AllFreeNovel
Share Us
EMILY
“Get them inside!”
Who said that? What’s going on?I rubbed my eyes, clearing my groggy vision, and glanced around, everything coming back to me. Pack members carried in a body—Cassian’s body—and they placed him on a bed in a cell.
I hopped up, bumping into Ember, who I hadn’t even realized was standing beside me.
“Em!” her eyes were filled with panic, eyebrows pulled in tight. “You fainted a few minutes ago.”
“Just like a princess,” Griffin called out with a smirk from beside Cassian, though his eyes were as haunted as the rest of them, bringing in their wounded and… deceased.
Ember and I pushed through the pack, at Cassian’s side in an instant. Sam hurried back with bandages and Ember grabbed the medical supplies, getting to work surprisingly fast, as if she’d experienced something like this before.
“We only have a few minutes before the change, so hopefully this will stop the bleeding long enough before the change takes effect.” Griffin and Sam hoisted Cassian’s body forward as she wrapped the bandage around his chest where he’d been sliced, pulling it tight and tying it off on the side.
Liam, another wolf in the pack, doubled over, cursing in a tone that was more beast than human. “Shit! Get to the cages!” His bones cracked as his back began to rise and expand, the beginning of his wolf form taking control.
Everyone rushed to their cages, locking themselves behind the steel only seconds before their bodies contorted and cracked, flesh flying off in bits and pieces about the warehouse, sticking to the walls and bars of the cells.
I hadn’t noticed until that moment that everyone had already been naked in the warehouse before the change, probably from being in their wolf form minutes before when they fought outside with Kellan and Victor’s pack. No doubt, they’d been more concerned with their alpha than finding clothes to wear for the five minutes they had before the change.
I winced at the sight and sounds before me—bones stretching and cracking, breaking in the most unimaginably painful ways possible—and Ember wrapped her arm around my shoulders, whisking me away from the bloody transformation. We hurried to our cell and locked the door, taking our own precaution against any wolves that may not have made it to their cages in time.
Sleep was impossible with the feral growls and roars that escaped from the cells, a hauntingly terrifying tune that consumed my mind, making its way to my dreams every time I managed to drift off for a few minutes. Ember handed me a couple of cotton balls to shove in my ears to block out the sound, but it didn’t help much because I knew what was going on outside of the cotton.
I’d seen the flashes of teeth, snarling at our human flesh that stood only cells away. I couldn’t get the image out of my mind, the glowing eyes hidden within the dark shadows, waiting to pounce against the side of the cell if not for the chain holding them back. The dozens of eyes that stared at me from the dark were the kinds of things one would see only in their nightmares.
So, all night long, I tossed and turned, replaying the night on a continuous loop.
Everyone was having a great time, eating and drinking, enjoying one another’s company. Until Kellan swooped in with his pack and ambushed us, everything after that was a blur. There were wolves fighting all around us; Ember dragged me to the warehouse where I watched from the window as Kellan killed Grace and slashed Cassian with his claws.
Why did they attack? Were they looking for Griffin or me? How did they even know we were there? So many questions cluttered my mind, exhaustion clouding my ability to think through them rationally.
All it took was one second for everything to change. One second. As if things weren’t challenging enough dealing with Samara and her bullshit—now we had to deal with this?
Come on, life! Quit throwing crap my way for just a minute, won’t you?
My mind ran through everything we needed to fix. It was easiest if I thought of it like that—fixing problems. Not dealing with death or the end of the world. Nope, we’re just fixing problems and making a list.
First problem: Samara was on the loose, waiting to take down the wolves and everyone else to achieve… power? Who knew what she wanted exactly. You’d think revenge against the wolves by placing a curse on them was enough, but I guess not in my family. The worst part? We’d made zero progress in our search. We had no idea where Samara was, or what she planned to do next.
The second problem: Grace was dead. Pack members were dead. All because of Kellan and his stupid pack. Cassian was… injured. I didn’t dare assume anything else. Cassian would wake up tomorrow morning, ready to tear Kellan apart with his own claws. At least, that’s what I kept telling myself.
My heart clenched at the thought of Grace and Cassian, of his pack members, and all the wolves who suffered from Samara’s curse. We’ll figure it out.
That was problem number three: figuring out a way to break the curse. But we would do it.
* * *
EMILY
The next morning, Cassian was still asleep, and he remained that way all day. I stayed close, waiting for him to wake, but he never did. His eyes were closed in a peaceful slumber, and it put my mind at ease knowing that at least in his dreams, he looked calm. I only wished he could wake up because the question that everyone had been asking was, “What do we do now?” And only their alpha could make that decision.
Unfortunately, their alpha was trapped in his own injuries, unable to lead his pack.
Sam used his position as the beta to take the opportunity to become the leader—temporarily, he claimed. Who was I to stop him? With what little knowledge I had of the inner workings of the pack, I figured the second-in-command was the best bet for stability.
That was, until the third day after the attack. Cassian still hadn’t woken up, and the pack had yet to have a funeral for their fallen wolves. They had been waiting for Cassian to wake up, so he could be present, but Cassian had made zero progress—like he was in a coma. His body was alive and breathing, going through the change each night—yet he stayed asleep 24 hours a day, for three days straight.
