Page 26 of Nightshade

Aleks didn’t give them a lot of time to consider, though, just sighing, long and loud. It reminded me of Grant, oddly enough, when he’d been pretending that someone had forced him to do something horrendous. I wondered how Aleks managed to mimic it and not be sick, since Grant had treated him worst of all.

But he just stood there, shaking his head, putting on an excellent show. “This is silly excuse to be in pack lands. You will leave, now. I told Ermengarde to go and not come back. This goes for all of you. You are not welcome in the Wildwood.”

He turned and pointed, dramatically, in a direction that was away from both the river and all pack buildings, and we stood there and watched as they passed us. I heard Evie sprint off after them, watching, making noise, making sure they felt eyes upon them the whole way out of pack territory.

Once they were completely out of earshot, though, Aleks was looking at me, that single brow raised again. He copied my tone, stressing one word: “And why is he half starved?” It was his turn to cross his arms. “Who is he, Leo?”

CHAPTER 14

Altair

Well, I might’ve found myself a new home.

It was cramped, yes, but safe enough. The earth was a bit cool, and I could hear bugs crawling through their tunnels all around me, but down here, I didn’t have to worry about sunlight, and grabbing a spade to dig me up? That seemed to be a step too far for witches.

Maybe they just hadn’t considered it yet. Still, it’d take some heavy effort to get me out from beneath the cabin above, and I didn’t think the werewolves would let the witches out here with sledgehammers and spellwork.

I’d lived worse places.

But the real issue was, having gotten myself into the ground, I had no idea how to dig myself out of it.

Long after the voices had disappeared, I stayed there. At first, I was simply convincing myself that it was to avoid getting caught, that the witches might still be nearby. Then, it became increasingly apparent that I didn’t know how the hell to get out of the ground.

So, I was just going to stay. Maybe, if I was lucky, some oversized werewolf, with gray eyes and a smile that came far too easy for anyone who’d lived on this cursed rock for more than a handful of years, would come by and drag me out of the dirt.

If I couldn’t get out, what would Leo think?

Probably, not much at all. I’d stumbled upon him in the woods, attacked him, and moved on. That’d simplify his life, at the very least.

A strange pang throbbed in my chest at the notion of him being glad that I’d disappeared. It was ridiculous, honestly. He’d been kind and generous, but I thought that had more to do with his malleable nature than any particular fondness he had for me.

He’d been honest with me; I didn’t doubt that. But it’d be foolish of me to think a bit of kindness and a sense of humanitarian obligation amounted to anything like friendship.

If I had to guess, Leo would be more upset if his raccoon friend disappeared than if I did.

Those thoughts circled in my head until I heard a harried, raised voice calling my name.

“Altair?” There were footsteps on the boards above me, but they were heavy and familiar.

Suddenly, the earth was rolling back, and I was rising through it, huffing and trying to blow sediment off my lips. “I’m here. Under the floor,” I called.

When I shoved my hand up through the hole I’d made in the floor, a warm, firm grip wrapped it a second later. Leo pulled me out of the ground, beyond the broken floorboards, and set me on my feet. He was frowning and worried.

“What happened?” he asked, sounding for all the world like Drew had disappeared after all. “Did you dig yourself down there?”

“Something like that,” I mumbled while Leo knocked dirt out of my hair, frowning.

It was nice to have him there. I hadn’t felt safe coming back up, but once he’d arrived, I knew I would be. Without him, I’d been stuck, but the second I heard his voice, coming out of the ground became easy.

My relief was so palpable that it took me a moment to realize there was another heartbeat in the room. It was a man, another werewolf from the heat radiating off him, and he looked like the sun to Leo’s moon. While Leo had a square face and dimpled chin, a quick smile and soft, straight dark hair, this other man was all golden curls and unnaturally perfect angles.

He was a little bit uncanny, and I didn’t like the curiosity lighting his bright blue eyes.

When Leo caught me staring, he looked over at the man. “Um, this is Aleks, my brother. Aleks, this is Altair.”

I wouldn’t have guessed that, given that they didn’t look a thing alike, but he had mentioned a twin and—his other brother. They’d been adopted by Aleks’s mother, right?

I put on my winningest smile and held out my hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”