Total pages in book: 47
Estimated words: 46587 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 233(@200wpm)___ 186(@250wpm)___ 155(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 46587 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 233(@200wpm)___ 186(@250wpm)___ 155(@300wpm)
She turns to me, clutching on. “I’m sorry.”
“You don’t have to apologize, Ilsa,” Ramsey says. “It’s a lot to take in. It always is, for everybody.”
He’s looking at me as if to say, But not for you. You accepted it right away.
“What?” I snap, suddenly losing my cool. “It’s not that surprising. I was raised in a psycho cult where they told us demons were real, physical things, and they’d sneak into our rooms and kill us if we ever….”
Had impure thoughts.
I shiver at the memory.
“If we didn’t do what Master Pete wanted.”
“Master Pete?” Ramsey says.
I shake my head. “It doesn’t matter. The point is, I know what it’s like to switch quickly from one...from one freaking reality to the other, okay!”
Ramsey smirks, but his eyes tell a different story.
They’re blazing red. They’re burning like he wants to consume me.
“Oh, my,” Mom says when she notices it. “How are you...?”
“It’s part of being a wolf,” Liam says. “We have to maintain control, always. When a wolf starts losing control of that fire, that beast inside, sometimes our eyes glow. We can’t help it.”
I look at Ramsey again. His face is turned away.
Was he angry with me, then? Why was he staring like that?
The moment passes when Mom abruptly stands, hands on her hips. “I just don’t think any of this...It’s not...I don’t....”
“Would it help if you saw?” Liam asks, looking at her steadily.
“What?” Mom says, some snappiness in her voice. “You’re going to become a wolf, are you?”
“I’d rather not destroy these fine clothes.”
Liam grins, and Ramsey chuckles, and then I laugh, mostly because it’s so sweet to hear it from Ramsey.
Liam stands and rolls up his sleeve.
“It takes years of training to master the wolf instinct. For most, it’s better to only ever remain in the human state. For some, it’s better to be just the human or just the wolf. Never exist in-between. There’s a rare few – and Ramsey is one of them – who have mastered their wolf instincts to the point where they can....”
He trails off, wincing, as his fingers make a crack noise. It looks like his bones are writhing under his skin.
I look away, wincing, then force myself to look back.
If I’m going to be a nurse one day, if I’m going to help people, I can’t allow myself to look away.
Mom winces and huddles close to me, putting her head on my shoulder.
But I keep staring.
His bones crack and shift, then, maybe two minutes later, he has a giant heaving paw. It’s the most surreal thing I’ve ever seen, his human wrist going to the paw. He cradles it with his other hand.
“Is your wrist too weak to support it?”
Liam smiles, looking at Ramsey as if to say, She’s a keeper.
But no, he’s not keeping me.
But he saved me. We shared that moment.
I don’t have to choose between Ramsey and the wolf.
They’re the same, both mine.
Forever.
“It is,” Liam nods. “Normally, if I wanted to use one paw, I would transform my entire arm and parts of my torso. More commonly, we change our canines, or we can subtly alter our scenting abilities even when in human form. We can harden our bones. Things like that.”
I stare in fascination at it.
“It’s amazing, Liam,” Ramsey says. “Your control.”
“Jo taught me well. And you can do this, Ramsey. Just not….”
Liam glances at me then back at Ramsey.
“What?” I mutter.
Liam ignores me, looking at Mom, and I wonder what I’ve just missed.
Ramsey doesn’t have control...because of me?
I remember how he heaved in the alleyway, his eyes fixated on me, how hot his breath was. And the flaring of his eyes. And he was there that first night.
Liam mentioned scenting ability.
Did Ramsey scent me?
“Ilsa,” Liam says. “You have to look.”
“I can’t,” she whispers.
“Mom, if you don’t want to look it’s okay. But you have to believe it’s happening because it is. We’re in danger. We need to be real about the situation.”
Mom sighs, taking a step back, still with her face averted. Then she makes an effort to turn her head, staring down at the paw, the fur silver like Ramsey’s.
Except nobody is like Ramsey.
Everything about him is too perfect, too mine.
“Oh,” Mom says. “Would you look at that!”
Liam laughs softly. “Quite the sight, isn’t it?”
“Can you move it?” Mom says.
“It’s not a prop.”
She gasps when Liam flexes his what, his toes, fingers? Can a paw have fingers?
“You can touch it,” Liam says. “If you still don’t believe me.”
“May I?” Mom whispers. “I just have to be sure.”
“Of course. It’s not a problem.”
Mom walks over, takes a moment, then softly prods him.
“Ouch,” Liam gasps, leaping back. “That hurt.”
Mom cries out, her hands flying over her mouth, then erupts into laughter when she sees Liam grinning. We all do, Ramsey looking at me, red eyes flickering like he’s saying, This is the start. We’ll become friends. And me and you, Ruby, we’ll become so much more.