Devany

Liam tensed, his eyes blazing with rage and something that looked suspiciously like fear. He raised his left hand, his fingertips pressed against his palm. The air burned with heat, and I tasted something sweet in the air. Like burnt sugar and apples.

"Take this," he said, uncurling his fingers and revealing a rusted key.

"What is it?"

"A key that will unlock any door."

My breath caught, and I thought of my friends. Imprisoned. Because of me. This would allow me to free them. But Beckett said Liam did nothing without a price.

"What do you want from me in return?" My arms hung heavy at my side, fingers twitching with the urge to take the key.

"Nothing you wouldn't be willing to pay to save your friends."

An open favor, then. I had never liked owing anyone anything, and that had been in my old life. This new life contained magic and rules I didn't understand, but I wasn't stupid. Taking this key without putting boundaries around my debt was dangerous.

But what choice did I have?"

"Will you go with me?" I asked, taking the key from him. It hummed against my skin.

"I cannot." The witch stepped back, the lines of his body wavering and turning intangible. "As I said, the werewolves do not take kindly to other supernaturals showing up at the run. Many are already looking for a reason to declare war with the witches."

My eyes prickled. Somewhere nearby, a wolf howled. Several others echoed the call, their voices rising like phantoms on the wind. The urge to join them was overwhelming, but not more than my desire to save my friends.

To save Beckett.

"You have to go. They're coming for you," he hissed. He was almost completely invisible now. Only the bright sheen of his eyes was visible. "Be careful."

Then he vanished. I ripped the necklace off, shoved it in my pocket, and ran.

The forest seemed to move out of my way. Roots that should have tripped me retreated into the earth. Branches hanging in my path lifted. Not even the leaves on the bushes scratched my skin. The moon's full light flooded the path in front of me, marking the way ahead as brightly as a noon sun. The light did not spill over into the rest of the woods, and when I looked over my shoulder, darkness cloaked everything.

Liam, I thought. It had to be Liam casting out his magic, risking his life and his people to protect me for some reason I couldn't fathom. And all I could think between gasping breaths was, what more would I owe him after?

To my left, I heard a growl. Twigs snapped. I risked a quick glance, my heart beating so hard it strained against my chest. Two wolves approached one another–one a russet color and the other mottled black. Light swelled around them, and the clearest note rang out.

I slowed to watch, realizing neither of them was after me. They had found their gods' blessed mate. They shifted into their human form and smiled at one another. Expressions filled with joy, and then–

Blood spread across my tongue as I bit down on it to stop my gasp. I forced myself to look away as they fell to the ground, their limbs tangling. Their moans followed me as I hurried away, and when those moans turned to something rougher, something more like animalistic growls, I broke back into a run even as my traitorous wolf whined in protest.

"I'm not into voyeurism, okay," I snapped at her...or at me, really.

More and more, she felt like part of me. Each shift closed the gap between us, and I considered shifting now. With the moon full and high, part of me demanded that I shift. My skin rippled as my bones begged to snap and twist into something better. In my wolf form, I was far faster and stronger, but I was too afraid to face another wolf that way. I was like a child learning to walk compared to the others. They would easily subdue me, Alpha or no.

Pria would tell me to trust that my wolf would follow her instincts, and that had certainly been true when Beckett found me in the woods. But right now, alone in the mountains, with enemies all around me, I held onto my human form.

With magic keeping obstacles out of my way, I made it down the mountain much faster than I expected, regardless of running on two legs. The icy wind lashed across my cheeks, making my nose and eyes run. The tips of my fingers were frozen, but none of those discomforts slowed me. Across the clearing, I could see the ridges of the lodge roofs. Beckett was inside one of them.

Keeping to the forest's edge, I made my way toward the Blue Mountain pack's dwellings. I didn't know how long the mating run had been going on, but the moon was much lower in the sky than before. The howls had faded away to no more than one or two every few minutes. But other noises had replaced them. Similar to the ones I had heard when the two wolves found one another, and I remembered my friends warning me about the run turning into a giant orgy.

"Fabulous," I muttered, backtracking when I almost stumbled upon a couple rolling around on the ground. This was the fourth couple I had encountered. No, the third. The last one had been a threesome.

My nose wrinkled. It wasn't bad enough that I could hear everything now, but I could smell it, too. The musky scent of lust mingled with the aromas of cedar and pine, creating a strangely intoxicating scent that made it hard to focus. I reminded myself I was as much human as I was animal. Basic desires couldn't control me.

Twice more I had to change directions, but finally, I could see the community building where the feast had been hosted. It was the most likely one to house a jail, and there was no one in my way.

Euphoria blazed within me. No one had assaulted me or tried to claim me. I was going to make it. I was actually going to– I cried out as I pitched forward. Dirt and grass filled my mouth, and my nose felt as if it had been broken. I laid there for a few moments, trying to figure out what had happened. Had the magic helping me stopped? Had I tripped over my own feet in my haste?

Holding my ribs, I rolled over to my back and coughed up the earth threatening to choke me as I blinked to clear my blurred vision.

Immediately, I wished I hadn't. Jac's smug, cruel smile materialized above me. He crouched low and grabbed my bruised face.

"Just who I was looking for."