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  “As soon as my Alpha and packmates are back, you’re gone,” she snapped harder than she’d intended. Ophelia was grateful he’d be gone too. Something about this Alpha rubbed her the wrong way. Okay everything about him rubbed her the wrong way—in all the right ways. He was all obnoxious and…sexy. No, no, no. He was maybe thirty and she was two hundred. Nope. Not gonna happen. He was a pup.

  “Maybe I’ll stick around. Ask him if I can join your pack.” Again with the smugness.

  “He’d never let you be part of the pack.” And they both knew it. Gray was too Alpha. It surprised Ophelia that he was living in another wolf’s territory but according to Finn the male had no desire to run his own pack or mix with theirs. So Alpha traits aside—meaning he was powerful enough to run his own pack and could never truly submit to another leader—he wasn’t a threat to Finn or anyone else in the territory. Just because a shifter had the Alpha traits didn’t mean they had the desire to run a pack. And according to pack gossip the male appeared to like living alone and hadn’t made any power plays to take over territory. She’d never met him until today. Sure, she’d heard a couple of her packmates talk about how sexy he was, but she knew he’d never hooked up with anyone in her pack. And for some reason she was glad of that.

  His eyes narrowed and he sat up in bed—his ridiculous eight-pack flexing with the motion. “And why is that?”

  “Please. You’re an Alpha.” She stared at him for a long moment and waited for him to confirm it.

  Instead he just stared at her, not bothering to hide his hunger for her. It took her off guard. She was over two hundred years old. Older than even Finn. She was one of the oldest members of the pack, and normally the males of her pack were intimidated by her. It didn’t matter that she was small compared to almost everyone; she was the healer and everyone respected her.

  Not this male. Gray looked at her like she was a female. A desirable woman he wanted to do bad, bad things to. And at that thought, she knew she needed to get the heck out of here. Because she liked the idea of that waaaay too much. She nearly snorted to herself. He’d probably be selfish in bed. At least that was what she was going to tell herself.

  “If there’s nothing else I can do for you, I’m leaving. If you need anything, call my cell or let your guard know.”

  He made a scoffing sound and rubbed a hand over his dark, unruly hair, his arm and chest muscles flexing. “You guys are guarding me? Seriously?”

  She lifted a shoulder. She doubted it was necessary. He’d been fairly helpful to the pack and she didn’t think he was going anywhere, but he was still a dangerous male. She could sense it. He was a predator just like her. Well, maybe not like her. He was more. They might both be apex predators but he was more physically dangerous than her. Her wolf sensed it. As the healer, she had a calmer nature and this male was wild and untamed under the surface. “It’s not personal.”

  In a fluid—sexy!—motion, he swung his legs off the bed and stood. He stretched, looking more feline than lupine, and she had to force herself not to drink in every delicious inch of him. “Is it against the rules for you to give me a tour of the place?” he murmured, his gaze on her mouth.

  “It’s not against the rules. But I don’t have time to waste on cheeky little pups.” She turned around to leave, had taken one step toward the door when she felt his larger-than-life presence behind her. One of his big hands landed on the door to the side of her face, holding it shut and blocking her in.

  He ran his nose along the side of her face, inhaling and not being subtle about it. “Cheeky pup?”

  Heat flooded between her thighs. She wanted to turn around—and push him away or grab his face and bring his lips to hers. She wasn’t sure which. So she didn’t move. She couldn’t trust herself around the male. Something about Gray brought out the most primitive side of her and she wasn’t handling it well. She’d always been in control when it came to males and sex. But he made her feel the opposite right now. “You’re young.” Younger than her, anyway. Not that anyone could tell by their physical appearances. If anything, she looked younger than him.

  Instead of responding he gently closed his teeth around her earlobe. The action was so damn bold. Her instinct should have been to shove him away, remind him that he had no right to touch her. She hadn’t given him permission. None of her patients or packmates had ever been so bold with her. He wasn’t touching her anywhere else. But that single contact had even more heat surging through her. She wanted to lean into him, to turn around and let him pin her up against the door while he devoured her.

