Chapter 25 - Killian
The sweet taste on my tongue was the first thing I became aware of.
It was a combination of different pleasant flavors, though they seemed to shift and sometimes feel a little muddy.
Then I was aware of voices. Distant ones, rapidly speaking.
I couldn’t make out the words, but they sounded tense and worried.
Finally came the pain. My arms were bound tightly across my chest in something, and there were thick ropes cutting into me, pulling me back against what felt like a tree trunk.
I tried to open my eyes only to realize they were already open. My vision was pitch-black, and a spike of fear rushed through me, but I pushed it back. Taking a few deep breaths, I became aware of more. There was a mask over my face, tied tightly against my mouth and eyes.
Twisting, I tried to loosen the mask. It didn’t help, but then I heard footsteps drawing closer.
“Hey,” I called, though it was difficult. At least I wasn’t gagged. “Over here!”
A curse answered me, then the footsteps approached. The mask was ripped off my face, and I blinked, startled, at the sudden light. Several big vehicles lined up across whatever space I was in, shining their headlights right at me.
“Killian?” the newcomer growled.
I blinked a few more times, and Alpha Julian’s face came into focus. I huffed in surprise. “I’m guessing a lot of shit has happened since I lost myself. Untie me, will you?”
Julian gave me a suspicious look, but he did. The ropes loosened, and then he helped me out of the straitjacket that bound me. I shook my limbs and stomped my feet to get the blood flowing again as I took stock of my surroundings. I frowned.
“Why is my town camped in the forest? And why are you here?”
Julian gave me a rundown of the fires in Tyrell, then explained that Hammond’s alphas had been worried about the pack here, leaving Tyrell territory, looking for better shelter, and had sent a few camper vans with additional food and blankets.
I noted that he couched it in terms of keeping his pack safe.
I was glad that they’d gone the more humanitarian route, rather than patrolling their territories’ borders to attack whoever might try to slip through.
“Looks like there’s an uproar,” I said, nodding back toward the camp.
“Owen is missing.”
I tensed. What had happened while I was in the darkness? “When was he last seen? Where are Jace and Renz?”
Julian jerked his chin behind me. I turned and my stomach swooped. Renz and Jace were both tied to nearby trees, twitching slightly. If they were here, then that meant Owen was on his own, trying to take care of the entire pack.
“Jasmine?” I asked, my heart in my throat as I imagined all sorts of terrible things. What if she had been hurt?
What if I hurt her?
“She’s gone, too. That’s why I’m not worried. They’re probably off somewhere—” Julian cut off, clearing his throat. Clearly, he was about to say something salacious.
I didn’t buy it. Neither Owen nor Jasmine would run off to have sex while the pack was in this condition.
My wolf growled, and a shock of relief went through me.
I touched my chest. It was as though I’d gone months, years, without feeling my wolf there.
But I felt like myself again. Finally, I was back to myself.
“We need to wake Renz and Jace. Then we need to find Owen and Jasmine.”
Julian frowned at me as I strode to Jace and removed his mask. He blinked a few times, then snarled, throwing himself against the bindings.
I jumped back.
“How did you…wake?” Julian demanded.
I thought back, trying to clear the cobwebs that were clouding my memories.
The last thing I knew was Jasmine’s face.
She was talking, and I’d been overcome with anger.
A certainty that she was being deceitful, that she was the reason all of this was happening.
Then it was all darkness until…her scent.
It preceded that sweet taste on my tongue.
Her scent had filled me, and combined with the taste… .
Tea. It was a tea made from a mix of herbs. Jasmine must have given it to me. I sniffed the air, drawing a little closer to Jace. He howled, his breath wafting over my face. It smelled of lavender and mint.
“Jace, you have to fight the darkness,” I told him. “Fight it. That anger you’re feeling isn’t yours. It’s not real. Jasmine needs us.”
Jace’s howl tapered off. He blinked a few times, as though he was confused.
“Jasmine?” Renz said, muffled.
I hurried to him and pulled off his mask.
He wrinkled his nose but didn’t seem to be aggressive.
I grabbed his face and turned it toward the light to check his eyes.
They were his normal dark blue. By the time I got him free, Jace’s eyes were back to brown.
I filled them both in as I unbound him, too.
“If Jasmine gave the concoction to the others, we can wake them up, too,” Jace said.
Unease slithered through my stomach. Every moment we waited, we didn’t know where Owen and Jasmine were. I shook my head. “Let’s find Jasmine first. If we know what she did, we can replicate it.”
Julian folded his arms as he watched us. “I’m not sticking around. I came to deliver the supplies, but I’m not staying in this territory to be possessed.”
“Thank you for your help,” Jace said, a bit distracted. “When this is over, we’ll find a way to pay you back.”
Julian snorted and headed for the vehicles that Hammond had brought.
I promptly ignored him and shifted to wolf form.
Renz and Jace joined me. Without having to say what we were doing, we started searching the ground for Jasmine and Owen’s scents.
