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“What the hell was that?” Chris’ voice was as rough and jagged as his breathing.
“Nothing comes without a price.” Van had a little grin on his face.
“Don’t be a jerk, Van.” I squatted next to Chris. His forehead was pressed to the ground, and I realized I’d probably forgotten how bad it felt. “You okay?”
“I’ll live.” It was a statement, but it almost sounded like a question.
“You’re going to need a jacket,” Van said, and he was right. The cold wouldn’t kill me, but it was uncomfortable.
He called in my bag, and I dug through it until I found my leather jacket. “I’m going to need one for Chris, too,” I said as I pulled it on.
Van gave me a little nod, and a second later, a coat was in his hand. A black leather with thick cozy lining.
I spread it over Chris’ back like a blanket. He could put the coat on when he recovered.
I looked up at Van. “Go. Find Elowen.”
He raised an eyebrow at me, as if to say that Chris needed to toughen up, but traveling was Van’s power. He was in control. He’d never be able to understand how truly terrifying and disorienting it felt to be dragged along with him.
“Until I return.” Van gave me a wave, and then disappeared.
I ran a hand down Chris’ back, and then stood. He needed a second, and I wasn’t about to judge him for it. I kept watch while I waited for him to recover. Traveling with Van was way worse than traveling with Eli. I didn’t know what it was about Van’s powers that made it so unpleasant. I’d asked him once, and it hadn’t gone well. At all.
Five years ago, when the pixie requested my help, I’d researched the pack. All the pixie said was that there were werewolves that needed killing, and nothing about the town needing saving, and nothing at all about Chris. So, I’d taken the time to do my homework. The more I dug into the pack’s history, the worse it got, and I spent too much time wondering why the Seven had let the pack exist. When I finally realized that the why didn’t really matter, that they needed to die, it was almost too late for Chris, and already too late for some of the humans living in the town. There weren’t a lot of things in my life that I regret, but not getting here sooner was one of them.
When we’d rescued Chris, the whole compound looked rundown at best. The people who raised Chris didn’t really care about anything but violence. The pack was insane, full of sociopaths, and it made me wonder how someone like Chris had survived. It should’ve broken him. And in a way, it did. He kept his wolf so chained up that he didn’t care about losing it forever. He talked about breaking the lunar tie like it was giving up his favorite paintbrush, but it would be worse than losing a limb—he’d be losing half of his soul. I was sure he was more alpha than he realized, but it didn’t matter if he was the most alpha wolf alive. He’d never survive in my court.
Which brought me back to why we were here. To say good-bye to Chris’ wolf.
I shoved my hands into my pockets to keep them warm. “Be right back.” I walked away from Chris, taking in the land and the buildings. Being here now brought back a lot of feelings for me, and none of them were good.
The tall grass of the plains was broken by sections of trees and brush here and there. The large farmhouse that Chris had called home looked like it needed to be condemned. A massive spray painted red dick on the wall of the main farmhouse and the “stay away evil freaks” on one of the trailers told me it probably wasn’t a werewolf that came back here to do the damage to the buildings.
The trailers that made up most of the pack’s compound weren’t looking any better than the farmhouse. There were a couple of houses in the distance with some broken windows and graffiti on them. If I was going to bet on anything, I’d put my money on the town taking out some of their anger and grief on the compound. It made sense after what had been done to them.
The afternoon sun was high in the sky. I’d left my cellphone in my bag, which I was sure Van had vanished to God only knew where, otherwise, I’d check for messages. Instead, I walked a little closer to the fenced-in barn. They used to have cattle in there, but they were long gone. The thick, yellowing grass crunched under my feet. The air was chilly, and I wished I had a warming spell, but I’d live. Walking the land would warm me up, and Chris’ old pack had plenty of it. Thousands and thousands of acres amounting to nearly twenty square miles. Aside from the eyesore houses, it was a beautiful piece of land.
The pack was started by Chris’ grandfather—a very wealthy man who had been bitten as a young boy. He managed to hide it from his parents for years, but eventually, something in him twisted.
He probably would’ve been a terrible person if he’d been human. Maybe not a murderer, but probably an abuser of some kind.
A clang sounded underneath my foot and I found what I’d been looking for. The pit. The metal grate covering it was overgrown now, but still there. Chris had thought about burning this place to the ground, but I wanted to come back and fill in this pit. It was evil.
Chris groaned and I started back to him. I hadn’t gone far—fifty feet or so—but I wanted to check on him.
He’d rolled onto his back, lying with his forearm across his eyes, blocking the sun. He hadn’t shaved in a while, hadn’t cut his hair, usually his clothes had holes from too much wear, and I knew he didn’t give a shit about how he looked or designer brands—not like I did—but watching him made my heart race with wanting and need. He just had to smile at me and I was done. Done. I’d never felt like I would give up everything for someone before, and even if I couldn’t let him go, this was terrifying.
/> “You just watching me?”
He was hot, and he knew it. He liked to use it as a way to hide his emotions. I couldn’t help but wonder what they were.
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah. Just need a sec. Is anyone here? It smells…like people are here.”
It was probably the new paint job, but that didn’t mean that anyone had stuck around. I was pretty sure that was the scent Chris was smelling, but I sent my power out, searching for any hidden enemies. I closed my eyes as my magic swept over the land. It felt like opening a door inside myself as it searched for things I couldn’t see. I knew Van would’ve done it before leaving me, but it didn’t hurt to double-check.
After I was sure there was nothing around, I closed the door on my magic. The exhaustion I was feeling was getting worse. I was going to need a nap, but we didn’t have time for that. I’d sleep when Chris was safe.
