Page 34 of The Secret Keeper's Daughter

Vog screams. His arms and legs flail as the animal digs into his throat.

I spin around to find only air where Harek should be. His ripped clothes lie in a pile at my feet.

My body turns to ice. Did that wolf eat him?

Bang!

Instinctively, I drop to the ground. Grab my sword. Back up to the bush, gasping for air.

More shots ring out.

The wolf steps away from Vog, who no longer thrashes around, and growls toward the other men. Given the amount of blood dripping from his mouth—and Vog’s shredded throat—it’s obvious the creepy man won’t move again. That solves one problem.

Bang!

Blood sprays out from the wolf’s fur near its front shoulder. It lets out a howl before lunging toward the others. Our gazes meet for a moment.

I know those eyes. I’ve looked into them my entire life.

Harek. He’s the wolf. It’s impossible.

Another shot. Growls and snarls. A yelp, followed by someone calling for help.

I can’t just sit here and hide. My best friend needs me, even though I don’t understand how he can be a wolf. I’ll have to figure that out later.

The beast has another man down on the ground, tearing into him too.

Something hits me from behind. The sword flies from my hands. I stumble forward. Arms wrap around me. I struggle to get loose. Kick, knee, elbow my attacker. My efforts do no good. He doesn’t loosen his grip.

I scream so loud my throat burns.

The wolf turns his head in my direction. Those are definitely Harek’s eyes. No mistaking that. He glides through the air, chomping on the arm of the man holding me. The grip loosens, and I squirm away.

Where is the sword? I can’t see it anywhere.

Gunnar aims his weapon at me with one hand. My weapon is in his other one. His face contorts. “You’ve just cost me dearly!”

The wolf leaps toward him. Gunnar falters, his face draining of color. He runs. The remaining men follow him. Harek chases them, growling and snapping.

I fall back, leaning against a tree. What just happened?

Is my best friend a werewolf? That can’t be—they’re not allowed inside the city walls. He’s also never mentioned this to me.

Do I even know him? I can’t. Not if he’s been keeping this enormous secret from me all this time.

Chapter

Thirteen

I’mabout ready to grab my bag and run. Either Harek is a wolf or he was eaten by one, and given the wolf had his eyes, it seems obvious which is most likely. Plus his torn clothes didn’t have a drop of blood on them. If an animal attacked him, he’d look like Vog and the other guy on the ground outside this nest. And there is no body.

Footsteps sound, twigs snap.

Out of habit I reach for the sword. Gunnar took it.

My palm isn’t even glowing. I’m defenseless without being near it since my palm has only glowed when I was near it. It began at Harek’s house, where he was secretly stowing the weapon all along. So much for Mother giving it to them for protection. Now my stepfather has it anyway.

Harek appears outside the nest’s entrance. He’s in human form and wearing different clothes than before, ones that don’t quite fit properly. They seem more like his father’s style.

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