Page 35 of Forbidden Daddy Mate

I paused, keeping my ears pricked. My heart thundering, I glanced up at the night sky, then around at the surrounding woods. I should have heard birds, or wildlife, or something. Usually, the only time the woods were this quiet was when the creatures of the forest sensed a predator, but I couldn’t smell any other shifters. My breathing shallowed as another possibility crept into my thoughts.

Panic threatened to claw its way into me. My wolf snarled and paced as if sensing danger.

Except there was no way there was any danger. Because that would mean that they were alive and that they’d come all the way to Brixton. And they wouldn’t have done that. I was just being paranoid.

Goosebumps that had nothing to do with the cold air raced up my skin. My wolf howled, itching for me to shift, to let her take control. I wanted her to, except the wound was still there, and every time I’d tried to shift, I hadn’t been able to put weight on that leg. If I needed to run…

Something sweet and pleasant over the scent of death wafted through the air. I recognized that stench. It would probably be ingrained in my memory until the end of time.

I froze, eyes wide, like a deer that had scented danger. It was impossible. It couldn’t be. It was just a memory, like in my dreams. It would be gone in a moment.

Finally, common sense broke me out of my paralysis. I ran.

But I’d barely gotten a hundred feet before a figure stepped out from behind a tree, grinning at me. I came to a screeching halt, coming face to face with the creature that had been haunting my nightmares.

“Hello, my dear,” Tyr purred. “Did you miss me?”

My breathing stopped. I turned and ran again, only getting three steps in before another figure blocked my path, grabbing my wrist so tight that I thought he might shatter my bones.

Varin smirked down at me.

“Get the fuck away from me!” I yelled, trying to pull away from his grip.

Tyr tutted, coming to stand beside his leader. “That’s hardly the way to greet an old friend, is it?” he asked.

“You’re supposed to be dead,” I said. “You both are.”

“A couple other vampires. Illusions are so useful, aren’t they?” Tyr mused.

“You wolves are so gullible,” Varin said. “Did you think that after what those fuckers did to my father, I wouldn’t take more precautions? I intend to exact my revenge, and I can’t exactly do that if I’m dead, now can I?”

“Let. Me. Go.” I tried to wrench my hand from Varin’s grip. All he did was twist my arm behind me, forcing it into a painful position. I screamed as tears filled my eyes. Varin grabbed my hair and jerked my head upward so I was forced to make eye contact with Tyr.

“Relax,” Tyr whispered. “Say hello. You’re happy to see me, after all.”

That familiar stench of caramel emerged from nowhere. I squeezed my eyes shut and imagined that wall of stone, trying to shield my mind and stop him from getting a hold. I could feel him at the corners of my mind, tendrils caressing the stone, trying to find a crack in the barrier.

“Get the fuck away from me or I’ll tear you both to shreds,” I snarled, trying and failing to wrench my wrist out of Varin’s grip.

“She really has been practicing,” Tyr said. “You must have an excellent teacher. Tell me, what other things has he taught you? I saw the way he was looking at you after all.”

“You can go to hell,” I spat.

“Oh, I’m sure I will,” he said flippantly. “Eventually. But for right now, I’m quite happy where I am. And I don’t think you’re in the position to threaten anyone right now, are you?”

I screamed, trying again to yank my hand free even as I knew it was futile. Despite it all, I still tried to fight the compulsion I could sense trying to take over me. A hand grabbed my chin and jerked my head around until I was looking straight at Tyr.

“You might have been practicing,” Tyr said, “but I doubt you can keep me out for long if I really tried.”

I wasn’t going to give him the chance. Shifting so I could get out of his grip was the only option. My arm may still be injured, but it would have to hold me long enough to get back to Malcolm.

My teeth lengthened to fangs, fingers turning to claws. A flood of extra strength filled me, and I jerked my arm away. My face turned wolfish, and I prepared to shift fully and let my wolf take over—

Tyr stood in front of me, frowning, eyes furrowed in concentration. That scent of caramel was even stronger now, and I realized I’d made a massive mistake. I tried to fight it, to build that stone wall, but I’d never done it while shifting, and even when I was only half-turned, my mind wasn’t ready.

I felt myself falling away and into an abyss. My struggles slowed.

“You don’t want to shift,” he said. “There’s no need.”

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