Page 112 of Mortal Blood
Jax snorted. “Other than a thick, supernatural fog covering the entire academy?”
“Fair point.”
“One person stays wolf at all times. Alina, since you’re already wolf, you can go first. We’ll rotate every half-hour to staysharp while we’re on the move. Let’s go.”
Cole slung Alina’s sack over his shoulder, leaving her free to move without risking it snagging on any low hanging branches, and I tied my own empty sack around my waist, out of the way until I needed it.
Cole nodded in the opposite direction to where the fire had come from, and the four of us set off.
Chapter Thirty-Four
The snapping ofa twig echoed through the fog and we all froze. The sound came again, too rhythmic to be natural. Something was out there.
My eyes strained against the blanketing mist. Beside me, Cole had gone perfectly still, head cocked as he listened intently. The others watched the woods warily, and Alina’s hackles rose.
“Could be an animal,” Jax murmured, almost hopefully.
Cole shook his head slowly. “It’s not.”
The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end. He was right. There was something out there, and it had been following us since we got out of the fire what felt like hours ago. We were being hunted.
For a long moment we stood tense and silent, ears straining for the slightest noise. But whatever it was, it wasn’t ready to make its move yet.
“Alina, switch with Jax,” Cole said, staring out into the gloom. Without a word, Jax told his wolf form, and Alina switched back to human, reclaiming her clothes from Cole.
As we moved cautiously onward, Cole stumbled ever so slightly. It was subtle, barely a hitch in his usually smooth gait before he pressed on. I wouldn’t have noticed if I hadn’t been watching him. Weird. He was usually so surefooted, like he’d been born to trek through woods, in wolf form or human.
But now that I was watching for it, other small signs drew my attention. A tightness around his eyes when the terrain grew rough. Movements less fluid than usual, conserving his energy. Imperceptible winces when he thought no one was looking.
Cole was hurt, I was sure of it. Just as I was sure he’d never admit it, not when he was leading our small pack. He would always put his needs last. But I wasn’t him, and he came first for me. I stayed close, ready to support him if he needed it, eyes on him as much as the terrain around us.
Jax let out a quiet yip.
“What is it?” Cole asked. “Danger?”
Jax shook his head.
“Food?”
Another shake.
“Water?”
Jax nodded, and I sighed in relief. I’d been parched by the time we’d escaped the fire, and our long trek through the woods had done nothing to help.
“Good. Let’s go, but be careful. I wouldn’t put it past Astor to have set a trap for us.”
No, neither would I. We moved on cautiously, the eerie sounds continuing at intervals, fraying our nerves even though nothing attacked. Or maybebecausenothing attacked.
When Cole stumbled on an unseen root, he recovered swiftly, face betraying nothing. But I didn’t miss the fleeting tension in his jaw, the carefully controlled exhale. Whatever was bothering him, his shifter healing didn’t seem to be helping. If anything, he was getting worse. He was going to need to rest soon, though he’d never admit it. We couldn’t reach that water source soon enough, as far as I was concerned.
Eventually, I picked up the sounds of flowing water, and it wasn’t much longer until we broke through the foliage and thesmall stream came into sight. I battled the urge to run to it, instead moving slowly, checking for any kind of ambush, but it looked like we were alone out here. Aside from whatever the hell was hunting us, that was.
We took turns to drink our fill from the stream, and I watched from the corner of my eye as Cole finished drinking and rose stiffly to his feet.
“Do you think we should rest here?” I suggested, letting the cool water trickle down my throat and slake my thirst. “Save our energy for whatever might be coming?”
Cole shook his head. “It’s too exposed, and the water could attract predators. We’ll look for somewhere to set up camp a little way off. Keep your eyes open for any shelter. We’ll forage and set traps along the way. Jax, shift back. We can trap and gather better if we’re all human.”
