya has taken a position by the fireplace where she can see the whole room, arms folded, saying nothing, watching me. Renzo drops onto Jon's couch.

And Sophia has been vibrating in the middle of the floor this entire time with her hands over her mouth, and she finally can't hold it.

"Holy fuck, Jessica." It comes out of her like a bottle uncorking. "Do you have any idea how big you were?"

"NO." I throw my hands up, and my shoulder screams, and I don't care. "Nobody will tell me! All I get is the word 'large'!"

"Large—" Sophia makes a strangled sound. "Large. Who said large?"