Chapter 1
Effie Harlow
The sharp sensation of the lycan’s claws digging into my throat as I plummeted towards the icy surface of Lake Michigan was absolutely nothing compared to the pure panic radiating through every inch of me.
Not fear for myself, but rather a powerful and unrestrained fear for my mates—specifically Ryder who was feet above me, falling towards the same deadly fate.
His vibrant eyes, normally burnt orange but now a metallic gold, held my gaze as his orange and red magic shimmered around him like flickering flame.
He seemed to be on the verge of shifting, and I would have considered it beautiful if I hadn’t been terrified of what would happen once we hit the lake.
Maybe his magic would allow him to survive the icy depths.
Maybe it would shelter him in warmth or he would shift before reaching the surface.
I felt sick at the thought of him getting hurt, especially since the only reason he was in danger was because of me. Because he’d jumped off the cliff after me…because he loved me. And now I could easily be the cause of his death.
I couldn’t allow that. I wouldn’t allow that.
I didn’t care what happened to me, but I could see how furious and panicked Ryder was.
The scent of copper filled the space between us as we dropped through the air, each second feeling like an eternity.
The attacking lycan’s weight accelerated us faster and faster towards our fate, his claws digging deeper in my throat to the point that I gasped—
Right as we hit the surface of the lake.
The weight of the lycan forced us through the thin sheets of ice on the surface, and the cold, cruel grasp of Lake Michigan pulled us into its depths.
I attempted to shut my mouth as water tried to force itself into my throat, nose, and lungs, the cold stinging my eyes like knives.
I began to panic, my actions driven more by instinct than conscious thoughts of trying to save myself.
I fought against the shifter, trying to kick and shove away from him.
I had to swim up. I had to reach the surface.
But our combined weight took us deeper and deeper, the sunlight dimming with each inch we sank.
My body locked up, the cold infecting every nerve ending, and time came to almost a complete halt as my chest compressed painfully.
A burning sensation worked its way from my sternum up my throat as my body begged me to inhale, even if it meant certain death.
My wolf howled in my head as the lycan’s hold on me tightened to the point that his claws had probably punctured something vital—
Where was Ryder? Had he saved himself?
Hope bloomed in my fuzzy thoughts at the idea that he hadn’t followed me into this watery grave. My magic was weak, even with my wolf howling in agony, and I couldn’t feel my other mates’ magic. I couldn’t reach out to them, couldn’t tell if they were okay, which was what bothered me the most.
I felt isolated and alone. Lost in the frigid depths of Lake Michigan.
Maybe that was a good thing. Maybe it meant they wouldn’t feel my pain when my lungs eventually expelled my last bit of air.
Was this how I died? Was this truly the end?
For so long I’d been lost, and now, right when I found my mates, discovered my true home and everything I’d once forgotten…
I was going to lose it all? We’d been hunted by Hastain and made the foolish mistake of coming back here because I had wanted to—because a part of me hadn’t believed he would do something this extreme. Now we were going to pay for it.
Or at least I was. That thought gave me a smidge of comfort, that only I would be punished for my mistake. My mates weren’t in the water; they would be alright. They would survive, just without me. They would be able to escape Hastain and move on.
I knew they wouldn’t want that, but there wasn’t really an option anymore…
What if Hastain hurt them again though? Chained them up and tortured them with lycan attacks, or sent one of the other blood-bonded packs after them to fight? I wouldn’t be there to heal them. Ryder wouldn’t be there to help me get them out.
That singular thought drowned out all other considerations, and in one moment everything changed.
My spine surged with electricity, flames licking up every vertebra as my newly uncovered kitsune magic burst from my skin in a detonation of power.
Rays of energy soared in all directions through the water around us, pushing through the heavy lycan on top of me and forcing him to shift back into an unconscious young man—a college student like myself.
I gripped onto his form as our descent slowed, my gaze moving over his shoulder towards the surface of the water…
or what I thought was the surface. We had sunk deep enough that I hadn’t been able to tell, at least until now.
My power created a trail of blue flames that warmed the water around us, the visual effect like a path leading back to the land of the living. The ice at the surface had melted completely, and purple and blue magic covered the top of it like oil on fire.
I could feel my skin begin to tingle as warmth returned to my limbs and the pressure in my chest eased just the smallest amount, pulling on a reserve of oxygen I hadn’t realized I had.
I kicked my legs once, twice, and suddenly my body was in full gear as I pushed upwards, the weight of the student against me annoying but not impossible to move with—
His frame began to slip from my fingers, so I slowed just enough to get a better grip on him.
I may have been a bit fuzzy, but I recognized that if I let him go, he would keep sinking and be lost forever.
He would die. If he wasn’t already dead…
No. I wouldn’t think that. I was angry that he’d tried to kill me, but my rational side recognized that he was only here because Hastain had used him.
I had known that from the start, but seeing him like this brought that concept home.
If I was going up, he was coming with me.
But how was I going to make it all the way up there?
Panic hit me fresh once again and my chest tightened painfully, making me close my eyes as I tried my best to relax.
My wolf whimpered in my throat as I began to kick again, straining my drained muscles as I struggled to continue to pull from that reserve of energy I’d found.
Suddenly, an orange and red light form broke through the flickering surface of the lake.
Ryder.
In a mere second, his massive kitsune form dove towards us, carrying a brilliant inferno of flames that turned the waters almost tropical.
