Page 75 of The Ashpaw: Part One

Her voice was nearly gone when the sun finally touched the horizon and the door opened.

She looked straight ahead at a slight discoloration in the stone in front of her, unable to move her eyes.

That was her anchor, and she could not lose it.

Footsteps came closer, and warm, strong hands grasped her around her upper arms, forcing her up.

But her legs refused to work, and she only remained upright thanks to his hold on her.

“Can you walk?”

“I’m on the ground…” she rasped.

He clicked his tongue against his teeth in annoyance, then ran an arm under her knees, lifting her like she weighed nothing.

“Did he know?”

He turned too quickly, and Fern lost sight of her spot. She searched frantically to find it again, fear building inside her as she looked over the edge.

A keening whine broke through her chest, and the man pushed her face against his chest.

“Shh, Fern. I’m taking you down.”

Down… down… only one way down, they were going to fall…

A door closed, the wind stopped. A torch flickered from somewhere below.

“Fern, did my brother know of this fear?”

Brother… how would she know if his brother…

And then the familiar scent hit her, and she looked, finally realizing who held her.

“Eidan?”

His brow pinched with concern, his lips thinned as he took note of her state.

“It’s me, it’s me. You still haven’t answered my question, though—did Darion know?”

She buried her face back into him, not wanting to see anything.

“Aye,” she whispered.

His breathing deepened, and a low growl rolled like cart wheels over gravel from his chest.

Without another word, they descended.

So many stairs… were there more on the way down? Would they ever reach the ground?

Her heart raced again, and Eidan’s chest reverberated in the way she’d only seen alphas do, the vibration and frequency finally calming her down enough where she didn’t feel like she might faint.

And she had five more nights of this. At least.

Maybe a lifetime.

“I’m not going to make it,” she mumbled. “I can’t—”

“You can and you will. I refuse to let him break you simply because he cannot make sense of you.”