Page 129 of The Orc Outcast's Mate

She was calling for help!

His instincts roared to attention, terror burrowing deep, wringing him out.

“Perhaps... if you are truly worried about the males, you should return to your mate’s side.”

She was in pain! He could feel it in the tone. It sliced his mind to ribbons.

The light of the Fades exploded in his mind. Whirling up his magic in a surge that sent tingling rage to every part of him.

He could not control it.

He could not cool down.

Miranda had been hurt!

He barreled toward the stairs. Fists bunching, claws extended, fangs dripping.

Someone had hurt her, and he would rip them apart.

“Govek, try to calm! You haven’t even seen if she’s betrayed you yet,” his father yelled after him. The voice carrying down the stairs as Govek slammed them, forcing his body through the narrow opening.

“Govek control yourself! Don’t do something you’ll regret!”

But it was too late. He was already lost to his rage.

Chapter

Twenty-Five

MIRANDA

The woods were absolutely oppressive.

It was so dark. So quiet. So still and cold. Black trees loomed above her, caging her in. The wind had stilled, casting the forest into eerie silence. Her footsteps were muffled by the damp, fallen leaves.

Her throat closed and her fingers flexed. She reached around to hug herself around the waist, and she sucked in sharp breaths of the crisp night air through her teeth.

She was not on Earth. She was not in a vent or underground. This was a forest. A forest in a place called Faeda. That’s all.

And she had to follow that light.

The bright white light in front of her illuminated the forest enough that she could see without tripping over any branches. The red and orange leaves were washed out and the muddy ground was reflective from the damp.

Miranda slowly followed, allowing the light to draw her in. It was so unusual for this all-natural world. No fire could produce such crisp, perfect light.

So, what was it? And why did it feel like she’d seen it before?

Because you have.

She edged around a log and scoffed at herself. Of course, she had seen it before. On Earth. Earth had plenty of bright white lights.

But she wasn’t on Earth. Earth was gone. It only lived in her nightmares now.

Was . . . this a nightmare?

Miranda looked up again, through the trees. Her heart seized in her chest.

This was certainly not Earth. Nor was it a nightmare.

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