Page 24

I’d heard plenty of stories, plenty of frivolous romances I’d paid no mind to, in which shifters were woken by their wolves because their mate was hurt or in danger.

I’d considered them just that—stories—until I jolted awake with my wolf already snarling and demanding our skin.

I leaped out of bed, sprinting down the short hallway and bursting into Julia’s room, my stomach dropping as I saw her bed empty.

I hesitated when I spotted my shirt, folded and left so carefully on the bed.

Would she have left it like that if she were fleeing, if she was taken?

Surely not. On the other hand, she had little else to wear.

Her shorts and vest from yesterday were still draped less carefully over the chair in the corner, and for a moment, my mind conjured an entirely different reason for my wolf’s insistence on wakefulness: I would go downstairs to find her naked, waiting for me.

I would kiss her in the early morning light and carry her back up to bed, or maybe just lift her onto one of the counters and let her wind her impossibly long legs around my hips.

As I descended the stairs, I knew that happy version of reality was not my own.

The kitchen was empty, as was the living space, and there was a note tacked to the back of the front door.

It was in my hand before I knew I’d moved, but I had to read it three times before my panicked brain would register the words contained in it.

Dear Ethan,

I’m sorry to disappear on you, but I think it’s better for both of us this way. Don’t follow me—I’m going back to Lapine, and I’ll make sure Caleb radios you when I get there.

Thank you for everything. I’ll try not to insult you the next time we see each other (no promises, though).

Yours,

Julia

My heart plummeted into my stomach. It didn’t make sense.

Was she so desperate to get home, to escape from me, that she would leave in the early morning, before I was even awake?

I must have done something wrong, though I wasn’t sure what.

Whatever it was, my wolf and I were in agreement: I needed to find her and fix it. Now.

Once I was out of the front door, my wolf needed no coaxing to take my skin. He tore into being and was after her scent in a matter of moments. As she’d promised, her trail was heading toward the Lapine Bridge, and my claws dug up the earth as I sped off in pursuit.

My mind was clearer than it had been in months—maybe years.

All that mattered was finding Julia, ensuring she was safe, and telling her I loved her.

Nothing had ever been more embarrassingly obvious: I loved her.

I had loved her since long before the Solstice, but unraveling that web of denial would require far more attention than I had right now.

At this moment, I was following my mate’s trail, and I would not stop until she was in my arms again.

Even as I ran, a worry itched in the back of my mind: what if she didn’t want me anymore?

What if I’d done such a terrible job of showing her how I felt that she’d given up on me entirely?

Had the years of dismissal and cruelty I’d shown her been too much, even for the mating bond?

If she truly didn’t want me, could I let her go?

No. I could never let her go forever, but if she wanted space, if she wished to go home without me, then I could accept that.

If it took weeks, months, or even years to convince her to give me a real chance, then I would have to learn patience.

I would do it, however. For her, I would do just about anything.

I smelled blood in the air before I saw them: Julia and the hunters.

Julia with four Arbor hunters standing between her and the bridge.

Julia, naked and human, against four ravening wolves.

I’d known that our crossing onto Ferris was too quiet, known that Arbor must have been lying in wait for a better opportunity.

Damn Julia and her stubborn streak—could she not have stood my company for another few hours for the sake of her own safety?

The blood, at least, wasn’t hers. The body of a hunter lay slumped on the grass before her, and I felt a surge of pride: she was strong.

I could see her gathering her strength again, the shadows lengthening and darkening under her command, but the hunters were advancing, and she wasn’t going to be fast enough. I had to be fast enough.

Putting on a burst of speed, I hurtled toward the bridge, flinging my body between Julia and the oncoming hunters just in time.

They’d seen me coming, but my size was enough to make them hesitate.

The two in the middle came for me, while the two on the outside kept gunning for Julia, and I could only pray that I’d bought her enough time to call her power again.

For now, I had to make sure these hunters regretted ever trying to hurt my mate.

One had come for my back leg, while the other was gnashing at my throat.

I let the bite land on my leg so I could whip my head around and catch my other attacker in the face, my teeth leaving puncture marks in his muzzle as he backed off, whimpering and bleeding.

The other still had my back leg clamped between his jaws, and it made his body an easy target.

I twisted around, slashing my claws through his chest and belly before he had the chance to run.

The jaws around my leg went slack, but then the first hunter was back on the offensive, snarling and blood-soaked as he went for my neck again.

I met him with another strike to his face, this time with my claws, and he fell back, fresh blood dripping onto the grass.

I whirled around, desperate to catch sight of Julia.

When I did, my heart stopped: she was holding the two hunters at bay, tendrils of shadow wrapped around their legs.

