Page 47 of Bound By My Alpha Mate

The dragon grunted in agony as David leaped in a pitiful attempt to stop me. The damage was already done; I dove out of the way, and David crashed into Lothair. This was my chance—I had to get out of here!

As David picked himself up off the ground, I bolted into the tunnel, running as fast as my feet could take me. Hearing David scraping through the mine after me, I summoned the final vestige of my strength to flee. But all I could think about was how Lothair had sacrificed himself to give me a chance to escape. I never would have expected that, but apparently, these Alphas were so petty that they would give up their own lives just to screw each other over.

“Get…back…here!” David snarled behind me. He was so close, I could feel his hot breath on me and hear the rasping of his malformed lungs squeezing air out of his throat.

Moonlight illuminated the entrance of the mine. I was on the brink of freedom. Suddenly, a body appeared at the entrance, and my fated bond magnetized me to it. “Colt!” He’d followed us all the way here—he’d made it!

“Kiara!”

An explosive cacophony rocked the mine, knocking me off my feet. David crashed into me, pinning me beneath his massive hands. All at once, a blinding fire ripped through the tunnel, and the world shook.

I had no idea what had happened. All I knew was that everything was about to come crashing down.

Chapter 30

Colt

Lothair had been right. My father had gone back to the silver mine, intending to make an example of him. But it wasn’t going to prove anything; it would only bring both of them to their deaths. And if I didn’t get there fast enough, Kiara would be joining them.

While Mythguard retreated to their vehicles, Gavin, Everett, Billie, Aislin, and I shifted into our wolves and followed my father’s trail. We told Mythguard to send half their operatives into town and the other half to the mine, based on educated guesses at to where David would go. As it turned out, my father led us right back to the pit nestled in the mountains. We ran as quickly as possible after him, but he had some distance on us due to our stalling to transform; still, we were only a few minutes behind. His scent vanished as we approached the mine, while the deformed footprints of his massive feet in the dust promised he was there.

I transformed back, reclaiming my human form and dressing myself in the clothes I had carried in my teeth. Aislin, Everett, and Gavin remained as wolves, while Billie turned human with me. I had just barely finished my transformation when I heard something monstrous clawing its way through the mine, scattering rocks and snarling in vicious pursuit. Skidding into view of the mine’s entrance, I saw bodies moving in the darkness and recognized my fated mate running toward me. Her voice desperately called out my name. “Kiara!” I shouted back, moving toward her even as the horrifying shape of my Lycan father materialized in the dark.

Then, from behind them, came a white-hot blast. Blinding light flooded the tunnel from deep within, accompanied by a shockwave of scorching heat that swept Kiara and my father’s feet out from under them and knocked me backward. I hit the ground hard, disoriented by the explosion—for a moment forgetting that it had been planned to go off. As I staggered back to my feet, I saw my father braced on top of Kiara, his gaping jaw reaching for her face.

I thought of nothing else but saving her. I had to. Even as the cave rattled and the cracks ripped through the ceiling, as rocks and dust dislodged from above, I ran toward Kiara. Throwing myself at them, I wrapped my arms around my father’s head and yanked him sideways, trying to pull him off her as the ceiling began to collapse. Heavy boulders crashed through the mine further down the tunnel. At the same time, Billie joined my side, gouging her fingers into David’s eyes. “Get off of her!” she shouted.

“You’re not going to win this!” I snarled at my father.

He roared and thrashed until a rock landed on his hind leg, breaking it. Gavin and Aislin both gripped Kiara’s shoulders in their mouths and dragged her out from under my father. Everett took hold of Billie’s arm and yanked her aside. I tried to back away, but my father reached out and grabbed my arm, holding me in place. The mine began to crumble around us both. I clawed at his hand, desperately trying to pull myself free, but my father clutched me like I was his last chance at victory.

“Colt…” he choked, trying to push himself up off the ground.

More boulders broke free, crushing him beneath their heavy weight. He growled and hissed out feral sounds, unlike anything I’d ever heard before. His claws dug into my skin, shearing me open, refusing to let go. He wanted to bury us both alive.

The entrance of the mine shattered apart, stealing moonlight with each millisecond. “No! I won’t be trapped in here with you, Dad!” I shouted, kicking him hard in the nose. That was enough to loosen his grip so I could wrench myself free. “I’m done with you. You deserve to die—alone! You’re not going to make anyone suffer anymore!”

I caught his eye one last time. As rocks tumbled above him, pinning him to the ground, my father gazed up at me, finally helpless. In the last few moments of his life, he would know how it felt to be trapped. I stared defiantly back at him.

Perhaps I spent too long relishing the fact that he’d gotten what he’d deserved.

As I turned to escape, the roof broke apart and thundered down on me. I barely glimpsed the moonlight one last time before everything went dark and devastating pressure entombed me.

The sound of scraping stones brought me back to consciousness. Voices shouted commands at one another to “Move that rock,” “Lift that corner,” and “Grab his arm.” I winced as pain filled my body. But it wasn’t anything new, just another dull annoyance in the grand scheme of things…until I became suddenly aware of what had happened and that I was still alive. Groggily, I watched as a group of humans pulled me out of the rocks and onto flat ground as I gratefully sucked in a breath of fresh air.

I lay on my back with my eyes squeezed shut, grimacing in agony. Somebody dropped to their knees beside me, throwing her arms around me and trembling against my chest. “Colt…You came back for me…”

Our fated bond made it impossible not to react to her. My eyes opened, and all I could see was Kiara, covered in blood, haloed by the moonlight. She looked more beautiful than ever. In spite of her exhaustion, the dust, blood, and grime, her messily cropped hair, and her bruises, she was still the most perfect creature I had ever seen. I mustered a smile for her, reaching out to touch her cheek while her hands clung to my shirt. I pulled her close enough to brush my nose against hers, and then, with stunning relief, I stole her lips in a long kiss.

Kiara leaned into me, her gratitude outshining all the pain we both felt. By the time we severed the kiss to breathe, she was half laughing and half crying, sprawled on top of me. “I can’t believe we’re both still alive. You’re here. You survived…Colt…We made it!”

I laboriously sat up and cradled her in my arms, burying my nose in the crook of her neck. In my periphery, I watched the rubble that had piled up at the entrance of the mine, but nothing moved. Nothing could have survived that explosion and collapse. “I told you I was going to protect you,” I mumbled, closing my eyes again and sinking into the warmth of my fated mate’s embrace. “I’m so sorry you got hurt, but my father is dead now. He’s not going to harm you or anyone else ever again. And if you let me, I’ll protect you for the rest of my life from monsters like him. I promise, Kiara.”

Kiara sniffled and melted into my arms, nodding. “I know you will. I trust you, Colt. You saved my life. I’m so happy you’re alive.”

I could barely believe I was. For all I knew, this could have been the dream of my fleeting consciousness. It could have been the last thing I thought about before the rocks crushed me to death. But I had a feeling that this was very real. The intensity of love and joy in my core told me it was.

I didn’t remember much of the rest of that night. Kiara and I were loaded into a van and driven back to Everett’s house, where our wounds were tended. Then, we were left alone to sleep, sharing the bed in one of his guest bedrooms. I didn’t wake up again until the morning, stirring to the weight of Kiara’s arm across my chest.

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