  Since that way lay insanity, she did the only thing she could. She elbowed him in the stomach hard and threw the door open. He didn’t make a sound but thankfully stepped out of her way. She didn’t look back as she hurried down the hall but she heard his muted laughter as she exited.

  Frustrating male.

  * * *

  On the other side of the portal, Fiona found herself pinned under Ian on icy, uneven ground. The sky above was a pale green and everything was bitterly cold. When she inhaled it burned her lungs.

  “You okay?” he murmured, moving off her so he could take in her appearance. He crouched over her, his expression worried as he looked her over from head to foot.

  “I’m good,” she whispered, unable to stop staring at him in his demon form. When they’d been together he’d refused to let her see him that way—much to her frustration. She couldn’t believe he’d been ashamed of this.

  Eyes wide, she drank in the now seven-foot-tall male with pale blue skin, unique swirling tattoos covering his arms and chest, and those familiar amber eyes she could easily get lost in. And he was completely naked, his clothes having shredded in the vortex when he’d shifted forms. He was definitely big all over. Something she was trying not to notice too hard. But she couldn’t help but peek a little. Her self-control only went so far.

  “Shit,” he muttered, turning away and grabbing the bag of clothes he’d brought with him just for this occasion.

  She still didn’t tear her gaze away from his muscular ass until he tugged silky-looking black pants on. That was when she realized the others had formed a small perimeter around them and were making sure the area was secure.

  Um, yeah, just like she should have been doing instead of ogling Ian. Inwardly cursing herself, she jumped to her feet and immediately took in her surroundings. She didn’t scent any other beings nearby. She’d been in various Hell realms before; had seen some seriously creepy things. Now…there was no life that she could see, scent or hear. It was strange.

  “We head east,” Finn said, coming to stand a few feet away from her.

  Ian moved lightning fast, putting himself in between her and the Alpha in a not-so-subtle defensive posture. She blinked once in surprise but knew she shouldn’t be shocked. He’d always been possessive of her. And okay, she liked it. When the Alpha narrowed his pale gaze at Ian, Fiona stepped forward and linked her arm through Ian’s.

  He was stiff, but relaxed slightly at her touch.

  She didn’t bother asking Finn why they should go east. Gray’s directives had been clear. There were small mountains surrounding them in every direction and one huge one to the west that went so high they couldn’t see the top of it because it was covered in thick fog. The castle—their destination—would be to the east of the big mountain.

  “Do you smell anything living?” she asked quietly as the three others moved to join them. She glanced around the surrounding forest. The tree trunks were a dark green, as well as the leaves. Gray had mentioned that the trees almost appeared to be alive. And not in the normal sense.

  “No.” Finn frowned, scanning the trees as well.

  She shivered at the seeming lack of life. Even in her home in the country there were always the smells and sounds of the surrounding forest. She’d even gotten a couple foxes to trust her enough to let her hand-feed them. This utter silence was offensive to her senses.

  “You guys know the deal,” Finn conti
nued. “We’ll head there as a team then scope the entrance Gray told us about.”

  “Fiona and I will cover the back of the formation…if that’s acceptable.” Ian’s voice was almost grudging but at least he’d tacked on the last bit of respect.

  Finn nodded and motioned to his team. Without having to use any words they all fell into a formation, the male named Solon standing at the front with Finn and the other two lining up behind them. Fiona and Ian would follow and per their earlier plan they would all spread out in the forest, but not so far that they couldn’t see each other. Except they didn’t want to head off in a straight line.

  Once they were in the thick of the green trees and fifty yards away from Chloe and Spiro, Ian spoke quietly. “How are you feeling?”

