Jaw clenched, he angrily shook his head.
Can you hear me, Chance?
His expression didn’t change. He was clearly trying, and just as clearly failing.
Finally, Chance gave up. “Nothing.”
I nodded, disappointed but not surprised. “Let’s head to Tern Point, where the feeders are. Then we’ll walk up Turtle Beach. If we haven’t found anything by the time we hit gator territory, we can—”
“Sweet Jesus!” Chance stumbled, gripping the sides of his head.
I grabbed an arm to steady him. Surprisingly, Ben hooked the other. The older boy slumped between us, trembling in our hands. “Chance?” I hissed. “What’s wrong?”
His scarlet eyes were wide with shock. “I can’t hear you in my mind. But I hear them.”
Shelton snagged his earlobe and yanked. “What do you mean, them? Like, them them?”
Gripping Chance by the shoulder, I forced eye contact. “You can hear the Trinity?”
He nodded dumbly. “Kind of. Like a radio playing in another room. Weak, but it’s there.”
“Naturally.” Ben dropped Chance’s arm. “Since you’re in their pack, not ours.”
Shut it, Ben. I gave him a warning look. Not here. Not tonight.
Ben looked away. Fine.
“Oh, snap!” Hi lifted two thumbs-ups. “We’ve got a wiretap!”
Chance was trying to gather himself. “I can’t hear what they’re thinking, if that’s what you mean. The connection is too . . . too . . .” He struggled for words. “Flimsy. Too tenuous. Like I’m listening to a butt-dialed voice message. I’m not sure . . .”
Chance quieted for a long moment, periodically shaking his head.
You think he blew a fuse? Catching my eye, Shelton nodded discreetly at Chance. Don’t forget, he was crazy before. Like, nuthouse loco.
Maybe he gets satellite radio, too. Hi tapped his temple. We owe it to ourselves to check.
He’s one of them. Ben’s denunciation was laced with scorn. I say we leave him in the woods.
Enough! I glared at the boys. Chance and the Trinity caught the same strain of parvovirus. Just as we did, from Coop. It makes sense that he’s on their . . . channel. Wavelength. Whatever.
He is wolf. Coop’s sending arrowed through the ether and landed in my brain. His message had the tone of a grade-school lesson. Pack can change. Wolf is wolf.
Chance was glancing from face to face, no doubt aware he was a topic of silent debate.
Who knows? Perhaps he could feel it.
“I’m not crazy.” Chance blew out a breath. “I can sense their communications, but can’t hear the content. And I get the impression they don’t know I’m listening. But if I push too hard—like trying to actually read their thoughts—I’m certain they’ll detect me. Shut me out for good.”
“Then what’s the point?” Ben challenged. “You can’t help at all.”
Chance spoke through gritted teeth. “Would you like to know exactly where they are?”
Before anyone could answer, Chance pointed to the right-hand path. “That way. Maybe three hundred yards. All three of the bastards.”
Jackpot.
Hi, Shelton, and even Ben nodded at once. I hadn’t realized I’d sent the thought.
Smiling coldly, I gestured down the trail.
“Lead the way, Claybourne.”
“Do you see it?” Chance whispered.
“Yes.” I was annoyed by having to speak, but with Chance there was no choice.
Of course I saw it. We were crouched side-by-side at the edge of a tree line, flare-eyes blazing. With my powers unleashed, the moonlit clearing before me sparkled like Christmas.
A tent had been erected beside an ancient oak in the meadow’s center. To its right, three folding chairs surrounded what looked like an unlit camp stove. Pale yellow light leaked from inside the shelter, but no people were visible.
“I can . . .” Chance squinted, as if straining to listen. “I hear them . . . inside my head. Three voices. Muffled. But I can’t see their faces. I don’t . . .”
Then Chance’s eyelids snapped open, red fire spilling from his irises. He pointed to the middle of the clearing. “There. I’m sure of it.”
“Okay.” I glanced at my packmates, huddled a step behind me. Ready?
