Page 36 of Mated By the Pack
“Tansy? Is that your name?” the tree asks, turning itself to her—the part of the bark that is moving, at least.
“Y-yes,” Tansy whispers, her voice shaking.
“I shouldn’t have scared you,” the tree rumbles. “Oh, no, I’m still scaring you, aren’t I?”
“You’d scare her a lot less if you stopped talking and just stood there. You know, like a tree!” Brenna barks.
“Understood,” the tree replies, the wind around us sounding like a sigh.
The roots settle back into the earth and the tree goes rigid, just like all the others around us. My bracelet begins to pulse in rhythm with my heartbeat again, and the tendrils retreat into the vine.
“Alright, the show’s over,” Nara says, her voice sounding just like some teachers I had in school. The only thing missing is clapping to get our attention and a stern finger pointing out where we should go next.
“Yes, let’s keep going,” I say, rubbing my wrist before motioning for everyone to follow me.
That’s one voice in The Tangle that was impossible not to hear. But I think my bracelet had something to do with it.Allowedit to speak somehow? I’m not sure. There are too many mysteries out here, and we don’t have time to solve them. We have to find our way back to Haven North.
We hear noises in the distance that change our course—then more noises that send us in another direction. Howls, roars—the sound of somethingdying. Some of the howls almost sounded like a wolf, and it isn’t the first time I’ve heard that. I even heard something similar when we were in the cage.
At least I hope they’re just wolves, and not like the one in my dream. Could it be his brothers… coming toclaimme? I feel another twinge inside me that makes heat color my cheeks. I don’t want to think about that.
“It’s getting dark again,” I say, motioning ahead. “We should stop for the night in the clearing.”
“I hope there are no talking trees around here,” Tansy whispers.
“It wasn’t a mean tree, except when it growled,” Fiona says. “It was actually rather polite, once Nurse Calla got close to it.”
“I’m not sure how I’ll be able to go back to teaching from textbooks after this,” Nara says, stretching out once we reach the clearing.
“Maybe you should write your own,” Brenna says, a slight edge to her tone. “Tell people the truth about what is out here. The world is a lot bigger than Haven North.”
“I’ve seen enough of it,” Tansy says. “I can’t wait to get home. Any idea how much further we have to go?”
I look up. It’s cloudy tonight, so I can’t see the stars. At least it doesn’t smell like rain. Hopefully they’ll clear before morning so I can confirm we’re headed in the right direction.
“We moved faster when we were in the cage, so it could be a few days,” I admit begrudgingly. “But for now, we need to rest. We’ve got food, but we should conserve as much of it as we can. We’ll still look for high ground, in hopes of finding more water.”
“I’ll take first watch tonight,” Tansy offers. “I’m still a little freaked out.”
The moment I lie down, I know sleep won’t come easy. Not with this bracelet on my wrist, pulsing in unison with my heart. But I need rest. Fiona’s curled up behind me, her back against mine. Nara is sleeping deeper now that the pain has eased. Brenna isn’t asleep, based on the way she’s breathing.
Everything’s quiet. Almost too quiet for The Tangle, but I try not to think about that. I turn over, adjust my position, and do it again. Then again. I move around so much Fiona scoots away from me. It should be her watch next. Just when I think I should offer to take over for Tansy and let Fiona sleep longer, I slip into a haze.
It isn’t sleep. Not really. It’s like before—some mixture of vision and dream. The world around me fades, the air thickens, and I’m back in that strange place. The placehecalled The Aether.
It looks different this time. Softer somehow. The heat storms that raged overhead have passed, though the sky is still veiled in a milky, unnatural gray. The scent of smoke clings to the breeze. It’s faint, but persistent. Beneath my bare feet, the ground iswarm and spongy with layers of moss and coiled vines. The city in the distance is being rebuilt. I can make out scaffolding and the rising walls of what will one day become Haven North.
An eerie sensation creeps along my skin. The vines begin to stir, curling in waves like they’re breathing. Then they part, melting away to reveal him.
The onyx wolf. Massive and majestic, shimmering in the milky gray light. He doesn’t move at first, just lifts his head and stares at me with a haunted, golden gaze. Then he lets out a low, anguished howl that trembles through my core. His body ripples as he begins to shift, fur dissolving into flesh that becomes the mountains of his muscular frame.
He hasn’t aged, but that doesn’t surprise me. I’m not sure The Aether has aged, either. I’m seeing glimpses of the past, like some kind of dim reflection.
The wolf takes on the form of the seven-foot man with midnight hair—just seeing him again makes something tremble inside me. There’s a dampness between my legs like I used to wake up with some mornings before my first cycle of supplements. I squeeze my thighs together and he seems to notice. His golden eyes flick to my budding arousal and his lips curl into a grin. A grin that ignites a raw ache, low in my belly. My breath hitches when he takes a step forward.
“You’ve returned to The Aether,” he says, his voice low and rough. “You’re getting more comfortable with it, aren’t you?”
“Comfortable with what?” I ask, looking around. “I didn’t come here on purpose. I just… I just fell asleep.”
