Amerie awoke from a dreamless sleep to multiple text messages. She set her phone down without opening any of them just yet. She rubbed her eyes and stretched, earning a lick on the face from Milo. Throwing open the bedroom curtains, she was excited to see the world blanketed in pillowy white snow and a few snowflakes still falling. She padded over to the kitchen to start her coffee pot and let Milo out. Her yard was covered in prints of all kinds, but her eyes went straight to the wolf prints, large enough to be Apollo. No other wolf prints littered the yard, so she seemed to still be safe here from Embertaurs for now. Picking up her phone, she began to open the string of messages. The group message for the rangers informed everyone that Matt had come home. He had been found by a hiker and brought to a small medical center in the mountains then driven to a doctor near home when he was conscious. Or so the story said. Blaze was asking if she’d gone on the date with Everett. Amerie r
Asteri snarled down at Apollo in his human form. Her icy blue eyes burned bright and cold, immense power glistening in their depths. Clouds parted slightly, a single beam of golden light falling on Asteri and making the tips of her black fur shine with silver. “Classic Celena,” Asteri mumbled to Amerie in their shared mind.Apollo’s eyes widened with recognition. He moved to step toward Asteri. She growled at him, forcing him to take a step back. Kierian and Mae began slinking closer, awe and wonder plastered on their faces. Apollo’s face was pale, as if he’d seen a ghost. Kierian seemed to notice his ghastly expression first and slowly stepped closer while keeping an eye on Asteri. She huffed at him to continue. Kierian placed a hand on Apollo’s shoulder. “What’s going on? You feeling okay?”“No,” Apollo replied through clenched teeth, then gestures toward the black wolf. “This is Asteri.” Her ears twitched slightly at the mention of her name. Apollo continued, “The Spirit visited
Amerie felt Celena’s presence as the group stepped back into the large clearing. Apollo, Mae, and Kierian stayed back near the trees as Amerie neared the center. “Show me what you’ve got,” Apollo challenged. Amerie stared at her hands, unsure what to do. Every time her powers had manifested she’s had no control over them. She had absolutely no idea where to start. “Believe,” Celena whispered on the breeze. “Close your eyes and focus on the flames within, then will them to become anything,” Asteri urged. Amerie closed her eyes. With a deep breath, she focused on the forked flames in her chest. Sparks danced on her fingertips but she struggled to make anything more of them. Someone walked over to her, snow crunching beneath their feet. She opened her eyes to find Apollo standing in front of her. “You’ve only relied on anger before, haven’t you?” Amerie didn’t reply. She didn’t have to. He sighed. “We don’t have time for you to sit here making tiny sparks all day.”He looked down
Amerie made it to the restaurant five minutes early. Sounds of silverware on plates and low chatter filled the air. Music so low that it was barely audible played on a loop. A large fish tank sat behind a full bar near the back of the restaurant. Amerie’s stomach growled. Part of her wishes she hadn’t skipped breakfast for this early lunch, but she didn’t want to risk pushing back the time and having to rush to change and freshen up for her date later. As she followed the hostess back to a booth, she met eyes with Mae sitting across from Kierian. They held no recognition in their eyes looked away as if they were strangers. Picking up the menu, Amerie attempted to hide her nerves. She sat with her back to the table where Mae and Kierian sat, both of them with clear view of the open side of the booth so they could identify any signs of magic. Amerie shifted in her seat, anxious about what they’d find today. Blaze and Brynn walked in shortly after she sat down. Amerie waved them over
The rest of the lunch with Brynn and Blaze had gone well. They’d confirmed that they were witches and were aware of more happening in the forest. Mae had squeezed into the booth next to Amerie after their admission and glared daggers at the witches. Kierian helped Amerie diffuse the tense situation. Amerie had to rush out to start getting ready for her date, but promised to text them as she waved goodbye to the sisters. Mae and Kierian stalked out behind her. Amerie had made it home just in time to change and touch up her makeup. She just finished curling her hair and was putting on her earrings when a knock sounded at the front door. Milo perked up and wagged his tail. She gave his head a scratch and grabbed her purse before opening the door. Everett stood in a navy blue blazer, white shirt with the top two buttons undone, and dark jeans. He looked like a model straight out of a magazine.His green eyes scraped across her body from head to toe, drinking her in. The emerald green app
Amerie felt like she was on cloud nine. The day with Everett had been so effortless. They walked along the park path hand in hand, laughing and joking as if they’d known each other for years. The sun had gone down two hours ago but Amerie was in no rush. She savored this moment of normalcy. Her heart fluttered each time she met Everett’s gaze in the warm glow of the street lamps lining the path. They sat down on a park bench facing a pond near the middle of the park. The iron arms on the bench had small designs of wolves in them. Amerie traced her finger along them. “This town loves their wolf stories,” Everett mused. Amerie let out a soft chuckle and turned to find him watching her. “You said that your mom was attacked by a wolf when she was younger,” Amerie prodded. Everett nodded. “Yeah, when she was fifteen. She said it was a black wolf that looked and smelled diseased. She still gets uneasy when she smells rotten meat or old garbage that’s been in the sun too long.”“The wolf
