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And we’re about to be eaten by one.
No. Not if I can help it. I narrow my eyes at my twin as Orion leans back on his feet, long claws growing from his toes, which poke through his favorite pair of boots.
“When he attacks, you run for the door.” I remove the Mustang’s spare keys from my pocket and press them into her hand. “You take the car, and you don’t look back. Got it?”
“Jackson—”
Her words collapse into a scream as Orion leaps at us.
Time slows. All I can see is my brother—his face twisted into a monstrous form—as he bears down on us.
His eyes are wide and terrified, but he’s never been able to control the wolf inside of him. The wolf that hungers for freedom, for blood—
And suddenly, he’s not here.
What?
Lily screams again as something heavy slams into the floor next to us. Brooks has landed on Orion’s back, knocking him to the ground. Orion snarls, his still-shifting limbs turning on our brother. He rolls over and pins Brooks with two fur-covered paws and leans in, his teeth sinking closer and closer to Brooks’s face, ready to take a bite…
…but not before Brooks jams a syringe into his neck.
Orion lets out a desolate howl, then slumps over.
He doesn’t move.
“Fuck,” Lily whispers. I can feel her heart racing in her chest. She clings to me as if I’m the only thing holding her upright. “Fuck. He’s a…”
“Yup.” I struggle to get my own racing heart in check. “He’s a werewolf.”
“A little help would be appreciated,” Brooks mumbles from beneath my twin’s dead weight.
All I can see poking out from Orion’s fur-covered, half-wolf form are Brooks’s flailing limbs.
But I don’t let go of Lily. She peers up at me with those huge eyes, and suddenly, she looks sixteen again, in need of protecting.
“Is Orion okay?” Her lower lip wobbles.
I don’t know how to answer that.
“I need to help Brooks,” I say, guiding her over to the heart-shaped bed and getting her to sit down. “Can I let go of you for a moment? Just wait here. You’re safe. I promise I’ll be back.”
“Jackson, you bastard, get him off me,” Brooks snaps, his legs scissoring as he tries to buck Orion off him. “I can’t breathe under here.”
Lily nods slowly. She looks dazed. I don’t want to leave her, but I also know that we need to deal with Orion before that serum wears off.
Reluctantly, I let go of her and walk over to where Brooks is wrestling with Orion’s dead weight. I grab my twin under the shoulders, and with me dragging and Brooks pushing, we manage to get him off.
“Well, fuck.” Brooks runs his fingers through his hair. “Why has he changed so early? We should have at least another day.”
“He let his control slip. He didn’t sleep well, and…” I look over at Lily.
Brooks nods, understanding. With Lily here, Orion’s tenuous control over his monthly change would have been worse than ever. And once he goes wolf, he can’t come back until the full moon is over.
“Fuck. We do not have time for this.” Brooks paces, his hands tearing at his hair. “We have to get him back to the safe house. But we can’t leave Lily—”
“I meant to tell you. Orion and I went for a walk last night, and we found a cabin up in the woods. We’ve been up all night reinforcing it…Shit.” I indicate Orion’s prone body. “He’s hardly slept. I didn’t even think. I wish he’d said something. He must’ve known he was losing control.”
Brooks grunts. “You’re his twin. What do you think?”
