12
Ness
The next daywas just as dreary. My body ached and begged me to slow down, but there was no time. Alvin was still a threat to everyone in the Lakesedge Pack, me most of all. If we wasted even a day, we might lose whatever advantage we had.
I wrapped my arms around myself as I looked up at the abandoned building that Alvin had taken me to barely a handful of days ago. The air here was cold, but maybe that was the stormfront heading our way. I shivered and followed Ryder inside.
He claimed that we could look for clues here, but I doubted that we would find anything useful. If anything, I thought I was about to find my way into an anxiety attack—a whole lot of good that would do anyone.
Still, I followed Ryder. He sniffed the air, his chin lifting ever so slightly with each inhale. I did the same and found nothing out of the ordinary. The building smelled of dust, burnt candles, and me. I followed the scent of candles into the room where Alvin had set up the ritual.
The duffle bag was still there. I kicked aside the silver bindings that I’d left behind and tried to ignore the shiver trying to climb my spine again. I hated this. I didn’t want to be here. It was just a reminder of a battle I still hadn’t won.
Looking over my shoulder, I watched Ryder prowl from empty room to empty room as though he might find something useful. There wasn’t a trail here. I couldn’t smell Alvin or the witch. Both had hidden their scents behind magic.
Perhaps I could call Cerri and ask for a potion that might undo the witch’s spell work, but I didn’t know if there would be a scent left behind. How did it work? Did the spell mask a scent? Or did it keep someone from even leaving a scent behind? I wasn’t about to waste time to uncover something that might not even be there.
Then Ryder called out. I followed the sound of my name and found him standing in the exit. Ryder crouched and picked something up from the ground just outside the exit. A small wood medallion hung from his fingertips.
I lifted both brows. My heart pattered excitedly at the sight of the spelled sigil in Ryder’s hands. Curious, I sniffed the air.
Immediately, my stomach churned at the scent of rot in the air. I gagged.
“Beryl mentioned that Alvin has a curse on him. She isn’t sure where it came from, but it’s been eating away at him.” Ryder looked out into the alley behind the building.
There was a narrow strip of pavement that ran along the back of the building, an iron fence parallel to it. On the other side of the iron fence was a small park with an overflowing trashcan at the center.
As I stared at the trashcan, my mind turned over recent events. A while back, Alvin had kidnapped my father and tried to use him against me. As Ryder had been carrying me away from the scene, I’d felt my arcana move for the first time that day. I just hadn’t recognized it at the time when I’d said:
“I hope you go down kicking and screaming under the claws of the ones you should have protected. I hope you know the pain you’ve caused.”
Maybe I was the one who’d cursed him. I hadn’t meant to. The words didn’t seem like enough to explain what was going on. I brought my hand to my throat, my fingertips grazing my skin.
What kind of power did I have? It was just another reason I couldn’t let Alvin take control of me.
Just another reason I had to keep my distance from Ryder.
Man, this shit sucked bug fat balls, and I was fucking tired of it. I really hoped that curse took effect sooner rather than later.
I pushed past Ryder and followed Alvin’s rotten scent to the iron fence. The tyrant Alpha had hopped the fence. A small scrap of fabric clinging to the top radiated Alvin’s horrid aroma. I slapped my hand over my mouth and nose before stumbling back.
Glancing up and down the fenced-in alley, I searched for an exit. When I didn’t see one nearby, I knew we had to hop the fence, too. Ryder knelt near it and cupped his hands together so he could give me a boost up and over.
“Are you sure you want my muddy boots in your hands?” I asked teasingly.
Ryder sighed and rolled his eyes. While I wanted to stay here and poke at him some more, I knew we had a job to do. When would we get a break, though? I still wanted to go back to my parents’ kitchen and the smell of fresh-cooked bacon.
That sounded so much better than tracking a three-day-old scent trail toward the monster who’d been tormenting me for half of my life.
Ryder
Ness was prickly today.I wanted to pry and figure out what was bothering her, but she’d made it clear that she didn’t want me. My dragon growled hungrily whenever I thought of my mate, but I had to remind the beast that we couldn’t make her do anything.
Our mate had made a decision. Though I didn’t know why, I had to respect it…
I had to try, at the very least.
My beast growled stubbornly. I could feel its rising ire twisting. The beast’s thoughts were becoming tangled and wrong. I swallowed them back, but that didn’t stop the creature’s corruption.