I gritted my teeth together as we followed, annoyed. I couldn't believe that Adele had said that it was fine for Samuel to come with us. I mean, this kid wasn't even able to walk that well on this mountain, slipping every so often and having this laborious breathing, making me think that he had never done this type of climbing at all. Let's not forget about the fact that he tried stopping every so often to get a picture of me or anything else in these fucking woods.

"Just on-"

I growled a loud warning, and he shut up. "No more pictures," I said, feeling my teeth lengthening. I grabbed him when he almost fell and pulled him back onto his feet. "Try to keep your feet underneath you, or else I will shove you down the mountain."

Samuel's face paled as I threatened him, and I could see that he believed that I would actually do it. "O-o-of course," he stuttered. He moved his glasses up and down his face as I placed him down. "S-s-sorry." He licked his lips nervously and fell back closer to Carter, who was laughing.

"I don't know how you like her, Cameron," Carter teased. "She's fucking scary."

"And protective," Cameron replied. "And it is better to be scary than not. It proves that she doesn't back down." He smiled when I looked back at him before moving to my side. He brushed up against me, calming me even though I would rather be riled up.

I smirked but didn't say a word as we made it to a fence that was blocking us from entry. "Could you have gotten us on the other side of the fence?" I asked, looking back at Malena. My gut twisted with nerves, and I could sense that this place was dangerous. I knew that it wasn't because of the slippery rocks, but I was sure that it was because of something magical, something that that thing had warned me about.

Malena looked at me with mock shock. "I would've if we could've," she said. "But oh my gosh, something is blocking it."

I glared at her before looking at Monroe. "Got any wire cutters, or do we have to climb?"

Monroe grimaced and shook his head. He probably knew what they had packed, and I could tell that wire cutters hadn't a part of their need list. "We don't have any with us," he said apologetically. "I don't know if we can climb. They might be electrocuted."

I bit back a huff and nodded. I looked at the fence and pursed my lips. "Well, I guess the best way to find out is to touch it," I muttered. I took a step forwards, not caring if I was going to get hurt or not.

"I volun-"

"I'll touch it," I said, interrupting the person that was talking. "If it is electrocuted it, then I with be able to withstand it." I ignored Monroe when he started to protest and touched the fence. I furrowed my brows when there was no shock. "Ok, so it's either turned off, or it wasn't electrocuted, to begin with. We're going to have to climb up and be careful of the wire at the top."

"But, that will take too long," Malena groaned. "And, it's an unrestricted zone. Aren't there any other ways to get into the mountain?"

"There might be, but it probably will not be the best way," I replied, turning to look at her. Annoyance filled my system because I did not have time to play babysitter. I had to get this part of the sword to get the other piece. I couldn't wait that long to get my pack back from wherever they were at. "If you want to stay here, then fine. Just make sure that you keep out of sight. I do not know what's out there, and it could probably eat you."

Malena scowled but walked over to me. "Fine. I bet I can beat you up to the top." She started to climb, and all I wanted to do was pull her down and punch her in the face. That'll stop her from acting like a total bitch.

I growled out a low cuss word before starting to climb the fence, also. I started to climb the fence, making sure that everyone was safe and could get up.

***

As soon as we got past the fence and into the wood area beside it, my whole body started to scream danger. Everything was urging me to leave, but I still pressed on. My whole body shook, and I couldn't help but wonder if I should do a half-shift or not. I knew that I could scare others when I did it, but I knew that I would be better prepared.

"I don't like this," Carter said, and I could tell that he pulled out his gun. He shifted his weight, getting used to carrying the gun while he was walking. "I don't like this one bit."

"Fuck it," I muttered to myself. I felt my body lengthen as my clothes started to disappear. Fur sprouted on my skin, covering my whole body from view. My ears moved from the side of my head to the top of it while my nose and mouth grew until it was a snout.

"Holy shit, that was hot," Carter said after my whole transformation was completed. "And, awww, you have a little tail."

I turned back to look at him and grinned, lifting my lip to show sharpened teeth. My ears twitched when I caught a sound that I didn't like and stopped short. I was glad that I was a bit ahead because I could hear some cursing because I had done so.

"What is it?" Cameron asked, coming to my side. He looked around and lengthened his hearing. A small frown was on his face because he wasn't able to hear what I heard.

My ears twitched again as I tried to pick up the sound. When I finally did, I didn't like it. And, the bad thing was it was coming the way that my necklace was leading us. "We're going to have to take a detour," I said, my voice rough, sounding more like a growl. "There is something that is coming our way, and I don't like it one bit."

My gut clenched as I connected the necklace to Cameron. I could figure out another way, and I was sure that whatever it was would try and follow me. "Wait five minutes before starting up again," I said to Cameron. "I should be able to find whatever it is and lead them away from you. I'll meet you at the cave. Don't go in."

"Wait, won't you need to know how to get there?" Cameron asked. He stared at me, his brown eyes filled with worry. He grabbed hold of my wrist and held me in place. He studied me, and I could tell that he was trying to find out if there was anything that I was hiding.

I looked down at him and smirked. "I will be able to find my way," I said, assuring him and myself. "I'll see you at the cave."

Cameron pursed his lips but nodded. He let go of my wist. He knew that he wouldn't be able to change my mind, and I was grateful that he wasn't going to try it out. "Just stay safe?"

"I'll try to," I promised. I shifted into my wolf form and bounced off in the direction that I had been going in. Whatever was there was going to have a fun time trying to play cat and mouse. I just had to make sure that the cat never catches the mouse.