Page 26 of Wolf Chosen

A soft golden glow suffuses the clearing, growing brighter with each passing heartbeat. It’s the same light that appeared in my last dream. It's warm and welcoming, chasing away the shadows that cling to my soul. The light descended from the sky to hover above the ground. I watch, transfixed, as the light coalesces into a figure before me.

She's...breathtaking. Exquisite. Her form is crafted from pure, shimmering luminescence, her features undeniably feminine. Ancient, infinite power clings to her. I should be quaking on my feet, turning tail and running from the impossible, but instead, I feel...safe.

“Hello, child,” she says, her voice a melodic caress against my mind. “I am Lunarith.”

“Please,” I whisper, desperation cracking my voice. “I need your help. My mate, he's...”

She’s so powerful. Surely she can help us? Surely she’s strong enough to crack through Rowan’s magic?

Lunarith's smile is tinged with sorrow. “I cannot directly interfere with the workings of free will on your plane of existence, but I can offer you the tools to forge your own path. The strength to save that which you hold most dear.”

I shake my head frantically, tears blurring my vision. “I'll do anything. Anything. Just tell me what I need to do.”

The bond pulses weakly, Liam's essence flickering. He's fading.

I'm…I’m losing him.

I have to go back to him. I can’t be trapped here. Need to help him. Need to do something.

“Your love for your mate is a powerful force. Trust in that bond. Trust in yourself.” Lunarith begins to shimmer and dissipate back to a bright, formless light.

“Please stay. Please help me,” I beg.

Lilting words whisper in my mind, strange and foreign.

Lunaris, Lunara, noctem illuminare,

Gratia Lunarith, revelare lucem absconditam.

“I don’t understand. What do you mean?” I cry at the golden light that was once my angel and now is my lost hope, but the world is already dissolving around me. Her words repeat in my head, searing into my bones. Over and over until I know I’ll never forget them.

I lurch upright with a ragged gasp, the cell walls swimming into focus. My heart pounds against my ribs, cold sweat plastering my hair to my forehead.

A dream. It was just a dream.

But no... There, on my finger. My ring pulses with heat, the metal glowing like a brand. It should burn, should blister my skin, but there's no pain. No mark.

A scuffling sound echoes from the corridor, dragging me from my racing thoughts. I turn toward the cell door, my heart leaping into my throat.

It's Liam. But he's...oh God, he's barely standing.

He leans heavily against the wall, his once strong frame hunched and shaking as he struggles to take a step. Every inhale is a labored rasp, the sound wet and thick.

Bruises mottle his skin and cover nearly every inch of his exposed flesh, a sickening map of the abuse he's endured. Blood trickles from a gash above his eye, painting gruesome streaks down the planes of his face. The crimson stands in stark contrast to the pallor of his skin.

He sways on his feet with the next step. It's a miracle he's even upright, but then his knees buckle, sending him crashing to the ground. He barely catches himself on his hands, his arms shaking with the effort of keeping his face from smashing into the stone.

As hurt as he is, Liam manages to lift his head, his gaze finding mine, checking to see that I’m safe. I don’t know what hurts more, me seeing him like this, or knowing his first reaction is to think of me.

Rage and anguish war within me. I struggle to my feet, chest heaving, my hands balled into impotent fists at my sides. I want to scream. I want to tear Rowan apart with my bare hands. I’ve never felt such blistering rage toward someone before now.

Rowan waves his hand, and the cell bars slide open with a grating shriek.

“Get up, wolf.” Rowan’s cold voice echoes off the stone.

Liam lurches, but he can’t get to his feet. He struggles to one knee, a low groan tearing from his throat. Rowan rolls his eyes, irritation flickering across his features. He reaches down and grasps Liam's bicep in a brutal grip, hauling him bodily into the cell.

An irresistible urge seizes me, a compulsion I couldn't fight even if I wanted to. I lurch forward, my fingers closing around Rowan's wrist in an iron grip.

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