Page 15 of Echo Of A Wolf

Dean’s house.

The only reason I knew this was his place was because I’d been there when Lucius stepped out of the woods and got into Dean’s head for the first time. He and his wolf had fought as hard as they could, but in the end, neither of them had been a match for Lucius’ powers of mind manipulation.

None of us were.

Xander’s raven landed on the soft foliage at the edge of the woods and immediately stepped to the side so my brother could take center stage again. My raven perched on a tree branch, watching as he crept toward Dean’s house. The darkness of night seemed to stick to him while he walked.

What the heck was he doing here?

Once he was almost at the house, my raven dropped to the ground at the base of the tree she’d been perched in and stepped aside for me. Panic pumped through me as my gaze zeroed in on Xander. He was making his way to the back of the house with a sinister look of joy twisting his facial features.

“Xander, what are you doing here?” I asked him in a hushed tone.

His head snapped in my direction, and I saw his eyes grow cold. “Are you following me?” he demanded, stalking toward me.

My heart pounded, but I nodded while still holding his icy gaze. “I’ve been worried about you. You’re not acting like yourself.”

My eyes shifted to the house for a split second. The last thing I wanted was for Dean to hear us and come storming out because I could guarantee that wouldn’t end well for any of us.

A cruel grin twisted Xander’s lips, but the coldness never left his eyes. “I’m not acting like myself?”

“You’re not,” I insisted. “I mean—stalking a wolf? What are you thinking?” I waved a hand at Dean’s house.

“The only one stalking anyone is you right now. You shouldn’t be here.”

“Neither should you,” I countered.

A heartbeat later, I realized the words had been a mistake.

Xander’s expression grew even darker as he erased the remaining space between us. Maybe it was a trick of the light, but I could have sworn I saw his pupils narrow into vertical slits, cold and predatory like a snake’s. My stomach clenched and panic unlike anything I’d ever felt before hit me so hard my knees grew weak.

“Are you protecting him?” Xander demanded.

It took me a moment to realize who he was talking about—Dean. All I could think about was how there was no way I’d witnessed his eyes change like that. There was no way they’d elongated like a snake’s.

No way.

Right?

“Are you one of them?” Xander pressed, his face now contorted in rage.

My heart kickstarted inside my chest. What was he talking about?

“One of who?” I asked, taking a step back.

He’d lost it. Completely lost it.

“A traitor like Dean. Someone who doesn’t see how blessed you were to have been chosen by Lucius to be part of something far greater than you could have ever imagined,” he said.

Ice trickled through my veins, and I wanted to throw up.

Was that how he saw things?

“What happened to us wasn’t a blessing,” I seethed. “It was a freaking nightmare.”

“Tsk, tsk, tsk.” He shook his head slowly, his cold eyes never leaving mine. “I can see whose side you’re on now. Such a pity.”

I’d never been scared of my brother before, but right now, I was terrified.

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