Shelton was bouncing on the balls of his feet. Tory, do you realize where we are?
I frowned. What? Where?
Hi jabbed a finger dead ahead. That is the clearing, Tory! Where it all started. This is where we found Katherine Heaton.
My breath caught. Memories came flooding back.
An angry monkey. The weathered dog tag. Our midnight dig.
Discovering a young woman’s bones.
Before the supervirus. Before the sickness. Before everything else that occurred.
We’d uncovered a grisly murder in this exact spot.
Emotions roiled through me, unexpectedly intense.
We’d been in this position before.
Stalking these woods in the dead of night. Trying to solve a mystery.
Full circle.
And not just us. Ben’s voice boomed inside my brain as he glared at Chance’s back. Don’t forget, your buddy Claybourne was here that night as well. He and his henchmen, chasing us through the forest with guns.
Ben’s rancorous sending shocked me. Mainly because it was true.
My eyes darted to the boy crouching beside me. Was Chance playing us again?
Ben certainly thought so. We’re relying solely on him. I don’t like this.
Shelton fidgeted behind me, his thoughts oozing suspicion as he rattled off points. Chance claims he can hear the Trinity. He brought us here all by himself. But what are the odds they’d come to this exact place on their own? A random field that’s only important to us, on an isolated island almost no one knows about.
Ben’s eyes narrowed dangerously. A place he knows as well as we do.
Chance turned, sensing another hidden conversation. “What’s going on?”
Accuse him. There was nothing playful in Hi’s tone. See what happens.
“You’re working with them,” I blurted, watching Chance closely. “The Trinity.”
“What?” His eyebrows climbed his forehead. “Of course not! Why would you say that?”
“Remember this place?” I hissed. “I certainly do. I can still feel the bullets zipping past my head.”
Chance spun back to face the clearing. Froze. “Sweet Jesus.”
He whirled, startled me by grabbing one of my hands, his fiery gaze brimming with intensity. “Victoria Brennan, I’m not lying. I don’t know why the Trinity came to this spot, but I had nothing to do with it.”
Ben edged closer. My hand rose to stop him.
I stared into Chance’s glowing red eyes. He didn’t flinch. Didn’t look away.
Chance’s voice grew plaintive. “I’m with you. I swear it.”
After a long moment, I nodded slowly. “Okay. I believe you.”
Don’t be stupid! Ben’s anger surged through our bond. I thought you don’t believe in coincidence?
“I don’t believe in coincidence,” I said aloud, removing my hand from Chance’s and focusing on the tent. “There’s an explanation. Right out there.”
Ben seemed ready to argue further, but Shelton intervened. Let it go, man. We’ve got no choice but to trust Chance tonight. We’re in too deep.
I heard Ben shift behind me. Hiram? Back me up!
Hi mentally shrugged. We’ll ask plenty of questions later. I promise.
Ben’s thoughts were scorching. Fine. For now.
I reached back to squeeze Ben’s arm, but he pulled away. Oh well.
“I hear them again!” Chance was staring into the clearing. “It’s coming from the tent.??
?
“One person?” I whispered, scanning for any sign the tent was occupied. “Or all three?”
“I’m not sure. My sense is vague.” He aimed a finger at the blue nylon dome beside the meadow’s lonely tree. “But it’s definitely that direction.”
I rolled my shoulders, trying to ease tense muscles. “Options?”
Bull rush. With action imminent, Ben was all business. Straight in. See what we catch.
Could work. I sensed Hi weighing options. They don’t know we’re here, and we’ve got the numbers advantage.
Careful! Shelton cautioned. We all thought this was some kind of challenge. That means the Trinity wanted us to come.
True. But perhaps we moved quicker than expected. Not everyone prowls the dead of night.
Virals do.
I made the call. “Chance and Ben, rush the tent. The rest of us will circle, keeping watch.” I turned, caught the attention of both older boys. “We want to corner them. Identify the other two members of the Trinity. Get answers. That’s it for now. Understood?”
Ben nodded impatiently. If they play nice, I’ll play nice.
