won’t be hurt. We would never allow that to happen.”
“Whose blood is on all of you?”
“It’s partly Camden’s.”
“What?” I scream. “Where is he? Is he alive? Who hurt him?” I splay my fingers. Magic begins to crackle in the air with the force of which I’m building it. I’ll kill whoever hurt him.
“He’s alive. He’s shifted a bunch of times. But he’s not why I need your help.”
Sevan clears his throat. I glance over at him with narrowed eyes. “He is kind of why we need Whit’s help.”
“I don’t have time for this,” Aries growls. “There are four teenage boys who are locked in a cell and I need you to free them. Now say you’re good with knowing all the information and having your mind get a strong block so I can take you to them and maybe you can free them while also getting Camden to calm down.”
I’m so confused. What teenage boys? Where are we going?
“Whit!” Aries snaps. “Yes or no?”
“Sorry,” I say as I focus on him and think of Camden. “Yes, of course. Whatever I can do to help.”
Aries visibly relaxes. “Good. We’ll fill you in on the how’s and why’s of it later, but right now, I need you to walk downstairs and come with us.”
“Okay.” I dissipate the bubble of magic around us.
Aries leads us through the house to the lowest level and that’s when I feel the other magic in the air. There’s a wall that is pushed open like a door. On the other side is a portal.
Cassie appears and puts her hand on my shoulder before I can step through. “It’s not going to be easy, what you’re about to see,” she whispers. “Remember you’re tougher than you think you are. And don’t forget to focus on what’s important. Not the blood. Not the bodies. The kids and Camden.” I stare at her, wondering what I’m getting myself into. “Whit, do you understand?”
“Yes.”
“Once you go through the portal, there’s no turning back. Everything will change. How you view this paranormal world. The rights and wrongs. You’ll be faced with the pure evil that happens all over the world every single day.”
“I want to help.”
She squeezes my shoulder gently then releases me. “Good. They need you.”
Turning from her, I find Aries, Sawyer, and Sevan watching me carefully. It’s Aries who breaks the silence. “Come on.”
He steps through the portal first, then Sevan, then me. Sawyer follows last. On the other side, it’s a crime scene like I’ve never seen and I’ve witnessed a lot.
Blood coats the floors that I think are wooden, causing my stomach to churn. If I didn’t hate blood before, this would seal the deal. There is a dead wolf without a head. I glance across the room and find said head. Blood is splattered on the walls and any furniture in the space which remains standing. Another male is dead. He has a gash in his body from his pelvis to his head. His insides are pulled out and scattered nearby. There’s a third body, but I can only see part of it before I turn away. So much death. And then there’s Camden standing in the blood as his wolf, like it’s not even there.
Behind Camden is a large cell. The bars are coated in something magical and within it are four males. Two have tear streaks on their cheeks. One is sitting on the floor with his knees up to his chest. Another has his hands fisted tightly as anger pours off him along with magic.
Someone nudges me. Turning, I find Sevan behind me. “See if you can get Cam to move or shift back. He’s not listening to any of us, including Aries. It’s like this is his personal mission to protect the males. And we can’t break them free. We wanted to ask you to try. Thay wasn’t able to do it, plus he had to go back home with Echo.”
“Thay? Echo?”
“Two members of the Quivakond Pack.” That really doesn’t answer much of anything, but I’ll inquire about that later. I’m not overly familiar with the pack.
Taking a step forward, I slowly walk toward Cam’s wolf. “Camden, can you shift back?” I ask him. He doesn’t show any outward movement of acknowledging my words. “I can’t talk to you unless you’re a human again and I’d really like to find out what’s going on. Obviously, I missed something huge and I want you to be the one to fill me in.” Nothing.