We traced them first to Owen’s car at the edge of the camp, then into the forest. Once the other scents faded away, we broke into a run.
The trail was a familiar one, and Jace led us, easily avoiding any pitfalls in our way. We arrived in town in a little less than twenty minutes. A bright light pulsed from near the old college, and I knew instantly that it was where we had to go.
Just as we turned toward it, a nearby building exploded in flames. The blue and green fire burst high into the air, sending out a thick, noxious smoke. I stumbled in surprise. The house was fully overwhelmed seconds later.
My heart hammered hard as I pushed myself forward, desperate to see Jasmine again. Several more houses caught fire as we passed them.
We got to the house quickly. The light was emanating from the gardens that we had worked on together, bright blue, edged with white.
Jasmine’s wolf form dashed along the road.
I almost cried out for her until I saw Owen in pursuit.
He snarled audibly as he chased her. Her ears were pinned to her skull, tail tucked into her stomach as she ran.
I burst out in a howl and dodged toward them. Jasmine’s head whipped around briefly before she spun and tore in the opposite direction. As she did so, her feet slipped out from under her. She scrambled to get back to her feet, but in just those few seconds, Owen was nearly on her.
Blood. I’d like to taste some blood. I started to smile at the thought, then realized what I was thinking. My steps faltered as a cold spike shot through me. We weren’t cured after all. The concoction Jasmine gave us must have only repressed the darkness’s control of us.
My distraction cost me, and I fell behind. Owen snapped at Jasmine, and she rolled away, narrowly escaping his teeth. She yelped in fear. I let out a burst of speed, already knowing that I was too far, that I wouldn’t be able to help.
Renz smashed into Owen, sending him skidding over the asphalt. Jace was there next, using his weight to pin Owen down. Owen thrashed, snapping at both of them, and they were forced to release him and jump back. I ran in, nipping at Owen’s hindquarters. He whirled and I jumped back.
His eyes were pure black from corner to corner. He went for my throat, and I jumped aside. Renz jumped onto his back, knocking him down again. His claws scraped against Renz’s belly as he kicked him off, making him fly into the sidewalk.
“Don’t let him bite you,” Jasmine cried. I risked a glance toward her. She’d taken human form again and was rushing toward the glowing gardens. “Biting spreads the darkness!”
Jace, Renz, and I surrounded Owen, keeping him going in circles until suddenly the light flared brighter.
We all flinched back at the stabbing brightness, but none as much as Owen.
He whimpered, then turned and tried to run.
I jumped on him while Renz grabbed a mouthful of his flank and Jace caught him by the scruff.
The three of us pinned him in place as the light washed over us.
Owen relaxed.
I breathed in, my lungs feeling like they were expanding for the first time. The lingering bloodlust that had been clouding my mind dissipated. Jace and Renz both closed their eyes and lifted their faces, the light caressing their cheeks. The warmth of it wrapped around me.
I shifted to human form and headed toward the garden boxes.
Jasmine stood in the middle of them, her hands stretched out to either side of her, fingers digging into the dirt.
Her long hair danced around her, and her eyes were wide and luminous.
The sight was so beautiful and magical, I nearly dropped to my knees and worshiped her like a goddess.
The other three joined me. I glanced quickly at Owen, glad when I saw his eyes were back to normal. The light spread out from around us. The fires that raged so close blinked out as soon as the light touched them. The heavy, black smoke washed away.
And Jasmine was clear, brightly lit, so very beautiful. My heart swelled to see her. It felt as though I had been drowning, and she was my life preserver. I didn’t know when it happened. Maybe it had always been this way.
But finally, finally, I knew the truth. I loved her.
The light kept spreading. It moved further and faster, spreading until the entire town was lit up. Jasmine’s knees started to buckle. I rushed forward, my stomach tightening, but the light flared brighter again. It was so bright that I couldn’t see, and I threw my arm over my eyes, shielding them.
When the light faded away, the streetlamps flickered on. They buzzed slightly above us, flickering a little as the electrical grid came back online. Jasmine slumped to one side, grabbing the side of the garden box.
“I did it,” she whispered. A line of dark blood trickled from her nose. “I think I did it. I think we’re safe again.”
Her eyes rolled to the back of her head, and she collapsed.
I jumped forward, scooping her into my arms just before her head could hit the garden boxes.
I lifted her up, laughing, but it died quickly.
Her head lolled backwards, her body so limp I had a difficult time holding her.
I carefully lowered her, cradling her close to my chest.
“Jasmine?” I called.
“What’s wrong?” Renz demanding, pressing closer.
Jace checked her pulse and his face went white. “I can’t find a heartbeat.”
My own heart squeezed. No. No! We didn’t go through all of this just to lose her! I laid her flat on the ground, clutched my hands together, and started to give her CPR. “Don’t you dare leave us,” I breathed. “Jasmine, come back. Come back, my love. You have to come back.”