Page 5 of The Awakened Wolf

“Here.” With the utmost care, he set Jesmyn down so she could lean against the wall. Then he gently took my elbow and pushed me into a crouch beside her. “You stay with Jesmyn and make sure she’s okay. I’ll handle the kids.”

I nodded, too shaky to protest, and he turned and began fielding questions from his haphazard assortment of siblings. I didn’t like thinking of them as my children, especially not Evan, but there was no denying the pull he described went both ways. They were mine to protect, but I was only twenty and not ready to deal with anyone’s toddler phase, much less a bunch of adult humans with lives to return to.

“Do you see my dad anywhere?” Jesmyn’s voice rose to a pinched rasp that wrenched my attention away from my despondent wolf, my unplanned litter, and my waking nightmares about the roof caving in.

“Not yet.” I squeezed her hand. “But I’m sure he’ll catch up.”

Keep telling yourself that, my wolf growled.

I wasn’t talking about Sebastian.

Keep telling yourself that.

I literally wasn’t. He’s back at the Plaza with Yara. He has to be.

Unless they’re both dead in the mud.

The thought pulled a cord inside me that twisted, making me want to fold up like a malfunctioning parachute.

Don’t say that! Why would you say that?

Because it could be true.

I plummeted, spinning like a meteor headed straight for Earth.

No. He’s our fated mate. We’d feel it if he…

I stopped. Would we feel it? Just because the Old Stories said that fated mates felt something when their counterpart died didn’t make it true. I hadn’t felt the fate bond immediately even though the stories said I would either.

“I won’t tell you again, Max,” Kiana’s voice rose so loud that a hush fell over the station. “There’s no need to worry about Damien. He’s dead. I killed him. Feel free to thank me. At least I had the strength to do what was needed when I had the chance.”

Max stood tall, the waxy skin the only hint of his suffering. “Thank you? I don’t know even know if I can trust you. If Damien was a servant of the One-Eyed Man, then how can we know you aren’t as well?”

“Damien never served anyone but himself,” Kiana laughed. “And neither will I.”

“Precisely,” Max hissed. “Damian wasn’t the only member of your pack to keep secrets or commit crimes.”

“What are you getting at, Max?” Kiana drew herself up, her blonde hair standing out like a halo in the dim light as she closed the distance between them and put her hands on her hips. “Say what you mean.”

“I mean,” he spat, “that you need to admit to everyone here, including your own pack, that you’re not the true Bronx Alpha.” He waved an arm in my direction, opening his mouth to spill the tea, but then stopped. “What the hell are those?”

The Bronx Alpha bombshell exploded on deaf ears as every eye followed Max’s glare to the gathering of new shifters around me, many still hovering halfway between forms. The wash of fear that rolled through the room froze me to the floor, my tongue turning to a lump of unresponsive ice. My heart was the only part of me still moving, its arrhythmic interpretive dance leaving me breathless. I shrank against the wall as Max shuffled forward, his steps punctuated by groans of pain.

“Who are these poor creatures?” He asked, his eyes widening before locking onto mine. “Is this… is this what you can do?”

The remaining members of Manhattan SecPack wriggled through the crowd into a phalanx behind him.

“Umm, well…” I stammered, searching for a friendly face among the formation, but there was no one I knew. I’d only been a member of the Manhattan pack for a month—if one could even call me that—and I’d spent most of that time alone with Evan. The line of blood-spattered soldiers advanced, a wake of doubt roiling the air at their edges—and mine too. Where was Kenzo? Had Mateo ever made it?

“This can’t be,” growled the soldier to Max’s right, his eyes narrowing.

“Something must be wrong with this female, Your Grace.” Another now. Tall and broad, eyes darting. Ready.

Kiana glided in front of me, blocking their advance. “How dare you! My sister has been given a gift by the Gods.”

“What?” Yet another soldier scoffed. “You expect us to believe—”

“Stop and look for yourselves,” she said. “What we’re seeing hasn’t happened for a thousand years—the making of new shifters through a bite. Though the prophecy was kept from us, we now know this bright new era was foretold by none other than the Goddess Leto. And these blessed beasts are evidence that my sister is indeed the Promised One.”

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