Magic Side: Wolf Bound Complete Series: Books 1-4, page 76
It was a guy I’d never seen before. White-blond hair, blue jeans, bulging wolfy muscles. Not bad, if I’d been anyone else.
I shrugged. “First time. Just a bit lost, looking for Jaxson and Sam.”
The guy grinned. “Have you ever seen one of those stampedes of African wildebeest? It’s like that. Don’t get trampled.”
Great. I was just hoping I could keep up. “Honestly, I don’t even know where we’re running to.”
“Ah, we kind of all memorize the route. Just follow the pack. We run out to the point.” He winked. “First one to jump in the lake wins.”
“Thanks.” I wasn’t sure how I felt about diving into the water as a finish line.
I pushed through the crowd of muscles and asses until another voice called out, “There you are! I turned my back, and you disappeared!” Sam grabbed my arm and started pulling me forward. “Where were you?”
“I just went for air. Ended up having a chat with Regina.”
She stopped and planted her hands on her hips defensively. “Was she giving you a hard time?”
“No. Actually, she wasn’t a bitch—to my surprise. And I guess I got a better perspective on things. Pack history.”
“Cool. Reggie has a little loremaster in her, so she doesn’t tend to forgive and forget. Glad you guys are working things out. She’s good people. Fierce. Loyal.”
Sam pulled me out of the crush of bodies and over to the side under a tree.
“What are we doing?” I asked.
She tossed me a cheap pink nylon bag that had my name on it: Savannah “Fury” Caine.
Not LaSalle. Caine. I’d forgotten that for a time.
Sam yanked her T-shirt over her head and then popped off her bra.
“Whoa, lady!” I gasped.
She laughed. “It’s go time. Throw your shit in the bag, and Regina and her people will make sure it gets to the bonfire.”
“Isn’t she running?”
“Nah, she’s supervising the bag team tonight. Glad you guys have made up so she doesn’t order them to accidentally misplace it,” Sam added, laughing.
I really hoped she was joking about that.
I looked around as Sam unclasped her jeans. Half the werewolves were stripping. Wolfborn, like me. The others were shifters and could transform, clothes and all.
If I was going to be a werewolf, why couldn’t it have been the other type?
Because being wolfborn is more fun. Who needs clothes, anyway? They’re kinda silly and pretentious, Wolfie observed. Now get naked. I want to run.
I glanced at the mass of bare asses. Men, women. Nobody seemed to care. This was going to take a long time to get used to.
“Come on, slowpoke,” naked Sam said. “It’s cold, and I want my fur coat.”
I sighed and stripped as quickly and discreetly as possible, then stuffed all my shit in the pink bag. Clothes, wallet, cell phone. I assumed it would be safe, or they wouldn’t do it this way, right?
Where was Jaxson?
I looked around wildly, then saw him among the trees. A massive wolf, staring back at me with deep golden eyes. A shiver ran over my skin.
It felt like he was looking through me, into me, seeing whatever was truly inside.
Then he put his head back and howled.
It was unlike any howl I’d ever heard. Low and unearthly, it vibrated the world around me. But the howl wasn’t for me—it was for my wolf. I gasped as she leapt in my chest, and then the transformation came, swift and fierce, like ripping off your lover’s shirt.
One second, I was a woman, then every part of me broke at once. The breath was ripped from my lungs, and I didn’t even have time to scream. I collapsed onto my hands, and when I landed, I was a wolf.
Holy. Shit.
All around, the werewolves shifted in a great wave of fur and fangs. Jaxson had called us all, commanded us all. And we had obeyed instantly as one.
My wolf staggered forward, dazed. I think…I think it’s better shifting quickly, but “holy shit” is right.
Suddenly, I understood.
Jaxson had been treating me with a gentle hand. His presence and touch had always made shifting easier, but he’d only used his power to give me the barest support I needed. He could have called my wolf out in a second, but he’d let me fight through the shift each time, pushing me to master it on my own.
