Page 73 of In Her Own Rite

Caspar and the other wolves he broke off to chase don’t return to the pack, and I hope he’s subdued them somehow. Looking up ahead, I can see that the sound of the chase has alerted others to what’s happening. Viggo and Saga’s wolves are coming up ahead with a pack of other elders. I’m chasing the group in the direction of the central plaza, and I know there aren’t enough exits for them to escape if the elders come in from the other side.

I take my chances. I pounce on the large silver-gray wolf, aiming my bite for the back of her neck. As the weight of my body hits her, she turns onto her back and falls under me, the rest of the group running on without us.

The silver wolf wrestles under me, snapping and baring her teeth, but she puts up a less fight than I expect for an animal of her size. As I crush her front paws under mine, pinning her down, she rolls her neck to see what’s going on ahead of us. I look up, too. The elders have met the rebel pack, and what’s unfolding now is an all-out brawl, with the rebels clearly outnumbered. I see Viggo fighting with one of the males, while another Saroan elder, Iena, has managed to pin down the smaller female I was chasing earlier.

I snarl at the silver she-wolf, baring my teeth. But where I expect her to fight back, she mostly writhes under me, giving the appearance of fighting without any power behind it. And then—I’m surprised—she shifts. Within seconds, in the place of the massive, muscular gray wolf from before is a young woman, tall but lean, her hair a wild mess of curls and waves, her facial features sharp and refined.

I shift, too, to get a better grip on her. In a second I’m towering over her, pinning her forearms down with my human hands, pressing one knee over her leg to keep her down. She wriggles as though she’s fighting me, but she’s barely pushing back.

What the fuck is she doing?

“Please listen to me.” Her words come out fast, with the cadence of something practiced. “My name is Thalia Nayakka and I’m here with my sister, Nomi. When they take us, separate me from the others. I’m willing to talk. I have information that will help you. I’ll make you a deal.”

“Like you’re in any place to negotiate with us,” I say, and I feel my hands clamp harder down on her wrists.

The sounds up ahead are changing, and I glance up to see that the whole pack of rebels has been subdued. A marshal is running up to Saga, and I see the volunteer fire crew coming in too, bearing clubs and rope.

“Please,” says the woman from under me. “Listen. You may not trust me, but you need to give me a chance. My sister and I applied for asylum but were denied multiple times. We had no way to get to the islands except to go with this group. We need your protection.”

“I need to protect these islands fromyou.”

“If you don’t do it for me, then do it for my sister. Please.”

I swallow, registering the fear in her eyes. There’s a marshal walking towards us with rope.

“Promise me that you’ll at least tell the others,” she whispers.

“Okay,” I say finally. “I promise.”

27

EMERSON

Just after Kieran leaves for the ferry to Saroe, I show up at Seb’s and my usual spot on the shore. My physical training is going well—my shifter nature lets me pick up skill and strength faster than I knew was possible—but the wolf training isn’t getting any better. Seb has tried a few more times to get me to shift on command, but on the rare occasion I can do it, I can’t change back. I can tell he’s getting frustrated, counting down the days till our deal is over and we call it quits. The pressure only makes it worse.

I stand on the shore, waiting for him. The minutes tick by, and I start to get nervous. Is he backing out? But finally, fifteen minutes after we agreed to meet, Quinn and Maren make their way down from the house.

“Hey. What’s going on?” I ask.

“I thought we might have more luck than Seb,” says Quinn.

“He’s giving up?”

“No. We just want to try something different.”

Maren smiles. “And besides. Sometimes women just get it.”

I nod my head, and I wonder if either of them could possibly understand. Maren with her effervescent energy, her full self-confidence that anything she tries will always work out. Quinn, strong and self-assured, kicking my ass every day in the gym and never seeming rattled by anything. I doubt either of them could understand this.

“So. What’s the plan?” I ask.

“I wanna try something from FMA,” Quinn says. “Seb thought we didn’t have time for theory, but I wonder if maybe that’s what you need. Come on. Let’s take a walk.”

“Okay…” I glance at Maren, wondering what we’re about to do. She shrugs, and we follow Quinn towards the woods.

Twenty minutes later,she brings us to a clearing in the trees, loosely marked by boulders in a circle.

“What’s this?” I ask.

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