Page 65 of Wolf Tamer

I see the female wolf sitting on the edges of the couch as the portal grows wider.

She’s in on this too?

Anger surges through me instantly.

“Goddamn you!” I scream at Emily.

Her gaze finally lands on me and gets hotter, her smile wider. She knows. She’s planned this the whole time, and she’s not exactly surprised to see me.

The portal has stopped growing at around the size of a small mirror, allowing me a glimpse through and vice versa.

Not enough juice yet for them to make it all the way through. The magic is unstable.

Julius tries to hold me back as I free myself, crawling with clawed hands toward the woman I’ve vowed to strangle, or torture—whichever option I feel more inclined toward once I get my hands on her. Whatever she and the rest of those witchy bitches are trying to do, I’m not going to let her get away with it.

“Let me go,” I growl at Julius.

The portal is shrinking already. They’re not strong enough to maintain it, and the image of Emily shrinks too. She’s not surprised. If anything, today’s trial is just that: a trial.

She blows me a kiss before the portal disappears entirely.

“What…” Julius’s voice shakes. “What was that?”

I kick up at him to get him to release me. Unlike his brother, Julius expects the kick to the ’nads, and rolls out of the way before I can land a direct hit.

“Like you don’t know. You kept me out here knowing they were going to try today.” I scramble to my feet. “Didn’t you?”

He doesn’t even have the decency to make his lies convincing. Asshat.

“I had no idea. I don’t even know how they’re getting through the defenses. Unless the magic is too thin.” He’s scrambling for an explanation when he already knows, and that’s what I can’t stand. Him acting like I’m some kind of fool.

Haven’t we already established the opposite?

Instead of sticking around to let him try whatever it is he wants to try, I run.

Julius is involved. And until I can figure out a way to fight him, running is the safest option. For me. For Reid.

For all of us who might die if my assumptions are true.

ChapterTwenty-One

Tasha

Irun until my lungs nearly burst. My legs work overtime to try to get me… wherever the hell I can go, as long as it’s away from Julius and the newly closed portal.

The oldest Holden brother. The witches. Emily and Crane.Carmen.

There’s more going on here than I originally thought, and I’m no closer to finding the solution than I was when I first came here. The sound of my feet hitting the ground with each stride is a simple melody, and one I use to fuel me. Farther, faster, just get me outta there.

So what is it all worth?

It’s worthnothingif I remain stuck in this situation working harder and not smarter to find my way out.

How does it all fit together, and how am I going to get out of the mountain mansion and collect my bounty? It’s not the money I’m interested in. It’s everything I’m owed—the happiness, the life I always pictured with my sister. It seems even more out of reach now than it did before I started this journey.

The cold doesn’t bother me as I run into the woods as fast as my pumping arms and legs can carry me. My lungs seize, and it’s like the rest of me is finally waking up and protesting. I’ve been pushing too hard.

As though distance will help me figure out a way through this labyrinth.

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