Page 54 of The Wolf's Pregnant Rejected Mate

“It’s not the Demon Seed. The initial possessed wolves that were infected by the Seed were able to be exorcized. The process just killed them. No, this is something else.” Finn shook his head. “Maybe a new breed of demon. Or perhaps, like how we have the talismans, they have something, too. We’re still working on how to free them.”

“But it might still have something to do with the Demon Seed,” Tess insisted. “Maybe the most times it’s used, it gets stronger. Or…” she remembered the day she’d accidentally killed the demon. “Where do they go when the hosts are killed? They’re aura demons. Maybe their auras are drawn to the seed. And the more demons we kill or exorcize, the stronger the Seed is.”

Finn’s brow furrowed. “What brought you to that conclusion?”

“The day the demons attacked Ryder and me as we trained, when I dragged the wolf over the salt line, I saw a red light ripped out of the body. The Seed absorbed it,” Tess explained. “I thought it was normal. It didn’t even occur to me that you might not know about it.”

“That is… good to know,” Finn said slowly. “I will discuss it with Hayden.”

They were quiet as they made their way back to town, where Hayden thanked the two women. They went to the Alpha’s house, where Mica and Echo waited for them. Mica was trying to settle Denzel, who was as stiff as a board in her arms, fussing and fighting against her. On seeing Tess and Elin, Mica visibly relaxed. And, just like that, Denzel did as well.

“I’m so glad you two are okay,” Mica said, sagging into a chair.

Elin nodded, shaking as she saw on the couch. “I didn’t think I could do it, but I did. I finally feel like I’m actually useful. And I didn’t even use the gun!”

“Does that mean you’re getting rid of it?” Echo asked. There was a note of clear displeasure in her tone.

Elin glanced at the pouch on her hip. She still hadn’t put on her dress, though she held onto it limply. Tess admired her ability to be naked and not feel self-conscious. But then, Elin was shaped like an extra curvy statue of Aphrodite. If Tess had a figure like that…

Actually, it probably wouldn’t have made any difference. Even when Tess had been considered one of the most beautiful women in the pack, she’d been riddled with insecurities. She had never liked to be naked in front of anyone.

The door burst open, and a man stumbled in. Tess leaped to her feet, her breath catching in her throat. It was the same man that had been in the forest! She jumped in front of Mica, rolling to a defensive crouch as the man stumbled in.

Elin pulled the gun and pointed it at him.

The man looked up at them and fell to his knees. Massive welts rose along his bare skin in the pattern where the netting had touched him. Blood bubbled out of his deformed mouth.

He started laughing at them. Finn and Hayden were there in an instant, grabbing the man. He didn’t fight them, only continued to laugh.

“Your fates are sealed,” he crowed. “It doesn’t matter how many of us you think you trap. Our leader will crush you all. Bow down if you want to live! But not you,” he added, shouting as Hayden dragged him away. He pointed at Mica. “You are doomed. You and that brat of yours!”

He was still laughing as Hayden punched him in the face. They dragged him outside and carted him toward the prison, but the laughter kept ringing through the air. Tess slowly straightened from her crouch and turned to Mica. Her face was pale as she held Denzel close.

“He’s bluffing,” Echo said.

Tess nodded, but her hands were shaking. Doomed. Oh, how she wished that Ryder was here. But she could only pray to the Moon Goddess that he was alive and would come home soon.

Chapter 30 - Ryder

There was no sign of night or day in the cave. Ryder occasionally felt a breath of air waft in, bringing with it brief relief from the heavy stench of rot. How deep he was within the earth was impossible to know. He wished he could break out of this cage and destroy the beast-demon eggs. How many more of these secret hideouts did they have scattered through the mountain?

He judged he’d been here for at least twelve hours before Jace came back. He sauntered in, using his human form. The other demons with him were in wolf form. At first, Ryder thought there were more mutations. They were all hairless with cracked, reddish-brown skin. As one passed the cage, though, he saw that they had shaved off their fur and coated themselves with a thick layer of mud.

“Clever,” he said, lifting his eyes to Jace. “I take it that’s why we’ve had such a hard time picking up your scent.”

Jace smiled. “We leave such a heavy trail normally, we have to do something to counteract it.”

Ryder looped his arms through the cage. “I’m ready to make a deal with you about this… marker in the blood thing,” he said, keeping his voice hard and serious. “Before we get to the details, though, I have to point out that you’re also after my sister and mother.”

“Don’t forget your nephew,” Jace said, standing just outside the cage door. “But also remember that Tess is the one carrying your baby. So you can pick one person, Ryder. I won’t go through the effort of saving more than one life.”

Ryder emptied his face of all emotion. He had years’ worth of experience of keeping his feelings close to the vest. “I don’t care about Tess. She rejected me. I have no responsibility to her. And I don’t see how you could possibly keep her baby from dying. I don’t care about it, anyway. I have no proof it’s mine.”

Jace’s eyebrows furrowed. “Your sister or mother, then?”

“My mother was selfish enough not to have a mate and subject me to years of torment, and if she ever learned I picked her over my sister, she’d never forgive me. As for Mica, she chose Hayden. I’m not going to live my life trying to protect someone who hates me,” Ryder said, keeping his voice flat.

“So you don’t want to save any of them? That’s… surprising,” Jace said, suspicion entering his expression.

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