The last shade broke under my aura, and I stopped.

I stood on the bleachers, my gasping breaths deafening in the suddenly silent room.

Every eye was on me. Every. Single. One.

I pulled, and my aura came racing back to me like a net on a line.

I felt it brush past the other auras in the room, flowing around them like rocks in a river.

It reached me and pulled back into a veil.

I felt several gazes grow even more intense.

I didn’t look at all the hungry eyes around me, focusing on Blair instead.

Her eyes had completely filled with red, and she stared down at me, her mouth open slightly.

“Left you speechless, huh? I’ll admit, it’s a gift.”

Blair twitched at my lame joke, but someone else had a very different reaction.

A booming cackle sounded from the table. I turned to see the Adjudicator doubled over, great peals of cackling laughter escaping her. The sound was far louder than it should be, and some of the room turned to the woman.

More eyes left me a moment later as the Adjudicator stopped laughing.

She stretched out her aura and snapped her fingers. Her magic mimicked the motion and a yellow patch of her aura tore the air apart in a deafening boom.

She didn’t move more than that, but her aura loomed in my awareness, seeming to fill my vision.

It hung above her in a lazy cloud of distinct colors, and while it wasn’t covering nearly as much space as I had a moment ago, it felt like it was. And not only that, it felt deeper, like staring into a lake and not even catching a glimpse of the bottom.

“You’re attention, please.” She rose and cracked her neck.

"Leave the Telss alone for now. He's with the Northwoods. Any and all issues can be brought up after a hoard of undead isn't on the way to kill us all."

She gestured at the table around her. "Have the wards triggered?"

One of the mages I didn't know nodded. "Yes, they're tripping all around town. They started going off right before the Barrow King mentioned the hoard."

The old woman grunted, then started barking orders. "Oriana, you lot are in the Overlook. That side of town is your responsibility. Do you have enough mages to hold it on you're own?"

The woman nodded and immediately headed for the exit.

One of the Were-Kin delegates growled. "You're splitting us up before a Hoard?"

The Adjudicator stared at the woman, and her aura pulsed slightly. "Maren, do I need to remind you what taking vouchers means?"

The Were shrank back and stared at the floor.

"This town's protection is our responsibility now. We could sit tight here, which might not even be the best move since every strong undead would converge on one location. But we could do that." Her voice had lost its dry humor and found ice instead.

"We could let the Hoard tear through the town as they come for us. And by doing that, we would be admitting that we can't protect what's ours."

The Adjudicator, who was physically a frail old woman who couldn't possibly be an inch over five feet, stared the Were-Kin down.

"Do you think the Pact shouldn't protect what's ours?"

The Were straightened her spine as she bowed her head in respect. "No, Adjudicator!"

The woman smiled, and the humor returned to her voice like it had never left. "Good! That's what I like to hear!" She turned to the others. "Northwoods, you lot are in the Northside. Can you hold it on your own?"

Adela paused for a long breath before nodding. "I will have to use the lure method, but I can manage that. Unless this Hoard is several times larger, then we're expecting." She looked around. "Does anyone have an estimate?"

A Vampire looked up from their phone. "At least five hundred. Our scouts can't get an accurate measure. The Hoard is starting to affect the weather, which is making it even harder."

Adela nodded. "I can hold the north."

The Adjudicator turned to the others, but I stopped paying attention.

I felt…relieved. I had already decided to jump off the cliff. Now I just had to wait for the landing.

Blair had never fully turned away, but she suddenly spun towards me, her eyes frantic.

“Are you okay?”

I nodded. “Yeah, just…” Just what? What the hell was I supposed to say? That I was doing great because I wouldn’t live past tonight, so I didn’t have to care?

I didn’t think that answer would go over well.

“I… I don’t know what to say.”

Blair grasped my shoulders, and I realized her hands were shaking.

“Why are you so calm?”

For the first time, I wanted to thank Adela since she appeared beside us before I had to come up with a response.

“We need to go now.”

Blair stepped back, and I quickly glanced around. The factions were racing to the exits, leaving as soon as the Adjudicator gave them their region.

We didn’t have much time before the Hoard arrived. That fact slipped through my new calm, and my pulse started racing. The factions would defend Silver Spruce now that they had their hooks in, but that didn’t guarantee everyone would make it out alright.

From what I knew of the undead, they were going to make a beeline for the spooks before anyone else, but if any townsfolk were in the way…

What could I do to help?

Rodgers floated down from the ceiling, the others following in his wake.

The sight of the ghosts sparked an idea, but I was jerked into motion before I could consider it.

Blair pulled me by the hand, and the others walked around me, walling me in.

I appreciated the gesture, as I could still feel the eyes boring into me.

“Cornelius,” the Adjudicator called. “You stay with me. I’m going to try and form a spirit shift strong enough to wipe out the weaker mass of undead, but I need a guard.”

“Of course, Adjudicator.”

We left the field, and their conversation faded.

We reached the vans among the flood of spooks scrambling to their own vehicles or just sprinting out into the darkness at superhuman speeds.

Adela started snapping out orders. “B and A squads, head straight to the manor.” Evidently, Blair’s Pack was B squad, and the group Adela had brought with her was A squad. They immediately went for their vans, but when Blair tried to tug me with them, I resisted.

She stopped, confused.

