The Gathering (26 page)

Rayna was led up the stairs behind Carmen to
the front of the stage. There, she gazed out at the sea of faces
staring back at her. Shouts and disembodied voices yelled her name,
the applause rang out over the park and for once, she wished she’d
chosen a career path that didn’t allow her to be so visible to the
public.

When Victor took center stage, Rayna watched
him smile, his gnarled fingers wrapped around his cane as he stood
and waited for the last of the applause to die. When the people
staring up at them were silent, Victor gave her a brief look and
the malice in his eyes caused a shiver to race up her spine. “I’m
sure I don’t have to introduce this lovely young lady to you but
for those who don’t know, this is Rayna Ford.” He turned his body
toward her and the shouts once again rang out over the park. “We’ve
come today to share with you something that will change the world.
Rayna has graciously offered to be the one to enlighten you
all.”

He turned to face her and held out his hand.
“Ms. Ford, if you would be so kind.”

Rayna glared at him before turning her
attention to the crowd. She watched their eager faces as they
stared up at her. So many of them looked familiar. Old
acquaintances and friends lined the front of the stage, all of them
waiting for her to enlighten them, as Victor had said, and the only
thing she could think to say was, “run!”

When Victor gave her a disgruntled look and
shook his hand at her impatiently, she heaved a sigh and crossed
the stage to where he stood.

She scanned the crowd, wondering what would
happen to those friends she saw once the wolf was loose. She knew
enough from what Judith told her to know once she turned, the wolf
would act instinctively. It would hunt and with this many people,
it was a sure bet someone would get hurt. All those people staring
up at her would be nothing but food once she shifted. The wolf
would see them as nothing else.

Tears burned her eyes as she stared at them.
How would she be able to control the wolf alone? It wasn’t supposed
to happen like this. She was supposed to be on the mountain,
surrounded by her pack. With Garrett by her side.

The law enforcement officers she saw on the
fringes of the crowd brought another fear to light. Being shot
wasn’t a pleasant prospect but if it saved one person from her
wolf, she’d take a bullet gladly.

Victor nudged her in the back, leaning in
close to say, “Tell them everything, from the beginning.”

She threw him a look over her shoulder before
clearing her throat and approaching the microphone. She smiled,
hoping it looked genuine, and grabbed the microphone stand to
steady herself. “Hello.” She cleared her throat again and took a
deep breath. “I’m Rayna Ford.”

The cheers rose again, claps and whistles and
a few shouts of her name. She continued to scan the crowd, peering
into those eager faces staring up at her. “A year ago a story so
unbelievable crossed my desk that I ignored it for six months
before finally going to check it out. The man who contacted me was
persistent and to shut him up, and to expose his claims as fake, my
partner, Mitch, and I, hit the road in search of our story. What we
found was something so amazing I still have a hard time believing
it.”

As difficult as the story was to tell, it
flowed in a steady stream. Her voice quivered at times and her
knees felt too weak to hold her up but she managed to keep talking.
There wasn’t a sound other than the wind blowing through the trees
and the occasional baby crying. Every person there was enraptured
by what she was telling them. She tried to smile but failed as she
said the words she’d been dreading. “Werewolves are real.”

The hush that previously hung over the area
vanished in a second. The first snickers and laughs rang out
moments later, followed by more robust laughter. Rayna saw Victor
move out of the corner of her eye and avoided looking at him. She
kept her gaze locked on those in front of her. Those laughing at
her. “That was my first reaction too,” she said, smiling to hide
her nervousness. “It took seeing to believe it, which is why we’re
here today.”

At that moment a wolf’s howl echoed through
the park. The hair on Rayna’s arms stood on end and her wolf
shifted restlessly against her bones. Her pulse leaped and hot
tears scalded the back of her eyes.

The joy she felt when another howl filtered
through the park rushed through her body in an instant. She knew
that wolf. Regardless of what happened today, she knew she wouldn’t
be alone.

Her mate had come. Garrett was in the
park.

