ELLAAs she spoke, the scenery became distorted for a split second, then changed completely. We were back in the field filled with bloody puddles, and I watched the moment when she made the sacrifice replay.She had started by cutting her wrists and making specific incisions in different parts of her body.She had dropped her other weapons and begun walking toward the enemy. The pack members who were still alive saw what she was doing; they thought she had gone insane from the trauma of losing her family and didn’t try to pull her back.But they heard the chant and joined her. The atmosphere intensified, and I could see the terror in the eyes of the opponents as she edged closer to their end of the field.Her body began to release steam, and the winds picked up pace. She began levitating and glowing as she transformed from human to wolf form. No one had seen this kind of manifestation before, but the Harpers were so entrenched in their culture that they recognized it as something symb
ELLAI listened attentively as Ava spoke. I had never had anyone give me a history lesson on my pack, nor did I expect that it would come in a vision—else I would have tried to cut off the bond a long time ago. This was nothing like I had ever experienced.It was one thing to be in the minds of others and see things from their perspective; it was another to feel like you were present when a series of events occurred.As she spoke, I felt entranced by her words, and the scenes she talked about unfolded before me as though I were reliving them.She started by telling me about our connection with the druids. Knowing that they had found my pack worthy of receiving their knowledge filled me with warmth.It felt good to know that I had come from a long line of people who were kind enough for the universe to bestow abilities on them that others would die for. I hung onto her every word, resisting the urge to ask questions so I wouldn’t interrupt her and derail the tale.I learned about how t
LUCIAN“If I wanted to get insulted, I think I could’ve found a better job of finding someone who knows a lot about me and would be able to come up with words that’d hit home,” I retorted as anger coursed through my body in swift waves. “I don’t appreciate being spoken to in that manner.”“Anyone who knows you would be too scared to say anything substantial to you, given your track record of choosing brute force over solving issues with tact. I don’t care, that’s the difference.”“Why? You think I won’t reach over and try brute force because…”“As much as you let your muscles think for you, there’s still hope left for intellect. If you give it a chance and—” she started, and I squinted.“Yet another snide comment,” I interrupted.“Expect more,” she replied with a shrug. “I’m particularly annoyed that I tried to tell you and your brother how dire things were and suggest a solution, but neither of you wanted to hear me out. Now we have to deal with an escalated version of the situation.
LUCIAN“Telepathy? Kade doesn’t know the first thing about telepathy. Why would he try to do something like that? He told me himself that no one has been able to do it in almost three generations. It makes no sense that he’d try, and who would he even try to reach out to?” I rambled, trying to make sense of the situation.“Not knowing how to go about it didn’t stop him from trying…” she began, then paused and sighed. “I think he was successful too, which would’ve been a good thing if he hadn’t picked a bad time to try.”“What do you mean? I don’t understand a word of what you’re saying. First, Kade tries something he’s never done. Now you’re saying it worked, but he’s lying on the floor unconscious—so how exactly did it work? And lastly, who was he trying to reach that called for such extreme measures?”“Before this conversation goes any further, I think we should get the healers to start working on keeping him in this state…” she began, and I shook my head.“Keep him in this state? T
LUCIANAs the car sped down the street, I was filled with the overwhelming urge to turn around and tell the council that I wasn’t interested in leading the pack anymore or anything else they had to offer, but instead, I kept my hands on the wheel and continued driving.Going down that route would make no difference whatsoever, whether I decided to step aside as a leader or not, as a collective, we were endangered, and that problem needed to be solved. I’d never admit it in public, but there was the issue of not being seen as a weakling who deserted his people when they needed him most.I was still annoyed that they knew the cause of the problem, or at the very least had an idea of what was behind the issues we were experiencing, and kept it to themselves. The audacity to try to get us to do their bidding was aggravating, but Kade was right, there was no use crying over spilt milk.I had spent the last few hours driving without a destination in mind, to see if that would clear my mind,
ELLAEverything was happening so fast, I didn’t know how to stop it or how to navigate my way around it. I had asked Claire to hasten the procedure in a bid to stop Lugian from finding my location, but I hadn’t thought about the consequences of that action.I had only considered that I would be in pain, as she warned, and I was willing to take that chance. I had also assumed it would probably send me into his mind again, or perhaps Kade’s for a change, but this was different.I had gone from feeling intense pain to trailing behind a woman who looked like me, confusion and curiosity muddling my thoughts as she led me through the bloodied field and into the woods.These woods were unfamiliar. They had the same peaceful aura as the ones Lyla and I trained in, yet they also felt distinct. It was as if the trees and their leaves were holding onto a secret I was about to uncover.I glanced around, part of me straining to hear Claire’s voice or sense some connection back to the present, but