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CHAPTER 19

C alla

G ideon, Jace, and Knox fuck me until I’m barely conscious. Only then do they allow me to beg the vines to release me. Thankfully, they respond, leaving only red marks on my skin where I pulled against my restraints.

Then I collapse on all fours in the dirt, barely able to hold myself up as they get ready for more.

By the time they’re done, I can’t even move. I’m aware of them carrying me. Dressing me. Taking me back into the cave and putting me down on something soft. I’m exhausted, but sleep doesn’t come. Instead, it’s the haze that welcomes me back.

The Aether.

I’m still unsteady, even in my dream. My body aches. My legs wobble.

I see Silas in the distance, standing on the hill he led me to the last time I was here. Everything else is too fuzzy, like a blurry picture that’s so out of focus it makes me a little dizzy to stare at it.

I manage to walk to where Silas is standing. He greets me with a nod and gestures to the valley below. It comes into focus, and the altar is gone. The stones are fragments, scattered across the soil. The pillars that stood tall are toppled, and mostly reduced to dust.

“What happened?” I ask, hearing the souls beneath us cry out in agony. It’s so heartbreaking I want to cover my ears, but I still my hands.

“The point of no return, Calla,” Silas answers. “This is the moment when The Aether could no longer contain the broken souls created by mankind.”

There’s a shuddering gasp, like The Aether itself is struggling to breathe. Then a mighty exhale that sweeps across me like a scorching wind. The ground begins to rumble, and it’s not just my wobbly legs making me unsteady. Silas doesn’t budge, but I stagger and almost fall before he catches my arm.

Underneath me, roots push through the soil. Tangled, wild, and pulsing with life. Monstrosities rise around me. Trees that don’t stay still. Treants that groan and spew rotten dust. Vines that look similar to the one I’m wearing. Spikeshade, as Vance called it. I even see some crimson vines, weaving through The Tangle as it forms.

“It happened this fast?” I question, remembering things I’ve seen before.

“No, you’re witnessing years pass, Calla,” Silas replies. “Souls that never found peace, being forced from The Aether that could not absorb them. Souls never meant to exist. Warped by the ignorance of men.”

“But there’s so many… There were this many hybrids?” I ask, watching souls vanish in the valley, right before another howl echoes in The Tangle and more vines burst from the earth.

“Not just hybrids, no. Men played with nature long before that. It was a chain reaction that spiraled for generations,” Silas explains. “The Aether contained the broken souls as long as it could, trying to protect the world from the devastation that would come if it couldn’t. The Aether knew, as soon as souls that weren’t spun from the blueprint began to appear. But there was no way to undo what was done. No way to give them peace.”

“You said I’m… hope.” I glance over at him. “Hope for your pack, I get, if it works. But how does that provide hope for the rest of the souls? The ones that are already stuck in The Tangle.”

“Just watch.” Silas gestures ahead.

The world continues to transform, then I notice something else. The Aether itself—the haze that seems to always linger. It shudders, vibrates, and a sliver of it breaks away. The sliver becomes a spark, floats on the breeze, bounces across the ground, and then gets absorbed into the soil.

“And that…” Silas points. “Is what you are.”

I watch for a few more seconds before looking back to Silas. “I don’t understand.”

“There has always been a barrier between The Aether and your world, despite them moving in harmony with one another,” Silas explains. “When The Aether could no longer contain the lost souls, and The Tangle emerged as a scar, that barrier was broken. A tiny piece of The Aether entered your world. The very fabric of creation.”

I hold up my arm and point at my bracelet. “That’s what this is? A piece of The Aether?”

“No, Calla. The Aether is inside you. It’s woven into your soul. When you were taken into The Tangle, it was like a mother finding a lost child she didn’t even know she had,” Silas answers. “And so, an opportunity presented itself. An opportunity to heal the scar. Hope. But it all depends on you.”

I swallow hard, trying to process everything he’s saying. “How does it depend on me? What do I have to do?”

“You are not strong enough to heal the scar yourself, but the fabric of creation is a part of you now,” Silas rasps. “A part that can be passed down to your children and their children. Over time, your bloodline will breathe life back into the world. Enough to heal the scar and The Aether itself.”

“Silas, I…” I blink in confusion. “That’s a lot.”

“I know, but it is the only way,” Silas says. “Through you, the fabric of creation can touch your world again. Reshape it. Give all beings purpose, even hybrids. It will be a new blueprint that brings nature in alignment with the ambition of man. One that allows all beings to prosper rather than suffer.”

“Is that why your brothers have my scent?” I ask. “Because The Aether wants my bloodline to continue?”

“They are your protectors. Your mates. Your disciplinarians, when needed. They are the first to be healed,” Silas says.

