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“They argued,” I said. “And one of the men took the shotgun, acted like he was going to follow you. He stayed there, just staring for a long time after they took the gun away and went inside. He freaked me out.”
“The quiet one who only watched,” Byron guessed.
I nodded. “But did you see? They looked like Margo when she uses her gift. Their hair, their eyes.”
“But they wouldn’t help her. They made it sound as though they know what we are,” Ryan said. “I don’t like it. They seemed prepared for us, as though they were waiting.”
I shivered at the thought of that. “Why wouldn’t they help us?”
“I don’t know,” Byron said warily. “But I think we should leave. They know this place better than us, and something about that compound unsettles me.”
We moved quickly after shifting, ditching the bag and clothes in our hurry to leave. I couldn’t understand it. We had come so far, only to retreat so fast, yet I didn’t want to be anywhere near the compound.
We made it back to the cave that night, but there was something in the air, a cold sort of darkness that followed in our wake. I didn’t see anybody, but I sensed something, and I didn’t like it.
We shifted and packed our stuff. Ryan and Byron made plans to spend the night, but I had to speak up. Even my wolf wanted to leave.
“I don’t think we should stay here,” I said. “I felt like something followed us into the mountains. Not people, but something. I think this is the part of the journey that Margo tried to warn us about. I’m serious. There’s something weird out here. I don’t… I don’t like it.”
I rubbed the back of my neck, hoping they would believe me.
“If he says he senses something, I think we should listen,” Ryan said without hesitation. “He’s good at tuning out other senses to find what he needs. I’m uneasy myself anyway.”
“Agreed,” Byron said. “Let’s get off this mountain and find a way back to Niall before he goes crazy waiting for us.”
I was too worried to even savour their faith in me.
As we descended, I couldn’t shake the feeling that something unseen was right behind us. We kept a fast pace, an unknown danger urging us forward. My heart thudded too fast, anxiety sending my fight or flight responses into high gear. Something told me we couldn’t fight whatever followed. All I wanted to do was run instead. But I was letting Margo down with every step.
Then, as though we had crossed a solid line back to normality, the feeling of being chased suddenly vanished. The others slowed down, and eventually, we took a break, settling behind a crag on the side of the mountains where we had hidden bags. We didn’t shift, and Ryan remained tense and alert for the rest of the night. We each grabbed a couple of hours sleep, and then we moved on again, heading for the closest village where we might get a lift back to Niall Harding to tell him how we had let his daughter down.
“How could we come all this way and leave with no answers?” I complained. “How am I supposed to go home and tell Margo that I can’t help her?”
“You saw what it was like at the compound, and then on the mountain. You were right,” Ryan said. “Something was following. Something I’ve never come across before.” He sighed. “We should have brought Amelia with us. Then we might have stood a chance.”
“She could have triggered something we couldn’t stop either,” Byron said. “What are they doing in that compound? How did Margo end up at an orphanage? Maybe we’re being too curious and all Margo needs is time.”
I didn’t think so, and I definitely didn’t think I could leave. “I can go back,” I said. “Wait for those men to leave, try to talk to a kid instead.”
“Are you insane?” Byron said, though he just sounded tired. “How can I go back to Nathan to tell him I allowed you to do something so dangerous? Maybe these people can’t help Margo. She isn’t like them. They felt like enemies, like danger. Margo doesn’t. None of this helps us.”
“I’m eighteen,” I reminded him. “I don’t need permission to leave home.”
He looked at me, his eyes wary. “I’m your alpha, Dorian. I can make you go home.”
“You can try,” I said stubbornly, “but if I know I’m right, and I want it badly enough, I can break through like Nathan did years ago.”
Byron stopped walking to face me. He squeezed my shoulder. “You don’t have to do things alone, Dorian. I understand how you feel, but staying here alone is a terrible idea. Those people at the compound are dangerous. I don’t know how, but I feel it, and so do you.”
“Margo could die if I don’t stay.” My voice shook when I badly needed it to stay strong.
“I could stay with him,” Ryan said. “We could visit the market, see if we can get one of them alone to talk. We could ask Amelia to join us.”
“Let’s first get back to Niall, wash the mountain off us, and figure this whole thing out when we’re calmer,” Byron said.
But I knew it didn’t matter how calm I was. I couldn’t give up when we were so close to the truth.
Back at the hotel, we found the room empty. We cleaned up and ate while we waited for Niall to return.
