Page 49 of The Alpha's Rejected Mate

I let out a breathy sigh. I knew I should go inside, too. But I stood on the veranda, taking a moment to still my mind after everything that had happened tonight.

Gavin had apologized to me, laying himself bare. Our bond, which had felt so precarious earlier in the day, hadn’t just beenmended but strengthened. A thrill shot through me as I realized how much closer I felt to him. Tonight had brought about a stronger and deeper understanding between us.

He’d admitted that he’d lost control with Colt and that his wolf had overpowered his judgment. I remembered how I’d had no choice whatsoever when my wolf had shifted and run out the night I’d scented Muriel in Dalesbloom. I’d been able to empathize with Gavin over such a thing.

Tonight, he’d seemed a million miles away from the proud Alpha I’d thought him a few weeks ago. And the fact that he’d admitted that he’d beenjealousof the closeness between Colt and me had been another astonishing admission. He’d even agreed that should Colt wander into Grandbay again, he wouldn’t hurt him again. He was going to give the rest of the pack the same instructions about Colt, too.

As I stood on the veranda, still not yet dressing, the thought of Colt still had me feeling uneasy. Gavin had said that he’d scratched his shoulder up. And when I’d asked whether he thought he was all right, he’d assured me that he would’ve gotten back to Dalesbloom.

But … what if he hasn’t?

My stomach twisted as I imagined my friend bleeding out and alone in the woods. I was struck with the awareness that I wouldn’t have another opportunity like the one I had right now. Ordinarily, either Gretel or Oslo were at home and were checking in on me. Aislin, too, was always aware of my whereabouts. But, if I were to go off now, she wouldn’t miss me because she’d still think I was out with Gavin.

I realized if I were going to go check on Colt, it had to be now. Determination bloomed through me. I’d track toward the Grandbay/Dalesbloom border, looking for his scent. Gavin had said that he’d seen him at Pine Creek. It would only take me a few hours to get there and back. Colt had only passed through Pine Creek last night. His trail would still be fresh. And if he’d been bleeding, it should be easy enough to find. Once I’d found his scent, I’d be able to trace it easily enough and ensure that he hadn’t collapsed in our woods somewhere. The likelihood was that he’d have made it out of Grandbay fine, and I’d return here before anyone missed me.

With the thought of being able to put my worry to rest, instead of getting my clothes back on, I shifted back into my wolf form. My sandy wolf was thrilled to be let out into the forest again, but I reined in her focus easily by centering my solemn thoughts on Colt again. The idea that he might need us drove my wolf stealthily on up the slope toward Pine Creek.

We were careful to sniff the air for any sign of Gretel or Oslo, too. They were the sentries on the border of Grandbay tonight. I didn’t want to be caught sniffing around the edge of our woods tonight and have to explain myself to them. Thankfully, I knew their scents well and knew my wolf would be quick to pick them up should they come close.

With relief, as I reached the area of Pine Creek, my lupine nose found a trace of Colt’s scent, the tang of iron sharp on the forest floor. My gait lengthened with thoughts of him swarming me.

The farther I traced the scent, the thicker the smell became, telling me he’d been losing more and more blood as he traveled back this way. My heart roared in my ears as I continued through the dark forest, tracking the odor of gore in the dirt. I feared thatmy eyes would find a black wolf inert in the undergrowth at any moment.

I’d reached the section of Pine Creek where the dragon fire was still evident in the soil and in the thinness of the tree line. Despite the prickle of unease that this place brought, I continued. Unable to ignore the bloody trail, I forced my tense limbs, teeming with agitation, to walk on. My breath grew shallower as despite needing the cool air in my lungs, something urged me to be quieter.

I tried to reassure myself—when I got to the border of Dalesbloom, I’d turn around. I had to know that Colt had made it into Dalesbloom, where he’d be found and his injuries treated.

A screech from high above me had me freezing. I shrank into the nearest pine tree, telling myself that I was hidden, that the beast above didn’t see me. But my eyes shot upward and my nose lifted into the air as the scent of sulfur and ozone grew stronger.

The silhouette of a dragon circling high above was discernible to my wolfish eyes. My heart pounded, ordering me to get out of here. I careered around, telling my wolf to run as fast as she could. We needed to flee. But more wingbeats whooshed over the canopy above. I sprinted, my four limbs pounding the earth like they never had before.

But, ahead of me, one of my predators emerged. Its colossal form slid down a cluster of trees, cracking their spines.

Spraying up a cloud of dirt and pine needles, I skidded to a stop. Through the gloom, my wolfish eyes picked out the dragon’s glittering obsidian scales, and my heartbeat skyrocketed. Fright fired through me as I recognized the beast as Lothair, the Alpha of the Inkscales himself.

Shit. I’m in trouble.

I hurtled leftward, everything in me screaming to get away from the dragon.

But a green-scaled dragon descended, caring nothing for the devastation it rent on the trees as it broke them, flattening the area of the forest as it blocked my way. The cracking of the trees resounded through me as the dragon raised its sinuous neck up above me. Panic thrummed through me, and I couldn’t help thinking how easily one hit from this beast could shatter my bones like the trees.

I veered right instead, knowing I had to escape in whatever direction I could. This way would carry me into Dalesbloom territory, but I told myself it didn’t matter. I could double back when I’d lost these dragons. But then the black, barbed tail thundered down in front of me as the obsidian-scaled beast blocked my path again. Shock and fear skittered through me as his jet-black neck arced over me. He stared down at me, his black-slitted pupils gleaming within his orange eyes.

Desperation pummeled me. In terror, I turned on my paws and tried to streak away, but then the huge female with lilac and pink scales hit the ground ahead of me. Her vast size took out even more trees than the two males had, and the sharp cracking sounds that shattered the night had my blood curdling.

My wolf stared down the vast beast, but as a growl rose in my throat, I knew my fighting was futile. The memory of trying to take ontwoof these beasts hadn’t ended well for me.

Dread beat through me as the sound of Lothair’s voice rose behind me, “I urge you to shift, Grandbay wolf, or we will be forced to use more violent methods to subdue you.”

With horror, I knew I had to obey. Altering to my human one, I stood up, turning to meet his coal-black stare.

He smirked at me. “What are you doing out here, so far from Grandbay?”

I gritted my jaw, knowing there was nothing I could say that would get me out of this.

He shrugged his massive shoulders. “No matter. I’m sure David Hexen will know what to do with you.”

“Sibyelle,” Lothair said. The lilac-pink-scaled dragon shifted, too. I turned to see the vast dragon rearrange herself into a tall, statuesque woman, almost six feet in height. She had long brown hair to her waist. Her dragon’s size made sense now, too, as I took in the fact that she was heavily pregnant. Her distended stomach showed she was very far along. She couldn’t be more than a month or two away from giving birth, I reckoned. “Darling, would you lead our guest on to David?”

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