Page 100 of Raised By Wolves

“I asked you how you were doing.”

I giggle. “Sorry. I forgot.” Between the question and my answer a black hole had opened up. A black hole where I was thinking about…

What was I thinking about?I can’t remember.

I’ve never felt the grass against my back like this. Never felt how delicately the wind can ruffle my hair. I actually don’t need to think at all. What I need is to scoot closer to Waylon, until the whole side of me is pressed against the whole long, warm side of him. I listen to the sound of his slow, steady breath.

My hand finds his in the darkness. Our fingers intertwine.

Just kiss me, I think.

Waylon rolls to his side so he’s facing me. With his other hand he traces the line of my cheekbone down to my lips. My skin melts under his touch.

He says softly, “Would it be all right if I ki—”

I don’t let him finish. I’m already grabbing him and pulling him toward me. Our lips meet in a hot, desperate crush, and the world starts spinning for real now. I didn’t even know how much I wanted this. Needed this.

His hands are in my hair and mine are sliding up the smooth skin of his back. He says, “Kai,” and his voice comes out ragged. I give his neck a little nip and he sighs, smiling, and then he bends down and kisses me again and again and again.

CHAPTER 78

WENDY SHAKES ME from sleep before the sun’s even up. Groggily I roll over. My head hurts and my mouth feels like it’s full of cotton. I’m still in the clothes that I wore to the dance. I can still taste Waylon on my lips.

“Kai, get up,” she says. “We have to go.”

“Go where?” I’m so tired that I don’t even care.

Holo yells, “Put on your shoes!”

The urgency in his voice jolts me fully awake. I clumsily do what he says, and then Wendy throws me a sweatshirt and pushes me toward the stairs. She’s not even trying to keep quiet, and the chief stumbles out into the hallway, yawning. “What’s going on?” he says, blinking.

Wendy says, “We’re going to save our family.”

“What?” the chief says.

I go, “What?” Neither of us has any idea what’s going on.

Then I hear that now-familiar roaring sound, that mechanical thunder that comes from the sky. My bones start to vibrate. The whole damn cottage starts to rattle.

Chester’s eyes widen. “What the hell?” he says. He runs to the window in time to see the FBI helicopter landing in his front yard.

“Come on,” Wendy says to me and my brother.

The three of us are already on the porch when Agent Dunham opens the door to the helicopter and yells what seems like “Let’s go!”

Not again, I think.I don’t want to throw up this early, but Wendy drags me toward the terrifying machine. I just have to trust her that she knows what she’s doing. Whatever our mission is, it’s urgent and we have to go.

My stomach’s twisting already.

“At least we’re not handcuffed this time!” Holo shouts.

Yeah, sure, that’sonebright spot.

After Dunham checks to make sure we’re strapped in, he gives a thumbs-up to the pilot. Then comes that awful, lurching moment when we lift into the sky. I feel like I left my guts behind as we rise above the meadow and swing over the dark trees. The sun’s just beginning to come up. It lights the clouds with rays of gold.

Wendy scans the sky with worried eyes.

“What are you looking for?” I yell over the sound of a motor, but she doesn’t hear me. She’s too focused on staring out the window.

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