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I can feel my friends behind me, not too far behind. I can also sense Roxanne between us and them. The rest of the pack stretches far behind us, so far they fade into the mist of my senses.
Abruptly, we turn a corner and I pull up short; we’re back at the clearing. I pick up the scent of a thousand wolves, and see the clothes everywhere, our bags piled in the center.
My every instinct tells me to stop, and I do. I dig my claws into the earth and allow them to drag and slow my momentum. Soon, Roxanne comes charging through the path I just exited, all black and silver in the moonlight. Not far behind her are the guys, and they gather around me once more. As the rest of the pack begins to arrive, I search for my uncle and realize I’ve lost sight of him. My eyes dart among the throngs of wolves pouring into the clearing, but I don’t spot another remotely of his coloring. Reaching out with my senses, I realize I can’t feel him, either.
Suddenly, all the warm, joyful feelings I had earlier dissipate. A dark, sinister feeling replaces them, and I know I’m not the only one to sense it. My friends form a protective circle behind me, their fur standing on end. A prickly feeling spreads across my skin and a low growl emits from my throat.
My eyes travel around the circle, and to my shock, I realize the group is divided. Roxanne and a majority of the wolves have gathered around me in a cluster, flanking the protective wall of fur at my back.
But before me is a not insignificant group of wolves that look positively feral.
What is this?Where is Uncle Dom? I reach out with my senses once more, but I don’t feel him.
Meanwhile, three of the wolves approach, and a sudden wave of realization crashes over me, bringing a strong desire to faint.
Mydreams.
This is just like my dreams, with my uncle disappearing and three wolves coming to attack me. Clearly there is something going on here, some wolf thing that I don’t understand, but I have to decide quickly.
A powerful, violent urge to attack rises in my chest, and my head lowers, a deep growl ripping from my throat as I glare at the oncomers.
They should hear my warning and take heed.
But they don’t.
They continue approaching. My wolf instincts are affronted. How dare they presume to encroach when I’ve already warned them?
My lips pull back, revealing my fangs as a snarl emits from my mouth. Tongue lashing my teeth, I step forward to meet their challenge and give them one final warning.
Stand down or you will regret it,I try to convey without words.
However, I cannot make an impression, and with their own snarls, the three of them pounce on me as one.
The pain of their teeth in my flesh is nothing compared to what I went through in the change. I’m simply overwhelmed by so many teeth, so many claws, so many bodies all coming at me at once.
Overcome, I sink to the ground and emit a high-pitched whine, a plea for help.
A sharp, keening howl rips from the throat of a wolf nearby, and my attackers stop immediately. When they roll away, their cutting teeth are replaced with gentle licks on my nose, head, ears, and I recognize the comforting auras of my friends.
Glancing up, I see wolf Roxanne, standing imperiously above me and glaring at the smaller group of wolves. Instinct kicks in, and I feel the push of her compulsion encouraging me to run home. I stand on shaking legs, and start trotting back the way we’d come, through the gardens and toward the house. There’s no question of getting lost now. I can sense the right path as clearly as if it were a yellow brick road in front of me. The guys trot along with me, and we don’t stop running until we reach the doors of Harridan House.
ChapterTwenty
Landon
* * *
We follow Layla right up to the house, and since we’ve all left our belongings in the forest, there’s nothing for us to do but shift and politely avoid staring at each other’s bodies until we can find some coverings.
I know Layla doesn’t want to be seen naked. I know she is self-conscious about it. But I am a red-blooded eighteen-year-old guy, and my mate is inches away, stark naked in the cold moonlight.
And she’s beautiful.
Her skin glimmers in the pale light, dark hair tumbling over her shoulders to conveniently conceal her breasts.
It takes a massive force of will to prevent my eyes from dropping lower.
“Are you okay?” I focus on her eyes. They’re huge and luminous, practically glowing.
