DEREK
The scream tore through me like a blade.
Aiden.
I shifted mid-motion, bones snapping, fur ripping free of skin, the world sharpening into Erebus’s senses before the tent flap even hit the ground. I lunged straight through the sliced back panel, teeth bared, paws hitting earth as I hit the woods at a dead sprint.
“Dad!”
His voice was close. Panicked, but not far. Whoever had him hadn’t gotten far. Not yet.
Branches whipped past my flanks. My lungs burned, muscles coiled and snapping as I pushed harder, the scent trail sharp and recent—two wolves, one older, one leaner, and the unmistakable tang of Aiden. Sweat, fear, but no blood.
Not yet.
My vision tunneled. Rage and instinct merged into one long snarl of fury. They had my son.
“Dad!”
Another shout—clearer, just beyond the
