Chapter 35
ROWEN
It’s been two days since we figured out Orem’s goal with the marks is to create Eclipse Seals on humans.
My wolf hasn’t stopped growling since. The sound sits low in my chest like a warning hum, constant and sharp, no matter how I try to quiet it.
I can’t focus. Can’t sleep. The only time my head clears is when Tobias is pressed against me in bed, his heartbeat slow and steady under my hand. But even that feels tainted now.
Rip’s shadow is always there, speaking to Tobias and pulling him further away. Tobias feels him constantly. Hears him constantly. And because of it, I can feel Tobias’s anxiety, his anger, his shame.
From what I can tell, Rip’s beating him to a pulp. Every hour I watch my mate go through another round of mental gymnastics trying to stay calm, to keep control. To appear fine. But his eyes keep flicking to nothing, his fingers twitching against invisible threads.
It kills me.
While he disappears to use the darkroom, I watch Taren pace in the living room. We’re all on edge with extra shifters on our property.
“How long do we have before something happens?” I ask.
She runs a hand through her hair. “I told you. I don’t know, Rowen. It’s impossible to know.”
That answer grates on every instinct I have. My teeth ache from clenching them. I turn away before I say something I’ll regret.
Outside, wolves prowl along the perimeter, their movements a constant blur in my periphery.
Two hawk shifters have come to join our ranks—friends of Neal’s from when he was a rogue wolf.
The hope is they’ll deter Rip from returning as a raven, and so far, it seems to be working. We haven’t seen the ravens since.
But I don’t trust the quiet. It’s too deliberate. For all our planning, it just means Rip, Foxx, and Orem are planning too. They’re coming, and soon. I can feel it in my bones.
Grant’s new drones buzz over the property every few hours, the sound mixing with howls and conversations and footsteps. My house—our home—feels like a war camp. I’ve never hated noise this much in my life. No wonder Tobias keeps disappearing to the darkroom.
Red approaches me, holding a glass bottle that glints green in the light. “I made a tonic for Tobias,” he says softly.
“What is it?”
“Just something to calm him.”
I want to tell him calm isn’t possible. Not for Tobias. Not for any of us. But Red already knows that. He’s just trying to help.
I open my mouth to thank him—and then it hits.
The tether in my chest jerks hard, vibrating with a violent pulse that knocks the air out of me. Tobias’s panic floods through the bond so fast it makes my vision blur.
I drop the glass bottle and snap my head to the stairs. “Toby.”
I bolt up the stairs two at a time, heart hammering. Red follows behind me.
My teeth elongate, fur bristling across my skin. I throw open the door leading to the darkroom—and stop cold.
Half of the photos in the studio gallery are gone, ripped to shreds. Huge gouges dig into the walls where frames used to hang, and broken glass sparkles across the floor like frost. Beneath it all, there’s the sharp, copper scent of blood.
“Tobias?”
Nothing.
I peer into the darkroom. Empty.
Panic spikes as I shove past Red back into the hall. “TOBIAS?”
Then I see it. A thin trail of blood, dark against the hardwood. How did I miss that?
I follow it down the hall to the bathroom and find Tobias in the shower, still dressed. He’s staring at his arm in disbelief as blood drips from a cut near his palm.
“Tobias.”
He flinches, then blinks up at me. “He—he said I needed to clean up.” His voice is almost shrill, full of panic. “He—he said…”
I climb into the shower and pull him against me, clothes and all. My arms wrap tight around his trembling body. Tobias barely moves. He’s completely soaked, and the water is freezing, so I shut it off.
“Baby,” I mutter, kissing his head. My eyes burn with fresh tears. I pull away to search his face. “Are you okay?”
He flinches again and lifts his arm. “Ouch.”
The cut isn’t deep, thankfully. It was probably from the glass when he smashed the frames, but it’s enough to twist my stomach.
“Let him see it,” I say, tipping my head to Red. I can’t take my eyes off my mate. Can’t stop touching him. I need to know for sure he’s okay.
Tobias doesn’t argue, holding his hand out for Red. Red doesn’t ask us to step out of the shower. He must see how clearly in shock Tobias is, staring at the tile like he’s scared to ask what happened.
When he speaks, his voice cracks. “Did I… do something? I-I don’t—”
“It doesn’t matter.”
His gaze lifts to mine, fierce despite the exhaustion dragging at his features. “Rowen. What did I do?”
I look to Red. His hand is closed around the open wound. When he pulls it away, the cut is healed. Red’s concern is evident. We both know what happened.
Rage bubbles inside me. I’m going to kill that vampire.
I pull Tobias to me and kiss his head, but he pulls away, becoming more and more alert.
“What did I do?”
“Tobias—”
“Tell me!”
The command in his voice makes my wolf sit up. There’s power in his voice, something I’ve never heard from him before. It’s deep and raw.
We step out of the shower and peel out of our soggy clothes. The entire time, Tobias keeps pleading with me, growing more and more anxious. More determined.
“Why aren’t you telling me?”
I offer him a towel, then wrap my arms around him again. The feel of his chilled, bare skin—unmarred and no longer bleeding—relieves me.
But I know he won’t let this go.
“Come here.”
I lead him back to the studio. When he sees the destruction, he stops breathing.
“Oh, gods,” he whispers. His hand trembles as he reaches toward the nearest thick cut in the wall, where a nail had been ripped away. “These were—I did this?”
I swallow hard, unsure of how much he can handle. “Rip did this, Toby. Not you.”
He covers his mouth, hot tears sliding down his cheeks. “No. Gods, no. I would never…” He cuts himself off, as if remembering something. He winces and turns away, eyes closing. “He didn’t like seeing them,” he whispers. “The photos. He said they weren’t…”
Seeing them? As in, Rip can see inside Tobias’s head now?