I stared at her for a breath, memorizing her face. The lines of her cheeks, they way her red eyes caught the moonlight, the subtle tilt of her head as she stared down at me. I took in every little detail I could and held them close.

I would never see her again.

“I need to visit my house before the Hoard hits. The spirit ward will help if any shades are with the Hoard.” I turned to the Alpha Northwoods. Usually, the following words would have burned me to say, but I was past caring.

“It’s safest if you take me. Anyone else would be a risk if they went on their own, and if there’s an issue, you can run back to the main group in a flash.” I inclined my head.

“Please. I just need to make one last stop.”

I put the slightest emphasis on last, hoping the ancient werewolf could read between the lines.

She stared at me, her face carved from ice. A knot of tension formed in my gut as footsteps pounded around us.

It was clear where Blair got her neutral expression from.

As I was about to ask again, the ice cracked slightly, and she nodded. “Very well. We must be quick, though. Everyone move!”

Blair stared at her mother and opened her mouth, but Adela cut her off. “I swear I will not abandon him or do anything else against his will.” Blair snapped her mouth closed and, after giving me one last look, rushed to the moon mobile.

Bobby said nothing, only giving me a severe nod before climbing in the van.

Laurel and Simon both shot me worried glances as they followed.

Adela marched towards me. “Close your mouth. Make sure not to bite your tongue.

“Huh?”

She didn’t bother responding. Instead, she kept walking toward me. Before I could react, she closed the distance and scooped me up like I weighed nothing.

“What the hel-“ the words died as the werewolf took off.

The woman ran faster than a goddamn horse, and we crossed out of the Dome’s parking lot before I grasped what was happening.

“Jesus Christ, woman! Give a guy a little warning before- Guh!”

We hit the tree line, but instead of slowing down, she sped up.

The night air whipped at my face and howled in my ears as we tore across the forest.

“Did you expect to take a car?” Adela yelled over the wind.

I started to yell back a response, but she was a werewolf. Why bother?

“I didn’t really think about it, to be honest,” I said at a normal volume.

“Fool.”

I wanted to glare at the woman, but I couldn’t tear my eyes away from the trees blurring past.

She hurtled over a fallen log, kicked off a tree as we passed, then turned to slip through a narrow gap between branches, all while still gaining speed.

The most terrifying part was how smooth it all was. I was barely jostled.

The speed she was showing was one thing, but the absolutely superhuman control was another. Every step, every shift in balance, and twitch of her body was perfectly controlled.

Each action blended into the next until we flew through the forest faster than a car at highway speeds, and she made it look effortless.

I wouldn’t say it was humbling since I had no pride in my physical abilities to be humbled.

I knew how outclassed I was in the big wide world.

But the display was awe-inspiring.

We reached the graveyard in under two minutes, landing on the grass with a quiet thump.

Adela set me down, and I straightened. I looked at the woman, an odd mix of emotions swirling in my gut.

“Thank you.”

She inclined her head, a surprisingly sympathetic look on her face. “You are not the first Telss I have known. I would take the same route rather than let the Clans have me.”

I swallowed a lump in my throat. She had certainly read between the lines.

“I half expected you to sell me to the Clans if I’m being honest.”

She sneered at me, and a faint growl entered her voice. “I would not stain my honor. You saved my Pack. I would have lived, and my daughter may have, but most would have died. I would be shamed if I returned that with betrayal.”

“Huh. Well, I still don’t like you, and I think you’re a bitch to your daughter. But I can respect that you have some principles.”

She glared at me, a flash of fury running through her expression before cooling. She shook her head and laughed. “It has been such a long time since someone was so…blunt to my face.”

“I’m a dead man walking. Not much point in beating around the bush.” Speaking of not beating around the bush, we didn’t have much time before the Hoard arrived.

“You said you would use the lure method earlier. I assume that involves using a lot of magic to draw the undead to you?”

She nodded. “Yes. I will let some of my power flow, and the corpse eaters will come like moths to the flame.”

I grunted—the idea I had earlier taking shape.

“I’ll help. I used so much magic in the Dome that it’s still clinging to me, even while veiled. That will draw its fair share.”

I turned towards my house. “Also, I really do have a spirit ward for you. I’ll make another one as well, which will draw even more undead to me.”

“Hmm. Making sure your last stand is your last. And doing as much good in the process. That's a good death. But…are you sure this is what you want?”

I froze.

Sure? Was I? Maybe I could…

I closed my eyes. Memories pushed at the surface of my thoughts, desperate to break through. And weariness had settled into my bones, I couldn’t remember the last time I’d gotten a full night's sleep. And to top it all off, nothing would ever be the same again. The mages would never let me be at peace here.

I was done.

“Yes. I’m sure.”

She was silent as I went and grabbed the spirit ward.

I came back with the ward, and Jack. The cat looked into the night and trembled. He was right to be scared.

She took the carving and I handed her the cat as well. She took him without comment, then gave me a shockingly deep bow. She bent low enough to expose the back of her neck, and she held it for a few seconds before straightening.

“I will remember you, Alder.”

And with that, she vanished with a clap of air.

Okay, now I had around fifteen minutes before a Hoard came and tore me apart.

The ghosts had followed us, but they’d kept their distance as we talked.

I swallowed another lump in my throat, and addressed them.

“I have a favor to ask, and you're not going to like it.”