**Unknown POV**A slender young man sprinted through the forest. Wide green eyes darted back and forth, his bare feet not slowing or faltering. Pants littered in mud and multiple repair stitches hung loosely from his bony hips, barely held in place by a thin string. His shirt that had at one time been white was missing both sleeves and three buttons. Blond hair packed so thickly with grit and blood it looked nearly black hung past his shoulders. A jagged pink scar contrasted his pale, sunken skin from above his right eyebrow and across his nose to his upper lip. The man slowed as he stepped into a busy camp. Tents with torn black fabric and multiple fire pits were scattered among an array of hellish beasts. Some had heads of serpents with three eyes, others walked on four legs and had multiple tails. Some looked similar to Minotaurs from ancient stories and others were draped in shadows. Snarling Embertaurs patrolled the camp. A few human slaves like himself shuffled about with their
Everett’s white knuckles gripped the steering wheel. His lips formed a thin line, his eyes focused straight ahead. They’d been riding in silence for fifteen minutes. He hadn’t said a word since Amerie told him the truth about Asteri, Celena, Apollo, and the Embertaurs. Not even the radio was on. Amerie sat in the passenger seat twirling her thumbs and chewing on her cheek. She stole secret glances at him as he drove. Five minutes from Amerie’s house, Everett took a sharp right turn onto a narrow dirt road. Dirt crunched as he pulled over into a space looking over the lake and climbed out of his car. His navy blue blazer remained in the seat. He stopped near the edge of the cliff and laced his fingers behind his head, tilting his chin up to gaze at the night sky. Amerie waited a moment before getting out of the car and slowly walking over to him. She stood their in silent support while she waited eagerly for him to speak. Everett sighed and dropped his hands to his side. He turned to
She knew those eyes. Had gazed into them for months, wondering why she did not want for more with their owner. Had watched the light leave them as his blood soaked her hands. A sob escaped her as her gaze fell on the bright white scar sliced across the beast’s dark abdomen. The dragon rumbled and dipped its enormous head to her in greeting. Dark wings scraped the ceiling of the cave sending small pebbles tumbling down and splashing in the shallow water. The beast was nearly too large for the outcropping it had tucked itself into, but it made no effort to move despite being free of chains. A spiked tail flicked in anticipation. “This is Vinterion. He was meant to be Everett’s dragon.” The gentle sympathy on Asmodeus’s voice did nothing to dull the pain of the loss. “The scar?” she whispered, her eyes tracing the thin line that perfectly mirrored the killing blow. “As rider and dragon, they were connected. The only thing that saved Vinterion’s life was that they had not yet met, so
Through the darkness she fell, and fell, and fell. She could feel him nearby but saw nothing beyond the spinning shadows and stars as they enveloped her. Amerie squeezed her eyes shut, her stomach churning from the endless tumbling. She wanted to cry out for him, but when she opened her mouth, nothing came out. Just when she was sure she was moments from breaking into pieces against the ground, two strong but delicate hands caressed her face, a hand on each cheek. The nausea subsided, replaced by a sense of unease and alertness. Muffled whispers echoed around her. She opened her eyes and bit back a scream. It was not Asmodeus’s face she saw, but a faceless queen with a crown that looked as if it had been plucked from the night sky. Golden brown waves framed the Queen’s pale, blank face. Orange and gold light danced along the waves of the Queen’s hair making her glow. Heatless flames encircled them, blocking out the swirling darkness. The flames whispered to Amerie, called to her. “P
She didn’t want to be at the pack house. She didn’t want to listen to Mae screaming at Charlotte to get over her obsession with Apollo. She didn’t want to listen to Theo begging Laney not to fight again. She didn’t want to see Kierian’s eyes boring holes in Apollo’s head for not letting him go after Blaze. She didn’t want to see Brynn pacing, scheming for a way to sneak over to the camp.But most of all, Amerie didn’t want to hear the cries of those who had lost a friend or family member on that battlefield. No. She wanted to tear through the camp, burning every horrible creature alive. She wanted to pluck the captives from the grip of death and terror and lead them unharmed from the ashes and smoke and deliver them back to their homes. She wanted to see the flames dance in the depths of Asmodeus’s eyes. Apollo spoke to those gathered, ensuring them that their loved ones had not died in vain. His voice was soothing and confident as he told them more about the Ancients and the truth