The truth was, he could control me with a single howl—God, with a single look.
In that moment, I knew his power for what it truly was: complete. I was his to command, body and soul, whether I liked it or not.
And I didn’t like that one bit.
Yes, you do.
It wasn’t just me. The entire pack had shifted. A wolf nearby snarled and yanked a pair of torn jeans off her leg with her teeth. Apparently, she hadn’t finished undressing when the call came.
Sam followed my look, and I could almost read her thoughts: Yikes. Those were expensive. That’s what happens when you spend your time chatting.
A single howl, and we’d all obeyed instantly. I shivered.
Sam shook her silky fur with joy, then gave me a look. You okay?
I nodded, understanding her intent in my mind. It wasn’t quite telepathy that we shared—there were no words, really—but something deeper, more primal. Meaning conveyed by a myriad of small motions and scents and expressions I never knew existed, but that I could somehow read.
She flicked her head around, and I followed her gaze.
Jaxson was waiting at the far side of the clearing, staring back with impossibly gold eyes that said one thing: Come to me.
Instantly, we were padding across the grass. I felt my wolf’s excitement mix with my own.
He could call me anytime.
The wolves watched me pass. I must have stood out with my red and brown fur.
I ignored them all. Jaxson was a whirlpool, drawing me in and consuming my attention.
While the pack had wolves of every shape and size, Jaxson stood head and shoulders above the rest. Some were lithe and lanky, but he was all tightly bound power and muscle—a beast from a prehistoric age. A monster out of legend.
Our mate.
The fates had bound me to a savage that could break my neck with a single bite.
Jaxson took a step forward, and I found myself trembling and down on my belly, looking up at his powerful jaws.
He met my eyes. You are beautiful, red wolf.
His praise sent a shiver of pleasure though my body, and the fur on my back trembled.
Our mate approves.
I hadn’t realized we’d stopped breathing.
Are you ready to run? Jaxson asked in my mind, speaking with his eyes and his posture and the primal voice that wasn’t words, but images and sounds.
The feel of the grass, the thunder of paws, the scent of a hundred wolves all around me.
Do not be afraid. Once you run, you will know what it is to be one of us. You run with your family now.
The voice of Jaxson’s wolf was strange. So much more formal than that of the man. He spoke as a king to his queen, not as a man to his lover.
Jaxson cocked his ear as if hearing my thoughts. We do not know each other yet. I am eager to know you in this form just as well. Are you ready?
I just hope you can keep up, my wolf replied.
Had I been in human form, I would have clapped my hands over my damn sarcastic mouth.
Jaxson’s eyes just sparkled with laughter. Can you?
Then, without warning, he turned and ran.
23
Savannah
We sprinted forward, and the whole pack was suddenly in motion, a rolling wave of fur and teeth and claws.
Our feet pounded against the grass as my wolf wove back and forth, struggling to keep us from being trampled.
This wasn’t a track meet. It was a stampede. Wolves were everywhere, jostling and colliding into each other.
Sam was at my side, snarling when other wolves got too close. Follow me!
Heart racing, I clung to her heels and let her run interference. This is insane!
A wolf I didn’t recognize whipped around my side and careened in front of us. Wolfie growled and nipped at him.
Sam gave me a wink that said, Now you’re getting the hang of it.
The hell I was.
Rather than fight the flow, I let my wolf take full control as the hairy maniacs of the Dockside pack bounded and sprang around us. This is not what I had in mind!
Sam ran confidently by my side, and the primal sense of her thoughts flooded my mind. Don’t worry. The hierarchy will sort itself out.
Clearly, everyone just wanted to be in the lead, by Jaxson. He was already far ahead.
Wolfie gave a growl of frustration. There’s no way we’re going to bring up the rear.
We began to pick up speed, which brought us back into the chaos that boiled in Jaxson’s wake. We dodged and wove, trying to gain ground, until my wolf finally gave up and eased off the gas. We’re going to break an ankle dodging these idiots.
