“Anymore,” I say firmly. “She’s not human anymore. But she was. She was raised human in a town full of A.M.A. zealots. You can’t blame Luther for being confused.”
A low growl comes from Kole’s throat. Usually, it’s meand Luther getting on each other’s nerves, not Kole and Luther—those two have been brothers since the Academy.
“Do you know how Nova feels about him?” I ask, pushing leaves out of my face as the forest thickens.
“Doyou?” Kole replies.
I shake my head. “I haven’t asked.”
“But you must sense something when she’s around him.”
“She feels so much when she’s around us these days, it’s hard to tell who’s making her feel what.” A proud sort of chuckle ripples my chest. She feels a lot of stuff. A lot ofgoodstuff. “Maybe just let them figure it out, Kole. Luther knows that if he hurts her, we’ll kick his ass.”
Kole glances at me, then releases an unexpected laugh. “’Fraid I did more thankickhis ass.”
I keep walking but grab his arm. “You and Luther?” My eyes widen. Immediately, my cock pays attention. “No way?! When?”
“Couple of days ago.”
I tilt my head to the side. “Did you tell Nova?”
“She was surprised, but okay with it.”
“Of course, she was,” I laugh. “Who wouldn’t be okay with that visual?”
Kole’s about to reply when he stops walking. He raises his palm. In front of him, the mask shimmers. We stop talking. “Ready?” he asks me, taking a step closer.
Reluctantly, I push the image of Kole and Luther from my head. “Ready.”
2
NOVA
Kole and Tanner have been gone less than five minutes when Snow finally ambles back up the cabin’s steps. He can barely fit through the front door, and Luther yells at him to be careful as he stomps dirt across the living room.
Sam watches carefully as Snow shifts into Mack. “It’s different,” he says, cocking his head. “We keep our clothes. Werewolves, I mean.”
“Shame,” I tell him, enjoying the flush of color in his cheeks.
“They’ve gone?” Mack asks, standing stark naked in the middle of the room.
I nod, appreciating his exposed body and the fact he’s never even been a little bit embarrassed to be naked in front of other people.
Looking at Luther, he says, “I’ll change, then we’ll talk. I have an idea.”
Luther frowns in response but he doesn’t move from the couch—just takes a long sip from his whiskey glass. “Sounds ominous,” he says.
Instead of replying, Mack turns and strides toward the stairs. I watch him for another long moment then, finally, I take my gaze away from his perfect butt and tell Sam I’m going to sit outside for a while.
“Need to clear my head before we…” I gesture to the ‘research’ table.
“I’ll join you in a minute,” Sam replies, squeezing my waist.
On the veranda, I sit down and cross my legs. It’s cold out, and my sweater isn’t thick enough to keep me warm. I raise my palm, blink at it, and a ball of flames appears. Conjuring fire from nowhere has become easy. Second nature—or perhaps first nature. But as Professor Mack told me a while ago, I’ll need more tricks than this to defeat what’s coming.
I know that now, and it terrifies me.
Since all this started, one thing after another has taken my attention away from the fact that an ancient prophecy saysI’mthe one who is supposed to save humanity. Somehow, I’m supposed to stop this primal, evil force from being unleashed on the world. But no one seems sure precisely how or when I’ll be expected to show up and save the day.