I couldn’t tell how much time passed, but eventually the door opened, and Jeremy appeared with a plate of food in hand. He gave me a warning look, and I was smart enough to cower in the corner as he closed the door. There was something about him that made me uneasy, even if I much preferred his presence over Alyx’s.He set the plate down in front of me, then took the chair for himself. He turned it around and sat with his arms propped on the backrest. A slightly curious expression crossed his face as I pulled the plate slowly toward me.I was starving, but I didn’t know if I should trust the food.
MattThe panic was so bad, I almost couldn’t breathe.She was gone.I searched for her in the woods, running with my nose pressed to the ground. I’d searched for her on foot at first, yelling her name. Jack went in the opposite direction, a desperate, panicked gleam in his eyes. That was an hour ago.I’d shifted at some point, backtracking to the house to start there. Her scent lay embedded in the grass until it disappeared into the woods, where it suddenly ended. I pawed at the grou
Alyx reappeared later that evening, a bundle of clothes in his arms. “Get dressed,” he said, dropping them on the bed.I crossed my arms. “No.”He frowned. “Get dressed or I will dress you myself.” A sudden, cruel gleam lit up his eyes. “I’ve been dying to get my hands on you.”“Turn around,” I snapped.“Like hell,” he answered. “Get dressed.”
MattIt took a few hours to get to the first location by car, and we spent most of it in tense silence. Jack drummed his fingers against his knee, and I stared hard at the road. The trees passed by in a blur, and the further we traveled, the less we saw other cars. Eventually, it was just us, twisting along a dirt road between the towering trees.“Are we close?” Jack asked, breaking the silence for the first time in hours.I cleared my throat. “Yes. We’ll have to hike the last bit.”He scowled. “Obviously.”I rolled my eyes but didn’t respond. I couldn’t exactly blame him for being angry with me, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t be pissed, too. If he’d just been honest with us, none of this would be happening. Now they had Celeste, and I had no idea what they were doing to her, or if she was even safe.My grip tightened on the steering wheel, and Jack gave me a sideways look.“Your eyes are gold,” he said, sounding the most cautious I’d ever heard him.I forced myself to take a few dee
I spent the night staring at the concrete walls around me. Every muscle in my body ached, and my eyes burned, but even so, I couldn’t sleep. Now and then, I fell into a fitful slumber, tossing and turning until I was shocked back awake. At one point, I gave up completely and traced patterns on the wall with my finger to pass the time.When Jeremy appeared with my breakfast, I could hardly stomach the thought of eating. He just watched me, not speaking, as I spooned porridge into my mouth. A few times, I had to resist the urge to gag. He didn’t say a word when he left, either, but I jumped when the door slammed shut behind him.Despondency folded around me, and I curled up in bed. I couldn’t even bring myself to plan some sort of escape–to even hope for one. Whatever they wanted with me, they were going to get. I’d never felt so helpless before. A few tears rolled down my cheeks, but I didn’t even have the energy to cry.I should have listened to Jack. I never should have run off with
MattI settled deeper into the dirt and propped myself up by the elbows. Through my binoculars, I could see the looming gray wall and the cast iron gate that served as the only entrance. No movement occurred on either side, but I knew they were in there. They were being careful about it, but the building wasn’t as abandoned as they were trying to make it seem.“How do we get in there?” Jack mumbled. He had a matching pair of binoculars to his eyes, the hood of his camo jacket pulled up over his head.“Not easily.”
AlyxHe ran beside his brother, his eyes trained on the trees in front of him. He knew this territory like the back of his hand, but something about it felt different. Something didn’t belong. Beside him, Rocky ran with his nose pressed close to the ground. It was rare for him to be separated from his twin, and Alyx could tell he was uneasy.They stopped for a moment to sniff around, and Alyx nudged his flank with his nose. It had been so long since he’d run with one of his brothers, and he was thrumming with excitement. Rocky picked up on his energy and gave him a playful snap.
The woods were dark and eerily silent.I stepped into a small clearing, grass crunching beneath my paws.“Celeste?” a familiar voice said. Standing across the wide expanse in the trees was Matt. He was still human, and he took a tentative step out of the dense cover. “Celeste?” he called in a low voice. A shiver ran through me, and I moved closer.He took a few more steps, his blue eyes bright. He reached out his hand, a pleading look on his face. “Celeste!”A momen