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I kicked off the shifter trying to bite at my neck and jumped to my feet, clamping my teeth around one of his legs and yanking. My entire mind was consumed by the need to get to my mate, to find her, to make sure she was safe.
But I needed to make sure Ayla was safe, too. I couldn’t abandon her just because the other half of my soul showed up, especially since I could sense my missing half, once again, when the enemy was far too close.
Damn. My fate was nearby, and once more, I couldn’t do anything. I needed to find Ayla and save her.
It was when I stood up, ready to rejoin the battle, that I was sure I heard Ayla cry out. It was quiet, meaning it was far enough away that the healer was likely completely alone, cornered, and crying out for help.
Something I thought impossible happened in that moment. Although I could still sense my fated mate calling to my wolf, I was able to push it away and instead dash off in the direction I was sure Everton’s cry had come from.
I raced through the woods, dodging trees right and left. There was no way Ayla could have made it so far from the main battle.
Could she?
That was when I burst onto the scene of a dark, hooded figure leaning down, his hand poised for Ayla’s throat.
It was clear that whoever this enemy was, they weren’t a grunt. My eyes were avoiding direct contact, as if they were too difficult to comprehend, and if I did force myself to focus, he seemed to vibrate in and out of presence, as if flickering from sight, and then there was the barely visible, but still present graysmoke that drifted from the bottom of his robes. He seemed like less a corporal form and more of a malevolent nightmare come to life.
So, this was the Shrouded Shriek.
Get away from her!I cried in my shifter’s voice. It wasn’t something he could actually hear, after all—he wasn’t a shifter—but it seemed like he did, anyway. He turned my way while somehow not moving at all, yet the Shriek was facing me, nonetheless. He once again blinked out of existence, only to appear to the side with a spell quickly forming in his hand.
I barely saw him, though, because the moment my eyes connected with Ayla’s, I was suddenly swamped with the sweetest, most delicious surge of connection and happiness. The siren call that I’d pushed away to save her came back full force, impacting my innermost being.
My ears rushed, my heart fluttered in my chest, and my wolf form howled so loudly I was surprised our eardrums weren’t busted. I couldn’t believe it. After so much time searching, so much gaslighting myself that I'd somehow gotten confused, I'd finally found my fated mate.
It was none other than Ayla Everton.
The moment my brain was able to fully comprehend that fact, Ayla’s scent slammed into me like a wrecking ball on a strict deadline. It wasn’t like water anymore, mild and utterly uninteresting. No. Instead, it was the most delectable thing that'd ever graced my nostrils. Vanilla, with soft spices, and perhaps something citrusy to make it bright. It drew me in, practically making my wolf drool.
Thankfully, I'd at least a little pride, gathering myself together enough to remember our enemy who was in the middle of firing a spell at me. Didn’t he get that I'd more important things to deal with?
Snarling, I dropped to the ground and rolled, shifting as I did so. It took serious control to continue my momentum through forms, but I managed it, making myself a much smaller target, only to hop to my feet in a half-shift and leap forward to close the distance between us.
I fully intended to use my oversized hands and hardened claws to slit his throat. His haunting of my people and my mate would be no more. But as I swiped through his body, it was like I struck a cloud, and he disappeared entirely.
Well, shit.
If I was in my right mind, I probably would've been a lot more concerned about that, but now that the enemy was gone, I only had eyes for Ayla.
Turning to her, I took her in as if I was seeing her anew. Suddenly that strange phenomenon of her sliding out of my thoughts was gone, vanishing completely. Honestly, the very idea of not remembering what Ayla looked or sounded like seemed ridiculous. That was akin to forgetting the sun itself, blazing in its resplendent, all-encompassing glory.
God, she was beautiful. Those gorgeous, captivating eyes of hers stared up at me, pupils dilated to tiny pricks. Both of us were locked into the embrace that we’d been destined for.
I couldn’t believe it, and I didn’t understand it. We’d been around each other for years, hadn’t we? We interacted. Now that my head was clear, I could recall multiple times we’d engaged with each other.
Clearly something was going on behind the scenes, and whatever it was had deliberately kept us apart. I didn’t know the how and the why, but it didn’t matter to me right then. The only thing that did was getting Ayla to safety.
It was like the sudden disappearance of the Shriek had taken the wind out of our attackers, and the vicious sounds of fighting around us began to fade. Not that it mattered. I'd rip each oftheir throats out before I let them touch a single hair on Ayla’s head.
Now that my wolf finally had its fated mate, the one it was supposed to cherish and protect, it was utterly beside itself. There were dozens of things it wanted to do, from scenting her thoroughly, to feeding her an opulent meal, then curling up to doze it off together, to rubbing her feet and spoiling her rotten until she got all soft and comfortable.
But how could we be fated mates if she wasn’t a shifter?
Whatever was happening, it could be explained later. First, I needed to take care of my mate.
Crossing over to her, I swore she never even blinked as I approached. But when I scooped her up, I was quite pleased that she let her arms encircle my neck, clinging to me like I was her last lifeline.
I thought I was prepared for what it’d be like to have my mate in my arms for the first time, but boy, was Iwrong.
