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“No. You can’t do this. Please. I’m your daughter. Your flesh and blood.”
I fought the bindings around my wrists, trying to focus. I was a wolf. I should be able to access some of the strength locked inside me. Maybe Magnus was wrong because I couldn’t sense the latent power of my wolf.
Bending, Shannon brought the knife to my throat, her eyes dancing with insanity. Dear God, the woman was nuttier than a squirrel in acorn season.
“Flesh and blood mean nothing to me. It brings nothing but pain and sacrifice,” she hissed. “I forsook you the day I discovered I was pregnant with that bastard’s pup. You were a constant reminder that my choices, my voice, were stolen from me. So I paved a new way for my sisters and me, one that served us and not the males who bound us in an antiquated hierarchy.”
Shannon pressed the blade harder against my throat, and I felt the warm trickle of blood down my neck. I held my breath. This was it. My existence was an embarrassment to her. My usefulness was void. She was going to slit my throat and be done with it, leave me to bleed out my life alone on these worn floorboards. Alone. I’d always been alone. Until Magnus. My mate.
Magnus, I love you. I’m sorry. So sorry.
Could he feel me? Hear me? Did our bond work that way?
My panicked gaze sought any avenue of escape. But we were in a cabin, no doubt in the middle of nowhere. No one to call for help. No sign of life. No light except the glow of the moon filtering through the fragmented windows.
“Don’t do this,” I whispered.
She stroked my cheek with her free hand. “Don’t worry, child. Close your eyes, and it will all be over soon.”
I refused to close my eyes. If I were about to die, I’d face it head-on.
Shannon’s head cocked to the side as if listening. “What–”
The door exploded inward with a resounding crash, wood splintering everywhere as a huge bear loomed in the doorway. Magnus. He’d found me. And he was mightily pissed.
“No!” Shannon screamed.
I saw the flash of a blade as she raised her arm, plunging the knife toward my stomach. I twisted at the last second, and pain exploded in my chest. I looked down, startled to see the handle of the knife protruding from my breastbone before Shannon yanked it free. She raised her arm again, but the next second, she was gone as a blur of brown fur descended on her.
Magnus was here. He’d come for me, as I knew he would. Somehow, he’d found me. He would always find me because he loved me.
The world tilted. My vision dimmed. I heard a roar, felt the warm gush of blood that pulsed in time with my faltering heartbeat. Shannon's face faded from view, replaced by the looming figure of Magnus. A struggle echoed in my ears, a symphony of growls and snarls mingled with my heart's weakening thud. Darkness crept at the edges of my vision, threatening to engulf me.
Images hit my retinas like snapshots.
A silver wolf with a deep wound on one of its hind legs.
My huge bear roaring with pain and fury.
And blood. So much blood. Was it mine? I couldn’t remember.
A yelp, followed by a whimper like that of a dog.
"Mila, hold on! Stay with me!"
Magnus’s voice was raw with urgency and fear.
I tried to reach for him, to say his name, but my strength was draining from my body along with my blood.
Magnus's hand closed around mine with a fierce grip. My protector. My savior. My love. I fought to stay with him like he’d asked, but I was cold. So cold.
My eyes drifted closed as a wave of exhaustion overtook me.
Hands on my face.
A voice, deep and resonant. I knew that voice.
“I need you to shift, Mila. Find your wolf! She’s in there! Damnit, Mila, shift!”
