Page 38 of Prince with a Chance of Darkness

It had to. We were out of time and options. We both knew it.

Her anxiety was thick enough for me to practically taste. There was a ripple of supernatural energy that rushed through the cave. Being able to sense the energy was something I’d found I could do after the attack in Romania. I had to wonder if the attack had heightened my natural-born slayer abilities in addition to leaving me with the ability to get dental erections.

The power increased and white fur began to sprout on Willa’s arms, a sign she was losing control and starting to shift shapes. Never good, but I didn’t panic. Doing so would only set her off more. The full moon was close. Too close to risk getting her worked up.

I took hold of her hand gently and slowly, trying to infuse my calming energy into her chaotic one. I threaded my fingers through hers. “Itwillwork.”

Her eyes glassed with unshed tears.

The sight hit me harder than I wanted to admit. I liked to appear indifferent, unaffected by silly things like emotions but in truth—I felt everything. “I promise.”

Willa dipped her head, fixated on her furry arms.

Bending my head, I locked gazes with her, refusing to allow her to get lost in her head. “Willa, think happy thoughts or something.”

She laughed at my Peter Pan reference and the fur was gone in a matter of seconds.

I pretended to be shocked. “Oh, happy thoughts worked!”

“Dumbass,” she said with a laugh.

I winked.

“Sorry about the partial shift thing.” Pink stained her cheeks.

“Don’t be. We’re really close to the full moon. You’re doing great and have come really far if you think about it,” I said, meaning every word of it. “When you were first turned, you’d do partial shifts a lot and had to wear a lot of long-sleeved shirts and gloves. Remember?”

Willa groaned. “Yes.”

“See, this is better now.”

“I never used to have issues with my emotions being all over the place,” Willa said.

“Pre-shifter you and post-shifter you are two very different be—” I cringed, wanting the words back.

She raised a brow. “You were going to say beasts, weren’t you?”

It was my turn to blush. “Yes. Sorry. Poor choice of words.”

Willa winked. “It’s okay.”

I let out a long breath, hating that I hadn’t minded my words better.

My sister laughed. “Seriously, it's fine. And you’re right. I’m not the same person I was. A lot has changed for me. For you too. We’re stronger than we used to be, and I don’t just mean because of what we are now.”

“I know.” I grabbed her and hugged her tight.

“I’m sure you’re right. These chains will hold me.”

Releasing her, I nodded. “We should totally set up a camcorder and record the shift and how you’re escaping. I’ve seen you shift before. I’m going to be honest. My brain stops functioning properly when you’re shifting, so I pretty much miss most of it. We could watch the tape back later and analyze it all. It might help us secure you better in the future.”

Willa jerked back from, horror filling her gaze. “No! We’re not recording me shifting forms.”

“Okay, take it easy,” I said, waving my hands lightly, trying to signal to her to chill. “We’ll table that idea…for now.”

“For good.”

“For now,” I stressed before taking a second to collect my thoughts. “We need to consider bringing in a third person, Willa. I know you don’t want to, but I think it’s past time. My vote is Astria. My gut says she can handle this.”

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