Several enormous werewolves climbed out of the van that had followed us. There were six of them in total, still in human form, without their normal array of weapons. The few people on the sidewalk saw us and quickly hurried to the other side of the street or vanished into their apartments.
“I expect you to listen to me when we go inside,” Carter warned, gaining my attention. “Don’t fuck with me. Not today. I’m breaking several rules coming to this place. Our kind isn’t welcome across this side of the river unless we’re invited or we’ve been captured. By venturing here, we’re asking for trouble.”
Turning from him, I muttered, “Hopefully I won’t be in this hellhole that long,” and opened the door. The pack members who had traveled behind us took places at the base of the stairs, their massive arms folded over their chests. I didn’t look at them as I walked toward the door. I took a deep breath and said a hasty prayer, hoping that for once my luck would hold out. Exhaling, I knocked on the door as Carter placed his intimidating form firmly beside me. I lowered my arm, scowled at him, and wondered how much trouble I’d get in for knocking his ass over the railing.
“I’ve got it!” a voice called from the domicile.
My breath caught when I heard the distinct rasp of the deadbolt sliding free from the bracket. Seconds separated me from my future. I would soon know if there was a snowball’s chance in hell I might make it out of this fucked-up nightmare alive.
The door opened and I came face to face with a young woman my age.
Her dark black hair was trimmed short, the pixie cut enhancing very lovely features. Her nose was small, her cheekbones high and evenly spaced, and her lips were bee-sting swollen. The smile she gave me matched her warm and beautiful, chocolate-brown eyes.
“Who is it, Bells?”
The phrase “my heart stopped” was one I always used figuratively.
After all, your heart can’t stop, right?
In that moment, I discovered not only could it stop, but the world could reverse on its axis and stand still. Perhaps it was the relief, or maybe it was a combination of the stress, grief and confusion, but when I heard Goose’s voice, I almost lost it.
“I’m not sure,” the girl—Bells—answered. She lost her welcoming smile when she stared past me and got a glimpse at the wolves standing at the base of her stairway. “I’m not sure you can call them guests.”
“Goose,” I whispered and cringed at how broken I sounded, how childlike. Bells’s face went pale at the name, her brown eyes becoming miniature saucers.
“Oh, Goddess. You’re her.”
Footsteps came from the adjoining room as Goose’s voice drew closer. “Bells? I didn’t hear you. Who is it? Who are you talking to?”
She stepped aside, and it literally felt as if I was in a bad episode of The Twilight Zone. Although he was dressed almost entirely the same—pressed button-down shirt, dress slacks and dress shoes—Goose had gotten older. Gray peppered his temples, traveling along the shell of his ear. His clean-shaven face was the same, with only a few, miniscule crow’s feet around the corners. The moment our eyes met, and recognition struck, he froze.
His lips parted in shock, his doe-brown eyes widening in alarm.
It looked as if he’d seen a ghost.
“It’s me, Ethan.” I finally managed to speak, trying to find some humor in the situation. “You’re not in Kansas anymore.”
“Oh dear God. Rhiannon.” He broke free of his trance and stepped forward. He cupped my elbows with quaking hands as if I was a figment of his imagination.
“There’s so much I have to tell you,” I expelled in a rush, suddenly eager to unload my burden. He was real. He was here. I wasn’t in this futuristic version of Hell alone. “You have no idea of the kind of shit I’ve been through.”
“We can’t talk. Not out here.” Goose glanced around. The moment his gaze rested on Carter, his eyes narrowed. “I don’t know what he’s doing with you, but the dog stays outside.”
“I don’t think so.” Carter growled, and the deep, menacing sound radiated from his throat and chest. “She remains with me.”