AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Teo was a large wolf, but Rylan had him beat by over a foot. He looked exactly like his wolf, just upright like a man. Black ears jutted from his skull while his tail swished back and forth with excitement.
In moments, my mate had completely transformed from a man into a beast form. Arden sucked in a breath while I secretly smirked at all the wolves who were taken aback. Rylan was magnificent. He held this partially shifted state with an ease that even I was impressed by. He’d just proven without a shadow of a doubt that his control was steadfast, and his power was limitless.
The marks on my left arm began to tingle as Rylan straightened to his full and incredible height. He looked just as surprised by the change as everyone else. My chest swelled; pride filled me up until tears gathered in my eyes.
Rylan was the alpha. There was no denying it now.
Every wolf in attendance bowed their heads respectfully at the shifter who was truly the very best that had ever lived.
I was so overcome with pride and love that it didn’t immediately register that my arm had stopped tingling and was now burning. When I finally did notice, it was too late.
The sharp cold bite of a knife rested against my throat, making my heart gallop like it was trying to escape my body.
Rylan’s massive head turned toward me when I gasped, surprised by how the situation had shifted. His green-grey eyes darkened as he took me in, then his irises moved to the knife wielder, and a shiver of pure fear raced down my spine.
Every speck of humanity disappeared, leaving a predator behind who was more powerful than any shifter before him.
I took a shallow breath, wondering how we were going to get out of this situation without killing anyone.
Chapter Eleven
Rylan
As soon as my brain comprehended that there was a blade against Pearl’s throat, I saw red. Fury like molten lava took hold of me. Darkness clouded my mind, but I welcomed it, needing all the help I could get. Flashbacks of the night before had my wolf snarling so ferociously that even I was taken aback.
‘Mine!’ my wolf roared in my mind and out loud.
The next second, we were behind our mate and her attacker. My partly shifted hand grabbed the back of the knife wielder’s throat. My chest rumbled with unsuppressed anger as my fingers squeezed, cutting off circulation to the brain.
The attacker slumped, unconscious, and I let go while sidestepping, letting the body hit the ground. It was a female wolf who had been eyeing me ever since she arrived. My lips curled as I debated, sinking my teeth into her neck and finishing her. How dare she touch what was mine? The offense was punishable by death, and while the option intrigued me, there was a part of me that advised caution.
I almost ignored it, almost picked the body up and tore into it with teeth and claws. I’d deposit the twisted corpse to my mate, a bloody gift that said I would kill anyone who dared to touch her.
My momentary pause allowed Pearl to approach, her hand reaching out to rest on my forearm, stopping me from any further action. Her brown eyes were wide with surprise or maybe fear, I wasn’t sure. The latter emotion made my heart stutter in my chest. Was she afraid of me?
As if she could read my thoughts, she shook her head, drawing closer to my partially shifted body. She needed me, and that was enough to make me forget about the wolf on the ground entirely. There was nothing in this world that could keep me away from her when she looked at me like that.
My wolf receded, letting me regain control as my body tingled and shifted back to my human form. It was a different feeling than when I normally transformed. Almost like a piece of string that had been wound too tight had finally loosened. The release of tension was almost pleasurable, but it usually left me depleted and exhausted.
Adrenaline was still pumping through me now, so when I returned to my human form, I was hyped up and ready to take on the world.
Pearl’s touch distracted me from the violence my wolf was urging me to unleash. She stood beside me, watching and waiting. Once I was back to myself, she fell into me. I caught her easily, her head resting on my chest just over my heart. Her shoulders relaxed once she heard my heartbeat.
I wrapped her in my arms as tightly as I dared. This was too close to what we had already experienced. Just the thought had my body shaking with anger. I couldn’t believe that this happened again. The need to sweep her up and run away was so strong I began to wonder why I was fighting it because she needed to be protected at all costs.
I felt like I was being stretched in two different directions. The first was the pull I felt to Pearl, my mate, my love. I had a responsibility to take care of her, to keep her safe. On the other side, I felt the need to act as an alpha, a call to be what every wolf needed. How was I going to do both? I refused to choose one over the other.
“It’s all right.” Pearl spoke softly, trying to ease my boiling emotions, no doubt.
“You could have been hurt,” I rumbled, still angry and ready to send everyone packing.
“I know, but this revealed something that we should have thought of before.”
“What’s that?”
“I am your weakness,” she whispered, guilt clear in her tone.
“No, you’re my strength.” I tilted my head back and sent a silent prayer to the Moon Spirit for guidance.