Frustration tore at us both. This was a terrible way to run a race.
This is a 5K. We need to pace ourselves, I said to my wolf, and concentrated on my memories of running cross country. Sprinting at the beginning was a great way to lose. We needed to find a pace we could sustain. We didn’t know the course, so it was best to meter others.
This pace feels pretty good, but it’s all teeth and tails ahead, my wolf responded.
The pack had started to split into clusters, and she decided to hang with half a dozen wolves that were drafting just behind the lead group.
After a few minutes, the chaos settled down, and we left the wooded park and pack land behind. Wolves all around me howled as we crossed Razorback Avenue.
We joined in the howls as our claws skittered across the road and we leapt back onto the soft grass of the Midway Green, where the Full Moon Fair had been held a few weeks ago. It was just open grass now.
The pack had settled into a steady pace, though we were breathing hard.
Sam glanced over at me with her tongue hanging out and a very human expression that seemed to say, Are you okay?
My wolf gave a determined snarl back. Fine.
She nipped at me in warning. Don’t overdo it.
My wolf just gritted her teeth and put her head down. I could feel her determination matching my own.
Running with the pack was like nothing I’d ever experienced. As we settled into a rhythm, we became one with the wolves around us. Our stride, our breathing, was like the low thrum of a hypnotic dance.
Soon, we left the Midway behind and turned to run south through Exposition Park, which was lit by antique-looking streetlamps. We tore around strolling pedestrians and late-evening bikers with reckless abandon. A few people shouted and cursed, and some even threw beverages or ignited warning spells over our heads. But overall, the Magic Siders were remarkably unfazed. Apparently, a pack of rabid-looking wolves running through the city wasn’t all that uncommon. Anywhere else, the hapless citizens would be screaming at the top of their lungs, running for their lives. But this was Magic Side. People here had seen a lot.
We raced down the shoreline, with the lights of South Side Chicago twinkling back at us across the waters of Lake Michigan. Unfortunately, a deep throb of exhaustion began creeping into our muscles, and we began to lose ground.
My wolf gave a frustrated growl as Jaxson slipped further ahead. Sam stayed with us, though I knew she wasn’t equally winded, which sent irritation bubbling beneath my skin.
Wolfie stumbled a little but pushed on. I could use a little help, here.
How? I asked.
I’m not exactly sure how it works. But I helped you free your ankle in the forest of shadows and gave you strength to break out of the van.
Could I do the same for her now? I focused my mind and will on running.
We tripped and slammed snout-down in the grass.
Sam skidded to a halt and turned back as wolves zipped by. She gave a soft whine that said, You need to take it easy.
No! We scrambled to our feet and tried to catch up. We were hopelessly behind the second cluster by now.
My wolf got back into rhythm and focused on her stride. That didn’t work. Maybe I should just drive.
A melancholic sense of failure seeped into my heart. Fine. Helping her run didn’t work. I gave a defeated sigh and just focused on remembering my races in high school—what it had felt like to run, to have strength in my limbs. The runner’s high. The soothing rhythm of the road.
I’d been a star once. I would’ve won a scholarship if I hadn’t gotten hurt in my senior year, and I would’ve gotten the hell out of Belmont and Wisconsin a long time before this.
As memories of those meets whirled in my mind, we began to pick up speed.
Keep doing whatever you’re doing, Wolfie said.
Holy shit, we were running fast.
A surge of elation coursed through my veins. We could do this. I thought of the thunder of my sneakers on the trail and track, the thrill of passing rivals, the wind in my face.
The sweet taste of victory at hand.
We broke out of the second cluster and began to gain on the lead pack. We started passing more and more stragglers, and then suddenly, Sam and I were on the heels of the leaders. She was breathing hard and gave me a surprised look: Where the hell did this come from?
I grinned at her. Second wind.
