The dagger I'd been accused of stabbing Amaury with was still bloodied to the point I could hardly see the silver blade anymore. That was the work of someone out for blood. I wondered if that thirst had been quenched. It was a special kind of dagger. One with a gold handle, that had a plethora of beautifully patterned designs showered in black, drawn into it. Its style and length was the same as the average straight eighteen-inch dagger.

"Are you satisfied now?" Vincent lowered the Ziploc bag he'd been keeping the dagger in, back onto his desk. His eyes bored into mine as I chewed on my bottom lip, crossing my arms over my chest.

"Yes," I said, nodding.

"Good," he said.

I didn't think he'd agree to let me see the dagger. I'd asked him if I could see it for myself because I wanted to see how much blood it was covered in. I wanted to know if Amaury had only been nicked with the blade or if it had done more damage. And I'd surely gotten my answer. I should have known it was more than a small nick. He was bleeding out far too much.

"Did your brother have any enemies?" I asked the first question that came to mind.

Vincent tensed, rolling his neck around. He picked up the Ziploc bag and stashed it back in the top drawer of his desk. "Not that I know of. Amaury was loved and adored among the pack."

"Oh," I mumbled, "not even outside of Calamitous?"

"Out of the packs we're close with? No. I can't think of any shifter who'd want to send my brother to an early grave. He had no enemies. At least, none that were vocal about him." Vincent watched me plop down in the seat across from him.

I folded my legs over each other with my hands stuffed between them. This had been the fourth time I stood then sat down in the same repeated cycle. I couldn't help it. I was frustrated. So frustrated, I wanted to pull my hair out.

"Were any pack members sent to investigate the area where the incident happened?"

"Yes, we searched within a five-mile range of the woods the night we found you"—he leaned forward on the desk, folding his hands together—"then we returned the day after to search the area again. But further."

"And?" I urged.

"Nothing in particular but what we found beside you, was there."

"Great. So, the dagger is the only piece of evidence I have to work with for a lead. . . Are you sure there were no fingerprints on the dagger?"

"Yes, I'm sure." Vincent exhaled.

"Wait, um, how exactly did you find us?"

"Amaury stepped out earlier in the day to take care of some alpha business. However, my brother never returned. My father sent out a search party for him. That was how we found you. With the scent of his blood and the scent of yours. It led us right on your trail. . ." Vincent paused and swallowed a breath. "He was dead on arrival."

"So, there really was no other scent. . ." I sighed, stroking the bottom of my chin.

That meant two things. Either the person's scent, whoever it was that placed the dagger near me, was masked or they had been long gone before Vincent and his pack arrived. I'd heard stories about people using natural materials to cover their scents while hunting, as to not alert animals. According to my father's friends who'd gone deer hunting before, rubbing pine needles, leaves, dirt, and other natural smells over their clothes helped.

It'd have been easy for the culprit to cover their tracks then, especially against wolves who had a strong sense of smell. Obviously, this person knew about animals and their weaknesses then. Maybe they knew a bit about hunting too. Could it have been a run in with a poacher? I'd never seen any poachers around here though. Besides, this seemed personal.

A personal vendetta against wolf shifters . . . or maybe just Amaury, to be exact.

Shit, I still had no idea what that black thing was either. Were we dealing with another supernatural thing here or had an actual person murdered Amaury? It was all too confusing. And if it was two different things, how were they connected? I needed to know.

"Vincent?"

"What?" His eyes were back on whatever paperwork was on his desk. He lifted the pen from behind his ear without sparing me a glance. But I knew he was listening.

"Can we go back?"

"Go back?" he repeated.

"Yeah, to the area," I said.

"And do what, exactly?" He glanced over at me, raising an eyebrow.

"I don't know, look around again, maybe? I can show you exactly what happened and how it went down. I have that right, don't I? I should be given the chance to show you everything."

He rolled his shoulders back and rotated the pen in between his fingers. I followed its every movement, the edge of the pen vibrating off the desk every time it hit it. It reminded me of the clock's obnoxious ticking every night. Just small irritable noises that scratched at my ears.

"Tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?" I frowned.

"Yes, tomorrow. We'll leave an hour after dawn. No later than that." His focus returned to the neat pile of papers calling to his attention. Well, that wasn't the response I was expecting. Seriously, just like that? No questions? No bickering with me?

I had fully prepared myself for him to give me a hard time. Something was different about him today. I couldn't put my finger on it. He was less agitated than usual. There were small portions of his forehead glistening in sweat. But that could've just been due to the heat from his office. It was awfully warm here. Still, I didn't know what to think about his improved attitude.

Shrugging, I fixed my glasses on the crook of my nose. "Okay, got it." I waited for him to tell me I was excused. But he hadn't said a word. I'd have gone off on a whim to say he was too focused to care, but again, something wasn't right. So, I took it upon myself to quietly slip out of his office unnoticed.

* * *

I wasn't sure when but sometime after I left Vincent's office, I remembered laying across the bed, my eyes drifting closed, and sleep demanding I hand over my consciousness. It wasn't until heat fanned my face from the flames that I understood what was happening.

"There you are. I didn't think I'd see you again any time soon." This time, I was able to get the first words in. Thankfully, it'd seem my body was making progress in this dream state. I was able to ball and open my fists. I could move my arms to a certain degree too.

"Sorry, it took longer than I intended. I am still trying to utilize this to the best of my ability," Amaury responded. He pressed his tail into the ground. It swept along the hard floor in slow motions back and forth. Only did I peel my eyes away when I felt his gaze on me.