“Disciplinarians? Really?” I mutter, my bottom clenching. “They’re certainly taking that job seriously.”

“As I told you before, nothing is predetermined or certain. Hope can be snuffed out as quickly as it appeared,” Silas growls. “And what’s inside you is sacred. It must be protected, even from you.”

“Even from me?” I shake my head. “No wonder the bracelet only helps when it wants to. So that’s it. They’ve been healed by me… by this piece of The Aether inside me. That’s what drew them to me?”

“The connection you have with them goes deeper than that. Older. Almost as ancient as time itself,” Silas says. “But that isn’t what you’re here to see, or learn, and you’ve lingered long enough for this visit.”

I wake up with a gasp. I’m the last to awaken. Everyone else is gathered around the roaring fire. Food is being cooked. There’s conversation and gentle laughter.

But I don’t go to them immediately. I stare at the ceiling, running through everything Silas said. Hope. Healing. The fabric of creation that is supposedly inside me. The bracelet pulses on my wrist, not offering any answers.

“You connect us somehow,” I mutter, rubbing my fingers across the vine. “You’re an extension of The Aether. But I’m still mad at you for tying me up last night.”

The bracelet pulses silently. I sigh, shake my head, and get up. The brothers notice me before anyone else—well, all except for Caleb. He’s not here.

“Good morning, Calla,” Vance says warmly. “I hope you slept well.”

“I rested.” I smile and sit down. “But it looks like I’m late. I’ll eat quickly so we can head out.”

“It’s still early,” Gideon assures me. “Caleb is scouting. The closer we get to Haven North, the less dangerous it will be. It should be a fairly easy journey today.”

“I sure hope so,” Fiona says. “I’m tired of running from things that want to eat me.”

“Me too!” Tansy nods in agreement. “This time tomorrow, we’ll be waking up in our own beds. I can’t wait.”

“It has been a lot,” Nara sighs. “It will be nice to see home again.”

Brenna is silent. I feel a twinge in my stomach, because of her situation. I wish I had more to offer her than a life in the Lower District, but I hope it will be better than slavery. Better than dying in The Tangle and becoming a lost soul—forced to wander aimlessly or spit back out as a twisted vine. Maybe she’ll live long enough to move on when her time is up. I’m not sure how long it will take for The Aether to heal enough to allow it.

Caleb returns, confirms the way is clear for us to begin our journey, and we set off into The Tangle. I pay more attention to the wilderness than my companions, wondering how many generations it will take to heal this scar. Still pondering my last visit to The Aether.

After a mile of traveling, Vance moves closer to me. “You’re staring into The Tangle like I usually do,” he chuckles, gesturing to my bracelet. “But I guess you’re a little more connected to it than I am.”

“Something like that.” I shrug. “You still don’t have my scent? I assume Caleb will be next, but he hasn’t even spoken to me.”

“No, I’m still fine. Caleb bottles it up and lets it fester, unlike the rest of us,” Vance says. “But when he finally gets your scent, he’ll hunger for you like the others. It’ll be too powerful to ignore, even for him.”

“Then it will be your turn,” I sigh.

“I’ll be gentle with you, Calla,” Vance says genuinely. “I’ll do my best not to lose control and be too rough, like they have been.”

I blush a little and look down. “It’s okay,” I sigh. “I don’t mind it. They’re not cruel, they’re just needy. It’s… their nature.”

“You’ve decided it’s instinct?” Vance chuckles. “I guess I’m the only one who believes in fate.”

“Does it matter?” I ask. “Instinct? Fate? We have no control over it.”

“No, unfortunately, we don’t,” Vance says. “Caleb is returning. I guess it’s my turn to scout.”

I could share more, but I barely understand it myself. Vance would ask a million questions. Questions I can’t answer. I’ve seen how fascinated he is with my bracelet. His brothers were fascinated with it too, after they heard what it could do.

Caleb shifts and takes Vance’s place, but far away from me. Vance shifts and disappears into The Tangle. After we continue for another mile or so, Brenna and Caleb start talking. I keep an eye on the wilderness around us, dwelling on all the thoughts tumbling around in my head. Mostly I’m dreading the inevitable. Going back with the wolves. I’ve accepted that. But I still have to tell everyone else, once we get to Haven North.

“Vance is returning,” Gideon calls out. “He must have news.”

We pause and wait for Vance to shift, put on his military fatigues, and join the group.

“Slavers,” Vance says. “About a mile ahead. We can avoid them.”

“Good,” Jace grunts. “No reason to pick a fight if we don’t have to.”

“Do they have… women?” Nara asks cautiously. “Like us?”

“Yes,” Vance answers. “Looks like they just left Haven North. Not the same slavers that took you. All of them are dead.”

