Page 112 of Anaki

The village was a cacophony of cries and wails, but nothing compared to the blood-curdling screams of my mate, which tore through the forest like a savage beast. It was a sound so chilling and raw, it seemed to rip apart the very air around us, drowning out every other noise.

My hearts broke for her as an intense emotional pain took control.

We leapt forward and followed the bond, straight for her.

Once we got closer, I could smell the saltiness of her tears, the dampness of the earth in which they fell. I scrambled closer to her once I found her, not caring if there was danger, but Scales didn’t seem to scold me either.

“Elena!”

Our voice thundered through the forest, the trees quivering under the impact of our commanding tone. Her body, curled tightly in the fetal position, was pressed into the dirt. With a sudden movement, she sat up and reached out desperately for me. I swiftly gathered her into my arms, and she clambered up my neck with a frantic urgency, seeking the safety and closeness near my head.

“They took…” she sobbed, “… her. They took Abuela.” Her cries were desperate. “She turned into me and told that fae she was me!”

Nothing of what she said made sense.

I pulled her off my neck. “Love, take some breaths. I know this is hard. Tell me. I’m here, listening.”

She took in three large breaths and stared into my eyes. “Abuela can do more magic than we thought.” She hiccupped. “She was protecting us. She said she was dying. She had enough manna for one more spell, to keep her promise to the goddess. She used it to protect me one more time. She made me look like her, I looked like Abuela. Then Abuela looked like me. The fae took Abuela, thinking it was me!”

Tears ran down her face. I took my claw and gently wiped them away. “But why? Why would he take you?”

Elena shook her head. “Collateral. He’s trying to stop Emm and Locke from making a pack to help rogues. If Locke makes a pack—”

“We’re stronger. We can destroy him, rise up and defeat him. Idris wants to make Earth his realm and become all-powerful. He can’t when the rogues who actually have a conscious band together and beat him.”

Elena wiped away her tears. “He knows about my father. He knows about the cartel that is after Emm, and some guy wanting to marry her? Why is he still holding a grudge like that?”

Her cries pierced the air once more, now laced with fury. She clenched her fists so tightly that her knuckles turned white, and her brown eyes blazed with an intense, fiery pink that seemed to burn with the heat of her rage.

Oh shit!

I pleaded, “Elena, you are going to have to calm down.”

Elena snapped her head to me and snarled. “You don’t tell a woman to calm down!” Her voice changed, darker. Her breathing picked up as she hyperventilated.

This wasn’t a case of her just being upset, but something entirely different. She was going to force a shift, just like Journey.

Chapter Thirty-Seven

Anaki

“What the fuck is wrong? Is she hungry?”Scales panicked, and, for once, I was dumbfounded by the dragon.

“You think she’s hangry? She just lost her grandmother…”

“When females are upset, aren’t they usually hungry?”

I internally groaned.

Dragons are idiots. Maybe Hawke had a point.

I pulled Elena closer to me. Her heart was fluttering as fast as a hummingbird’s, and if it went any faster, I feared it would just stop.

Can a human’s heart stop?

Scales took over for a moment and thumped our tail.“Most likely! And they only have one! Fix this!”

I cradled Elena in my arms, gently swaying her back and forth. A low, rumbling sound resonated from my chest, a mix between a growl and a purr, filling the space around us. My tongue traced a slow, deliberate path down the curve of her neck, while she squirmed slightly, her body pressing closer to mine with each movement.