Esther stumbled out of the greenhouse and into the overgrown garden, the metallic scent of Fortune's pain heavy in the humid air. The earth continued to vibrate with increasing intensity—a low, terrifying tremor that signaled the imminent collapse of the Stone's containment field.
She was severely weakened. The forced energy drain had left her muscles feeling like water and her head spinning. She leaned heavily against a mango tree, struggling to regain her breath.
She had to get far away from the compound, away from the source of the shockwave, and away from Fortune, who would not tolerate being burned by a mortal.
Just as she started staggering toward the gate, a dark figure dropped silently from the dense canopy of a silk-cotton tree. It was not Fortune, but neither was it Samuel.
It was Tunde, the Pack member assigned by the Alpha. His eyes were wide with professional alarm, his broad face set in a grim mask.
"Keeper Esther! Alpha Chinedu ordered you to stay in the hostel," Tunde hissed, grabbing her arm in a grip that was firm but not cruel. "What in the name of the Ancestors happened here? The Stone is unstable!"
"Fortune," Esther managed, pointing weakly back toward the dangerously glowing greenhouse. "He forced the Bloom. The Stone will overload."
Tunde looked at the greenhouse, his wolf instincts overriding his Pack loyalty. He felt the raw, unbound power emanating from the Eternal Leaf.
"We have to stabilize it! The Alpha must be informed immediately!" Tunde started pulling her back toward the gate.
"No, Tunde, wait!" Esther argued, planting her feet. "The Alpha sent Samuel away! He's exiled him to Abuja. Only Samuel's love—not the Pack's duty—is strong enough to contain the beast without the Stone. If we stabilize the Stone without Samuel, his exile is permanent. Fortune wins, and I lose the man I love."
Tunde hesitated, his amber eyes flickering between the powerful magical surge and the desperate mortal girl. He was loyal to the Pack and the Alpha, but he was also deeply loyal to Samuel, his long-time friend.
"The Pack will hunt me for this," Tunde muttered, pulling Esther quickly through the gate. "But the Alpha's judgement was rushed. If Samuel is the only anchor, we must find him."
He dragged her toward the road, but before they reached it, a black sedan screeched to a halt beside them. The back door flew open.
"Get in, both of you! Now!"
It was Samuel. He had disobeyed his father and tracked her down using the faint scent of Fortune's mint that had lingered on the air near the hostel.