Page 19 of Wishes in the Moonlight (Rocky Mountain Wolves #4)

~Amanda~

As Kalo’s built-up magic exploded, bursting through us on its way to do his bidding, a surge of pure power rushed through my body.

Like an orgasm, almost, but far more intense than any I’d ever experienced.

It left me flushed and heated, every nerve on edge, but I did my best to maintain my composure as I addressed Kalo.

“Is that it? Is it done?”

“Why don’t we ask your captain?” he replied, his golden eyes glinting in satisfaction as he held his hand out towards Troy. “What do your men say?”

Troy didn’t say anything for a moment, his eyes glazed over as he communicated with his team through mind-link, but when they cleared, he nodded. “It worked. Wolves and bullets were repelled. I’ve called everyone back so we can start working on a more permanent plan. The clock is ticking, right?”

“Right,” Kalo confirmed. “Starting now, you have 72 hours to make your other two wishes. I suggest you make your second wish very carefully. Now, if you don’t mind, that took a great deal of energy on my part, and I believe dinner is almost ready.”

It was, but I couldn’t think about food. My mind raced with everything that had just happened - primarily, how I’d just entered into a deal with an honest-to-goddess genie - and the weight of the decisions that still needed to be made.

How would I protect the pack when the magic ended? What should I do with the second wish?

It finally fully dawned on me that the being in front of me could do anything with his magic, and all I had to do was ask. The flush of power that came with that recognition swelled so strong inside me, I almost didn’t know what to do with myself.

Somehow, Troy seemed to notice my indecision and took control of the situation. “I’ll have someone come and accompany you back to the dining room,” he told Kalo. To me, he bowed his head. “Stay here, Alpha. I’m going to speak to Beta Savannah and Jasper for a few minutes and I’ll be right back.”

Too giddy with the possibilities of this new situation to come up with a better plan, I didn’t object, sinking back into the chair by the fire while Troy took Kalo from the room.

Think of all the good we could do with power like that , Cinder said in my head as soon as we were alone.

I know. I wonder how far it goes. Could I heal my mother? Or go even bigger and wish for a cure for all diseases?

Some kind of special ability, like always knowing when someone’s lying to us , she suggested.

Superpowers! I agreed, laughing out loud at the idea. Ever wanted to fly?

Why stop at flight? We could have them all.

It would make us invincible.

Unstoppable, she agreed. We could rule all the wolves, not just this pack.

We tossed more ideas back and forth before a sobering thought penetrated my flights of fancy.

Whatever I wish for will be undone with the final wish. It makes it all useless.

Not if you used the final wish for something else. Then you could have two wishes.

Her words almost instantly sobered me. This was what happened to the other people in my position, wasn’t it? They got drunk on the magic inherent in their wishes and the power it represented. This was the danger.

On an intellectual level, I understood that, but resisting the allure wouldn’t be easy.

Why did all wishes need to be undone? Couldn’t I wish for something good with my second wish and then simply wish Kalo’s past wish undone, not mine? There had to be a way around it; I could almost feel it lurking at the corners of my mind. I just needed it to come into focus.

Having completely lost track of time, I jumped when Troy reappeared beside me. I didn’t even hear him enter the room but as soon as I tracked his movement from the corner of my eye, his scent hit me full force, as it always did.

His head bowed once again, shielding his features from me. “Alpha, please come with me.”

Still distracted with finding a solution to the problem I set myself, I got to my feet and followed him without question.

“I need to speak to Savannah again. With the phone lines down, we can’t reach Calista and Felix, but she might be able to help me brainstorm ideas of what to do with my second wish. ”

“Of course,” Troy agreed easily. A little too easily, I might have noticed if I’d been paying closer attention. “I’ve asked them to meet us at a secret location so we’re not disturbed.”

I nodded, not fully absorbing what he said until we stepped out the back door of the pack house where an idling ATV sat waiting, a large trailer attached behind it.

Night had completely fallen, blanketing the forest in darkness.

Maybe I imagined it, but with the protective wall Kalo put in place, it felt quieter than usual.

Clouds covered any stars above, adding to the blackness.

What time was it? How long had I been sitting in my office? And why were we leaving the pack house?

For that matter, why hadn’t there been a guard at the back door?

I took a step backwards as Troy turned to me. “What secret location? I’m not going anywhere. We agreed this morning that I would stay in the pack house where it’s safe until we understood the situation fully.”

His jaw set into a firm line, determination flaring in his pale brown eyes. “I need you to trust me, Amanda. You’re safer with me.”

“ Alpha ,” I corrected him, taking another step back.

If I turned and ran, I might be able to make it back to the door before he caught me.

He had size on his side, but I could be fast when I needed to be.

My eyes darted left and right, looking for the patrol that should be circling the pack house perimeter. Where the hell was my security team?

I need help at the back door, I announced through mind-link to the pack house staff, but in the moment I used to make the link, I lost my advantage. Troy closed the distance between us, slapping something hard on my wrist before yanking the other one to join it.

Handcuffs. Silver handcuffs.

Hello? Is anyone there? Savannah? Jasper? I tried again, but the silver severed my ability to link to my pack. Nothing got through.

“I’m sorry,” Troy said even as he produced a leather strap that he tied around my mouth, cutting off my actual voice as well as my internal one. “I know this looks bad but there isn’t time to explain. We need to go now.”

With no further attempt at an explanation, he picked me up with one arm and carried me to the trailer at the rear of the ATV.

Lifting the lid, he placed me inside, and with the silver weakening my ability to move or even reason, I could barely offer any resistance.

My pitiful attempt at struggling made absolutely no difference to him and when the lid closed above me, plunging me into complete darkness, I shouted in frustration against my gag.

I take back anything nice I ever said about him , Cinder mumbled, sounding barely conscious herself. What the fuck?

I had no idea, and as the world began to move beneath us, I had even less idea where we were going or why. Whose side was Troy on? Was he really taking me to safety as he said, or had I lowered my guard too much with someone who had only ever let me down?