Page 30 of Magic's Dawn

Logic tells me he’s right, but logic holds no sway over the panicked race of my heart.

I clutch his hands tighter, as if my strength is enough to stop him from going after the others. “I can’t bear for you to get hurt again.”

More vehicles come up the driveway, Dr. Lopez’s sedan following Deputy Arden’s SUV.

They barely glance at us as they rush out of their vehicles and into the woods, led by signals my human senses can’t pick up on.

I swallow past the lump in my throat. “It’s not a deer, is it?”

Owen’s nostrils flare, and his expression hardens. “Go inside the house, Rowe.”

My nails dig into his hands. “Is the monster back?”

He shakes his head. “No.”

The firm tone of his voice leaves no room for question, so why do so many bounce around in my mind?

What if they just thought they killed the rogue werewolf? What if it’s been hiding out here all this time, just waiting for a chance to start murdering people again? How did they kill it? Did they use silver? What if they didn’t, and it crawled out of its grave?

I must have said that out loud, because Owen shakes his head. “The rogue was torn apart and burned. There’s no coming back from that.”

With a deep breath, I nod and pull Owen’s hands from my face, though I keep hold of one. “Take me in there.”

“Rowe…” he protests.

“I need to see what’s happened.” My hand shakes in his. “I have to know what’s threatening our home.”

He exchanges a look with Tris over the top of my head, and I tense, prepared to fight Tris off if he tries to forcefully take me into the house. If Owen says there’s no monster in these woods, then I need to face that fear and find out what scared my friends into hiding.

After a moment, Owen nods. “Fine, but I need you to stay between me and Tris. And if anything happens, promise me you’ll run.”

My lips part on a protest.

He holds up his free hand. “Your promise, Rowe, or I’ll have Tris lock you inside the house right this second.”

“He would never!” I turn to Tris, who stares back with a grim expression that says he most certainly would. “Traitor.”

Owen tugs on my hand to draw my attention back to him. “Promise?”

“I promise.” I squeeze his fingers. “But you’re running with me this time.” I look at Tris. “Both of you.”

“You won’t catch me arguing,” Tris says.

When Owen stays silent, I tug on his hand. “Promise, or I’ll have Tris lock you in the house this second.”

Owen’s lips quirk at the returned threat, but he doesn’t point out that, now that Tris is a witch, Owen can easily out-muscle him.

Instead, he dips down to kiss me, his breath feather light on my cheek. “I promise.”

With a firm nod, I clutch Owen’s hand and squeeze my eyes shut. “Lead the way.”

I stumble as Owen leads me forward. Despite having my eyes closed, I know the exact moment we leave the lawn and step into the woods. The top of my head cools when the overhead tree branches block the sun, and the soft spring of grass gives way to the crunch of pine needles and dirt.

I am a brave little toaster, I tell myself. The woods can’t hurt me.

Cracking my eyes open, I stare through the veil of my lashes at the trees we pass. When we were kids, we played here with the brigade, never worrying about danger.

The rhymes we learned were just fairy tales, and dusk is hours away. Even if there is a monster, we still have plenty of time to hide beneath our blankets.

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