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CHAPTER NINETEEN

NATHAN

When I woke, everything was a blur—pain throbbing in my head and my body feeling like it was made of lead.

Dirt and twigs scraped against my skin as someone dragged me across the ground.

I struggled to move, but my body felt heavy, unresponsive, like I was trapped in a nightmare I couldn’t wake up from.

The man pulling me was tall, muscular, and wearing a leather jacket.

I blinked against the harsh sunlight filtering through the trees, trying to focus, but the world tilted and swayed, making it hard to hold onto reality.

Then, like a crashing wave, everything came back to me—Reece.

Reece had been in my apartment. He’d been hiding in my closet, waiting for me. He’d knocked me out, and now he had me.

Panic surged through me, and I tried to fight, to push away from him, but my body still refused to cooperate.

“You’re finally awake,” Reece said, glancing down at me with a cruel grin. “Just in time for the finale.”

I groaned, forcing myself to move, my limbs sluggish as if they were filled with sand. I had to fight back, but it was so hard.

My vision was swimming, and my head pounded with each heartbeat.

Ivan… I thought desperately, reaching out to the only hope I had left. Then I felt it. The mate bond.

It flared to life like a beacon in the dark. The connection between us was a lifeline, pulling me back from the edge of despair.

And then I heard it—a brassy, ear-splitting roar that sent shivers down my spine.

I looked up, and through the trees, I saw him. Ivan, my mate, in his dragon form, circling the sky above us.

Why wasn’t he attacking? Why wasn’t he tearing Reece apart?

Oh. It hit me like a punch to the gut.

Ivan couldn’t attack because I was still in Reece’s grasp. He couldn’t risk harming me in the crossfire.

And worse, now that I bore Ivan’s mate mark, our life forces were connected. If Reece killed me, Ivan would die too.

And the child growing inside me... our baby would never have a chance to live.

A wave of despair washed over me. I had never felt so helpless in my life.

The fear of losing everything—my mate, our future, our family—it crushed me, weighing down on my chest until I could barely breathe.

Reece dragged me into a clearing and stopped, yanking me to my feet with a rough jerk.

“Call your mate down,” he growled, pulling a gun from his jacket and pointing it at me. “Tell him to change back to human form. Do it now.”

Terror gripped me, and I had no choice but to reach out to Ivan through the bond.

I couldn’t speak to him directly—shifter bonds didn’t work that way—but he must’ve felt my fear, my desperation.

I needed him to understand that I was in danger, that Reece wouldn’t hesitate to pull the trigger.

Almost immediately, Ivan responded. He landed in the clearing, the ground trembling under the weight of his massive body.

His scales gleamed in the fading light, his eyes locked on Reece with a fury I’d never seen before.

“Change back to human form!” Reece yelled, his voice shrill with panic.

Ivan hesitated for a second, his dragon form bristling with the need to protect me, to burn Reece alive where he stood.

But he knew, as much as I did, that if he made a move, Reece would kill me without a second thought.

Slowly, reluctantly, Ivan shifted back to his human form, raising his hands in a gesture of surrender.

“No…” I whispered, my throat tight with fear.

It all happened in a blur.

Reece shifted the gun from me and pulled the trigger. The sound was deafening, echoing through the trees.

Ivan staggered, clutching his chest, blood staining his shirt.

He wiped his mouth, still standing, but the sight of him injured made my heart stop.

“So even silver bullets work on a monster like you,” Reece sneered, his face twisted with a sick satisfaction.

I could feel the bond between Ivan and me straining, the pain he was in rippling through me like a shockwave.

But this wasn’t going to end the way Reece wanted. I refused to let it.

Anger surged through me, hot and fierce, replacing the fear that had gripped me moments ago.

I lunged for Reece’s legs, summoning the power of my wolf.

There wasn’t enough time for a full shift—no, that would take too long.

Instead, I focused everything I had on shifting my hands, forcing my fingers to elongate into claws.

It worked. With a snarl, I sank my claws into Reece’s foot, twisting and tearing at the flesh.

He yelped, stumbling back, trying to kick me away, but I held on, my claws digging deeper.

“Die, omega,” he spat, pointing the gun at me.

I saw it in his eyes, the intent to kill. He was going to shoot, and I wasn’t sure I could dodge in time.

But then I felt it—the shift in the air, the familiar rush of heat. Ivan.

I released my grip on Reece’s foot, rolling away just as a torrent of flames engulfed him.

The heat was intense, scorching the ground around us, but I knew Ivan had calculated every movement.

The flames roared, surrounding Reece, but none of them touched me.

Reece screamed, his body writhing in agony as the fire consumed him. His leather jacket melted against his skin, his hair singed off in seconds.

He tried to stumble away, tried to fight the flames, but there was no escape.

Ivan’s fire was relentless, burning hotter than anything Reece could withstand.

I scrambled to my feet, my chest heaving with adrenaline, watching as Reece fell to the ground, his body twitching and smoldering.

The smell of burnt flesh filled the air, and I gagged, turning away from the sight.

It was over. Ivan’s flames flickered out, and he stepped forward, his expression hard and dangerous.

He didn’t look at Reece’s charred remains; his eyes were focused solely on me.

“Nathan…” he whispered, his voice thick with emotion.

I ran to him, my legs shaking, and threw myself into his arms.

He caught me, holding me tight against his chest, his hands trembling as he buried his face in my hair.

“I thought I’d lost you,” he murmured, his voice raw with relief. “I thought?—”

“You didn’t,” I whispered, clutching him tighter. “I’m right here. I’m safe. We’re safe.”

In the end, Ivan flew us both home.

