Claws // Colby Brock

💫 73 💫

☯︎☯︎☯︎☯︎☯︎

AMIRA ANDREWS

Dazed wasn't the start of it. I almost felt drunk or high, so incredibly unaware of my surroundings that I didn't even realise Colby was gone until one of his shirts hit me in the face. I got dressed as he spoke with Sam over the phone, a conversation I hadn't the capacity to pay attention to.

I thought nothing of it when he left the room also wearing clothes — a shame — and I took advantage of my time alone to stand before a mirror. I almost didn't recognise myself; the deep indents in my neck, the lighter shade of my skin after spending so much less time in the sun than I used to, the intense force of my presence. I'd always known that alphas tended to gain more influence over everyone else, since they had the goddess at their back, but I never expected to feel so much more powerful. Colby's mark hadn't even been renewed and my body was filled with strength that was alien to me.

Somewhere between flashing my own red eyes at myself and flexing my arms, I heard a familiar high shrill of a voice downstairs that penetrated the sound barrier, and turned my head toward the noise. My feet drew me out of the bedroom without my permission, then down the stairs where I was immediately met by arms around me. I blinked, confused, looking down at the tiny blonde clutched to me like she needed protection.

"Thank you, Amy."

Despite everything that had happened recently, I felt myself sinking into her embrace. Soft hazel eyes peered up at me after a moment and every ounce of anger left was zapped right out.

"For what?" My voice was working on its own accord, almost timid.

Anna gave me a tight smile. "Just know I'm grateful."

I glanced at the large group in the living room but none of them seemed to know why I was receiving such random affection. So, starting to get uncomfortable, I carefully pried her away from me, noting how her bump had been smushed into my frame, then slid over to the couch where Colby was waiting. One leg was stretched across it, which he quickly moved.

Anna sat down in the space left for her by Kevin, and reached back for Blake's hand as he stood behind. Kian was only a short distance away, staring off into space.

Ignoring the wolves, I looked instead at Tom, Liliana and Ellis huddled together in the corner. Grilling my ex-friends could come later; right now, I wanted to know how and why we'd had so much help on the battlefield.

"Lilly" — it was a nickname I'd been forced to start using — "you said to me you came because you sensed something wrong. What did you mean?" As I spoke, I shifted Colby upright and laid down on the couch so my head was on his lap, shamelessly. Neoma jumped up into the small space between my body and the back of the couch, and settled straight in for a nap while the humans talked around her. I was surprised she wasn't uneasy from Colby's arm laying nearby across my stomach.

Liliana appeared as uncertain about this evening's events as I did, when she said, "Well, I was just about to head over and see Dad. Literally only had my foot out the door, then I felt this really weird... urge. I was being drawn toward something."

"She called me," Tom continued, "and it just so happened Reggie had told me what you guys were doing tonight. I know it's unlikely but I'd been going through a similar thing. Confronting the pack like you planned felt like a bad idea to me."

"So that's what he told me," Lilly agreed with a nod. "We thought it'd be best to come see for ourselves, rather than just speculating. If you didn't need help, we could always just leave you to it."

I frowned. "Aiden and Paula wouldn't have been a problem at that point. They arrived right as you did."

"Maybe our timing wasn't a coincidence," Lilly suggested. "Thing is, that feeling got a million times worse the moment I saw you, and then I caught that bitch's scent and I knew the goddess was asking me to help you."