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necklace and it grew warm in my hand.
I immediately dropped it, letting it fall back into place around my neck .   What was causing
that? Were we were standing that close to the fire?
    The countdown continued: “Six, five, four, three, two, one .”
    I could hear cheers coming from all sides.
    “All right!”
    “Let’s party!”
    “Bring it on, Goat Man!”
    The next sound I heard was unidentifiable. There were deep
growls and a high-pitched wailing which made my ears ring. In the bonfire smoke,
I saw the face of what appeared to be a man, but something was seriously off.
    Ryan hauled me closer to the fire.
    “He’s right on time . Now you will
get to meet my new friend.”
    I glared at him through my tears. “Ryan, what have you done ?”
    He frowned. “Only what you have forced me to do. If you had
obeyed me, this wouldn’t have been necessary.”
    Obey
him? Was he serious?
    The landscape spun, nausea overtaking me as I fought to
remain conscious. Suddenly, the man in the smoke solidified and stepped through
the fire. All hell broke loose. People cheered and danced around the fire at
inhuman speed as if under a spell.
    The stranger beckoned to me with one manicured finger. “You
must be Caitlin. I am Egan. I would have recognized you even without Ryan’s
description—you have your mother’s beauty. Our Ryan has told us so much about
you, and we have been so anxious to meet you.”
    My
mother? What did she have to do with all of this?
    My necklace was scorching my skin. The stranger’s voice was
quiet and bordered on seductive. It sounded so familiar, like something I had
heard once in a dream. I was terrified and rooted to the spot, my entire body
shaking.
    Ryan, who still had one arm around my waist in a vise grip,
towed me toward the unwelcome visitor, but suddenly I heard a rustling sound coming
from the tree line behind me to my right. As I struggled to look, a huge,
chestnut-colored wolf sprang from the foliage and stood between the stranger
and us. The wolf bared its incredibly sharp teeth at the man, growling deep in
its throat and watching with violet eyes.
    I knew those eyes .
    The man took a couple steps back, and an unseen force tore me
away from Ryan. I didn’t know how much more I could take before I fainted.
    The wolf was circling our group, especially Egan, who still
watched me with curious eyes. My vision blurred as I was spun around. Finding myself in the haven of Talon’s strong arms, I cried
uncontrollably with relief.
    Talon swept my feet out from underneath me.
    “Hold on, Ves’tacha ,
we are going to move fast. Just close your eyes. I have you.” I squeezed my
eyes shut and held on like my life depended on it. As
he picked up speed, I was weightless. Next thing I knew, we were back at the clearing
where we left the vehicles, and I was completely disoriented .
    Leah was already perched on a 4-wheeler. She watched the
clearing with frightened eyes and a tearstained face.
    “Caiti!” she cried. “Where did you go? I couldn’t find you
anywhere. I thought you were right behind me.”
    I turned my attention to Talon. “Where’s Jace? I thought I
saw…never mind.” I rubbed my temples. “My head hurts so much.”
    He caressed my face with infinite tenderness. “He is on his
way. It will take him a moment to pull himself back together.” He held a finger
to his lips and his tone told me I was not to share anything else with Leah for
now.
    Oh, if he was
telling me what I thought he was… and it was about Jace – I might throw up.
    I heard the sound of rapid footsteps and screamed. Jace
trotted out of the woods, shirtless, and headed straight over to Leah, gathering
her in his arms and giving her a kiss.
    Talon put me down gently on the seat of the 4-wheeler. “Hang
on. We are going to need to move fast.”
    Jace asked Talon. “Sanctuary?”
    Talon nodded, and his shoulders sagged. “I see no other
choice.”
    Jace revved the throttle and peeled out.
    “Wait!” I cried.