Running out of the house and down the street, I think only of the fastest way to get to the edge of the city and shift into my wolf-form. The MAX will take me as far east as Gresham, and from there I might be able to find a place safe enough to shift without anyone seeing me. It’s worth a shot, and with the MAX running on the honor system, there’s no one to check to see if I’ve purchased a ticket or not because I ran out of the house with only the clothes on my back and nothing else.

Only one thought remains in my mind as I race to the MAX station: I have to find Evan.

Luckily, I don’t have to wait too long for the light-rail train as it pulls up a minute after I arrive. Dashing on, I slink away to an empty seat in the back corner of one of the cars. I pretend to nap as I try to gather my thoughts during the ride.

How could I have stooped so low as to even question him? Mama’s allowed to be paranoid—she’s my mother. I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions so quickly without letting Evan tell me everything first.

I’m so stupid!

He has always been there for me, and how do I treat him?

A low growl creeps up my throat and my eyes fly open to see the blond guy sitting next to me, eyeing me with an arched eyebrow. I quickly avert my gaze to the window, silently chiding myself for not keeping it together.

The ride stretches on ten times longer, it feels, as I wring my hands together in my lap. When I finally reach the last stop in Gresham, I jump off the MAX and run west down the streets.

As my heart races within my chest, I can feel the urge to shift building within me. I grit my teeth and push it down into my gut, pressing myself to go faster until I can find a safe place to shift.

I spot a little wooded area not too far ahead, and I’m so excited that I stumble over my feet as the shift starts to take hold.

No! Not yet! Just a little farther!

Suppressing a growl as I stumble forward, I weave through a handful of teenage girls, praying that I can keep it together before I can reach the cover of the trees.

A flip-flop falls astray behind me, but I can’t stop now to retrieve it. My toes are changing shape, and I have to get to the trees before I can no longer support my weight on my legs. The second flip-flop slips away as I leap into the trees.

Pain shoots up my legs to my hips and spine before spreading to my shoulders and arms. My eyes want to squeeze shut as I cringe to the agony that befalls me, but I force my eyes to stay open, to ensure that I do not run into a tree, or get spotted by some poor soul.

Before being taken over by the wolf, the last thoughts to flicker through my mind are of Evan and the need to find him.

The shift takes over and my senses are filled with the smell of dirt, bark, foliage, car fumes, and humans. Traffic noises fill my acute ears, scaring my wolf-mind and forcing me to high-tail it out of there. My sensitive nose and ears guide me through the patch of trees and weaving cautiously between the indistinguishable buildings, and out into the countryside. Breathing in the clear air calms me and I set out at a quick pace towards the mountains.

As my feet fly over the earth and the miles between myself and the city increases, I pause once at a creek for a drink and throw my head back in a howl. The message is simple, informing anyone who can hear me of my presence. Sniffing the air as I wait for a response, my senses tell me which way to keep going.

Direction has a different meaning now. It’s against the wind, or with the wind. With the flow of the river, or against it. Now, I must follow the path of the wind, where it will guide me to the mountains—and where my mate is.

Following the direction of the wind means I cannot smell as clearly what is ahead of me. Scents from the city follow me as I run, but soon they fall behind and get lost in the wildness of the forest. When all I can smell is the earthy fragrance of the woods, my muscles relax and the desperation that drove me forward subsides a little. Now, I take my time to scour my surroundings, searching for that smell that comforted me in my room on every leaf, root, rock, and tree trunk. I howl again, but get no response.

The foreignness of the land, and the lack of response leaves a seed of discouragement in the pit of my stomach.

I come across a mark left by someone, I’m not sure who, but my guess would be by an alpha male. I hesitate, my wolf-mind unsure as to whether it is safe to step foot into unknown territory that has clearly been claimed. Howling to alert the pack that I’m passing through and mean them no harm, is all I can do.

Following my nose a few feet farther, a low whine escapes my lips when I recognise my mate’s scent. It’s old, but I can tell that it’s his.

Excitement builds in me and I leave my scent next to his before following my nose along the trail that he left.

Time slips away in a realm of irrelevant concepts, and soon the darkness of night falls on me. My mate’s scent has become stronger, giving me hope and renewed energy to keep going.

The moon is hidden behind the treetops overhead, and although I can’t see it, I can almost feel a hint of it as it travels across the sky.