I clung to him as his massive wings cut through the cool night air, my heart still pounding from everything that had happened.

The wind whipped against my skin, but I felt safe, secure in the knowledge that Reece was gone and Ivan had me.

For now, that was all I needed.

We landed on the roof of Ivan’s apartment, and I didn’t protest when he led me inside the building.

The thought of returning to my own place sent a cold shiver down my spine.

It no longer felt like a sanctuary—not after Reece had been hiding there, waiting for me.

The memories of that moment, of his hand clamped over my mouth, the fear, the helplessness—it was all too fresh.

Once we were inside his unit, Ivan shifted back to human form. He didn’t say a word.

He simply scooped me up into his arms and carried me to the bathroom.

The tension between us was palpable—his need to make sure I was alright, to erase any trace of Reece from my body, from my mind.

I could feel the weight of his worry, the possessiveness that had flared up after everything we’d been through.

“I’ll wait outside,” Ivan said softly, his voice rough but tender as he set me down by the shower. “Take your time.”

I nodded, feeling the exhaustion settle over me like a blanket. The hot water hit my skin, scalding and comforting all at once.

I scrubbed harder than necessary, trying to wash away the lingering fear and any reminder of Reece’s touch.

It wasn’t just the dirt and grime I wanted gone—it was the feeling of being vulnerable, powerless.

By the time I finished, my skin was red from the heat, but I felt cleaner.

I dressed in one of Ivan’s shirts, its soft fabric and his familiar scent grounding me.

I didn’t realize how much I needed that simple comfort until now.

When I stepped out of the bathroom, I heard Ivan’s low voice from the living room.

He was on the phone, pacing slowly by the window.

“Great, Zane. Thank you,” Ivan said, his eyes catching mine as I walked over.

His expression softened immediately.

I crossed the room and climbed into his lap on the sofa, feeling the tension in his body relax as soon as I settled there.

It was a silent reassurance, both for him and for me.

Being close to him, feeling his warmth, was the only thing that calmed the storm inside me.

“Zane will take care of the body,” Ivan explained, wrapping one arm around my waist, pulling me closer.

“He’s also going to call in a professional. They’re going to make adjustments to the barrier surrounding the town. Make it stronger,” Ivan added.

I nodded, resting my head against his shoulder, feeling the steady rhythm of his heart beneath my cheek.

His warmth, his strength, surrounded me, and for the first time since the ordeal began, I started to feel like I could breathe again.

“Ivan…” I began, my voice barely a whisper. The words felt heavy, like they were caught in my throat. “Today was...”

“I know,” he murmured, pressing his lips to my hair. “You don’t have to say it.”

But I needed to.

I needed to make him understand what it had felt like, the fear of knowing that Reece could’ve killed me, killed our child, and taken everything away from us.

“I almost lost you today,” I whispered, my voice trembling. “And our child…”

Ivan’s grip tightened around me, his possessiveness flaring again as his arms pulled me even closer.

“I know,” he said, his voice hoarse. “But it’s over now. Reece is dead. His pack is dead. And I swear to you, Nathan, I won’t let anything like that happen to you again.”

There was a finality in his voice, a raw determination that made my chest tighten. I believed him.

Ivan had fought to protect me with everything he had, and he’d succeeded.

But the memory of that gunshot, the sound of the bullet hitting his chest—it haunted me.

I gently touched the bandages on Ivan's chest, my fingers trembling slightly as I traced the edges.

He’d removed the bullets and cleaned the wound while I was in the shower, but the sight of the injury still sent a shiver down my spine.

“Will you be alright?” I asked, my voice barely above a whisper, the worry evident in my tone.

Ivan gave me a small, reassuring smile.

“Of course. I’ve been shot with silver bullets before,” he said, his voice calm and steady. “It affects us, but not the same way it does other shifters.”

He leaned down and pressed a soft kiss to my forehead, the warmth of his lips soothing some of the anxiety that had been building inside me.

We stayed like that for a while, wrapped up in each other’s warmth, both of us trying to process the events of the day.

The silence between us was comforting, like a mutual understanding that we didn’t need to fill the space with words.

Eventually, Ivan broke the quiet, his voice soft and hesitant, unlike anything I’d heard from him before.

“Nathan… I’ve been thinking,” he began, his hand moving to gently cradle my cheek, his thumb brushing against my skin. “I don’t want you staying at your apartment anymore. Not after this. I need you here, where I can protect you.”

I blinked, pulling back slightly to look at him, my heart skipping a beat. “What are you saying?”

“I’m saying,” he took a deep breath, his eyes locking onto mine with an intensity that made my pulse race, “I want you to move in with me.”

The weight of his words hung in the air between us, and for a moment, I couldn’t speak.

The emotions swirling inside me were overwhelming—relief, fear, hope, and love, all crashing together in a wave that threatened to sweep me away.

“Move in with you?” I repeated, my voice barely above a whisper.

Ivan nodded, his expression serious.

“I know it’s a lot to ask after everything that’s happened, but I can’t stand the thought of you being out there, vulnerable, when I’m not with you. You and our child are my priority, Nathan. I need you here. With me,” he said.

His words wrapped around my heart, and suddenly, the decision felt easy.

It wasn’t just about safety—it was about belonging, about being with the person who made me feel whole, no matter the danger we faced.

I leaned in, pressing my lips gently against his.

“Yes,” I whispered against his mouth. “I’ll move in with you.”

Ivan’s arms tightened around me, and for the first time all night, I saw the tension in his shoulders finally ease.

He kissed me back, his lips soft and warm, filled with a promise I knew he’d keep.