Page 32 of Carnage Island

Tieran said his pack started shifting at age five, something I wouldn’t be inclined to believe given his reputation. Except Isawpups running around on Wolfe Island.

Femalepups.

Which means that even if Tieran is lying to me, so was Alpha Bryson. So were my mother and father and my entire damn pack.

And while I know Tieran’s reputation, I’m almost inclined to believe he’s not lying because he has no reason to. He’s helping me. He’s the only one who has been able to sense my disassociation and give me potential causes for it.

“That fire in your gaze is beautiful,” he murmurs, drawing my attention to him. “I can almost feel your anger, little wolf. Do you want me to help you shift back? Because I can. But it’ll hurt. Forcing a shift always does, which is why Alphas tend to shy away from it.”

I blink at him.

Or my wolf does, anyway.

Or maybe it’s me.

It’s hard to say. I feel so disconnected and lost that I’m not sure what is up or down.

But his words… his statement… his comment about Alphas shying away from commanding others to shift.

That’s… that’s not true. Alphas in my pack used to do it all the time to their females. It’s part of the mating ritual. It’s supposed to be sacred and special, something the male does for his chosen mate.

Or was that just another way to control the females?

My jaw clenches.

Reallyclenches.

Momentarily confusing me becauseImade my wolf gnash her teeth.

And Tieran’s knowing gaze suggests he saw it, too.

“You’re a fighter,” he says, approval underlining those words. “Do you want to try to take control yourself, or would you like my help?”

He’s already helping, his words alone seeming to give me the power to override my wolf. At least subtly.

Or maybe that’s my anger.

Anger he’s awakened with his truths and his outside perspective.

Have I been suppressed my whole life? Living in a world meant to keep women down, to control them, all to what, impregnate them?

What was the point of all the tests? The trials? Me proving my worth as a mating candidate?

They tested my speed, my agility, and my strength. All to what, ensure I was able to produce a worthwhile pup?

I… I don’t understand.

It feels too wrong. Too outlandish. Tooinsaneto be true.

Yet I can’t deny the resounding truth in my soul that Tieran is telling me the truth.

He continues to brush my fur, waiting for me to give him my decision. Or perhaps waiting for a sign.

I can’t exactly speak.

But I can blink.

And my jaws appear to be clenched as a result of my own frustration.