Asmodeus had been there. He’d said it had all been for her. Then Everett died. Blaze disappeared. Pack members were killed.How could this be for her? Anger filled her entire being. She watched the blurred trees as Asteri sprinted through the forest, a white wolf matching pace with her. Apollo.Had the Ancients removed Everett as a way of forcing her closer to Apollo? They knew she would be stronger when she was with her counterpart. Did Everett really die as a part of their games?She didn’t want to sulk in the recesses of her mind anymore. She wanted to see them burn. Every last one of them. Asmodeus had been part of this latest scheme. He’d burn too, and his shadows would turn to ash in the wind. The new part of her was silent, observing and waiting. It felt like a lost piece of her true self, but a veil still separated her consciousness from it and shrouded it in mystery. She could feel the power and strength emanating from behind that veil. A voice older than the skies whispere
Someone was yelling, but they were far away and their voice was faint. Amerie ignored them. It didn’t matter. Everett was dead. Something fell in front of her, warm and wet. Everett was dead. Her body was hot. That same person yelled again. She couldn’t save him. “Amerie!” Whoever shouted for her was still so far away. She couldn’t open her mouth to call out to them. All she tasted was ash. Her throat was so dry and sore. A strange hiss sounded from nearby. It didn’t matter. She was the Great Other, but even that didn’t matter. Her powers didn’t matter. She couldn’t save him. Everett was dead. She could feel Asteri pushing her to move but her legs wouldn’t. Something soaked through the bottom half of her pant legs where she knelt on the ground. All she could see was Everett’s blank face, eyes unseeing. Asteri pushed again. Amerie didn’t fight. She fell deep into her mind, wanting to wake up from this strange nightmare. Four black, bloodied paws hit the mud just as a serpe
Amerie was covered in blood and she couldn’t tell how much of it was hers. Screams, yelps, hisses, clicks, snapping bones, and the tearing of flesh rang out across the clearing. It was a nightmare. She’d lost sight of her friends shortly after the start of the massacre but didn’t have the luxury of pausing to search for them. She sprinted for a gray wolf that was struggling against two winged beasts. One with a serpent’s head struck the wolf’s flank, eliciting a high pitched yelp from the canine. Amerie shot arrows of flame at the beast, nailing it in all four eyes and effectively blinding it. The other beast with a head similar to a frog growled at Amerie and turned toward her. The wolf took lunged for the beast’s neck but missed as the beast spun, knocking the wolf on its side. Amerie let a ball of flame fly, but she was a second too late. The beast splayed its paws to reveal razor like claws nearly four inches long, bringing them down on the wolf’s chest and splitting it open. Th
Asteri burst through the trees like a shadow of fur in the sun, panting hard as she threw herself at the pack house ahead. She shifted when she hit the front steps and gasped to catch her breath. Just as she reached for the door, it was thrown open and she met Apollo’s wide golden eyes. “Beasts,” she managed to say between gulps of air, “coming this way.” Another gasp. “Ambush.”Apollo pursed his lips and gently grabbed her elbow to pull her inside, wrapping her exposed body in a gray blanket.He guided her to a bench in the hall and motioned for her to wait. Amerie attempted to concentrate on slowing her breaths but she knew the beasts were approaching. There had to be nearly a hundred of them closing in. She finally calmed her breaths enough to focus on listening for who was in the house. Blaze and Kierian were giggling in a room up the stairs. Everett talked on the phone about the town riots, likely to his deputy that she’d met at the nature center. Knives thudded against a wooden
The sun rose on a sparkling lake, painting the sky in hues of lavender and pink. Amerie sat perched on a boulder along the shore, watching as the forest shifted from nocturnal creatures to those that sang with the sun. Though spring was around the corner, the bite of the winter air remained and ice and snow still clung to the landscape. Amerie sighed, her breath forming a small white cloud in front of her before vanishing. Today was the day she was meant to face Asmodeus in the clearing. Today was the day the Ancients planned on her eliminating what she’d been led to believe was the biggest threat. Asmodeus had stood at the edge of the forest before the sun fell the day before, likely awaiting her answer to his offer. She had met his gaze and held it, letting tension and unanswered challenge hang in the air between them for a moment before turning away without a word. She’d walked back inside without a second look, not even turning when he had called out her name. She couldn’t. If h
Amerie chewed on the inside of her cheek as she sat opposite of Apollo, his words sinking in to her and everyone else. Mae stood leaning against one of the bookshelves to the left. Kierian sat in a chair to the right, leaning forward with his thumbs under his chin and fingers pressed together in front of his mouth. His eyebrows were drawn together as he considered everything that had been said. Brynn shifted uncomfortably on her feet beside the door. Her sister had not showed up this morning— likely working the store. Everett sat leaned back in the chair to Amerie’s left, lightly scratching the stubble along his jawline. “Eight people,” Everett murmured. He shook his head, not bothering to lift his gaze from the floor as he added, “They’re calling for a hunt. They want to see the Wolf Man strung up in the town square.”Amerie’s eyes flitted to Apollo. His face was hard and his golden eyes looked ready to burn through armies of Embertaurs and beasts. He was not bothered by the fact th