Free The Pack - Shadow Games by Jessica Sorrento Page B

that seemed to be consuming everything
around me. As it closed in, I screamed. I tried to shift so I could
make my escape, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't turn
back into my wolf form.
    The blackness swept over me and the world
around me disappeared. I was floating in a void. I had no sight, I
heard no sound. But just as I began to panic, a dim light appeared
in the distance. It stretched across the horizon, splitting the
dark into two halves. The dim light grew brighter until the thin
line across the sky was almost painful to look at, then started to
grow outwards, quickly consuming the dark until my whole world was
bright.
     
    *****
     
    I woke up.
    As I looked around I realized I wasn't in my
own home. This wasn't my bed and as I pulled off the covers, I saw
I was wearing clothes that weren't mine either. As I sat up, my
head felt heavy. Something was pulling at my neck.
    I my hands shot up and touched the cold metal
encircling my neck. My fingers slipped under the cool band and I
tried to tug the strange object off but it wouldn't budge.
    What the hell is going on? What is this?!
    A mirror sat above an ornate dresser against
the wall. My feet hit the stone floor and I moved quickly to
examine the strange object in the mirror. A thick band of silver
metal, with ornate engravings and faceted gemstones, hugged my
neck. At first glance it looked like a necklace, but it was far too
thick. I pulled at the metal neckpiece again but it still wouldn't
budge. Whatever the decorative piece was, it wasn't coming off.
    "You are awake. It is about time Miss
Olivia," said an unfamiliar voice from behind me. "The King awaits.
Please dress quickly."
    I turned to confront the person in the
doorway, but when I saw him, I fell to my knees in shock.
    "No! Why are you here? Where is Sam?!"
    Standing in front of me in his silvered chest
piece, with one hand loosely gripping the hilt of a small sword
hanging from his side stood Calder; the vampire who had attacked
Sam and I. He wasn't wearing the dark cloak, but that only made his
appearance that much more menacing.
    In his regal armor with a blood red shirt
peeking out from under the chest piece, and light absorbing blank
pants and boots, the man exuded power. But as I looked on him, his
face showed no hint of malice. His dark green eyes with the
stunning red ringlets around his pupils looked on me with kind
patience.
    I watched as my captor ran a hand through his
bright blond hair. His fingers were longer than they should have
been and his nails gleamed in the light and ended at sharp points.
His hair slid through his fingers and seemed to glow under his
touch. In the light, he was stunning to look at, but clearly not
human.
    "Where am I?" I asked from my position on the
floor.
    "There will be time for questions later.
Right now I need you to dress. The King has been waiting for you to
wake for days."
    Days?
    "I've been asleep that long? Please! What's
going on?"
    Calder shook his head. The simple gesture was
decidedly human, but the effect it caused was not. His hair
shimmered and pulsed with light as it shook from side to side. The
effect was mesmerizing.
    "Dress now. I am not asking you, I am telling
you."
    "Is Sam okay?"
    "The younger wolf? I would assume so. The old
man's pack showed up and pulled them from the wreckage. We didn't
follow."
    A huge weight lifted from my shoulder's at
his words. Sam was safe and most likely back in Black Bear by
now.
    Calder turned from the room and exited
through a recessed doorway. But before the hidden door shut, a new
figure slipped into the room. She wasn't human either. Her hair
pulsed from pink to purple in waves and her fingers came to points
like Calder's. Another vampire.
    The woman held a dress out in front of her
but said nothing.
    "Who are you?" I asked.
    She didn't answer. Instead she just shook the
dress impatiently. When I didn't reach out to take it from her, she
tossed it on the bed and spun on her heels. She knocked twice on
the