She was straining from the effort, her skin shining with sweat, and the hunters were pulling against their bonds, teeth bared and claws digging into the dirt.

Restricted as he was, the one closest to me was easy to take down—one quick bite to his throat and he was gurgling his last—but before I could see to the other, the first hunter was on me again.

Even with his face cut to ribbons, blood matting his fur and staining his teeth, he was intent on taking me out, barreling into my side and rolling us over until he was on top of me, his rancid breath in my face and his eyes dark with violence.

Planting my hind paws on his lower belly, I used all my strength to push him off me before his jaws could snap closed around my throat. He went sprawling, and then I was on him. Without hesitation, I sank my claws into his belly, ripping him open and leaving his innards steaming on the ground.

When I raised my head again, Julia still had the other hunter ensnared in shadow, with a sharp-looking tendril poised and ready to strike. I shifted quickly, holding out one hand.

“Wait!” I called, and she froze. “Can you keep him bound if he shifts?”

“We’ll see, I guess,” said Julia. Her voice sounded strained, but she was holding strong.

I approached the bound hunter, stepping in front of him as I gathered all my Alpha authority. If this was going to work on a wolf from another Pack, I was going to need every drop of power that nature allowed me.

“Shift,” I commanded.

The hunter squirmed under my gaze, clearly wanting to refuse the order. Had it been a member of my own Pack, they could never have disobeyed, even for this long, but he was stubborn.

“Shift,” I repeated, and this time he could not resist the weight of my authority.

The shadows around him loosened as he shifted, but the moment he was fully human, he was once again tethered at the ankles and wrists, completely at my mercy.

“Look, m-man,” he started, stuttering with fear, “I just—just do what my Alpha tells me, I don’t—”

“Shut up,” I growled, and his mouth snapped closed. “I’m feeling generous today, so you get to keep your life, but I’m going to need something in return.”

The hunter nodded. Smart.

“You’re going to run back to your island, to your Alpha, and tell him that if he sends one more shifter after us, if he lays another finger on this woman—” I jerked my head in Julia’s direction to avoid any misunderstandings “—then between the two of us, Ferris and Lapine will wipe your entire miserable Pack off the face of this earth. Do you understand me?”

“Yep. Loud and clear.” The guy sounded like he was on the verge of pissing himself, so I trusted that he’d gotten the message.

“Let him go,” I told Julia, and she looked relieved to release the shadows that had surrounded him. The second he was free, the hunter began to sprint away, shifting mid-stride as he fled west toward the Arbor bridge.

It was torture not to go to Julia immediately, but I watched his retreating form until I could no longer see him. I meant every word of that threat: if Arbor made one more attempt on my mate’s life or her freedom, I would ensure they regretted it.

When I turned around, Julia was trying valiantly to stride away but made it only a few steps before her legs gave out beneath her.

I rushed to her side, taking her arm to help her back to her feet.

As I did so, I scanned her body for injuries, but none were apparent.

She was just shocked. She was fine. She was whole and alive.

“Come on, come away from here,” I said, ushering her away from the bodies that littered the grass. Even in her shell-shocked state, Julia shrugged me off as soon as we’d put enough distance between ourselves and the dead hunters.

“I’m fine,” she said. “Thank you for—thank you for helping. I can manage the rest of the way.”

I couldn’t help the incredulous laugh that escaped me; she was naked and blood-splattered and still visibly shaken, yet still so damn stubborn. She was utterly ridiculous, and I adored her.

“You absolutely cannot,” I said. “You nearly died.”

“Well, I didn’t die,” she retorted, tossing her hair over her shoulder as she tried to rally herself.

She took a few more unsteady steps forward—the attempt was clearly to stalk away from me, but she looked more like a baby deer taking its first steps.

“I don’t want to take up any more of your time, so—”

“Why are you being like this?” I insisted. She was treating me like a stranger, like some virtuous passer-by who had stepped between her and danger. She was barely even looking at me.

“Like what?” she said, as though she didn’t know damn well. “I’m just trying to make things easier for you.”

“Easier?” I parroted. It was so absurd that I could think of no retort, but I clearly didn’t need one. She continued as though I hadn’t spoken, her voice beginning to tremble with emotion.

“You didn’t have to come after me! I know you’re trying to be a good friend to Cal, but I’ll be fine on my own. You’ve made it more than clear you don’t want us, and I’m not going to hang around when—”

“Wait,” I said. She was so wrong, so utterly, utterly wrong, and I had no one to blame but myself. I was ready to correct her, but a single word was demanding my attention first: “What do you mean, us ?”