Page 156 of House Ignis

"Zorian's got me—" I gasped mentally, the pain in my leg flaring as I tried to shift.

The emotions flooding from his end were staggering. Pure, unadulterated anger. Raw power. A promise of a slow, agonizing death. "And Aether—"

"He's alive," Asher snapped, the words sharp as a blade. "Jules found him. She has him. Focus on me, Ava. I am coming."

Thank the gods.

Meanwhile, Zorian was still rambling, pacing in front of me and completely unaware of the darkness barreling toward him at terminal velocity.

He was talking about "loving" me. About ruling Zymarra together. Delusional, pathetic bastard.

Asher's voice in my mind grew colder. Measured. Deadly. "Ava, tell me exactly what is happening. Are you hurt?"

"Well," I replied, trying to keep my thoughts coherent despite the throbbing in my skull. "Well, the sick fuck already impaled me in the thigh. Then he scraped a dagger down my throat and stopped at my chest. He's... he's touched me, Asher. And I'm pretty sure I'm going to throw up on him."

Silence.

Then a sound pierced the bond that I would never forget.

A snarl. A primal, predatory rage that felt like it was shredding the very fabric of the bond.

"I'm going to fucking kill him."

The idiot still didn't realize what he'd summoned. The bond pulsed with vengeance, dark and lethal.

Zorian wasn't leaving this room breathing.

"They thought they were clever, erasing your scent," Asher growled through the bond, his presence feeling closer, heavier. "But they clearly forgot that we're blood-bound."

His voice was the only thing keeping me from shattering into a million pieces.

“They dragged you off-campus, but Zya and I tracked you down. She’s furious, by the way. She said if anyone else touches your panther, she’s taking limbs.”

"Territorial," I muttered internally, the pain in my leg curling tighter.

"Hang in there, firecracker. I'm close. So close."

"I'm trying," I replied. "It's not like I've got a busy schedule today, other than bleeding out and listening to this psychopath's monologue."

He sent a pulse of comfort through the bond, a soft, fleeting touch like a phantom kiss against my ear.

Even with Zorian standing right in front of me, I shivered.

Not from fear, but from the terrifying, beautiful weight of being claimed.

"Ava, my love," Zorian crooned, stepping into my space with a look of mock tenderness that made my skin crawl. "Tell me… how do you feel about me now?"

I looked up at him through my lashes, a jagged, bloody smile stretching across my face.

“Hmm.” I spat a mouthful of metallic-tasting blood onto his polished boot. “I feel like you’re a revolting, pathetic fuck of a male who couldn’t get a girl without a restraint spell.”

His smile didn't just falter; it vanished. The next second, his fist slammed into my jaw.

Crack.

White light exploded behind my eyes. Pain lanced through my face as my head snapped back.

My ears rang with a high-pitched whine, and the world tilted on its axis.