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“That is not our decision to make. We will complete our contract. Our deal is as good as our life bond, you know that. We do not fail or back out,” Torrin says as he sinks down next to me, offering me the heat of his body. There’s nothing sexual in the gesture, just men who have survived a lot worse together, knowing sometimes you need a nonthreatening presence at your side.

Raiden hops up on a branch and perches above us while Kitt keeps watch, and Emrys disappears into the dark. We cope in our own ways.

“I know.” Lowering my hand, I let the scorpions cover my arms and legs like I’m their new home. “I feel sorry for her, don’t you? She’s like us.”

“She’s nothing like us.” This comes from Kitt.

“No? She was hurt, betrayed, locked away, and forced to fight to survive until it morphed her into something else. She’s nothing like us at all,” I retort, and he grits his teeth and looks away. “I wonder why he wants her dead. I wonder why her mother threw her down there.”

“None of it is our concern,” Torrin reminds us, and his voice cracks. He’s not used to talking out loud, none of us are, so outside conversation turns internal. We will complete this job like any other and keep moving. It’s how we survive. Do not allow yourself to soften towards her. What you’re feeling is the mate bond, that is all, nothing else.

He’s right, Raiden whispers. I’ve read about mate bonds. Even between strangers, they make you soft and caring, and eventually, you’ll grow protective. It doesn’t make you love them, but it binds you together and grows deeper the longer you are around one another.

Then we need to break it fast, Kitt says. Rest now if you can.

It’s the end of the conversation. I know when Kitt is done talking, so I stay quiet. I tilt my head back, and my body is relaxed, but I simply watch her.

She is not what I imagined. There’s a strong beauty to her, which is unexpected. Her face isn’t soft like most women I have seen, and instead it’s strong and bold. Her body is muscular and just as strong, yet there are curves and hints of femininity, and her hair is bright, like a flame. She’s unique, which is the biggest compliment I can give her. She’s like us. One of a kind.

Does she feel as lonely as we do?

I doze off for a while before I wake to Emrys’s thoughts.

We should keep moving.

Knowing better than to argue, I climb to my feet, watching my new friends scurry away as Torrin stalks over to her and kicks her arm, nudging her. She springs up, crouching with her teeth bared, her eyes glowing so bright they pierce through my skin, burning it away.

Torrin roars, ready to attack as she lunges at him before stopping.

“Don’t,” I snap, holding my hand up to Torrin. “Look at her eyes. She’s acting on instinct, like a cornered animal. Shh, beastie, we will not harm you,” I murmur softly.

Her eyes flit from him to me to see she’s surrounded, then she backs up before stopping when she hits the tree. Raiden slinks down, joining us, so I step back, giving her more room, and order them to do the same. Emrys takes that moment to appear, though, and he’s too close. She grabs him and presses his gun to his head, and Kitt swears, heading her way.

She’s frantic and scared, so I get there before he does, blocking his path.

“Beastie, it’s us. Feel us and look at him. That’s Emrys, remember?” Blinking, she looks from me to him and her hand relaxes. She spins his gun around her finger and offers it to him. He takes it, glaring at her, and she swallows, avoiding our gazes.

“Can’t blame a girl for taking her chance,” she mutters, but it lacks heat, and we share a look, knowing she wasn’t in control. I used to be like that when I woke, always ready for a fight. It’s a survival tactic. Sometimes, I still do it.

Knowing she probably feels ashamed and annoyed, I draw everyone’s attention to me. “We are heading to the cornfield mages?”

“They are the closest and owe us a favour,” Emrys confirms, watching me, no doubt understanding what I’m doing.

“Then we better get moving.”

I have no idea why I helped her. It must be the mate bond, and that annoys me. I will still help them kill her. It’s my job, and I don’t want to soften towards her, but it seems the bond has other ideas.

We stay silent as we begin to walk, and she follows. A little while later, Emrys catches a rabbit, and he tears into it while it squeals. She doesn’t even bat an eye despite the fact that he is purposely messy to horrify her.

By midday, we reach the edge of the forest and find our truck. It was once used by hunters, but we modified it. As we get closer, it opens and starts—the bonuses of magic.

“Get in,” Kitt orders her as he climbs into the passenger seat, and I get into the driver’s seat. She has to sit in the very back, and she sprawls out on the seats, leaving Raiden, Emrys, and Torrin to squeeze into the second row.

Raiden throws one of our stashed bags at her. “Eat or don’t, I don’t care, but your growling stomach is annoying and I want to sleep.”

I keep my eye on her through the mirrors as I pull onto the empty road and set off towards the peaks, fields, and mountains the closest coven inhabits.

I glance at her repeatedly throughout the drive, and one time, I find her watching me back. Our eyes connect, and she nods. She is giving me her gratitude.