I smell moss, pine needles, and pitch. Trees flash past me as I run through the forest. The moonlit woods appear bright in my wolf's night vision. I see a rabbit and a porcupine. I'm already past them by the time they react.

My wolf, Seeker, guides me deeper into the woods, and every decision she makes is the right one. Go left at the tree, hop over that log, jump over those bushes. Each choice she makes is the fastest way to cover the ground ahead.

When the state trooper showed up outside Stefan's door, I ran without hesitating, and invoked without really trying. It just sorta happened. They want to take me back to Pennsylvania and put me in a cage. I won't let them.

I should have taken the note's advice and gone with Tempus in the first place. If I had, I wouldn't have seen Celia in Stefan's house, and maybe the cops wouldn't have found me. I suddenly realize that somewhere in my dash through the woods, I've dropped the note. I guess it doesn't matter now.

How long have I been running? My body burns and I feel like I'm about to cramp up.

I stop at a moonlit pond to catch my breath. I see bats flitting over the still water.

I look at my reflection in the pond. This is the first time I've seen myself invoked. Like all Were, I'm no bigger than I was before, and I'm still wearing my clothes. My face is recognizable, though I now have fangs, long white ears, and electric-blue eyes that seem to glow. My ice-blue claws are long and sharp.

The burning inside me is getting worse, even though I'm resting. I suddenly realize the problem. I've been invoked for a long time and it's putting a strain on me.

I reluctantly say goodbye to Seeker. She slips out of my body, though I can still feel her presence. She's standing by if I need to invoke her again.

I immediately return to my normal appearance. The burning sensation goes away.

The hardest thing about uninvoking is the sudden dulling of my senses. The forest becomes dark and drab and I can't see the bats flying over the pond. It feels like I've been shut out of a beautiful world. But the burning is gone, and that's something.

What the hell am I going to do? I can't go back to my cabin. The cops will be waiting for me. I need to talk to Stefan. He'll help me, if he's not with Celia.

I pull my phone from my pocket and discover I'm too far from Corby to get a signal. I put my phone away and start walking toward town. I'll check again for a signal when I find the next open area.

After five minutes of walking, I stop in a clearing, where I hear crickets. As I reach for my phone, something insane happens.

Suddenly, it's daylight, and I'm standing in a field of snow!