Garrett looked over his shoulder when he
heard another howl. He saw Nicolas and two other men nod at him
before they walked toward the tree line that edged the park. More
howls filtered through the area and he turned his attention back to
the stage. Rayna was still standing by the microphone, her eyes
wide and searching. She knew he was there. He smiled before moving
closer.

Victor was at Rayna’s left and Carmen stood
near the back of the stage. Four other men flanked them all.
Wolves, he suspected. When he was close enough for her to see him,
he lowered the ball cap on his head to shield some of his face from
view. Having Rayna spot him was one thing. Having Victor or Carmen
spot him would ruin Nicolas’ plan.

He waited for the signal, his gaze locked on
Rayna and knew the moment she spotted him. Her eyes blazed amber
for a brief second before she smiled.

Garrett raised his hand, tilting the hat
slightly so she could see his face. Her smile widened and his wolf
howled inside his head. He hoped when the time came, he could call
the beast forward. Rayna’s life may depend on it.

Nicolas’ signal was given. A loud,
multi-layered series of howls and growls and just as he assumed,
the crowd gathered in the park reacted. A few screams, some laughs
from those who refused to believe werewolves were real and the
nervous giggles of those who were unsure. A look over his shoulder,
spotting Nicolas and his friends near the tree line shifting and
Garrett took a breath before shouting, “Rayna! Jump!”

She didn’t question the command. She jumped
from the stage and ran into the crowd. Garrett raced to reach her
before Victor’s men did.

* * * *

Rayna pushed her way through the people
lining the stage and the stunned faces of those she passed rushed
by in a blur. Her only thought was to get to Garrett and not on
whether Victor’s men were following her. She was sure they
were.

The growls and howls she’d heard earlier were
ringing off in different directions throughout the park. Apparently
Garrett hadn’t come alone. When she reached him, he grabbed her
arm, turned and ran.

“If we’re separated, head to the lake.”

“The lake?” she asked.

“Yes. Remember the spot I took you to for our
picnic?”

She nodded and glanced over her shoulder.
Victor’s men were behind them. “They’re coming.”

“I know. Just keep running.”

She did. They cleared the mass of bodies
littering the grassy area and Rayna was relieved to see Judith by
the forest edge. When she turned and ran into the trees, Garrett
released her arm. “Follow Judith.” He gave her a slight push in
that direction and it wasn’t until she’d reached the safety of the
trees that she realized Garrett hadn’t followed her in.

Rayna stopped and looked back over her
shoulder, watching him head back into the park. “What is he
doing?”

“Don’t worry about it.” Judith tugged on her
shirtsleeve and tried to get her to turn. “Let’s go. Garrett wanted
you safe.”

Safe? And what about his safety? She fumed as
she watched him run back toward the stage. What the hell was he
doing and why? Lifting her head and looking back at the stage,
Rayna noticed Victor wasn’t there but Carmen was. And from the
looks of it, she was shifting.

Garrett was closing in on the stage and Rayna
puzzled over his actions. Had Carmen been telling the truth about
him? Had he sold her out to be a Breed Leader? To put her aside for
Carmen?

The implications were like acid to her lungs
as she watched him run toward the stage. Hot, scalding jealousy ate
at her conscience and one glance at Carmen was all it took for her
to react.

She ran after Garrett, Judith’s voice echoing
in her head as she yelled her name. When she hit the throng of
people still watching the stage, she pushed her way through
them.

Carmen held them all spellbound. In unusual
fashion, she wasn’t doing the quick, instant shift she seemed to be
fond of. She was prolonging it and everyone watching seemed to be
mesmerized. The look on their faces showed confusion, the murmurs
she heard confirming it. They weren’t sure of what was
happening.

A few startled screams led the way for the
panic that followed as Carmen lifted her head, long canines
bursting from her gums as she howled. Those closest to the stage
ran, running into those next to them and within seconds, the park
was in chaos.

