The wreckage smelled of blood, oil, and smoke.
By the time I made it back to the crash site, the sun had barely started to rise. Orange light filtered through the mist like fire caught in a jar, and the van—what was left of it—lay at the bottom of a shallow ravine, cracked open like a ribcage.
I didn't shift back.
There wasn't time.
And I wasn't sure I could.
Nyx still prowled just beneath the surface of my skin, wild and bristling, nostrils flaring with every breath. We were one creature now. One bloodied instinct trying to make sense of a world that no longer had rules.
I picked my way down the slope, paws silent on the mud. The wreck had started to smoke. Something was burning under the hood—slow and dangerous.
I found Kol first.
Collapsed against the side of the van, one leg twisted beneath him, face bloodied and pale. But alive. Breathing.
I nudged his shoulder with my snout.
He groaned.
Good enough.
I caught the collar of his jacket between my teeth and dragged him. Inch by inch. Over roots and rocks, careful not to drop him. Nyx snarled when his head lolled backward, but we pressed on. Dragged him out into the grass, away from the van.
Laid him down gently.
Then turned back.
The others were scattered. Rae was pinned beneath a side panel. I braced my body against the wreckage and shoved until it creaked and gave, just enough to let her wriggle free. She was covered in glass, cuts everywhere, lips split—but she clung to consciousness with grim, angry force.
I licked the blood from her forehead. Not because I had to.
Because she needed to know someone was still here.
The third body—Torrin—wasn't moving.
I didn't stop.
Didn't hesitate.
I dragged him out anyway.
His chest was rising.
Barely.
When they were all out—when the van was nothing more than twisted metal and burning fumes—I paced.
Circling.
Listening.
The forest had gone quiet again. Too quiet.
The monster wasn't gone.
Just waiting.
Watching.
I turned toward the trees and lifted my snout.
A long, low howl peeled through the air.
It wasn't rage.
It wasn't warning.
It was call.
A signal.
I need backup.
It was stupid. Reckless. Probably not even effective.
But the facility had monitors. Hidden drones. The old emergency frequencies were still wired into the border sensors.
If anyone was listening...
They'd know now.
Kol stirred.
I padded back to him and nudged his face again. This time, his eyes fluttered open.
He stared at me for a long second.
Then blinked. "...Nyx?"
I huffed softly.
His mouth twitched. Almost a smile. "Told you that crate was cursed."
I laid down beside him, curling my body around his.
Not to warm him.
To guard him.
Because the forest was too quiet.
And the creature was still out there.
And I wasn't leaving anyone behind.