Page 74 of Roaring Flames

I ignore him for the time being and refocus on Gerry and Hale. “I know about the supernatural. About wolf shifters and vampires and witches?—”

“Okay. Okay. I get it.” Jake rolls his eyes exaggeratedly. “Is this your attempt at a joke? Because it’s not funny or appropriate, considering the situation.”

Hale blows out a haggard breath and scrubs a hand down his face. The lines bracketing his eyes appear even deeper thanusual, more pronounced. Has he been sleeping? I swear those dark smudges weren’t there prior…

“It’s not a joke, Jake. There’s an entire world that you don’t know about?—”

“Knock it the fuck off.” Jake stands abruptly, his hands balling into fists. Rage distorts his handsome face into something unrecognizable. “My friend just died, and you really think now is the time to mess with me?”

“Sit down, Jake,” Gerry instructs.

“No! You can’t just?—”

“Jake!” Gerry’s eyes flash amber, the color almost luminescent in the dimly lit living room.

My breath stalls at the sight, and Jake’s face drains of all color.

Slowly—never taking his eyes off of Gerry—Jake sits back on the couch beside me, a tremor reverberating through him.

“What the fuck?” he whispers, shock and horror mingling in his voice.

“I don’t really know where to start this conversation—” Hale begins.

“How about the beginning?” I snap.

Hale blanches at my tone but nods once in understanding. “Right. Of course.”

He blows out another breath, and in that one sound, I can hear everything he doesn’t say out loud. All of his fear and anger and confusion. They meld together until I can’t differentiate one emotion from the other.

“The truth is…the four of you didn’t come to our home by accident.”

“What do you mean by that?” Jake demands, leaning forward.

Hale and Gerry exchange an indecipherable glance, but it’s Hale who continues speaking, his expression grave. “Amanda Highland finds kids who are…different and brings them to us.”

A thread of trepidation unfurls in my chest. “Different how?”

In answer, Hale stands and shakily begins undoing the buttons of his shirt.

Jake’s nose immediately scrunches in disgust. “What the fuck are you doing?”

“Proving this to you,” Hale snaps, his tone frostier than I ever remember hearing it. “You won’t listen to everything I have to say if you continue to think we’re full of shit.”

“Why are you stripping?” Jake asks, incredulous.

I look away when Hale pulls down his pants, but Jake continues to stare, wide-eyed and confused. His lips part in a silent O.

And then he gasps out loud, his entire face whitening until it’s practically the color of the walls. I turn back just in time to see that Hale has been replaced by a huge, furry, brown wolf. His tongue lolls to the side as he cocks his head at us.

“No. No. No. This can’t be fucking happening. Did I accidentally eat some pot brownies?” Jake mutters as he shakes his head rapidly from side to side, trying to dislodge the image before us.

Hale whines and places his huge head down on his paws.

Trying to make himself smaller, I realize. Less threatening.

There’s a sort of keen intelligence in the beast’s eyes that lets me know Hale’s still inside of there. He hasn’t been completely consumed by the wolf.

A part of me wants to reach forward and pet him—the fur between his ears looks incredibly soft—but shock holds me immobile. I’ve known about the supernatural world for days now, but seeing it in person? That’s something else entirely. I can barely get a breath out through my shriveling lungs.

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