Steve's hand landed on my shoulder, stopping me. 'What if it's a trap, Charlotte? I'm supposed to protect you.'
I glared at him. 'How can it be a trap if Liam's with Aaron and his pack? Please.' I shook his grasp free and continued forward. Another scream filled my ear.
'Ty?' I asked.
'I think someone's down here with me,' Ty said. 'I think I'm being followed. Please help me.'
'I'm coming, Ty. Don't wo...' My phone beeped twice and then fizzled out. 'No, no, no!' I smacked my cell phone several times, but the connection was gone. 'I lost her. It's dead.' Stress poisoned my veins.
I strode forward, pushing the loose branches from my path. I could hear Steve behind me, but I couldn't even see. He grabbed my arm.
'I'm going, Steve.'
'That's the wrong way,' he said.
Steve shrugged and gave a weak smile. 'Liam will kill me if I let you out of my sight.'
I felt like crying. 'Thank you,' I said.
He titled his head to the side, and pointed up at the halo of branches overhead. 'The moon's over there. So that means East is this way.' He pointed in the opposite direction. 'If we head in this way, we should end up at the main road. It will lead us to the old farm. It's a good hike though, about six miles from where we are.'
'Six miles?' This would take forever on foot. Ty needed us now.
'I can shift and you can ride me,' Steve said with a shrug. 'It'll be a lot faster. Of course, you'll have to hold on harder. We won't exactly be loping.'
The thought of riding a wolf at a full out run, leaping over logs, twisting and turning on a dime, made me cringe. I knew I'd fall off.
'Let's do it,' I said.
Steve didn't hesitate. He stepped under the covering of the brush. They snapped and popped, shaking as he changed form. With a low gurgling sniff, Steve's long angular nose poked through the shrubs. I could hear my pulse in my ears.
Steve, the smallest in the pack, stood leaner and far lankier than the others. His dark brown coat had white spattered around his muzzle, and his eyes, although gold, still held their human likeness. I stared, seeing the intelligence behind the animal. Steve cocked his head to the side and I turned away.
I needed to find something to write on.
'We better leave a note,' I said. I needed to focus. Of course the woods left little to work with.
Steve grunted and pushed his large wolf body past me. I watched, curious as to what he would do. How could a wolf leave a message?
Steve stopped in front of the large oak tree and pushed up onto his hind legs, resting his forepaws on the bark. Scratching down, his claws sliced letters into the tree.
My jaw dropped. 'You can write with your nails?'
Steve gave a wolfy grin and I shook my head. Why should I be surprised? At this point, anything had become possible.
He finished his carving and then hopped down, motioning for me to look. With a deep breath, I approached his art.
'Ty in trouble. Went to Farm.'
'That'll work.' I said. 'Come on, Ty needs us.'
The tremor in her voice still rang in my head. I even forgot about my fear of riding Steve as I hoisted myself up on his back. I did better this time on my mount, and gripped the scruff on his neck. My thigh muscles squeezed his ribs.
'Okay,' I said
Steve lunged forward, and I buried my head against his neck. He bounded and moved through the foliage at an ever-increasing pace, his stride more rude and choppy than Liam's had been. I hung on with all my might. Each twist of his hindquarters made my hips slide in the opposite direction. I did everything I could to keep Ty my focus, the one rationale of why I needed to be up there.
My body felt numb when the old weathered farmhouse came into view. Steve's nose gave a short, snarled sniff. A faint mist of breath circled his nostrils as he stopped about a hundred yards from the farmstead. Still under the faint covering of trees, I peeled my hands from his hair, and slid down. My knees wobbled and I almost lost my balance. Steve caught my shirt with his teeth, holding me in place.
'Thanks.' I said. My cheeks burned, but he didn't seem to notice. He stared at the house and the dirty, sage colored barn. Most of the windows had been broken and the panes wore thick layers of dust. The place had to have been abandoned for at least a decade. Even the large, rolling barn door leaned half off its hinge, cracks splintering it in more than one place.
In the bleak lighting from the moon, the place gave off an eerie vibration. Everything was too quiet. Not even a bird rustled. A pit formed in my stomach.
Chapter 21
'Come on.' My voice evaporated into the void around us, tangling in my throat.
Steve whined a funny sound and shrank back on his hind legs, edging himself under the cover of trees. The hair on his back rose as if brushed with static.
'Steve, what are you doing?'
He whimpered, retreating further.
'We need to find Ty,' I said. 'Come on. You're the big werewolf. What are you afraid of?'
Steve grunted and motioned with his head for me to back away with him. I stood my ground. 'No. I'm not leaving without my friend, Steve. I'll go alone.' I turned from him and started across the lawn toward the barn.
'Wait,' Steve said. I spun around to see the human version of Steve, hopping after me as he tried to pull on his jeans. The rude change was almost comical given different circumstances, but I was relieved that he decided to join me. 'Charlotte, something's not right here. I can smell it.'
I groaned. 'What can you smell, Steve?'
'Death,' he said.
'Death?' I asked. My mind went to Ty and panic flooded over me. I couldn't breathe right.
The ground tipped and Steve caught my shoulder, steadying me.
'Charlotte,' he said, trying to focus me. 'It doesn't smell like Ty. I don't think it's your friend.' I started to shake. 'Charlotte, can you hear me? It's not Ty.'
I nodded and swallowed hard.
'Look, I know your friend's in there, but something's not right. I don't know Aaron, but wolves don't leave dead bodies around their dens. The scent is human. I think we should go back and wait for Liam and the others.'
'Ty is in there,' I said. 'If she's not dead now, she could be next. She said she thought someone was following her. Oh, my God.' My eyes went wide. 'It could be too late.' Despite the fear rampaging through my body, I knew what I had to do. 'I have to go in there.'
'Charlotte,' Steve said. His palm gripped my shoulder. 'Think about what you're saying. We don't know what the hell is in there. We could all die. You could get killed.'
'I have to take that chance.' Part of me couldn't believe the words coming from me, but I knew I had to.
'Why?' he asked.
'She's my best friend.'
The pause following my words felt deafening.
'Then I'm coming with you,' he said, dropping his hold on me.
'You don't have to.' I didn't want to put his life at stake. I just needed to get Ty back.
Steve groaned. 'I'm dead if I don't. I might as well take my odds in there.'