“I’m not looking for a fight,” Chance assured me. “I share a bond with these three, obviously. Hopefully . . .”
He didn’t finish. Didn’t need to.
None of us knew what was about to happen.
I gave the clearing a last scan. Took a deep breath.
Go.
We fired from the trees in silence. Streaking across the field, we reached the tent in seconds. Ben didn’t hesitate, grabbing the zipper, ripping it upward, and charging inside. Chance was a heartbeat behind him.
The light inside the tent disappeared. I felt a stab of panic from Ben.
I froze, unsure what was happening.
“Whaa!” Chance grunted. I heard a dull thud, followed quickly by another.
A flash of pain touched my mind.
Back! The force of Ben’s sending rocked me. Trap!
“Ben!?” I shouted, abandoning stealth. “Chance!?”
“Don’t come inside!” Chance yelled, his voice strangely muffled. “We’ve fallen into some kind of hole!”
Tiger pit! Hi grabbed one of the tent’s nylon walls and pulled.
The stakes held. I moved to help while Shelton turned his back to mine, trying to watch everywhere at once. A few more tugs ripped the tent from the ground.
We stepped back, stared down in shock.
Chance and Ben were tangled at the bottom of a ten-foot pit. It was a miracle neither had broken their neck. Ben winced as he worked an elbow. Having gone in first, he appeared to have gotten the worst of it, though blood oozed from a gash on Chance’s cheek.
Suddenly, Chance grabbed his head with a grimace. “I can hear them clearly now! They’re taunting me.” His jaw clenched. “I’m such an idiot! They led me here like a child. Now they . . .”
Chance’s eyes rounded. “Get back, Tory! They’re right above—”
His whole body jerked. Chance made an unnatural sound, then his eyes rolled back. I watched in horror as he slumped against the wall of the pit, face slack, drool spilling from his mouth.
“Chance!”
Then his warning registered.
My eyes shot to the branches overhanging the campsite.
Three sets of red eyes glared down at me.
A cold voice hissed from above.
“Hello, cousins. Glad you could make it.”
Backpedaling, I noticed a crisscross pattern blocking the moonlight.
No time to cry out. I dove to the side just as the cargo net released, trapping Hi and Shelton underneath. Then I scrambled to my feet, trying not to panic.
The largest shape dropped from the tree.
When it stepped forward, I recognized Will Speckman.
He sneered at me, a tall, sturdy boy with dark brown hair and heavy eyebrows.
“You must be Tory.”
My eyes darted back to the branches, but even flaring I couldn’t make out the other two hiding in the shadows.
“What happened to Chance?” First question I could think of.
Speckman shrugged, red eyes sparkling with amusement. “Not sure, honestly. We shut him down. He’d been spying on us, so we had to nip that in the bud. Then again, I guess it’s not really spying if we let him hear. But that’s over now.”
“Get me out of here!” Ben snarled from below. “You’ve got ten seconds.”
Shelton and Hi had stopped struggling with the net, and were listening to every word.
Speckman laughed, eyes never leaving me. “Don’t worry, someone’s coming for you.”
The hair on my arms rose. “What do you mean?”
Speckman ignored the question. “Honestly, I thought you guys would be better than this. You’ve had so much more time to practice. But I guess your virus was the weaker strain. Which is why you have to go.”
I felt a tingling in my subconscious, but ignored it. “Who’s coming, Will?”
“Charleston is a one-pack town, Brennan. Ours.” He swept a lazy hand toward his companions lurking in the tree. I stared hard, but still couldn’t see their faces. “Sorry, but this is how it has to be.”
“What are you talking about?” The tingling became an itch. I was too distracted to notice. “You’re not making sense. What’s wrong with Chance?”
Speckman’s expression hardened. “No wolf should abandon his pack.”
Then the itch exploded inside my head, pushing all other thoughts aside.
Sister-friend.
Coop’s sending thundered in my mind.
We come.
I smiled. Felt a surge of adrenaline.
