Free A Shade of Vampire 25: A Clan of Novaks by Bella Forrest

such pressing matters on our minds.
    Finally, Micah stopped short. “I’ve got her.”
    “Thank goodness,” Vivienne said.
    “I’m guessing that they touched down around here and then…” He continued moving forward. “It smells like they went this way.”
    I heaved a sigh. I felt relieved that we had at least caught the start of Victoria’s trail, but I also felt daunted. Something told me that this was going to be a long, winding journey.

Victoria
    A fter my agreement to accompany Bastien, I had been expecting him to immediately pick me up again. Instead, he took a step back. Then, sinking to the ground, he crouched over on his knees and hands. His limbs began to shake and expand until his torn clothes burst from his ballooning form. His head widened and silky black fur started sprouting from every inch of his skin. Then his teeth lengthened, becoming razor-sharp. His hands and feet balled up as his legs took shape. The transformation complete, he lifted himself up onto all fours and I was met once again with his penetrating gaze. As a wolf, his gray eyes were larger, brighter, even more intense.
    So this werewolf really can shift at will…
    He padded up to me and nudged my hands with his head, guiding them to grip hold of the fur at the back of his neck. I acquiesced, sliding my fingers through his sleek hair. With two hands and one working leg, I managed to pull myself onto his back.
    “Be sure to hold on tight, Lady Vaughn,” he said, his voice deep and rumbling.
    “Uh, you can just call me Victoria,” I muttered. I gripped hold of him as tightly as I could before he launched into a sprint that knocked the breath out of me. As he bounded through the woods, low-hanging branches whipped past us, and I ducked down, pressing the side of my face against the back of his neck and closing my eyes, afraid to get injured. Pain shot through my ankle. This bumpy journey was the exact opposite of what it needed, but I had no choice but to grit my teeth and bear it. Hopefully when we got to his hideout, wherever that even was, I would have a chance to rest it. What I really could use is some ice.
    It seemed like an eternity had passed—certainly several hours—before we finally reached the edge of the woods and emerged into a wide open meadow filled with luscious-smelling, bright purple flowers I could not put a name to. Now that we were out of the dense woodland, I could see that dawn was on the cusp of breaking. The sky was streaked with the most breathtaking hues of pink and peach.
    As Bastien continued to charge forward at breakneck speed, I wondered whether he ever needed a break. I got my answer once we had reached the other side of the meadow and entered yet another wood. We reached a river that ran through it and here he finally slowed to a stop. He lowered himself to the ground, allowing me to slide down onto a patch of grass by the bank. Even though my feet had not touched the ground once throughout the journey, every muscle in my body ached from the strain of clinging to him.
    I flopped onto my back, panting. He left my side and approached the water. Dipping his head, he began to take long, deep gulps. That was when I became aware of just how dehydrated I was. Trying to move my ankle as little as possible, I crawled up to the edge of the river next to him before cupping my palms and scooping up water. It didn’t even cross my mind to wonder how clean this water was before swallowing. But now that I examined it more closely, I had never seen such pristine, sparkling water. And it tasted so pure, it was almost sweet.
    I chugged down as much water as my stomach could take before letting out a slow breath. Bastien finished drinking and waded into the water. The current looked pretty wild toward the center of the river—I certainly would never dare to swim that deep, even if my ankle was not injured—but for Bastien, it was like taking a dip in a wading pool.
    He sank into the current and I lost sight of him