  She didn’t want to announce to everyone that something was seriously wrong with her. Because it was. She felt it in her bones. Whatever had been in that toxin wasn’t working its way out of her system like it should have. It was making her feel tired and she still couldn’t get in touch with her dragon. And that was terrifying. “Same. Maybe worse,” she murmured, keeping her voice at a subvocal level even while continuously scanning her surroundings for any threats.

  “We’ll fix this,” he murmured.

  The way he said “we” ripped something open inside her. Swallowing hard, she broke his gaze. She was too terrified to think there could ever be a “we” with him. But now that he was back in her life again, a mere foot away from her… She blinked away the unexpected tears that stung her eyes. Being near him had her on edge and completely off-kilter.

  “I’m sorry you have to see me in this form.” Ian’s words were stiff and unexpected.

  Swiping at an errant tear, she snapped her gaze to his. “What are you talking about?”

  “This.” His expression was grim as he motioned to his now covered body. His clothes were loose, silky and all black.

  “The only thing I’m sorry about is that you’re not naked anymore.” She didn’t even think about them before she’d uttered the words. It just slipped out. She didn’t want to send him mixed signals, but the male was magnificent and she wasn’t sorry she’d told him—definitely wasn’t sorry she’d finally gotten to see him like this. How could he think she wouldn’t want to see him in this form?

  Now he blinked in surprise before turning away from her. She wanted to ask him what he was thinking. And she really wanted to talk about what he’d said right before they’d been sucked into that vortex. But as they covered more ground she knew there was a bigger chance they’d stumble on guards or traps surrounding the castle, so she kept silent.

  They needed to be vigilant. Because they were moving at almost human speed and watching for traps, it took about an hour and a half to cover five miles. When they reached the edge of the forest that led to the surrounding area of the castle, her breath caught in her throat.

  The castle itself was up on a fairly large hill so that it appeared impenetrable and intimidating if someone wanted to storm it. But what they had in mind was a lot more subtle. She just hoped she was up to a battle if it became necessary.

  She wasn’t exactly exhausted but she felt almost tired. Which was unusual for her. Normally she never ran out of energy and always had some to spare. It was part of her dragon nature.

  Instead of emerging from the forest and revealing themselves to any number of guards, many of which she could see up on the parapet walk and in the guardhouse, they remained hidden in the shadows of the trees.

  After getting a visual of the castle, the six of them moved back into the trees quietly. Once they were about a hundred yards away, Finn spoke. “Considering the landmarks that Gray gave us, the entrance we’ll be using is on the opposite side of the castle. Follow my lead.”

  Once again they fell into formation, this time moving at a quicker pace. She still struggled with not feeling like her normal self but keeping up wasn’t a problem. Ten minutes later they were in the forest that merged with the back side of the castle.

  There were another twelve half-demon guards on the parapet walkway and just as many on the ground. Ian could just call on his camouflage to protect him, but the rest of them couldn’t. Including herself. Something she didn’t want to think about.

  Once they’d all gotten a good visual, they followed after Finn. She glanced at Ian for what felt like the hundredth time but he was in total warrior mode as he stalked through the trees.

  When Finn made a hand motion for all of them to stop, they did. Ian was stiff, his posture making it clear he didn’t like obeying another male. She understood because she felt the same. She’d been on her own for so long it was strange to be following another’s orders. Though she’d do anything right now to save Ava. Including take orders from a wolf shifter. She was glad Ian was doing the same. Saving her friend was all that mattered. She just hoped they weren’t too late.

  If the topography was correct she knew they were close to another clearing where a small cabin would be. At least according to Gray. And she trusted that wolf with her life. He would never do something to put her in danger. Clearly Finn trusted the male as well, otherwise they wouldn’t be here at all.

  When they grew closer to the location of the cabin, Finn disappeared through the trees with a single order to “Stand guard.”

  Less than ten minutes later he returned with splatters of blood on his dark pants. It blended in with his clothes well, but her vision was exceptional and she could also scent it.