Those trying to get away stopped Rayna’s
pursuit of Garrett and a glance around her showed others were
shifting. In moments, the park was filled with multiple breeds. And
just as she’d feared, they were attacking the people in the park.
The screams echoed in her head, the scent of blood hung heavy in
the air and the sight of those poor souls who found themselves food
for the monsters would be etched into her memory forever.

Pushing her way through the crowd, searching
for Garrett, Rayna nearly made it to the stage when she was
grabbed. She looked up, tugging on her arm and stopped squirming
when she saw it was Victor. For a man who looked old enough to fall
dead any moment, he was strong.

“Ms. Ford, you’ve ruined my carefully laid
out plans.”

The snarky comment on the tip of her tongue
fell away when Victor’s eyes blazed amber orange. His intense gaze
burned into her, his wolf guise showing on his face and Rayna felt
her own wolf respond. It slinked along her bones, the feel of cool
fur brushed against her skin and pain started to thrum throughout
her body.

He was calling the wolf, just as he said he’d
do. Her vision blurred as panic took hold and she knew then,
nothing she did would stop the beast from being born.

As the pain increased a panicked gasp tore
from her throat and Rayna searched the crowd. “Garrett!”

She staggered as the wolf pushed. Rayna bit
back a groan and locked her knees when the pain racing through her
limbs caused them to buckle.

The many times the wolf had tried to surface,
Rayna wondered then what it would actually feel like to give the
creature full rein. She knew the pain would be staggering but this
wasn’t what she was expecting.

Sweat coated her skin in seconds, leaving her
clothes sticky and clinging to her body. She could feel the slow
slide of it rolling down her back and the intense heat she felt
made it near impossible to breathe.

A glance at Victor showed him smiling at her.
His mouth opened as he spoke but she could hear nothing but a dull
ringing inside her head. His words were lost to her as she
concentrated on the wolf. If she could push the beast away like
she’d done before then maybe she could find a way out of this.

Her last thought vanished as mind numbing
heat and prickly stabbing pain tore an anguished scream from her as
her body seized, her muscles seeming to rip all at once and every
inch of her flesh felt on fire. The pain throbbed and raced along
her limbs until her lungs ached. Her knees buckled and she hit the
ground, the impact jarring her teeth. The noise died, the blood
rushing past her ears deafening her to everything around her.

A glance at her hands showed the bones
shifting, undulating under her flesh as hair grew in dark patches
and raced up her arms. Her throat felt tight, her eyes burning
while her pained screams echoed in her head.

The people closest to her ran when she looked
at them, their faces a mask of horrified disbelief as they tried to
get away while others stood paralyzed. Every muscle in her body
felt like it snapped, her bones not substantial enough to hold her
up. She saw the camera crew then, their cameras aimed at her and
the smiles on the faces of those men working the cameras let her
know they were part of Victor’s collective.

She heard her name, the sound distant and
echoing across the park. She blinked and tried to focus her vision
and that’s when she saw him. Garrett, pushing his way through the
crowd and the tears filling her eyes fell, scalding her flesh as
they ran over her cheeks. She watched him run toward her, relief
filling her when she heard him yell, “Don’t take your eyes off of
me!”

He was followed by Gavin and Dillon. When
they reached her, Garrett fell to his knees beside her, lifted her
from the ground, and ran.

“Look at me, Rayna!”

Rayna tried to focus her gaze and blinked
past the pain. Garrett’s face was a blur. “It hurts.”

They stopped by a large tree in the center of
the park. The air was cool there, the tree limbs bathing the area
in dark shadows. Garrett sat her down and said, “I know it hurts.”
He grabbed her face, tilting her head up. “Concentrate on her,
Rayna. Push her away. You’re in control of her, not Victor.”

She tried. But still she felt the wolf
pushing. The pain was so intense everything around her faded to
black. Garrett’s insistent pleas for her to push her away were the
only thing she heard. Long minutes of fear and pain gave way to a
slower pulse. She wasn’t sure how to push the wolf back. She
remembered trying to call her in the warehouse. How she’d mentally
grabbed her and pulled. She did that now, only in reverse. She
pushed. Pushed until the pain started to recede.