1

Aspen

"Why won't you open?"

I took another run at the closed doors, slamming into them with a grunt of frustration as the chains rattled outside. My wolf howled in my head after lending me her strength, but even with the two of us together we'd only managed to split the plywood and put a small dent in the metal frame of the storage shed.

Whoever built it did an amazing job.

I took a step back, dragging my hands through my wild hair to tame it a bit and taking a deep breath. Think of a plan.

Let me chew through the wall?

A real plan! I screamed at my wolf.

You think of one then, she huffed.

I turned to survey the damage of the nest I'd made in the Luna Trials which was now also my prison. The plastic bin I still hadn't opened sat in the corner with the note from Jesse crumbled on top. The bedframe was in pieces under the mattress and the floating shelves I'd attached to the walls were hanging on by loose screws.

I'd already pushed open the little window in the back, but it was still hot in here. Sweat pooled in my armpits and I shrugged off my flannel shirt, dropping it to the top of my gram's quilt as I stood on my tiptoes to suck in fresh air from the one-foot square window.

Once I cooled off a little, I eyed the width of the glass and dropped my gaze to my hips.

We could try shifting.

Mass distribution. I grabbed my gram's old wood trunk because it was the most solid–and intact–piece of furniture. I slid it over to the window. Your bones are wider than mine to make up for the height discrepancy of my human form.

Okay, nerd. My wolf rolled her eyes. Hurry and figure this out. It's getting hotter.

Give me a second.

I used part of my shifted wolf's claw to unscrew the cheap plastic frame around the glass window and popped the pane out.

In theory, this should work.

I'm dying of anticipation.

I sucked in a deep breath, hoisting myself up onto the thin ledge.

The top half of my body went through easily enough. The problem came at my hips.

The good news?

There was a soft forest floor to break my undoubtedly ungraceful coming fall.

The bad news?

Free access to a buffet for the past three weeks had increased my waistline a smidge.

I cursed everything bagels and French toast as I twisted and turned, wiggling my hips and kicking my legs in the air behind me as my arms dangled and searched for some kind of leverage to grip. The metal tracks and untreated wood dug into my sides and cut my skin as I finally broke free with an audible ripppp…

Of my jeans.

Not a fart.

I twisted at the last second, thanking the Goddess for small miracles as I landed with a hard thud on my back. With the wind knocked out of me, I laid there a moment staring up at the evergreens and swaying branches of aspen trees.

At least we were still in Colorado.

I took a deep breath, pushing my wolf senses out further to get a feel of the area. The terrain was unfamiliar. It felt stagnant in a way that was foreign to me. I couldn't figure out why until I realized nothing was moving. No birds in the trees. No noise from small game scurrying. I was in woods that seemed devoid of life.

Which wasn't good.

I started laughing.

This was not my month.

Don't lose it on me now. My wolf sighed.

I patted down my body, stopping when my hand reached my neck. Whatever drugs Molly injected me with already burned through my system. Faster most likely because of the impromptu workout of trying to escape my nest.

I was going to kill that bitch.

My head swam when I thought back through all our interactions. I knew what I'd been blind to before. Molly was behind everything. Opal. The drugged drink. Every plot twist and turn. It didn't make sense at first because I didn't think I was that important.

But it wasn't about me.

I'd bet every meager penny in my bank account that I was just a tool to get to Ranger. He was the hotshot Alpha. Highlighting him in the show would increase ratings. Once they knew what we were to each other, I could be used to make him act. I didn't have proof yet, but I would find it.

Just as soon as I figured out where I was.

I quickly checked the rest of my body, finding my clothes and limbs intact. The bloody cuts on my sides were already healing and the rip in my jeans didn't leave any parts hanging out.

Once I was satisfied I'd live, I pushed myself to my elbows and shook out the leaves from my hair. My body ached all over and not only from squeezing it through a too-small hole. Muscles quivered in my back and my lower half throbbed.

Despite the breeze drifting through the quiet forest and the shade from the trees overhead, it was unseasonably warm.

Is it too early for our heat?

Not exactly. My wolf didn't elaborate and that worried me a bit. Don't stress. Ranger is coming.

I wasn't sure how she knew that, but my attention caught on the tree directly in front of the shed. The sun reflected strangely off a small lens. A red pinpoint light blinked on, recording.

Hidden in the leaves was a trail cam meant for wild game pointed straight at my nest.

I scanned the trees, spotting two more.

All the way out here–wherever here was–the cameras were still filming.