Page 61 of Ashes

He goes to the drawer beside the bed and takes it out. When he hands it to her, she unlocks the screen, then nods slowly. “Very good.” She smiles at Sam. “I’m sad to lose you, Samuel. If you ever want to come back, you know where to find us.”

Luther takes Sam roughly by the arm. It makes me flinch, but I stand up slowly and take his other arm too.

At the door, Luther pauses and says, “You got a good deal here, Madame. You can buy three new wolves with that money.”

She flashes him a pearly smile. “Oh, I know. Do you think I’d have let him go otherwise?”

* * *

Outside, Luther opens the back passenger door. Sam climbs in. I slide into the seat next to him.

“Say nothing until we’re out of here,” Luther orders, revving the engine.

Just outside town, he pulls over to the side of the road and checks the car for bugs, traces, or tracking spells. When he gets back in, he says, “Okay. All clear.”

Immediately, Sam reaches for the mask. He pulls at it, his chest heaving, muscles shaking. He clasps the back, tugging to get it off.

“Here, here, it’s okay.” I unfasten it for him and ease it off his face. He lets out a small groan, then rubs his hands over his curly dark hair. His shoulders drop. He’s looking at the window instead of at me.

“Sam?” I put my hand on him. He lets out a short sharp breath, as if my touch hurts him.

“Nova?” His voice is low and unsure. “Am I dreaming all this?”

I catch Luther watching us from the driver’s seat as he speeds up and joins the highway. Inching sideways, I place my palm on the side of Sam’s face and turn him toward me. “It’s me.” I meet his eyes. A rush of warmth spreads through me. I take hold of his hand and stroke the mark on his wrist.

“You’re alive?” he asks, his breath catching.

“Yes.”

“You found me?”

“Yes.”

He stares at me. Traces his fingers down the sides of my face. Picks up a strand of hair and frowns at it.

“Long story.” I smile.

“It’s you.” He pulls me to him and holds me close. “It’s really you.”

30

MACK

The last twenty-four hours have been some of the most painful of my life. After searching for information on Ragnor, and coming up totally blank, all I had left to do was worry about Nova. And try not to think about her being in a sex club with Luther.

The others feel it too. The worry. Tanner’s headaches have gone, but he’s climbing the walls for news. Kole is in danger of growing an entire rainforest outside, his powers still in overdrive, and Snow is so on edge I can hardly contain him.

When Luther said they’d found Sam, and needed money, relief washed through me. “Pay whatever they want,” I told him. “Anything to keep Nova out of danger. We don’t want to have to physically break him out of there unless we have to.”

By the time they arrive, the three of us are waiting outside. “Sounds like it was pretty fucked up,” Tanner says darkly. “What they were doing to him in that place.”

“You knew that,” Kole says. “Didn’t you?”

Tanner closes his eyes. “I felt it. I didn’t want to scare her.”

Kole nods, understanding, and folds his arms. When the car pulls up, Luther is the first to climb out. Tanner’s about to rush forward when he says, “They’re sleeping. In the back. But she’s okay. They’re both okay.”

“What happened?” Kole asks, rubbing his arms as if he’s trying to physically restrain himself from going to the car.

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