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Tabitha screamed in every way she could. She screamed as his captive wind muffled her voice. She screamed with her muscles as they tensed in agony. And when she could hold it no longer, she screamed down the fragile, tattered bond to her mate.

And he howled back his rage. She felt his wolf take him and she revelled in it. Felt his bond with each member of the pack, felt it fill her with energy before she thrust it away. Locked them away from her. They didn’t need her pain. And she couldn’t stand being accused of betrayal again. Not even now.

She just hoped he’d find her before it was too late.

At her thoughts, Jarrad howled along the bond. Then he ripped open the flimsy barrier she’d built between them and threw the energy of the pack at her.

It was enough.

Enough for her to snap the bonds that held her. The Inquisitor stumbled backwards, disorientated as the elements rebounded into him. Enough for her to push him away, the knife flying in the opposite direction.

And just enough for her to fling open the cupboard with strands of air and fling a potion at her tormentor.

The glass shattered and an inferno engulfed the Inquisitor. Tabitha’s strength fled as the man rolled on her lounge room carpet, spreading the fire to her house. Smoke and tiny flames taunted her as Tabitha’s head hit the ground.

Black shutters lowered over her eyes and she was lost.

* * *

He hadno doubt about where the flames were coming from. Knew it as though he was there witnessing it himself. Jarrad’s lungs worked overtime, pushing his wolf body harder than it had ever run before. Still, he was terrified he was too late. After a massive rush of energy, the link between him and Tabitha had gone mute.

Was she even alive? He wanted to have faith, but fear rode him hard. The bond might be silent, but it hadn’t severed. Hehadto get there in time. He didn’t want to think about losing her with the last words they’d shared hanging over his head.

When he burst through the woods at the back of her house, a whine of terror escaped him. Smoke billowed from the windows, stinging his eyes and nose. Flames licked at the back door. The windows. Would the front be any better?

He circled to the house, just as Kyle pulled up in the fire engine.Sirens are for emergencies only, he’d told Luna, and thank the Moon for his Beta’s prompt response. But he wasn’t waiting.

Fuck that.

All eyes were on the flames being beaten back by Kyle and his team.

His Beta knew Jarrad wasn’t staying outside. Jarrad shifted quickly and snatched the clothes his friend had left on the front seat and was dressed in seconds.

He sucked in fresh air until his lungs were almost bursting, then ran. Ten steps and he was in the house. Five and he found her blood-soaked body in the kitchen. The flames reached red-hot fingers towards him but Jarrad ignored his own pain. He didn’t know where to touch her without making things worse. Speed took precedence. He raced with her into the waiting ambulance, relieving his aching chest with a breath of air. Then, he howled his fear the night sky.

Others took her from his arms, hooked her up to machines that would keep her body alive. Even though her soul was somewhere else. He couldn’t feel her at all.

Jarrad prayed to the Moon because he knew.

Knew that if his mate were to survive this, it would be a miracle.

* * *

Jarrad followedthe stench of crisped human flesh and singed leaves through the woods at the back of the hippie house. Even two days later, it lingered as though fresh in his nostrils. His wolf loosed a feral snarl, teeth bared and fangs aching. Jarrad would enjoy this hunt.

Especially since his mate was yet to wake.

Leaving Tabitha in the hospital to do this job was torture, but he was comforted by the fact their pup and Ryan were with her. If she woke, she wouldn’t be alone. And when she did wake, it would be with the knowledge he’d served justice on her attacker.

Nose to ground, he continued to trace the path of the Inquisitor. It didn’t go far.

The man lay in a heap next to a small stream. His chest rose and fell, so Jarrad guessed he was alive, but you wouldn’t know it to look at him. Every inch of him was black, and Jarrad took sick satisfaction in knowing Tabitha’s potion had taken out her attacker in the most painful way possible.

Jarrad shifted into his human form.

“Come… fin… ish… me, wolf?”

The words were barely intelligible, but it surprised Jarrad he could utter them at all. A small breeze slapped at him. Odd for such a still, humid day. He shrugged it off.