The beast closed the distance with dizzying speed. Just before it reached her, however, a silver ball of fur came from the left and launched itself at the creature. A wolf collided with the ghoul and they both went to the ground, the canine snarling, going for his enemy’s throat. He missed and the ghoul raked his side with knifelike claws, ripping through his coat. The wolf cried out, twisted, and resumed his attack. On they battled, and Rowan couldn’t get a good shot at the beast without risking the wolf.

Glancing anxiously at the rest of the fight, she saw Zan and the big gray wolf she knew to be Jax still engaged in the fight across the yard. That meant the wolf who’d saved her ass was Ryon—and he was losing.

Just as he managed to sink his teeth into the ghoul’s throat, the thing tore him free and threw him aside. He sailed through the air, hit a tree hard, and slid to the ground, unmoving. The creep returned its attention to Rowan and she could’ve sworn it smiled.

She aimed, but before she could fire, Nick ran around the side of the building, Kalen and Hammer hot on his heels. The Sorcerer took in the situation and slid to a stop. A big staff appeared out of thin air and he gripped it in his right hand as he knelt, arms straight out from his sides, head back.

Closing his eyes, he began a chant in a language Rowan thought might be Latin. Instantly, everyone froze in place, even Rowan. She could move only her eyes, and she noted that the battle stopped in the middle of some macabre, deadly dance. That weirded her out, but not nearly as much as what came next.

The beasts began to… enlarge. Just inflate, like they were oversized tires that someone was airing up. Their yellow eyes rounded in fear and one managed a whimper—

And then they exploded in a shower of greenish black matter. God, it stunk. If Rowan had been able, she would’ve gagged.

Head back, Kalen closed his left fist tightly, shook it. His comrades were freed, including Rowan, and she dropped to her knees. The Sorcerer slumped forward, supporting himself with the staff, breathing hard. Nick hurried to his Pack mate, steadying him.

“My panther couldn’t have fought those things,” Kalen said hoarsely. “Too many of them. I did the first thing that came to mind.”

“You did good, kid,” Nick praised, clamping a hand on his shoulder. “You okay?”

He nodded. “I’m fine, just need a sec.”

Jax shifted back to human form and began pulling on his clothes. “No wonder. Must take a helluva load of power to blow up one of those bastards, much less a whole army of them all at once.”

“You could say that.” Kalen tried to make it a joke, but nobody was laughing.

“Oh, God,” Zan whispered. “Ryon!”

Following Zan’s gaze, the others saw where their friend lay crumpled on the ground several yards away. Zan reached him first, dropping to his knees. Once again in human form, Ryon was sprawled on his side. White-blond hair feathered around his handsome face and his eyes were closed. Four ragged gashes, bleeding heavily, marred his left side, and he was peppered with cuts and bruises.

Zan took his shoulders and spoke to Jax. “Help me roll him onto his back.”

Once this was accomplished, someone tossed Ryon’s shirt over his package for her sake, Rowan figured. Cursing herself, she watched as Zan placed both hands over the wounds on his friend’s side.

“If it wasn’t for me, he’d be okay,” she said softly.

“No,” Jax said sharply, glancing up at her. “If you hadn’t been here, those bastards would’ve torn all three of us apart before Kalen got to us. Because they couldn’t see you at first, you took out a lot of them and saved our bacon.”

Nick’s gaze was like twin blue lasers as he looked at her. “Is that true?”

She just shrugged. No way was she gonna take credit when Ryon had ended up hurt, or worse. “I missed my last shot and that fucker got him. That’s all I know.”

“Who cloaked you?”

She saw no benefit in trying to hide the answer from a psychic. “Sariel. But he had his reasons and his heart was in the right place, so if there’s any punishment to be dealt, it’s mine.”

Something like respect flashed across Nick’s face and was quickly replaced by a neutral expression. He nodded, turning back to his fallen man. Zan’s hands were now enveloped by a greenish glow that spread outward and appeared to sink into the gashes. Gradually, as Rowan stared in astonishment, the torn flesh began to knit together until the wounds vanished.

“Lacerated spleen,” Zan rasped. “Give me a couple more minutes.”

Minutes. To heal a serious internal injury. Half the population wouldn’t believe in Zan’s talent, and the other half would line up at his door if they knew. For her part, she saw the truth with her own eyes. That’s all she needed.

Ryon blinked, his lashes fluttering. He stared up at his companions, awareness of what had happened dawning slowly. “God, I thought I was done. Are those damned things dead?”

Zan patted his shoulder. “Yep. Kalen turned them into birthday balloons and popped ’em.”

“Gross.”

“Come on, let’s get your clothes on and then I’ll take you back to the helicopter.”

“Uh-uh. If our friends are in there, I’m not missing out on the reunion. Just help me up.” He paused. “The spirits are upset, urging us to hurry.”

Zan and Nick pulled Ryon to his feet. Rowan returned Jax’s gun to him, then turned away while Ryon dressed, too eaten with guilt to appreciate the sight of his fine naked body. He’d sacrificed himself for her—a stranger—without a second thought and nearly died for his trouble.

As a cop, putting herself on the line for people she didn’t know was what she did. Why did it bother her to be on the receiving end?

When everyone was ready, Nick gestured toward the back door. “Let’s stay together this time and follow the ghosts’ advice to get a move on. I’m sensing it won’t be long before reinforcements show up.”

They headed for the back stoop and filed inside cautiously, Rowan in the middle of the line. She couldn’t see as well in the gloom as they likely could, but her sense of smell didn’t need to be equal to theirs to guess what waited for them. The stench clogged her lungs, and fear for Micah seized her heart.

“Holy Christ,” Kalen gasped from somewhere in front. “I know Chappell and his docs don’t care about how they hurt others with their experiments, but how can they stand to work in this awful smell?”

“Probably just used to it,” Nick said.

Someone found a light switch and flipped it on. The group stood in the area that used to house the pews but now was a large, mostly empty room. A utility table and folding chairs were placed near one wall, and four camping cots topped with sleeping bags and pillows were in different corners.

“Where did the scientists go?” she wondered aloud.

Nick answered. “They’re either hiding while waiting for more backup, or went into the nearest town for a while and have no clue we’re here. This way.”

A set of double doors at the rear of the room took them into a hallway leading to what had once been classrooms where various groups had held their Bible studies. Now many of the rooms were full of computers and lab equipment. Methodically, the men checked each room along the way for booby traps, locating five trip wires attached to explosives, which they carefully disarmed.

At the end of the hallway, the smell, unbelievably, got worse. Nick eased the last door open, looked down, and pointed. Jax got busy dismantling the last trip wire, and then they were in. Jax flipped on the light, and they rushed inside—straight into a nightmare.

“Aw, fuck me,” Hammer moaned.

Rowan stared, unable to process what she was seeing. Cages lined two walls of what might’ve once been a storage room, currently being used as a prison. And inside the small cages were men. Filthy, naked men too large for the restrictive space, lying curled on their sides. Some staring and unresponsive to their arrival, some unconscious.