I see the anger in Nara’s eyes. Fear radiating from Fiona and Tansy. Brenna narrows her eyes, like she’s about to say something if I don’t.

“We’re not leaving them behind,” I state firmly.

Jace growls under his breath. Caleb glares at me. Knox just shakes his head.

“What’s guarding the cargo?” Gideon sighs. “Just slavers?”

“No,” Vance says. “Two Gen-Lynxes. They’re young, though. Barely more than cubs. We could take them.”

“Gideon, no,” Caleb grinds out, and I have to do a double take, surprised he’s speaking up. “Even if they’re cubs, fighting two of them is dangerous. If we can avoid the slavers, we should.”

“How would you feel?” Brenna asks. “If you were in a cage, and people who could help just walked right by?”

“They did ,” Caleb spits back, then he glares at his brothers. “We agreed we wouldn’t get involved in human affairs. Not anymore. The last time we did that, they betrayed us, and we lost Silas.”

“We’re already doing it, brother,” Knox grunts. “We’re hauling four of them across The Tangle right now.”

“We honor our deals,” Caleb growls. “Even the ones I don’t like.”

“Well, while we’re arguing, our mate is already going to fight them on her own,” Knox grunts, pointing in my direction.

He’s right. I’ve already pushed into The Tangle, following the path Vance carved. Running right toward danger. Again. Despite promising I wouldn’t. But I can’t abandon them. I know what horrors await those women. Know how scared I was, when I was in that cage.

“Calla, stop!” Gideon calls out. “We’re not done talking about this!”

“Then keep talking!” I answer, moving further away from my mates. “I’ve made up my mind.”

I glance at my bracelet, hoping it will respond if I ask. That this piece of The Aether inside of me cares enough about my survival not to let me get killed by slavers. But it offers its help in a different way—five wolves that rush to my side. The girls follow behind us, but I set the pace. Vance leads the way once his trail becomes difficult to follow, shifting once we get to the top of a hill.

“Down there,” Vance says. “Four slavers. Two hybrids. Four hostages.”

“They’re our replacements,” I mutter, trying to get a better view. “The ones who took us said the buyers wanted four. They took five because they had to give one to the guy who ran The Outpost.”

“Yeah…” Fiona whispers nervously. “Brenna killed him.”

“And we’ll deal with these fuckers like we dealt with them,” Brenna says, clutching her stick.

“Oh, no!” I say, moving closer. “Abigail is in that cage!”

“Calla, wait!” Vance calls out, but I’m already barreling down the hill.

I didn’t have many friends in high school or college. Until Abigail came along. We didn’t know each other before that, but we were both on the nursing path, and we had a lot in common. I call the girls behind me friends and feel closer to them than I do most people I knew in Haven North. Except Abigail.

I get to the bottom of the hill before five wolves dash by me like streaks of gold, amber, platinum, onyx, and mossy brown. A Gen-Lynx gets their scent, and the two hybrids meet the wolves head-on. I look down at my bracelet.

“If you’re connected to The Aether…” I trail off, looking ahead, then back at the bracelet. My back stiffens. “I’m not asking for help this time. If you want my bloodline to heal this scar, then you need me as much as I need you. Don’t overwhelm me like you did with the treant. Let me tell you what to do.”

I rush forward, but the wolves have gained some distance. I have no clue what I’m doing. No idea if the bracelet will respond. If The Tangle will respond.

“Take out their arms and legs. Bind them like you did to me last night,” I order, flinging my hand like I’m expecting it to obey.

And it does.

There’s a pulse. A faint green glow. Then tendrils spiral out of my bracelet, dodge the wolves, and immobilize the hybrids. They never see it coming. Vines rip from the soil, joining the tendrils from my bracelet. The combination is enough to hold them still while my mates shred them like paper. Blood and viscera are strewn everywhere, scaring the women in the cage, and the slavers.

“Fuck! Wolves! Kill them!” a slaver calls out.

Those are his last words. Caleb goes for his throat and nearly beheads him. The other slavers meet similar fates, barely getting a chance to ready their weapons before their lives are snuffed out.

“Calla!” Abigail calls out. “Oh, my gosh, Calla, is that you?”

“Abigail!” I hurry to the cage and climb up on the cart. There’s no key. I don’t need one. I hold my bracelet up to the lock and don’t even have to ask it to open the cage.

The cage swings open and I help Abigail out first. We hug like we haven’t seen each other in years. She sobs, choking on her breath as it comes out in hiccups.

“I was so scared! I had no idea what happened to you!” Abigail cries. “They said… you left.”

“Who said that?” I question, pulling back from our embrace. “Clyde?”

