Page 58 of Secrets and Ruin

“Jacky, don’t be a fucking idiot!” Landon roared up to me.

Branches broke, and the tree started falling once again. I was assaulted by branches as we went down. Shaken on landing, I bounced a few feet from the fallen tree and sat up while Dirk and Landon ran across it.

“You are insane,” Landon snarled as he yanked me up. He started pushing the log, growling with each step. Joining him, we were able to shove it into the river, hopefully stopping anyone from using it behind us.

Just in time to hear a howl.

“Do you think that was an hour, or—”

“He’s begun his hunt,” Landon said, answering my question before I could finish it. “That was the last of our three hours.”

24

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

“There!” Dirk called out, pointing to the left as we ran. Veering hard, my foot slipped, and I struggled to maintain my balance as I followed him.

I had no idea where we were anymore. We had left the river behind and kept running because that was our only option. We didn’t have time to play tricks on Rainer. We could only keep moving and hope we reached anywhere safe before he did.

Dirk pointed out a shelter in the middle of another strange clearing where the treeline was all too clean, and nothing grew except healthy, normal, albeit long, grass around it. As we slowed and stopped in front of it, I was breathing hard, knowing if I sat down, I didn’t think even adrenaline could keep me awake. I was running on fumes. My eyes were strained, open for too long against their will. Blinks took too long, making me fight not to blink, or I could collapse.

I looked at Landon while Dirk investigated the old building in front of us, not going too far. Landon seemed to be in a similar shape—deep bags under his bloodshot eyes, his chest heaving and drenched in sweat. Dirk was still in rough condition, but he had at least gotten sleep recently. I had no idea how long Landon and I had been awake. There was no way for me to figure it out since the unchanging night sky told us nothing.

“What is this?” Landon asked before I could.

“One of the pack’s old buildings,” Dirk said, touching the front door. “Still protected from the fae around it. That’s why the clearing is still here, instead of being engulfed by the forest and taken over by the fae.”

“When did you finally learn all this? You were saying you didn’t know much about this place when you were human,” I said, trying to straighten up.

“Niko started telling me a lot of it on the drive down from the airport. He was pissed, saying he would have prepared to take a werewolf back to the Black Forest if he had known one was coming. He explained all the things I had never asked growing up, and he never offered to tell me. He didn’t know if it would apply to me since I…Well, it’s been eight hundred years since the pack existed, and they lived more in the forest than he does now. They even often took humans out there. I was never as exposed to it.

“When we got here, he took me out in our human forms, and we realized I was…like them, the old pack. Too much exposure to this place adapted me to it, I guess. If I had never become a werewolf or come back, I probably never would have known.”

As he finished, I could tell he was getting uncomfortable with the implications of what he was saying, what it all meant. He shifted his weight anxiously, trying to hide the pain in his leg as he fidgeted. He was looking more at the old building in front of us than at Landon or me.

“There’s no judgment from us,” I promised as I walked to him, ignoring how my own muscles were screaming for a break now that we had stopped once again. He pushed the door open and went in first. Landon was behind me, gently pushing me to go in behind Dirk.

“He’s hunting now. We can’t stay for long,” Landon said as he closed us in.

“I know, but I’m hoping.” Dirk ran a hand over his head, wincing in pain as he brushed a nasty bruise on the back. Landon started looking him over, carefully not touching, but Dirk stepped away from him. “I’m hoping Niko catches up. If we give him just a little time.”

“Dirk….” I didn’t know what to say to that,I had no idea how to even begin finding Niko, not in this place, not if he didn’t want to be found.

“If any of us make the mistake of falling asleep, we could all pass out and get caught out byhim,” Landon said, shaking his head. “Dirk, I know you—”

“You don’t know,” Dirk said quickly. “You have no idea, Landon.”

“Then tell me,” Landon pleaded, stepping closer. “Please tell me, Dirk.”

“It feels so stupid to say, but I finally thought he and I had a chance again,” Dirk whispered, desperately looking between Landon and me before he continued. “He was angry I kept it a secret. He was angry Jacky helped, but…My being a werewolf, knowing he and I could have forever to be a functional family. He was happy about that. After a couple of days, he was talking about how he didn’t want me living with all this and wanted to know where I wanted to live. He would visit me, even if it was Texas…with you. I didn’t tell him it was you specifically yet, only that I met a guy, another werewolf, and he was excited to hear that. He wanted to meet the person who was really keeping me in Texas. Then this happened.”

Landon reached out and hugged Dirk. I turned away as the boys kissed, not wanting to intrude on their private moment.

“So, what Jacky said was true,” Landon whispered.

“Yeah,” Dirk confirmed. “Every bit of it, even her own guesses about how I behaved.”

“Hasan drove a wedge between you and Niko on purpose,” Landon growled softly, protectively, and even a bit vengefully.

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