**CHAPTER FORTY-ONE.**
Drake's eyes narrowed as his hand hovered over Tyler’s forehead, fingers twitching ever so slightly as if pulling on invisible threads. Tyler’s body convulsed once before falling still, his eyes fluttering shut as if slipping into a trance. The tension was palpable, thick enough to taste on the wind.
I stood back, heart hammering in my chest, as I watched Drake close his eyes, focusing with laser precision. The muscles in his neck strained, beads of sweat glistening on his brow. Draken remained rooted beside him, his hands gripping Tyler with iron force, but I could see the urgency flickering in his eyes which had turned golden.
“What do you see?” Draken asked.
Drake’s eyes flickered open, his face pale and incomprehensible as if whatever he was seeing inside Tyler’s mind was overwhelming. He stumbled backward, nearly collapsing, but Topper was quick to catch him. “It’s not clear,” he muttered, his voice barely audible, as he leaned back against Topper's hold, but his hand still hovered over Tyler's forehead. “There’s something blocking me...some kind of barrier, but—”
Suddenly, Tyler’s body jerked violently. His eyes snapped open, glowing with an unnatural light so bright that it almost blinded us. I held up my hand, protecting my eyes as I watched him let out a guttural scream, thrashing in Draken’s grip as if something inside him had been triggered.
“Drake!” Draken barked, trying to maintain control, but Tyler’s strength had multiplied, and even Draken himself was having trouble holding him down. “What the hell is happening?”
“He’s fighting back,” Drake gasped, struggling to maintain his connection to the hunter. “I’m trying, but there’s something—something else that's in him!”
With a sudden burst of strength, Tyler threw Draken off him, sending him stumbling backward. While Drake lost connection as Topper drew him away from the hunter. Tyler staggered to his feet, clutching his head as if in agony. His eyes glowed brighter, and for a moment, it wasn’t the smug, cocky hunter standing before us—it was something else entirely. Something darker, more dangerous.
Betty, her snake-like gaze never wavering, hissed under her breath, “What the hell is that?” She took a cautious step back, her fangs bared as she instinctively prepared for a fight.
Tyler's laughter returned, this time lower, more menacing, like something out of a nightmare. In fact, he was a living nightmare. His lips twisted into a sneer as he straightened up, the wounds on his body were now completely healed. “You shifters always think you're so clever,” His voice had changed too, deeper, layered with an otherworldly distortion that made it seem like two people were talking. It sent chills down my spine. “So powerful. So untouchable.”
I swallowed hard, my gaze locking on the black bead around his neck. It was glowing even brighter and the tattoo on his neck had gotten even bigger, more obvious. The black tattoo that used to be on the side of his neck had expanded, dark tendrils now snaking over his chin and jaw. The shape had shifted too—it was no longer the same animal as before. It resembled a dog, a chihuahua, snarling, as if hungry for blood. I forced my mind to piece it together—the tattoo changed with each kill. Each shifter he murdered etched another soul into his skin. If my deduction was correct, his tattoo changed because of his last kill. Karina. A weredog. But something else was off. Tyler was human, a hunter. There was no way he should be able to do this.
“But you have no idea what's coming for you all,” Tyler continued with a sneer, his gaze sweeping over us with malicious glee.
“I think we should just kill him,” Topper said.
“Not yet,” I countered, my anger intensifying. My claws had fully extended, aching to tear into his skin and bones, but we needed answers first. “Stop talking in riddles and tell us what you really are!” I snapped, my voice shaking with rage. “No more lies.”
Tyler grinned, his eyes locking onto mine. His eyes were even darker than I remembered. “You think I’m just a hunter? Oh, I’m much more than that now. But do not misunderstand this, I'm not like you guys. I'm not a disgusting shifter. I’ve been chosen—gifted, if you will, by hunters of the past generation.”
“Gifted?” Draken growled, baring his fangs. His eyes narrowed as he stepped forward again. The tension between him and Tyler was palpable, a barrel of gunpowder waiting to explode. “By who exactly?”
Tyler's laugh echoed in the night, reverberating off the cliff walls. “Draken Gallagher of Edinburgh,” his lips curled mirthlessly. “You should know very well. After all, you once were taken captive by one of us. We were weak then, but we aren't anymore. This time, we're stronger than we ever were. But let’s just say there are powers far beyond your understanding at play here. And you, all of you, are nothing against this power. This power is the key to wiping out your kind from the face of this earth. You don't deserve to live amongst humans.”
Drake shrugged his way out of Topper's hold as he stepped forward, his face still pale from the mental strain of trying to break into Tyler’s mind. “What power? Tell us exactly what so-called power you're talking about?” he demanded, his voice oddly calm.
Tyler gave him a dark smile, stepping closer to the edge of the cliff. “There was a time when hunters feared for their lives against shifters, but not anymore. We have a dark power now working with us to take your kind down. His name? Ozul.”
Ozul? I had never heard of that name, and from the look on everyone else’s faces, they hadn’t either.
“If you can't get answers from him let's just kill him,” Topper insisted.
“No. Killing him would be giving him the sweetest punishment,” I replied.
Betty nodded. “I agree with Eline. I believe we should just take him and torment him for answers, and when we've gotten all the answers we need, we'd kill him.”
“Who's Ozul?” Drake asked, the sweat on his forehead dripping down his temple. “Tell us who he is!”
“You’ll never know.” And with that, Tyler tipped backward, falling off the cliff before anyone could react.
“No!” I screamed, rushing to the edge. I looked down, my heart pounding in my chest. But all I saw was darkness—no sign of Tyler’s body, no sound of him even hitting the ground below.
“He’s gone,” Betty muttered, standing beside me. Her face was pale, her expression unreadable as she stared into the dark.
Draken was silent, his fists clenched at his sides as he stared at the spot where Tyler had disappeared. His jaw tightened, and I could see the anger simmering beneath the surface. “This isn’t over,” he said quietly, turning away from the cliff and walking back toward the group.
“What do we do now?” I asked, my voice trembling despite my efforts to stay calm. I moved away from the edge of the cliff, alongside Betty, and joined the others. “He might be dead.”
Drake shook his head. “He isn't. He escaped. Planned for us to meet him here, but not without a plan in case of an ambush. I can't believe I didn’t think ahead.”
“Hey, Drake, It's not your fault. We would never have guessed he had black magic or whatever that was,” Topper said to him.
“Whatever. I should have just stayed at home.” Drake replied.
“It's because you came that we even figured out that the hunters are back, stronger,” Topper said, calmly.
“I don't care. I should have just stayed home.”
Draken paused, glancing at his twin then back at me, his expression hard but sympathetic. “We will find out who he is working for. And we'll make them pay.”
Betty stepped forward, crossing her arms. “And how do we do that? We have no leads, no direction—jeez, we don’t even know what the hell Ozul is!”
Topper sighed loudly. I could tell he was trying to process everything. “Whoever Ozul is, I can tell they aren't just a hunter,” he said quietly, almost to himself as he ran his fingers through his hair. “Whatever we’re dealing with… it’s bigger than we thought. I think we need to involve the elders…to let them know the hunters are back and they're more powerful than we've ever known.”