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“Wolf, it’s not real,” I reminded him. “Whatever you’re seeing isn’t there. I’m here.” I pressed my hands over his. “I’m real.”

His eyes flickered between me and whatever he saw behind me. I saw the fight in his darkening eyes, saw him trying to decipher it for himself.

“Stay with me, Wolf. It’s not real, remember that.”

“Right.” He looked at me and smiled, but it wasn’t a genuine smile. I knew him enough to know that. “It’s not real.”

He flinched, pulling out of my grasp and jumping to his feet.

“I did everything you asked,” he said to the invisible guest in the forest.

Wolf’s hand fell to his sword.

“Wolf,” I warned.

He rocked his head. “No, you can’t do this to me!”

I screamed his name again, but he couldn’t hear me. Not anymore.

His black wings spanned to their full length. “I knew it.” His teeth clenched, his fist tightened. “I knew you would turn out to be a coward. I never should have trusted you.”

He swung, his sword barely missing me. I crawled out of the way before jumping to my own feet and backing out of his reach.

He swung the sword a second time.

“It isn’t real, Wolf!”

We were both screaming, both being way too loud in the forest's silence. Any creatures within miles would hear us.

Anyvampyres.

“You can’t take them!” He staggered backward now, fighting an invisible enemy. “The wings are mine!”

I couldn’t just sit here and watch as Wolf swung his massive sword around, attracting all killer creatures to us with every shout.

I walked to the back of him slowly, trying not to draw any attention to myself, trying not to make a sound.

And then launched myself onto his back.

He stumbled even more with my added weight, but he did not fall. I wrapped my legs around his waist from behind and clung to his neck, even as his large black wings moved, trying to push me off.

“Relax!” I whispered directly into his ear, trying to calm him. “It’s me, Wolf! It’s just me and you here! You have your wings! Nobody is taking them!”

A few seconds later, he stopped fighting.

“I’m going to climb off you now.” I jumped to my feet.

Wolf turned slowly, eyes still wide when they met mine. “It’s you,” he whispered.

“It’s me. But I have a feeling it won’t be just us here soon.”

A twig snapped.

“Hells,” I breathed. “They heard us.”

But it was not vampyres that catapulted out of the surrounding woods, teeth barring and claws gaping.

No, what we saw approaching was much, much more horrific.