Page 107 of Savage Hunt

Of all the ways I could have died, I didn’t expect Demise to be my undoing. Ziva was probably somewhere in purgatory, laughing at my shitty fate.

Tension mounted in the forest just before a howl ricocheted around us, and Fane emerged through the trees. As his gaze connected with mine, a flash of fury and pain hit me.

Pain. It was ten times worse than his anger. He hurt seeing me like this even though he wanted to kill me.

His focus swiveled to Dominic who still held the poisoned blade. “You. Are. Dead.”

Dominic tossed the knife to Dorian and began to shift into his wolf form. He wasn’t fast enough. Not by a long shot.

Fane charged, changing into his beastly wolf in seconds. His sickle claws punctured Dominic’s chest, and he tackled him to the ground.

“Dom!” Dorian climbed to his feet, brandishing the knife as he approached the fighting shifters. If given the chance, he’d stab Fane, and there might be enough Demise left to kill him.

Over my dead body.

Fighting off the nausea and unbearable throbbing, I struggled to my hands and knees, crawling toward the former beta. The presence of other shifters registered—they must have heard Fane’s roar—but no one intervened. Did they understand what happened? Did they realize these two pricks attacked me, and Fane had every right to kill them?

Dorian was so preoccupied with Fane and Dominic that he didn’t notice me. Sweat dripped down my cheeks, and my vision blurred, but I managed to bring my talons out on one hand.

One was all I needed.

I jabbed my claws into his foot, sinking through his boot as if they were made of butter. Dorian’s shrill scream pierced my eardrums, and bile oozed up my throat. But I didn’t stop. I ripped my talons out and slashed at his leg, spilling blood.

“Little bitch!” Dorian kicked me in the face, and pain erupted in my chin as the skin split. Ringing filled my ears, and the forest blurred as I rolled across the fallen leaves and dirt. When I stopped, Fane had his jaws wrapped around Dominic’s throat. And he chomped down.

The snap of bone ricocheted, and the life zapped out of Dominic. Fane drew away, licking his mouth as his gaze—burning bright red like the fires of hell—landed on the former beta.

Dorian froze, fear pouring off him in thick, choking waves. Tremors raced through him so violently that he lost his grip on the knife. “It was all Dominic,” he sputtered. “He stabbed Tate. Not me.”

My beast didn’t care who dealt the killing blow. They both had a hand in this. And they’d both die.

As Fane stalked toward Dorian, his bloody teeth showing and nostrils puffing like a wild animal, Marissa bolted out of the woods and stood in front of her mate.

“Don’t fucking touch him, Fane!” The disgust and loathing in her words hit the demon shifter with a wave of clarity.

His huge, ebony form shook, and within seconds, his naked human form crouched in the beast’s place. Crimson covered his face and hands and spotted his scarred, tattooed body. “You planned this, didn’t you, Marissa?” Hatred dripped from every syllable like poison more potent than Demise. “You distracted me so they could get her alone.”

“So what?” Marissa spat. “Weren’t you saying how much you wanted her out of your life? She killed your brother. You wanted to kill her yourself.”

The veins and tendons in his neck swelled, and he trembled with the effort it took to maintain his human shape. “No one touches what’s mine.” He stood, revealing every hard, severe inch of him. “And anyone who does will earn my fucking wrath.”

Mine.

That word from him had electric tingles crackling everywhere, distracting me from my death looming just around the corner. Fane declared me his.

His what, though?

There wasn’t much time to find out. I’d be dead soon.

Fane stormed toward the two wolves, but Logan bounded into his path to block him.

“Don’t, Fane.”

“Get out of my way, Logan.” His chest rose and fell with heavy, erratic pants. “I will hurt you to get to them.”

Their voices faded as the forest distorted, and a heavy weight pressed on my sternum. My lungs squeezed while a high-pitched ringing slammed against my skull. Something metallic coated the back of my tongue.

Blood.

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