Chapter 159

YENA

I had never run as wolf before.

It was exhilarating.

And Lily was right—she did know where to go. I didn’t have to think about anything. I just put my trust in her, like she asked, and let her lead the way.

The instinct was so strong, it felt irresistible. I was being drawn in one direction. Pulled, almost. Like there was a magnet somewhere dragging me forward.

All I had to do was keep putting my paws to the ground, keep running, and I would get to Nolan.

I had healed him before. I could heal him now.

He was in a very bad state, yes. But I had the cure in my veins. I knew that I did. I knew that if I could reach him in time I could do it. I could bring him back, make him whole again.

The airport, the crowd of people there—everything vanished into the distance behind me.

My wolf body felt light as air, full of power and energy.

The city passed me by in a blur of sensations. Every smell and sound was more vivid and distinct than any I had ever experienced before.

There were people everywhere – they gasped and shrieked, startled, as I sprinted through the city streets. I couldn’t have stopped if I wanted to, so it was good that they all jumped out of my way.

Then I was in the woods. The crisp air tasted sweet on my tongue, and the feeling of the forest floor under my paws was extraordinary. The life force of nature vibrated up through the earth, through the dirt, through the moss and fallen leaves and every living thing I came into contact with, filling me up with wild, animal energy.

And then I was at the highway. The road that led to the palace grounds was on the other side of the big, eight-lane throughway. A small, nagging human part of my mind wanted to slow and stop. Look both ways before crossing.

But Lily wouldn’t have it. She didn’t stop for a second.

She didn’t look sideways once at the oncoming cars. Didn’t deviate one inch from the straight line we were running to Nolan.

Traffic on the highway was sparse, and the path that Lily kept us on was clear.

I leapt the divider between the northbound and southbound halves of the highway. And then I was across all the lanes, jumping again to get off the highway and catching massive air as I did so. I landed, running, on a downhill slope.

I was almost there.

My thoughts weren’t the same as they were when I was in my human shape.

They moved through my mind differently. They were simpler. Clearer.

I understood now that Lily had been right all along, about everything.

It all made sense. Nolan and I were fated mates, like she said. We were meant for each other.

And I started believing another thing she told me, too. That he did love me. That he did want me back.

Our bodies had always had a special, tangible, undeniable connection. From that first night in the cave, the first time that I touched his body, I had felt it, and it had only grown stronger in the time that we were together.

I knew now that it wasn’t just sexual chemistry. Attraction. Desire.

It was bigger than that, and so much more important.

I could feel that Nolan was still alive.

I could also feel how very, very sick he was.

Just hang on a little longer—that was the thought I tried to send to him. I had no idea if he could hear or feel it. But I repeated it in my mind, over and over, as I kept running, just in case he could.

The closer I got to the palace, the faster my body moved.

The magnet was pulling harder, the closer our bodies were to each other.

And then I was there. Running up the middle of a street I’d traversed many times before in the back of a limousine.

Straight ahead was a roundabout with an enormous, elaborate water fountain in the center. Beyond that were the wide white marble steps that led up to the front doors of the palace.

I swerved around the fountain, feeling my body tilting sideways as I did, and righted my course when I was past the obstruction. My mind was on a singular mission: sending my thoughts to Nolan, telling him to hold on. Hold on, I’m almost there.

So when a hoard of Gamma warriors suddenly surrounded me with their guns out, I was totally shocked.

“FREEZE! STOP OR WE WILL SHOOT!”

There were hundreds of them. They appeared out of nowhere, from everywhere. Rushing at me from all sides. Guns out, aimed at me. Eyes behind the sights of their weapons. Hollering their commands over and over.

I was trying to stop as fast as I could, but I had just been hurtling through space. My nails grated on the asphalt as I stumbled, desperate to slow down and obey their commands, sure they were going to shoot me any second now.

When I finally brought my body to a halt, I hit the floor. Pressed my snout to the ground.

The wall of warriors paced closer and closer, their booted feet stomping in unison with each other, the muzzles of their guns getting bigger and bigger in my vision.

I tried to slow down my breath. Tried to flatten myself into the pavement, making it clear I was not a threat.

And thought to myself: Oh, shit.

“Lower your weapons! Let her pass!”

The voice, coming from behind the tight circle of armed guards that had swarmed around me, was familiar. It was Luna, Nolan’s mother.

She came into view as the Gamma warriors did as she said, lowering their guns slowly and pacing backward, parting to make a path ahead of me. Their eyes were still on me, watching my every movement, waiting for a sign of threat.

The Queen was standing on the front steps of the palace, along with the Alpha King. She started to descend the stairs, walking toward me slowly.

Her eyes were red and shiny, with smeared black mascara underneath them. She had already begun to mourn her son. But when she met my eyes, I saw the sadness in hers starting to fade away.

“Yena.” She said my name like an announcement. A declaration.

Her eyes ran across my body, taking in my unusual golden coat. She shook her head, like in amazement.

I rose to my feet and took a few cautious steps forward, approaching the King and Queen with my head lowered in respect. Lily had sense enough to let me be careful, now. The Gamma warriors were standing down, but they still had assault rifles in their hands, and I knew what they were capable of. How fast they could react to a threat.

The Queen’s eyes stayed glued on me, but she turned her body partway toward the King and spoke, addressing him. “It’s true,” she said, her voice quieter now. “The prophecy. She can save him. She’s going to save him.”

I raised my head. I was ready to run again.

The Alpha King looked me in the eye. Then he nodded and stepped aside.

I took off. I got a running start ahead of the white marble stairs, and leapt over the whole lot of them in a single bound.