“You made a mistake, Will. You didn’t catch us all.”
He snorted. “You’re gonna stop us, alone?”
Leaves rustled behind me.
Speckman’s gaze flicked over my shoulder.
“Alone?” I barked a laugh. “Guess you haven’t met the extended family.”
A heavy form burst from the bushes.
Coop exploded past me, a gray blur followed closely by two others. Polo and Buster—Coop’s dad and brother—shadowed my packmate as he buzzed Speckman’s legs, snapping his massive jaws. The canine trio formed a moving circle around their quarry, teeth bared and fur bristling.
Speckman’s eyes popped, but he recovered quickly, lashing a booted foot at Buster as he padded by. “You think these dogs scare me!?” Speckman darted forward and swung a fist at Polo, but the wolfdog nimbly leaped aside.
A deep, low growl split the night air.
The noise echoed across the clearing, sending shivers up my spine.
The circling canines halted, sitting back on their haunches and watching Speckman with luminous golden eyes.
Speckman froze, the first trace of fear pinching his features.
I didn’t turn. Crossed my arms. Arched an eyebrow at my adversary.
I knew who had arrived.
Whisper stalked from the shadows, silently gliding to my side, her gleaming eyes pinned to the red-eyed Viral before me. A full-grown gray wolf, her head rose well past my waist. She paused, as if in judgment. Then Cooper’s mother bared her teeth at Speckman with unmistakable malice.
Flaring ears amped, I heard sharp intakes of breath from the pair in the branches. Scarlet eyes shot toward each other, then back to the angry, bristling, terrifying alpha wolf crouching beside me.
Whisper growled a second time. I felt it in my bones.
“Whoa. Take it easy.” Speckman tried to watch all four animals at once. “Can’t you guys take a joke?”
Hi giggled beneath the heavy cargo net. “You’re dog food, bro. Shouldn’t have messed with the lady’s feeder.”
Movement inside the hole.
“Blue!?
?? Chance barked in a strained voice. “On my shoulders.”
Shelton had wiggled his upper body free of the rope prison. Cooper! Little help!
My wolfdog glanced over, then trotted to Shelton’s aid.
Buster and Polo inched toward Speckman, tightening the noose. The tall boy jab-stepped at one, then the other, sweat glistening his forehead. But his eyes never left the wolf.
“Call them off!” He raised his hands. “I’ll talk. I have information you need!”
Fur bristling, tail erect, Whisper stepped closer to Speckman.
A rough, primal message crackled inside my head, more image than words.
Pack. Protect. Fight.
Not yet, my friend. A moment.
Whisper growled a third time, but halted.
Moment. Only.
Thank you.
We came to corner the Trinity, not rip them to shreds. But could I call off Whisper even if I wanted to? She didn’t seem interested in negotiation. Likely didn’t understand the concept.
“What information?” I pointed to the snarling wolf at my side. “Talk fast. She doesn’t take orders from me.”
One of Ben’s arms snaked from the pit. With Shelton death-gripping his collar, Coop dragged my skinny friend free of the net. Hi had given up trying to escape and simply watched the action, hands propping his chin, a little boy absorbing Saturday morning cartoons.
Speckman opened his mouth to speak, then seemed to think twice. His head tilted like a bird’s. Then his body went still, his face curiously blank.
Something’s—
Two thumps sounded in the darkness.
My eyes shot to the branches, found them empty.
Look out!
Shadows darted at Buster and Polo. The two dogs scampered back, yipping in pain and surprise.
Speckman spun and ran for a break in the circle.
Whisper was quicker.
Moving faster than thought, she bounded forward and knocked Speckman from his feet. A massive paw dropped onto his back.
Speckman screamed in terror.
Everyone froze. Ben. Shelton. The two dark silhouettes at the campsite’s edge. Even my canine allies. My hand shot out, though I was too far away to intervene. Whisper, no!
The wolf crouched over Speckman’s prone form. He tensed, but wisely didn’t move. I could see Whisper’s hot breath misting the back of his exposed neck.