I reach for him. “They weren’t what?”
“Rip said they weren’t my family.”
I can see the shift happen as he speaks, his shock burning into fury. He spins, taking in all the damage and touching a few of the ripped photos.
His hands ball into fists at his sides.
“You think you can do this to me? To these people?” His voice ricochets through the room. “You think you can threaten my family? You don’t know what you’re doing, Rip. We will end you. You hear me? WE WILL END YOU! ALL OF YOU!”
The words tear out of him like fire. Red and I exchange quiet nods of surprise. That’s my guy.
Footsteps echo down the hall, and a moment later, Grant, my mom, and Taren rush in, but none of them speak. They just stand there, taking in the wreckage.
I should say something. Should tell them this wasn’t Tobias. But my mom reaches out to me, like she already knows.
Tobias is shaking when he turns back to us. His cheeks flush red, but to my surprise, he doesn’t curl in on himself like he would’ve a few weeks ago. He stands strong.
“He won’t get away with this,” Tobias says. “He won’t… he can’t fuck with my family.”
I step closer and take his face in my hands. “That’s it,” I murmur. “That’s my fated one talking. Lean into that feeling, babe. That’s the part of you that isn’t human. That’s how you fight him.”
His gaze locks on mine, then he kisses me.
Later that night, when the house is quiet, Red pokes his head into our room. Tobias is asleep, curled into a ball, hugging a stuffed animal he’d found in my closet. I don’t even remember where I got it.
Red tips his head for me to follow him. I expect him to lead me downstairs for a pack update. Instead, he leads me into his and Sage’s bedroom. Sage is asleep in the recliner by the window, feet kicked up and snoring.
Red folds his arms across his chest, studying me. My stomach sinks. I know that look—it’s the one he uses when he’s trying to decide how much to tell me.
“Say it,” I tell him.
“Forest isn’t happy right now. You should know that.”
“What do you mean?”
“We all knew this was coming, but fuck, this soon? He’s thinking of locking Tobias up in the cellar.”
I jerk back. “What?”
“Sage talked him down, but you have to know how serious this is. That Rip is controlling him.”
“Of course I do!”
Red hums low in his throat. “Then think of it like he is. Doing what he needs to, to protect his pack.”
“He can’t—”
“What happens when Rip decides to use Tobias to hurt one of us?” Red says.
“So what? We keep watch every minute of every hour? We basically already are.”
“Exactly. And look how tired we all are,” he presses, glancing at his mate.
“I won’t do it, Red. I won’t put him in there. It’s not—”
“I know. I don’t want to either.” He touches my arm, sending soothing power into me. “Calm down, or you’ll wake Tobias.”
I take a deep breath. “How am I supposed to protect him from something inside his own damn head?”
Red doesn’t answer right away. “We can’t,” he says quietly. “But that’s what I wanted to talk to you about. Something you said earlier… The way you talked to Toby.” He sighs. “I think ultimately it’s going to come down to him protecting himself. But that means he needs to choose himself.”
“What do you mean?”
Red holds a folder out to me. “I’ve already shown Toby this. He knows.”
I peer inside, skimming the police report of a woman I don’t know. My jaw drops. “His mother killed two people?”
Red nods. “In animal form.”
I reread the paragraphs describing the brutal incident, but it doesn’t mention what type of animal. “Do you know what she was?”
“No, believe me, I’ve looked.”
I pause, thinking about everything Taren said about the Eclipse Seal and Rip’s control. If Tobias’ father was a shifter…
“Wait…” My stomach tightens. “Toby mentioned his dad—why didn’t you tell me Tobias’ father was a shifter? That seems like something I should’ve known.”
Red’s eyes flicker with guilt and understanding. “Because knowing that wouldn’t have helped him—or you—at the time. You had enough to worry about. And before you ask, no, I don’t know what he was either.”
I struggle to wrap my head around this. “Could that be the key, though? Could his animal be strong enough to kill Rip?”
Red shrugs. “Or crazy enough. Half-bloods aren’t in control, you know that. I think if Toby wants to fight this, he needs to lean in to that side of him even more than he is now.”
The thought scares me. I want Tobias to shift, but the risk is too high. Half-bloods are dangerous. Most are sent to prison for the crimes they commit. Some never even shift back.
As if reading my mind, Red leans in. “I’m not worried about him staying in that other form.
He has you. He’ll feel your bond, and he’ll trust you.
Plus, with his father’s blood, I don’t think he’ll lose himself completely to the half-blood.
His father’s shifter side will eventually balance him, once he bonds with the animal. It just might take time.”
The urgency in his voice holds my attention. “You don’t think we have long, do you?”
His voice lowers. “Tobias heard Rip’s voice the same day the bond was made. Only two days ago. And now he’s controlling him? At this rate, Tobias will be…” He sucks in a breath, like he can’t stand to think about it. “My point is, he needs to fight back. He’s got it in him. You heard him tonight.”
I nod.
“He needs to connect to that, and fast, Ro. Rip is using magic through that bond, so Tobias needs to meet him with something equally strong. His human half won’t survive this.”
The words hit like a punch. “So you’re saying what? I’m supposed to help my mate lose himself to the half-blood even more?”
“No,” Red says softly. “Help him become it without losing himself at all. There’s a difference.”
“How?”
“I don’t know. But you’re his mate. You know how he thinks and feels. You tried earlier, telling him to lean in. Keep doing that. Help him trust himself. He needs to shift.”
I scoff. Tobias has been skittish from day one. How does Red expect me to help Tobias change now, when his entire world is crumbling at his feet?
“I’ll try.” Even if I have no idea how.