  He made another motion that they should follow after him. Sure enough, a few minutes later they entered a clearing where the cabin was. The scent of blood and death grew stronger but Finn didn’t slow down so they didn’t either.

  With sure strides, they hurried up the short set of stairs and into the cabin—where four half-demon males with pale green skin were dead. Body parts littered the kitchen and attached living room. And every one of them had their throats missing. She blinked. Finn was definitely an Alpha. She hadn’t really doubted it, considering the territory he ruled and his reputation. Not to mention the actual power that rolled off him, but this was impressive. He clearly hadn’t even shifted forms. He’d done this while mostly human so he’d probably just used his claws. Wow.

  “We leave the bodies and enter through here.” Finn shoved a table out of the way and lifted a hatch to a trapdoor.

  Just as Gray had said it would be. Only Gray had entered without anyone knowing. He’d used a distraction to get the original guards out of the cabin, then snuck in with them none the wiser. Later, he and his friend had been discovered in the castle but as far as he knew no one was aware of how they’d gotten inside. If they had been, she knew there would have been more than these guards here.

  “Since we don’t know if they have backup or if there’s a shift change soon, we need to hurry.” Finn jumped down through the open hatch.

  Okay then, they were heading in now.

  “I’m going to camouflage myself.” Ian started stripping as the other shifters followed after their Alpha. He tucked his clothes into his pack and handed it to her.

  Fiona slipped it on her back and was able to easily reach her weapons—the crossbow tucked under the pack and the blades strapped to her thighs. It was foreign to rely on weapons other than herself but a dragon had to do what a dragon had to do. Somehow she managed to avoid looking lower than Ian’s face. Even if she wanted to get another peek, the timing was insanely inappropriate.

  Ian surprised her by cupping her cheek gently with one big, callused palm. “If anything happens and shit goes haywire, I’m shifting to my dragon form and flying us out of here.” He wasn’t asking either. He was flat-out telling.

  “Ian—”

  He crushed his mouth to hers for a long, hard moment where all she could do was clutch onto his shoulders for support. The kiss was a harsh claiming and no matter how much she wanted to deny it, to remind herself that they had no chance together, after that one kiss she found herself hoping that just maybe they could f
ind a way to make things work.

  Not just maybe—definitely. She couldn’t walk away from him again. Her heart couldn’t take it and she didn’t think his could either. When she’d left him, it had been like cutting off a limb, leaving part of herself behind. And she had, essentially. Because Ian was a part of her, embedded in her skin, her soul.

  Chapter 11

  The scents filling the underground of the castle were too many to sift through so Fiona stopped trying. She and Ian had split off from the others and were now on one of the lower levels. There had been a few close calls where they’d almost run into guards but she and Ian were quick.

  Even if she couldn’t camouflage herself now, when Ian blocked her with his concealed body she was hidden from others. Under normal circumstances she didn’t like depending on anyone. While she hated that she couldn’t reach her dragon half, having Ian to back her up was… Well, there was no word for it. But it felt right to have him at her side. And after that kiss she was still emotionally reeling even as she focused on their mission.

  On instinct she reached out, felt Ian’s hand even if she couldn’t see him. He linked his fingers through hers as they slowed at the end of the hallway.

  The hallways on this level were all stone, both the walls and floor. There weren’t any paintings or decor, simply wall sconces with torches lighting the way every couple feet. Even with her hotter body temperature a continuous chill racked her the farther they walked. Apparently even that aspect of her nature had been affected by the poison.

  This level was quieter than the other two they’d been on, and fear for Ava grew more with each second that passed.

  Because the longer her friend was captive, the worse things would be for her. Fiona was going to make whoever had taken her pay.

  Barely four feet in front of her, part of the stone wall suddenly snapped open—a hidden door. Fiona froze as a very familiar male stepped out of a darkened passageway with no lighting. There was no time for Ian to use his body to cover her, to hide her. She had nowhere to go. At least Ian was still hidden.