"You must answer my questions now," I said, attempting to sound demanding.

He nodded. "As you wish. . . I will answer as many as I can before time runs out."

"The last time we spoke, I asked you why you bit me. You told me you didn't think I would understand." I curled my fingers into my palms. "What's so hard to understand? Is it because you bit me to save yourself? Is that why you changed me?"

Amaury laid flat on his stomach, licking his front paw. "I admit, what I did, did end up saving us both in the end . . . in a way. However, I didn't bite you to save myself, Genesis. I bit you to save you."

"I don't understand. . ." I drifted off.

"Do you remember what you saw?"

"Yes," I said.

"My intentions were never to harm you. I tried to warn you to stay back and run by growling as best as I could manage while I could still think straight. But you were scared. And you insisted on tending to my wounds, which I appreciated. I also don't blame you for doing so.

"For all you knew, I was just a wild animal. I was going to kill you that night. You saw my eyes changing colors. You'd have been ripped to shreds when I lost control. Knowing this, I acted on impulse. I was already dying due to the sheer amount of blood I lost from my wound.

"So, the black thing you saw controlling me would have died with me. However, there was no telling how long it'd have been before I actually died. Seconds before I lost myself completely, I used what little bit of consciousness I had left to slip my own consciousness into yours.

"It was the only way to assure you would have survived. By speeding up my death and protecting you. But, at the cost of giving you my wolf too. Because when I handed over my consciousness, I handed over my wolf's as well."

"H-how is that even possible? I don't get this," I stumbled over my tongue as frustration eased into my words.

All of this information was giving me a damn headache. I couldn't wrap my head around all of it at once. Sure, he bit me and turned me into a wolf. Whatever, I was way past understanding that part now. What I didn't understand was how he had given me his stream of consciousness. He was able to contact me through my thoughts. He was in my freaking head.

"Something as simple as magic," he said.

"Magic. . ." What the hell did that mean?

"Think of it as swapping bodies. Well, in simpler terms. Except we didn't swap bodies. Our thoughts became united." His eyes lifted from his paw to my face. I could feel the sincerity of his gaze bleeding through his blank expression. "I'd explain more in depth but I fear it'd be too complicated for you to understand right now."

He was right but I still wanted to know. I needed to know.

"So, this wolf I turn into. . ." I clawed at my pants.

He finished my sentence, "Is a black wolf that was created by my DNA which merged with yours. My genetics were passed on through the bite. Obviously, with the turn and all"—he glanced down at himself once again—"when you shift, you look just like my wolf. Your wolf shares the same thoughts as mine. You could say we're connected."

"Oh man, wow." I laughed and took a deep breath. "I need a minute to process all of that."

"Don't rush it. Take your time," Amaury encouraged. His nostrils flared as he slowly inhaled. "I suppose being able to pass my knowledge onto you is something good that came from this mess."

"Knowledge. . . Right. . . What was that thing? The black thing around you. I need to know what the hell we're up against if this is all happening." I closed my eyes and imagined the black shadow around him, engulfing his wolf. When I opened my eyes, he was watching me closely.

His jaw snapped open and shut. Almost as if he were gathering the proper words before he spoke. "That thing—it's like a dark, shadow spirit or a dark entity sort of creature—that's best how I can describe it to you. I haven't quite figured it out myself yet." He sighed.

"A dark, shadow spirit or a dark entity sort of creature?" I repeated after him word for word. The urge to press on for more was strong. I didn't know how to approach this situation with just that odd description. Honestly, I didn't know how to approach this situation at all. But I was trying my best even if I could barely keep up.

Amaury nodded and stood on his paws. My eyes were glued to him as he walked closer to the fire. For a moment, he just stared at the bright orange and red bundle of flames. Its sparks flickered in his face causing his nose to twitch.

"I know. It sounds bonkers," he breathed out in a soft voice. "I suspect humans aren't the target. However, the more these creatures appear, humans will be affected by it too."

"Fucking hell," I muttered.

It made me sick to my stomach thinking about it.

"The one you saw that night isn't the only one. It was the first and last time I'd seen one for myself but definitely not the only one."

"Wait, so, how do you know there's more?" My fingers twitched with anticipation.

If it was his first time seeing one face to face, did someone give him all this information? No one else from Calamitous seemed to know about them. Amaruq and Vincent had looked at me like I was crazy when I brought it up.

"Rumors that I now know are true," Amaury said, "the one that attacked me that night happened to catch me off guard. Someone ambushed me."

"Ambushed? Could that mean—"

"Someone is controlling these things? Yes, it's a possibility I've thought about. They're not like any creature I've ever seen to exist. I believe someone is conjuring them up."

"Conjuring them up?" Geez, I needed to stop repeating myself.

A loud snarl erupted from his diaphragm. The noise was quick but had my heart racing as soon as I heard it. "Yes. That's why you must watch your back. Vincent must watch his too. If my predictions are correct, someone is playing puppeteer . . . and you two are already caught in the middle of their strings."

There go my nerves, was all I could think. Was there a place to vomit in here? I couldn't think straight and I wanted to vomit. No, I needed to vomit soon. My eyes were moving around in a frenzy. I'd breathed in and out several times to get my thoughts under control. Then, I thought to ask something I wasn't sure I wanted the answer to.

"What else do you know about these things, Amaury?"

"For now, all I've told you. I don't know what they are and where they're coming from. And I don't know how to stop them. Without a clear understanding of these creatures, we're hopeless."