Please let this work. Please let me make it. She repeated the words like a litany. Her body tingled with the knowledge that she followed her heart.

With each footfall that took her farther away, her confidence built. Even hearing Burnett's warning of never entering the woods alone, she knew that route offered the quickest escape, and she took it. Moving between the trees, she accepted the risk. Mario, or someone on his side, could be waiting.

But it was a risk worth taking, she told herself, and ignored the sensation of being followed. Ignored the wiggle of guilt she felt for lying to her two best friends.

She had to lie. This was her quest. And the risk should belong to her, not one of her friends who felt compelled to join her. She wouldn't put anyone else in Mario's path.

Suddenly, the phone in her pocket dinged with an incoming text. She slowed down enough to check the message.

Derek.

"Damn," she muttered, her voice whispering in the night air.

No doubt Derek had sensed her emotions and was concerned. But if she told him, like Della or Miranda, he'd think he had to come with her. She pocketed her phone and then pushed herself to move faster.

As she dodged limbs and jumped over thorn bushes, she listened to the night noises-finding peace in knowing that the darkness hadn't fallen silent. If Della had followed, she would have been here by now. Kylie could only surmise that her plan had worked. Della had relented to Kylie's wish to be with Lucas.

Aware of how far she'd gone, she knew she drew near the fence where the Shadow Falls property ended. Her heart knotted with fear that this was where her plan would get upended. Burnett could come running.

However, she'd heard rumors that someone was constantly breaking the rules. Perry, who never liked being limited when he transformed himself into some other creature. Then, Lucas and his pack constantly being called to visit their elders, who didn't respect Shadow Falls's rules.

Maybe, just maybe, Burnett wouldn't guess that the person slipping out of the property was Kylie.

The fence became visible. It loomed in front of her, a good eight feet in height. Kylie's breath hitched. She pushed to move faster, praying she could leap over the metal barrier.

Her body felt weightless as she moved into the air, higher. Higher. Her feet cleared the fence and she came down on the other side, avoiding a bad landing-and serious injuries. She hit hard and rolled a good seven feet.

She picked herself up and brushed her hand over her elbow that had found earth before the rest of her. The pain dulled, coming in second to her sense of success. She was doing it. She was going to make it.

The stickiness of blood met her palm. The berry scent filled her nose. Who knew her own blood could smell this good? She continued moving, fast, then faster, putting distance between her and the fence.

The sounds of the night continued to sing around her. No vampires making the night go silent. She was alone.

She crossed the road and moved into the trees lining the road as she continued onward. If she estimated correctly, she was only a few miles from the cemetery.

She was finally going to meet her grandfather and learn the truth. The mystery of just what she was-of what being a chameleon meant-was about to be solved. A smile widened her mouth.

The sensation of victory filled her chest and gave her speed, agility, and courage.

Or it did until a male voice called out, "Where the hell do you think you're going?"

Blood throbbed in her ears and she didn't recognize the voice at first-except that she knew it wasn't Burnett. It didn't matter. She didn't care who it was, because no one was welcome right now. She had a mission and didn't want company. And that was exactly what she planned on telling the intruder, too.

She came to a sudden stop-or as sudden as she could when traveling at a manic, inhuman speed. Her knees buckled. She wrapped her arms around a tree, catching herself from a bad fall.

Still unsure of the identity of the intruder behind her, still clinging to the tree for dear life, another voice, a different one from the first, spoke up. "I was about to ask the same question."

Chapter Twenty-one

Disappointment shot through her limbs. She had two intruders instead of just one. She wanted to scream, but air locked in her lungs and not one sound came out. Angry, she swung around and confronted the owners of the two voices. She could be proud of one thing: she'd been right. There were no vampires in the woods.

Just a smart-mouthed shape-shifter, in bird form, and a very pissed-off werewolf.

She gulped down a mouthful of air. Still unable to catch her breath, she bent at the waist and with her hands on her knees she waited for her lungs to open up. When oxygen finally flowed to her brain, her thoughts came clearer.

And one thought stood out. She wasn't going to let them stop her.

Straightening, she met Perry's gaze with sheer determination. Then she shifted the same glare to Lucas. "I'm following my quest. Leave and let me do what I have to do."

"Have you lost your frigging mind?" Perry asked.

"What's going on, Kylie?" Lucas demanded.

Kylie stared at the were. "Just what I said. I'm following my quest. I need for you to leave. It's important and I'm not asking you, I'm telling you. Leave me alone!"

She hoped she sounded more confident than she felt. Any minute now she waited for the night to go silent and Burnett to show up. For some reason, she felt capable of standing up to Lucas and Perry, but bucking authority never came easy for her. And Burnett was authority with a badass attitude.