Is this how he’d saved me before, when I’d fallen through the ice caps?
Exhilarated at the sight of Ryder alive and well, I kicked harder, wanting to get as close as possible, desperate to feel the familiar brush of his magic against mine.
The burst of energy gave me just enough strength to swim a couple of feet closer, and Ryder’s magic collapsed over us in a powerful vacuum, pulling us upwards.
I sagged in relief, my grip on the lycan nearly slipping again.
Recognizing the problem, Ryder slowed his magic and moved next to me to help.
I wrapped my free arm around his neck as he gripped the student’s shirt collar between his teeth, taking the burden from me.
I wrapped my other arm around him and his magic ramped into full gear once again, jetting us towards the surface.
One moment I was under water and the next I was breaking through ice, sucking in air like my life depended on it. Because it did.
My lungs felt like they were filled with icy blocks and my eyes burned, but Ryder kept everything else warm, my body nearly collapsing at the relief of no longer being under the water.
I knew I would hurt later, I could feel the effect that type of cold would have on me, but for the moment I was just thankful.
So thankful.
A mix of magic and confusion swirled around me, but I felt Ryder stop on the rocky shores of the cliffs before crouching down and using his tail to better secure my body onto his back.
I didn’t know how he was carrying the other shifter since my eyes were squeezed shut despite not having meant to let them close, but the sudden shift in air told me we were moving upwards and fast. My stomach churned with the movement, but the minute I buried my nose in his wet fur, his familiar scent surrounding me, I felt ten times better.
It wasn’t until moments later that I nearly cried in relief, the sound and feeling of my other mates beginning to filter back in as their magic rushed against mine.
The connection between us that had been severed by pain and cold was lighting up, and I let out a pathetic whimper as the sound of a heavy form being dropped on stone made a solid thump.
Ryder immediately shifted back into human form, and I briefly remembered him saying something about his form hurting the gaze of others. Even now he was trying to protect our small family.
“Fuck. Did she force him to shift back also?” Tore’s voice was far more rough than normal, and it took me a moment to realize that he was talking about the lycan shifter.
Had I forced his shift? I guess I had. And what did he mean ‘also’?
Had the other shifters shifted back? They hadn’t even been in the water with me.
“Yes,” Ryder said as he pulled me into his chest, keeping me cradled against his muscular torso, my head buried against his neck.
“Effie?” Julian’s voice was soft in my ear as Coffin appeared in my subconscious, relief echoing through our bond as he curled up with my wolf, insulating her in warmth and protectively shielding her. “Can you hear me?”
“Her lips are blue,” Tore said in a way that made me want to open my eyes to see the expression on his face—his tone was far too careful.
“Caedmon,” Dakota’s voice was hard. “Keep it together—”
“I’m fine. I’m fucking fine,” Caedmon snarled, his voice tinged with pain.
My eyelids were heavy but I forced them open, now needing to see the faces of each of my mates. My mates who were surrounding Ryder and me.
Caedmon’s deep green gaze flashed yellow, and he had brutal gashes across his left cheek and neck. There was agony in his eyes, but I didn’t know if it was physical or something else.
Julian’s hand brushed over my cheek as I met his darkening gaze and saw his attempt at controlling the pure fury surging through him—not just Coffin’s anger, but his as well. There was a slight tremble to his hand, and I knew that if Hastain came back in here right now, Julian would kill him.
Although the same could be said for Dakota, who was completely expressionless, his hand wrapped around my wrist as he felt my pulse. I could feel his wolf lurking in the back of my head, his energy violent and lethal.
In some ways, though, Tore was the hardest to deal with—his gaze was painted with so much concern and guilt my chest felt like it would shatter with pain. I could feel his protective instincts on overdrive, and I knew that Ryder felt much the same, his grip on me like a vise.
The one thing that upset me more than anything, though? My mates were injured. Badly.
They were trying to hide it, but I could see it.
I could feel their pain. Blinking, I inhaled sharply and looked around, my gaze moving about the cave that was now painted in blood.
Four large bodies of unshifted lycans lay amongst the mess, all bleeding and unconscious.
Tears welled in my eyes at the unavoidable truth that these ‘attackers’ were students just like us.
And they were going to die. They were going to bleed out here in this cave.
Hastain wouldn’t save them.
Struggling to get down from Ryder’s arms, ignoring my mates’ protests, I moved towards one of the most damaged bodies as tears broke from my bottom lash and leaked down my face. A sick sense of disgust and guilt collapsed over me despite knowing that Hastain was to blame.
Pure and unadulterated fury slammed into me at the injustice, the control Hastain had over everyone and everything at Silver Falls University. This wasn’t okay. This wouldn’t stand.
I wouldn’t let it.
An almost eerie sense of calm pulsed through me as my eyes snapped shut, my magic slipping off my skin and filling the room in a pink glow that I could see from behind my eyelids.
I let it coat everything—my mates, the other students, even myself—and like a warm blanket, I allowed it to heal every injury and savage wound.
I gave a piece of my magic—something I was now realizing was the balancing act of two immense powers—to heal those around me. I did it happily, willingly. Anything to save the lives of those who’d fallen victim to Hastain.
I vowed that this would be the last time I’d have to do so. This would be the last time I had to heal someone because of this vile monster’s actions—I wouldn’t let this go on any longer.
With every ounce of my being, I pushed the last of my magic out.
And only then, darkness surrounded me.