“Director Regina,” Abigail clarifies. “She said you left a note saying you couldn’t handle the pressure and that you recommended Clyde for graduation. I didn’t want to believe it, but you were gone. You didn’t even take anything.”

“Because I ended up in a cage, just like you,” I mutter.

“Are these wolves going to eat us?” a scared girl asks. She’s around Fiona’s age, but I don’t recognize her.

“Only if you piss them off,” Brenna laughs, finally catching up to us with the other girls in tow.

After Abigail calms down, I start searching the cart, tearing everything apart and throwing it into the dirt. Brenna collects a few things. The others just watch me.

“What are you looking for?” Tansy asks.

“This,” I say angrily, holding up a silver case. “Same thing the other slavers had. Sedatives with the Academic Medical Center’s logo on them.”

“Wait, that’s what they used?” Abigail questions. “But how would they get that?”

“Clyde,” I answer, hopping down from the cart. “He must have been supplying them with the drugs, and when they needed a replacement, he was happy to not only volunteer me, but profit from it.”

“He graduated,” Abigail says meekly. “He already started his new job at Haven North General Hospital. He was helping them kidnap people?”

“He’s not going to get away this,” I say, throwing the sedatives in the dirt.

The wolves disappear into the underbrush, and all of them except Caleb emerge several minutes later, wearing the same clothes they previously had on, but they’re dirtier now. I can still see some blood in their beards and hair, but they’ve attempted to clean up. Even Knox.

“Uh, who are these guys?” Abigail asks, her eyes getting wide and taking a step back.

“They’re friends,” I say, patting her arm. “Like the wolves. They’ll get us home.”

We leave the cart and the bodies for The Tangle to claim. Brenna walks away with a backpack full of stuff. I don’t question it. I’m sure there were a few valuables and things she can sell in the Lower District. It’s not like the slavers need them anymore.

“So, you can control the bracelet,” Knox comments, walking beside me.

“Not exactly,” I answer truthfully. “But I’m beginning to understand it better. I’ll explain more once we get everyone home. Although Vance may be the only one who believes me.”

“I’m open-minded,” Knox says, some wisdom in his tone. “I believe what I can see, and I’ve seen that bracelet do some interesting things, even if I didn’t get to see you rip apart a treant.”

“Yeah, but that wiped me out,” I sigh. “It’s not much use if I sleep all day after I use it. Thankfully, it wasn’t as bad this time. I only asked for a little help.”

“It was enough. Those fucking Gen-Lynxes didn’t stand a chance,” Knox chuckles. “Hell, I bet we could easily take down a Gen-Lion with tricks like that. But I’d much rather you stay safely behind us and out of danger.”

“If you try to spank me for helping you, I’m going to make my bracelet stop you,” I tease. “Rather than asking for it to chime in.”

“Mm, you could try,” Knox says, giving me a nudge. “I’m not scared of a few vines.”

Abigail stops so I can catch up, so Knox falls back. Her fear seems to have passed, but she’s a little groggy from the sedatives. I know that feeling.

“Everyone is going to be so happy you’re back,” she says. “Director Regina looked so disappointed. I tried to tell her you’d never leave like that, but I don’t think she believed me.”

“I can’t say that I blame her,” I sigh. “Especially if Clyde forged a letter. I need to tell you something, though. Something I haven’t shared with the others who were kidnapped with me. You can’t say anything until we get to Haven North.”

“O-okay,” Abigail says apprehensively, glancing over at me. “What’s going on?”

“I made a deal to get everyone home,” I explain, taking a deep breath. “But I’m not staying. I’m going back with… them.” I gesture to the men.

“What? Calla, no!” Abigail grabs my wrist, her eyes wide and desperate. “You can’t just disappear again. If Clyde’s behind this, we need to expose him. Together! They won’t believe me if you’re not there! He’ll… keep doing this. And I already lost you once. I can’t lose you again!”

“Keep your voice down. Please,” I urge. “It was the only way to get everyone else home. And if I hadn’t, we wouldn’t have been able to save you, either.”

“If they’re holding you hostage, we can call the peace officers as soon as we get to Haven North,” Abigail says in a hushed whisper. “You don’t have to go anywhere with them.”

“It’s my choice,” I say firmly. “I’m not a hostage.”

“Were they the ones who gave you that?” Abigail asks, gesturing to my bracelet. “Is it some kind of magic? Did you use it to call the wolves to help you?”

“No, but they’re connected to it. Everything is,” I answer, but don’t elaborate further. “It’s too much to explain. I’m just happy to see you again.”

“Me too,” Abigail says. “But what should we do about Clyde?”

“I’m not sure yet,” I mutter. “He won’t get away with this.”

Haven North may no longer be my home.

But I have to find a way to make sure the slavers don’t kidnap any more innocent women.

I just hope my mates will understand.