Then I felt it. The drug. Not just a runner’s high, but the intoxicating knowledge that we could win. That our rivals were all tired, and that somehow, we’d found a new store of strength.
My wolf and I had never been so in tune, so connected.
We surged forward around the edge of the pack, leaving Sam behind. Leaving them all behind. I’d come to run with Jaxson, and that was what I was going to do.
We focused on him, the massive wolf at the head of the pack. He was a comet, and the rest of the us were a silver tail strung out behind him.
That asshole. He’d invited us to run, then left us behind.
I focused my frustration on him and felt it entwine with that of my wolf. He’d let us run with the stragglers, eating his dust like we were just another wolf. But we weren’t. We were his mate, weren’t we? He sure didn’t act like it.
It should have been him guiding me through the crowd. It should have been him running at my side, not Sam.
My wolf dug her claws in with every step. Ran like she hated the earth and all it stood for. I focused my mind on all the memories I had of ever taking the lead. Watching runners fall away until there was only one left.
We slammed into a burly wolf and ricocheted off another until we finally broke free of the cluster. And suddenly, there were just two of us. Jaxson and me.
He looked over, and I let the resentment burn in my eyes. You left me!
A wry grin spread across his face, and his own yellow eyes glowed with…pride? I knew you would catch up. My mate is strong. Agile. Fast.
We almost stumbled as a burst of delight threatened to spoil our hard-earned frustration. His approval was like smoky whiskey that tasted divine and spread warmth through your chest.
I wasn’t going to let the beast sucker me with a smile. But his intoxicating scent wrapped around me, and it was all I could do to think. The musk of exertion and the rich notes of forests and moss—it was desire and freedom and limitlessness, all wrapped into one.
I could run forever.
He was so much larger than me—I had to take two strides for every one of his—but somehow, our pace became one as the lights across the lake flashed by.
This is what he’d wanted. To run side by side. Just the two of us. Free.
Jaxson nodded to the far promontory ahead. Almost there.
The point. The finish line.
Desire sparked in my mind. I realized I could win, no matter how big he was, no matter how fast. I was strong.
I gloried in the knowledge.
Memories of old races and past victories flooded into my mind. The final sprint. The burning in my muscles. The intoxicating call of the finish line. The tape breaking on my chest.
Once, a decade ago, those moments of victory had been everything to me in a bleak and lonely world.
My wolf and I surged with a strength and speed neither of us knew we had. We left Jaxson behind, Sam behind, the entire pack behind and shot forward. A cocktail of elation and triumph poured into our veins as the dark trees flew by and the grass tore beneath our paws.
The shoreline, with its limestone seawall, loomed ahead. Beyond it was only the dark water of Lake Michigan and the distant lights of Chicago. This was it.
We run out to the point. First one to jump in the lake wins.
I would win.
I would show Jaxson I was stronger, faster, and more worthy than any wolf in his pack. Now that we knew where we were going, we couldn’t be stopped.
With a final burst of speed, we bounded over the terraced limestone seawall and leapt out high over the water.
We did it! I thought with joy as the waves sparkled below.
And then…I began to shift.
What are you doing? I screamed at my wolf.
I hate the water. Good luck!
Aw, hell.
24
Savannah
My body contorted in the air as I plummeted toward the water—no longer a graceful dive, but rather an ungainly tumble of thrashing limbs.
Oh, Go—
A painful splash drove the breath from my lungs as I plunged into the cold darkness. I lashed out frantically with my paws as they turned into hands. My joints popped and bones cracked as the pain of the transformation tore through me. At last, I felt my face change, and the hair across my body retracted, exposing my bare skin to the chill of the water swirling around.
I kicked upward and broke the surface with a desperate gasp, and immediately directed my ire at my wolf. You should have warned me!
You were fine, she replied. Shifting is so much easier with Jaxson nearby, even when he doesn’t help us.
Treading water to stay afloat, I slicked back my hair and looked around. Where was Jax? He’d been right on my heels.
