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EMBER
“Pour me another glass.”
My voice was wistful, and I almost didn’t recognize it. How long had it been since I’d enjoyed myself without a worry in the world? Too long!
Emily turned up the heat in the lake, and we leaned our heads against a big rock that protruded from the water’s surface. Once Emily figured out how to use her magic to heat the water, it was like a hot spring—optimum relaxation.
“I can’t believe we leave in two days,” Emily said, wading over with two glasses. She handed me one, and we clinked them together.
I sighed. “I know. I’m going to miss getting drunk and swimming in a warm lake.”
Emily giggled, downing her drink in one swig like a champ. Much different from the first night we were here when it bubbled from her nose. “I can’t heat the whole lake. Only the spot we’re swimming in.”
I shrugged, leaning my head against the rock. “Potayto, potahto. I’m never leaving.” My body remained still as I discreetly splashed her, peeking from the corner of my eye to see her reaction.
Clever as she was, she waited until I turned to face her before splashing me back, getting lake water in the rest of my champagne. “You wasted alcohol. Party foul!” I lunged into the water, losing my glass in my drunken antics, and dunked her under the surface. But not before she dunked me twice. We were laughing and splashing like two children, when the atmosphere shifted.
We both froze in place, keenly aware of the change but unsure of what caused it. The woods around us had grown silent. No more crickets chirping or frogs croaking. No animals scurrying through the night or owls hooting in the limbs.
It was absolute silence.
The hairs on the back of my neck rose to attention, and I realized the last time I felt this way was mere seconds before we were attacked by Kellan’s pack.
“Ember.” Emily’s voice was low, nearly a whisper. Though she spoke in an even tone, there was an underlying panic, which I understood the moment my eyes followed her pointing finger to two glowing eyes in the woods beside the lake. There were maybe 20 feet of distance between us and the eyes, closer to them than the cabin.
“Wolf,” I muttered, holding back the urge to clutch onto Emily. But I knew that would only exacerbate the situation.
She spoke from the corners of her mouth, making as little noise as possible. “Is it feral?”
I didn’t answer. I couldn’t. As much as I wanted to believe it wasn’t feral, the sinking feeling in my gut, and the goosebumps prickling at my arms, told me otherwise.
“We need to back away slowly. Whatever you do, don’t run.”
“How the hell can I run in the water?” Emily asked, backing away from the rock with calculated motions, flowing through the water at a pace that was slow but didn’t make the water lap up around her and swish. I followed suit, and we moved at a painstakingly slow pace, making little progress.
With a loud snarl that reverberated through the woods, the wolf leaped 15 feet into the water, and I screamed for Emily to swim.
* * *
EMILY
Abig, hairy beast emerged from the trees, pouncing after us into the water. Frantic, we rushed toward the dock and the safety of the cabin. Not that it would matter. I’m sure that wolf could tear through the wooden structure. Blow the house down and leave the little pigs scattered. Only, we were the pigs in this scenario.
In a blind panic—I’m not totally sure how I did it—I froze the lake around us, trapping the wolf in place as we grit our teeth, shivering through the icy water. I could feel my magic draining my energy, and I wasn’t sure I’d make it back to the dock if I kept the wolf frozen much longer. I would tell Ember to run, go without me, but I knew she’d rush back to help me, and then we’d both be screwed.
“I have to let it go,” I called out, water seeping into my mouth, choking me.
“Do it,” she called, nearly reaching the dock. Unfortunately, my magic had slowed me down and I was still far behind. She rushed up the ladder and into the cabin, shouting that she’d be back.
She wouldn’t ditch me, right? No, Ember was too kind to leave someone in trouble.
Mustering all my energy, I took one last dive into the water, releasing my magic and the wolf it had caged. It didn’t take long for it to catch up with me as it was big enough to touch the bottom and used its massive hind paws to push itself through the water.
Meanwhile, my pathetic attempt at the doggy paddle was nothing compared to the wolf paddle, and he was gaining on me too fast for comfort. As I reached the dock, I hoisted myself up, not even attempting to swim to the ladder. Losing my footing, I slipped back into the water just as the wolf lunged into the dock, breaking through the wood I’d just climbed.
Holy shit, that was close! Never thought I’d be glad to fall off the edge. No doubt he would’ve crushed me if I hadn’t fallen. But now I was faced with a new challenge—the glowing red eyes in the water, only a few feet away.
My legs kicked furiously, but the wolf jumped through the water and pinned me down. The hazy glow from the lights of the cabin shone through the surface, which was only a few feet up. If only I could get away from the wolf. How was the water not drowning it?
