Chapter 118

EVANDER

I left the pebble wedged in the door, then went and gulped down the food they’d brought. I was too weak not to. Then I went out and joined the wolf in the hall.

“You did it,” I whispered.

She blinked at me. Then she disappeared again.

Part of me was relieved. A light in a place this dark would only draw eyes. But I’d spent too long in the dark not to be comforted by her light.

It only occurred to me then that I might be dreaming, still. I pinched myself. Slapped myself.

Not a dream. But if it wasn’t a dream, that meant the ghost wolf was real, as well. Who was she? Why had she helped me?

I’d heard Aurora’s horror stories of this place. Maybe she wasn’t the only girl the Reeds had kidnapped over the years. Maybe the others’ stories hadn’t turned out as well as Aurora’s.

Carefully, I made my way down the hall with one hand on the wall. When the hall turned, so did I.

Tristan. Seraphina. Where are you?

No answer. They must be with the Reeds, or whoever took them out of their cells every once in a while. I prayed they did it so the twins could get exercise and fresh air. I wouldn’t let myself think of the other reasons they might be taken to the Reeds. Not even a little bit. I just prayed to the goddess that whatever happened, they weren’t being hurt.

But thinking of the Reeds only led me to questions. Like, why had they kept me alive? Though maybe I knew the answer to that. I, personally, would not want to anger Augusta DeVere of the High Alpine Pack by killing her favorite grandson, either.

I wonder what Grandmother thought of my disappearance, or if Aurora had told her. I knew Aurora would be looking for me. Even if I couldn’t find my way out of this hellhole, maybe I could find my way past these telepathic blocks, so I could tell Trajan I was alive and that the twins were here.

All Blue Ridge needed was proof. My words would justify a raid. The Council wouldn’t be able to stop Dane from taking his vengeance then—it would be entirely justified.

I rounded a corner. At first, I thought my eyes were still playing tricks on me. Then I realized what I was seeing.

Light. Flickering and dancing. I crouched and moved closer. I heard voices, then cheering. It was a TV. I approached the open doorway of a room, and there was a TV on inside.

I glanced in. A male wolf was kicked back in a recliner, and he was snoring. A football game was playing. On the opposite wall, several camera feeds showed empty cells.

So, they had been watching me. And when I spoke to the ghost wolf? Could they see her, too, or had they thought I was losing my mind?

I crept closer and looked, praying one of those cameras showed the twins, or at least a cell where I’d be able to tell the twins were being held. None did.

I cursed inwardly and backed out of the room. I glanced at the man’s shoes and thought of stealing them, but I couldn’t risk waking him up. Whoever had thrown me in a cell had also dressed me in some kind of simple coverall, since I’d been naked from shifting into a wolf. But no shoes. No socks.

The room wasn’t a total waste, though. There was a sandwich sitting on the table next to him. It was close enough to the door that I snatched it.

To get out of here, I needed my wolf. To get my wolf, I had to get my strength back. I ate it as I wandered the halls, calling out for the twins.

I was torn because I knew they had to be guarded. There was almost no chance I’d get them out of this place by myself. The best thing to do was find a place I could communicate with Trajan, tell him they were alive, then wait for backup. If I’d done that in the first place, I wouldn’t be a captive here.

I moved through the caves, always going up when I could. Eventually, I found myself out of the dungeon level and onto a storage level. I found coveralls that smelled like a Broken Forest wolf and pulled them on, hoping to hide my scent.

Then I heard voices again. Two more wolves. From the direction of their footsteps, they were heading for the dungeon.

“…. these brats instead of just getting Montague, himself.”

I held my breath. They were talking about Dane and the twins.

“Don’t forget, we need him to do the ceremony. Once he has, he’ll be too strong to contain. The children are just hostages. Once he and Ann have the relic, we’ll threaten to kill the children unless they hand it over.”

I held my breath. So, that’s why they wanted the twins.

I took a step back, but I was still dizzy from silver poisoning and hunger. I knocked against a stack of boxes in the storage room and knocked them down.

The voices stopped. I crouched in the corner, cursing myself. Someone rounded the corner.

Not just anyone. Waylon Reed, himself. He saw me and grinned. “Aha. I was just coming to get you, pup.”

His claws grew and his smile got fangs. “We have a message we want to send to Ann.”