Page 20 of Wolf Chosen

The anguish that clouds Liam's features is enough to chill me to the core.

“I don't know who he is. I know every inch of this forest, and I’ve never seen this here before. He has to be a warlock. He wouldn't have been able to lure us here if he wasn’t using some sort of dark magic to take away our will like that. Whatever he wants us for…it can’t be good.”

He didn't exactly invite us in for tea and scones. In the history of humankind, nothing good came for anyone locked in a dirty cell. My chest compresses and suddenly it’s difficult to draw in a breath. I clutch the bars, gripping them so tight my knuckles turn white. They don’t budge, don't so much as rattle despite how hard I try to shake them free.

“We have to get out of here,” I force the words out between ragged pants. “This...this can't be happening!”

Tears sting my eyes as I sink back against the unforgiving stone, chest heaving with exertion as panic tears through me. I want to wake up and find this is all a nightmare. I want to wash it all away with a strong coffee. I want to ring Mom, so she can calm me down and tell me everything will be okay.

“I’ll keep you safe, Taylor. I’m your mate. I’ll do everything I can to protect you,” Liam says.

Surely he sees nothing safe about where we are. We’re locked in a cell somewhere deep within a remote forest. Liam is a terrifying, gigantic wolf and he was helpless against Rowan.

A scream tries to claw its way free as Rowan melts from the shadows of the corridor. He gives me a generic smile that doesn’t meet his cold, dead eyes. “Good. I see the news is setting in.”

His gaze slides from me to Liam, cold dread coiling in my gut. “Now I have everything prepared, there’s no time like the present. I think that’s what they say now-a-days.”

With a casual flick of his wrist, the heavy iron door to our cell slides open. Every muscle in my body tenses in preparation for fight or flight, but Liam is already moving, inserting himself between me and the open doorway.

“Leave her alone,” he snarls, every syllable laced with an undercurrent that raises the fine hairs along my arms.

“It's funny that you think you can protect her,” he muses. “Lucky for you, it's not her turn quite yet.”

The weight of his stare bores into me, and I can't help shrinking back against the unforgiving stone. A growl rumbles from deep within Liam’s chest. Liam charges at Rowan, but Rowan raises his hand and an invisible force grips Liam.

Liam freezes on his feet, shaking with the effort to try to free himself. Veins pop on his forearms and cord his neck as he struggles. Panic surges through me and I lunge forward. I grip Liam’s arm, trying to shake him free.

“Let him go!” I demand, glaring at Rowan with every ounce of defiance I can muster. The warlock doesn't even spare me a glance, simply flicks his wrist in a minute motion.

The breath is driven from my lungs as I’m propelled against the far wall. The back of my head snaps against the rock and I crumple to the ground in a dazed heap, ears ringing and vision wavering.

A snarl rips through the chamber, and I blink away the haze just in time to see coarse gray fur erupting along Liam's spine. His features warp. His teeth elongate into fangs as his hands—no, his claws—flex. I begin to sob, tears streaming down my cheeks. Words tumble over each other, begging, sobbing, pleading.

“Oh, stop being so dramatic.” Rowan rolls his dead eyes. Another wave of his hand, and the pressure around my chest constricts, an invisible clamp tightening until each shallow pant is a battle for oxygen.

I watch in mute horror as Liam is inexorably drawn forward, step by jerking step. He fights every inch of the way, but he’s helpless against Rowan’s power. I vaguely realize I'm making choking sounds as I drown in terror and slowly suffocate.

Rowan pauses in the open doorway, a smirk twisting his forgettable features as he meets my gaze one final time.

“Don't worry, little mate. I'll be back for you soon enough. We're going to have such fun together.”

Then the door slams shut with a resounding boom, and I’m left shaking and slumped on a blood-soaked floor alone in the darkness.

Chapter Eleven

Taylor

Nothing compares to the sweet agony of drawing in a full breath the moment the invisible force releases me. My lungs burn as I greedily suck in the air, my head spinning with each gulp. The residual pressure in my chest is an echo of the vice that held me.

I crumple to my side and curl into a shaking, messy ball. My teeth chatter uncontrollably, the sound echoing off the stone walls. I clench my fingers around my knees, trying to stop shaking, but it only makes my body tremble. The minutes drag on. The cell is still and silent.

Too still.

Too silent.

And then everything drains from my chest. The warm thrum that I hadn’t realized was there vanishes and an aching hole yawns open. The breath shudders in my throat, choking me as much as Rowan’s hold did. I clutch my chest over my pounding heart, searching for the warmth. Without the warmth, there is no Liam.

All along I’d felt Liam in my chest. We were connected. I’d felt…whole, and now without him, there’re only shadowy wraiths.

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