Eventually, I begin to tire and have to take a break. I curl up under a tree and close my eyes, only to be awakened to raindrops falling on my head. With a quick shake, I get up and set off again.

The rain lets up a little while later, right before the sun begins to rise. Shortly after, a rabbit finds its way in my belly and I take another short nap to digest the meal before setting off again.

As the forest lightens a bit with the rising sun, I try to determine if my surroundings look familiar to me at all, but sight is different in my wolf-mind and I can’t recognize anything.

I find a more recent trail of my mate, and I recognize the human scent with it as my own. A high-pitched whine emanates from within me as my human consciousness stirs within at the mental vision of myself and my mate, a wolf and a human, walking together through the bush.

The longing within me is painful to grasp, and yet the feeling is mutually shared between the intellectual sub-consciousness and the bestial sub-consciousness.

I feel a weakening in the wolf’s mind, but I’m not ready to fight her and shift back into human-form just yet. I’m useless in human-form in the wilderness, and I needed all of my hypersensitive senses to help me find my way to Evan.

The awareness of my two minds sharing the same emotion gives me a glimpse at how it must be to co-exist together in one body. With this thought, I remind myself of my purpose here, and that’s to find Evan. My tail wags slightly at the thought of him.

As I step forward once more, a rustle in the foliage ahead forces me to pause in my tracks. The wind is blowing against my back, throwing my scent forward, and leaving me vulnerable while I cannot smell the source of the rustle.

My tail curls under my body as I lower myself to the ground. I creep slowly forward and peer around a tree trunk. A musky smell wafts toward me, and I can tell that it belongs to a wolf—a large male wolf.

I woof, almost like a huff, telling him simply that I am here and mean him no harm.

He barks back, a sharp command to show myself.

Submissively, I emerge, keeping my tail tucked under me, staying low to the ground, and flattening my ears.

The large copper and black wolf slips out like a shadow from the trees.

I keep my head lowered, but I feel his stern gaze on me. His massive size, strength, and power rolls off him like waves on the seashore, and I can’t help but cringe in his presence. It’s Rick, and I don’t need to remind myself to avoid his gaze because my wolf-mind already knows.

He steps up to me, towering over me, and I can’t help but shiver involuntarily by his sheer might. I press myself as close to the ground as I can.

He sniffs me and huffs.

As he steps away, a small half whimper erupts from my mouth. I don’t understand.

He turns away from me, with his head held high and tail pointed to the sky, and looks over his shoulder at me. The message becomes clear.

Follow me. This way.

I maintain a safe distance behind him. He’s fast, and I struggle to keep up with him, but I can see that he moves with ease through the forest, as if he knows every tree and rock as if it is mapped out clearly in his mind. Even with my sharp senses, the forest is still a foreign entity to me. I’m sure that with time and exposure, I’ll be able to move as effortlessly through it as Rick does.

He slows his pace a little so that I can keep up.

We still fly through the forest and soon, the smell of wildflowers greets my senses.

Here, Rick stops at the treeline that opens up to a clearing and points his nose to the tiny cabin in the distance next to the lake.

Go, he says.

I bow my head, yipping a few times before I take off to the cabin.

Rick’s howl follows behind me and is picked up by the wind, carrying it forward. I mirror his and add a few excited yips and yaps as I race through the wildflowers.

I’m coming!

My mate’s earthy scent mingles with the vibrant floral tones of the valley, and I pick up my feet, pushing myself faster towards the cabin.

He’s here; I know he is.

His scent is human, and it conjures up a mental image of his long and lanky form and that slightly shy smile he has. My human-mind springs forward and I feel my wolf pull back at last, exhaustion setting in. I feel her smile as I tumble forward into a tangled heap of limps on the ground, his name on the tip of my tongue.

Evan.

The shift is faster and less painful this time, but it still takes me a moment to gather my wits and get back to my feet. My legs feel like jello as my muscles stretch and solidify over my bones. I’m naked as I wrap my arms self-consciously over my chest.

The cabin is still several dozen yards ahead, but I can make out a form standing on the deck. He moves inside as I get closer, but he returns moments later, and I see that he’s holding a blanket.

His gaze is downcast as I step up to him and he holds the blanket out to me.

I open my mouth as I accept the blanket, only to close it.

Where do I start?