thought. But something inside of me, urged me to follow the whispers. A
sixth sense.
Or a death wish.
The roots in the walls thickened as the voices grew louder, but still, I
couldn't discern their words. As I pressed further into the underground hell,
the smell of sweat and grime burned my throat. What was that?
My heart pounded against my ribs as I followed the musk, and then I
froze.
Lining the walls of the cave, wrapped in roots, were bodies.
Horror coursed through me as I gazed up at the clusters of suspended
people. Their skin was ashen and smudged with dirt, and apart from the
barely perceptible rise and fall of their chests, they appeared dead.
I moved closer and sucked in a sharp breath when I recognized the face of
a woman—one of the sleepers Jaxson had shown me on his laptop. These
were the shifters who’d fallen under the sorcerer’s curse.
I reached out to touch her, but a familiar voice stopped me: “Savannah,
you know what they say. Let sleeping wolves lie."
My heart clenched.
Kahanov.
I slowly turned as his foul signature buffeted my senses.
“You bastard.” My nailbeds itched, and my wolf stirred.
“I had a dream I would see you again,” Kahanov said. “Funny how
interesting dreams can get when they become real. What brings you here,
anyway?”
I tensed to leap, but he whipped up a hand that erupted in green flame.
“Ah, ah, ah. I could’ve already killed you where you stand, but I want you
alive. We need to talk.”
I froze. How fast could he move?
“Release the wolves,” I snapped, trying to buy myself time to think.
“No. Not until you give me yours.”