Chapter 523

• Shoving against the ground, I sit up on my haunches. They’re so huge in their shadow forms that I could stand up and still not be taller than they are lying down. Irritation ripples through me, and I call up my magic to shift back to human form. Even though they’re still bigger than me as human men, they aren’t as monstrously huge as their shadow wolves. I’ll take what I can get.
• I stand on tired, wobbly legs and rest a hand on one hip. “We need to talk.”
• The three wolves exchange glances, but I ignore them and cross to a patch of grass beneath a heavy, low-hanging pine tree. Snow crunches beneath my bare feet, and the wind is frigid on my skin. The space beneath the evergreen’s branches forms a more sheltered area, away from the cold and snow. I drop to the ground once more and lean back against the tree trunk, because I don’t feel like I can fully keep myself upright without a little assistance at the moment.