Chapter 24

• I slump down on the ground and almost immediately revert to human form, as I don’t have the energy or the skill to sustain my wolf form yet. Exhaling with a strangled cry of relief and emotion as everything hits me hard. Like being in a train wreck, only it’s all mental now the physical has been brushed away. That took so much out of me to save my life, and I’m spent.
• Colton scurries over to me and hauls me into his arms without hesitation, a look of relief on his face, and yanks me close to his chest. Wrapping me up and smooths his hands over my naked body to check for any sign of unhealed marks. There are none. Wolf healing is incomparable and almost always entirely effective. There are only a few things in this world that wolves can’t heal from, and none are present tonight. He tugs my face to his throat and hugs me with less panic in his touch, exhaling heavily as he allows himself a moment of relief that warms me to my core and brings me some calm.
• “The pack have them in retreat. I need to get you to safety and follow them. There are survivors, and we have to stop them before we lose them.” He nuzzles his face against my hair before shifting me, making it clear we can’t stay here. He helps me up, pulling me to my feet, and, holding me close to his body, leads me to one of the abandoned trucks scattered in every street surrounding the school. I recognize them as belonging to the Santo family. They must have flooded in from every part of the mountain at a moment’s notice.