Page 58 of Beta Hybrid

I blink. ‘How did—’ I wave my hand. ‘Never mind. Please, send them.’

Gaia gives a worried shrug. ‘Don’t say I didn’t warn you.’ Her gaze falls on Vale and Cai. ‘Whatever you do, mind your manners. If he thinks you are challenging him or showing any disrespect, you’re dead. Understood?’

‘Vale—’ Jana’s eyes are wide.

‘I’ll be fine,’ Vale says softly. He glances to me. ‘I’ll bring your alpha back.’

I try to smile. Then they’re gone.

Chapter Twenty-Five

Mordecai

I wasn’t expecting to be magically teleported. I blink a few times, immediately on alert. Vale is the same, shoulders squared, hands splayed, ready to shift.

We’re standing the middle of the woods. I don’t know which woods. It’s not rocky, like Noah’s camp or its surroundings. And it’s far too dense, the trees barely a stride from each other, to be anything like Wolf Grove. How a wolf could run here, I have no idea.

The smells of the woods are thick in my face, my nose. Vale and I cannot stand side by side, for the trees are too close together. Gaia managed to set us down carefully. If I turn too quickly, I suspect I’d hit all three trees surrounding me. Vale, the same.

I nod ahead, silently telling my Second to move forward. Quietly.

The soft dirt of the floor muffles our steps, eating up the sound of our boots on the ground, avoiding tree roots.

For the hell of it, I try to reach out to Zenna down the bond. I can still feel her, but it’s as though she’s behind a wall. Out of range. I cast a glance at Vale, who seems to be frustrated by the closeness of the woods. He twists and turns, brow beaten, and I know he would be growling if we weren’t trying to be silent.

Alaric could be anywhere.

He could be lying in wait, already aware that we’re here.

We tried to send him a letter. No response.

My hackles rise as a scent meets my nose. A wolf. My gaze darts to Vale, his eyes already on mine. He nods. He smells it, too.

The scent is undoubtedly a wolf, a more potent shifter scent than any I’ve ever experienced. I used to notice my father smelled more when he was alpha, as though his strength made his scent more overwhelming. Intimidating.

I crouch low to the ground but don’t shift. I can’t speak if I’m in wolf form. I keep my steps silent, treading around fallen leaves which might crunch if I step on them. Around branches which might as well scream with their loud snaps.

I pause, something catching at my senses. These woods feel wrong, somehow. Aside from the strange closeness of the trees… My head snaps up to Vale. He seems to notice it at the same time as I do.

The woods are utterly silent.

I blink in the shadows. Not a single whisper of sound.

No breeze, birdsong or scuttering of animals. No running water from a nearby stream.

Nothing.

I inhale slowly. The only sound. Exhale. I’m tempted to shift, if only to enhance my senses, but I remember Gaia’s warning. It may be seen as a threat, a challenge, if we find Alaric. I grit my teeth. Whatever this place is, I don’t like it.

Vale and I creep forward, slowly, for several long minutes, barely breathing in the silent woods.

The farther into the woods we go, the sparser the trees seem to become, slowly opening up for us, as though in a false welcome, attempting to lower our guard.

Sunlight filters through the tops of the trees, lighting our way. It doesn’t make much difference to my wolf vision, but it’s a little bit comforting. I freeze. Two trees ahead of me, something is moving. I raise a hand, and Vale can finally move closer to me now that the trees aren’t pressed up against us.

I tilt my head, trying to figure out what I’m seeing. There’s something on or attached to the tree. A small noise. Whimpering. An animal?

Vale and I approach, flanking the tree carefully.