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As I wrestled with him, Celeste seemed to regain some of her wits. She turned to look at me, her silver eyes as wide as dish plates. “Was that…?”
She didn’t finish. She didn’t have to.
I gave a slow nod, my mouth dry. My tongue felt like ash.
“Perhaps some distance will keep you from feeling any more of that,” I suggested, my voice hoarse. I glanced back at Walter. “Perhaps if Celeste returns to Isla Lobo, she won’t feel any of it.”
Celeste scowled. “I don’t want to be that far,” she argued. “Besides, what if something happens to you? You’ll be here all alone without a way to leave, a witch to help, or your right-hand man.”
I shook my head, struggling to make an argument. “I want you to be safe.”
Celeste turned to Walter and Val. “If I shift, you can lock me up, okay? That way, I can’t possibly chase after him if my wolf takes over and I lose my mind a little.”
Val was quick to nod. “I can magically secure the location.”
“We won’t let Celeste into the wilderness,” Walter agreed.
Locking Celeste up didn’t seem like a better solution to me, but my time had run out. I couldn’t come up with any alternative.
My wolf snarled, surging forward again. The force almost knocked me off my feet, and I knew I couldn’t wait any longer. This solution would have to do.
I whirled on my heel and stormed out the door, four paws hitting the snow as I raced into the wilderness.
Chapter9
Celeste
Southern Sky Research Station
Antarctica
As soon as Fenris disappeared out the door, I knew I had no choice in the matter. I wheeled around and headed down the hall, locking myself in the guest room I’d stayed in last time. I could tell that Fenris had already shifted even though I hadn’t seen it; I could feel the strain in his muscles as he galloped over the snow. That wasn’t all I felt, either.
Wave after wave of pain rippled through our shared mental space, crashing into me like a storm well offshore. There was a dull ache deep as my bones. I whimpered, trying not to groan as I sat down on the cot. Each wash of agony was followed shortly by a spike of anger, as if Fenris’s wolf was trying to beat back the pain with rage. I wasn’t sure which sensation was winning when it seemed to surge, and a wild, animalistic fury smashed into my psyche without warning.
The bond was still there, but Fenris, as I knew him, was gone. I inhaled sharply, leaning forward to steady my swimming vision, but as I lifted my hands to cradle my head, I fell forward, landing in a heap on the floor. I groaned, and when I tried to stand, I tripped over my front legs, landing on my chin.
I yelped, ears flattening out to the side. I barely had time to process that I was on four paws instead of two feet when my wolf came rushing forward, pressing insistently on my mind. At least I wasn’t taken as off-guard as I’d been the first time, but I still struggled to regain any semblance of control.
As I wrestled with my senses, my wolf grabbed the reins and trotted over to the door. We reared up while pawing at the entrance. Thankfully, a knob wasn’t anything a wolf could deal with. I whined and stared up at it. It was so difficult to know that Fenris was out there, suffering, while I…whilewewere in here, sitting. Waiting. Doing nothing.
I circled and inspected the floor. After a moment, I began to dig, my nails clicking repeatedly against the surface. However, the bunker was quite sturdy. The cement wasn’t going to give way any time soon. The bond held, but the feeling of Fenris had become a blur, quiet and furious and distant.
I had no idea how long I was digging when I managed to get a few of my better senses back online. I took a breath and forced myself back. My paws didn’t hurt, so that was something—but they were still paws. I stared down at them, mentally willing them to turn back into the feet I knew. Since Fenris had helped me shift back the first time, I hadn’t learned how to do so on my own. All the research I’d done had centered on getting Sabine out of my mind, and as grateful as I was to have broken that link…
I sighed, my shoulders sagging. My tail hung limply against my back legs. Fenris was somewhere far, far away, a distant blip in my mind’s space. At least that seemed to relax my wolf some; she was no longer so aggravated by his pain. Instead, exhaustion crept in, replacing the adrenaline surge that’d nearly driven me out of my mind.
Glancing around the room, I decided that if I took a nap, my wolf would relax enough to give up control. I had no other working theories. I padded over to the bed, eyeing it for a moment before grabbing the blanket gingerly between my teeth. I pulled it back before hopping onto the cot, flinching as it groaned. All it did was complain, though, so I circled once, twice, and—
Ahh.
Yeah, the third time was definitely the charm. With my spot perfectly beaten down, I flopped down in the center of the mattress, wriggling until I was perfectly comfortable. I closed my eyes and folded my tail over my nose, trying to focus on my breath instead of the distant echoes of someone else in Fenris’s skin.
Something was clicking. My ears twitched, and I wrinkled my nose. Something clicked again, and I opened my eyes, blinking a few times as I reoriented myself.
To my surprise, my nap had been quite peaceful. I stirred, feeling more rested than I had in a few days. As I lifted my head, I realized someone was opening the door—Val.
I pressed my ears forward and gave a gentle wag with my tail, happy to see the witch. She paused in the doorway when she realized I was awake, clearly bracing herself. When I didn’t jump off the cot and charge for the opening, she exhaled, offering me a wary smile. “Celeste?”
