Alex started running halfway down the forest path, not from pursuing wolves—though several shadowed him to ensure his return—but because the minutes were slipping away and he could already imagine Naga's and Leo's faces when he delivered Lucas's counter-proposal.
The bridge appeared through the trees, along with his mates.
Naga was fully serpent: twenty feet of coiled menace, emerald eyes manic, pupils blown, three seconds from crossing the river in fury.
Leo paced in lion form, mane flared massive, claws gouging frozen earth, golden eyes locking onto Alex with desperate relief that nearly shattered him.
"I'm okay," Alex called, raising a placating hand. "I'm fine. No one hurt me."
Naga reached him first, coils wrapping gently but firmly around him before he fully crossed the bridge. Hands cupped Alex's face, thumbs trembling over cheekbones as if confirming reality.
"Sixteen minutes," Naga rasped. "Sixteen minutes of silence, smelling only wolves, not knowing if—"
