Page 19 of Vow Of A Fox

My fox dug in deep, struggling to resist the overwhelming pressure of his grip on us, a snarl of defiance ripping from somewhere deep inside her. She bared her teeth while attempting to force him out of our head, but it wasn’t enough.

He was too strong.

Through the haze of pain twisting through our brain, my fox and I caught a glimpse of Ben stepping forward. I wanted to scream at him to stay back, to not get involved, but pain pumped through my fox in a near-crippling way while she fought against Xander’s hold. Ben was too close, and there was nothing we could do about it. He’d underestimated the situation.

Why wouldn’t he?

He had no idea who he was dealing with, or how much worse this was about to get.

Panic twisted through my fox and me. It fueled her strength to fight against Xander’s grip. She’d made a vow, a vow that Ben wouldn’t be harmed. It was the vow of a fox, which was something stronger than I’d ever known possible.

He meant something to her—something in a big way.

Wait.

Was he?

Before I could think the thought through, Ben reached out in one swift motion and plucked Xander’s raven up from the ground. He flapped his wings wildly and cawed out in protest, but before Xander’s raven could attempt to shift back into his human form, Ben tucked his head beneath one of his wings and gave him a firm shake.

The pain raging through my fox’s skull vanished.

Xander’s grip on us was gone, and the suffocating weight of his presence in our mind had lifted. My fox was unsettled by how easily the connection had been severed, but grateful nonetheless, and I felt the same.

Ben cradled Xander’s now-limp raven in his arms, staring at him with a mix of confusion and triumph.

“What the hell is with this bird?” he muttered, shaking his head before setting Xander’s raven on the ground. “And what happened a minute ago? You looked like he was causing you physical pain somehow.”

His eyes lifted to lock with my fox’s, and I could see how silly he felt talking to her. My fox didn’t seem to notice. Her attention slid away from him to focus on Xander’s raven. She inched forward cautiously, sniffing his unmoving form. He was alive, she was positive of that, but he was knocked out cold. Whatever strange dance Ben had done with him had made him fall asleep.

Now was our chance to snag a feather for Maribel.

Inching closer, my fox plucked a glossy black feather from a wing. Once she had it, she turned to Ben and nudged his leg urgently.

“Right. Time to go,” he said, thankfully understanding.

My fox stayed alert, her ears swiveling at every sound, while Ben followed close behind as we made our way back to the road. I realized then that Ben’s truck was parked only a short distance from my car. Again, I couldn’t believe I’d missed him following me. My fox stirred, guilt powering through her, but there was no time to dwell on it. Xander’s raven could wake any minute.

We had to get out of here.

My fox stepped to the side, allowing me to shift back into my human form quickly. The cool air kissed my bare skin as she receded, taking her warm fur with her. Before I could feel self-conscious about my sudden lack of clothing in front of Ben, he shrugged off his jacket and held it out to me with his head turned away like a gentleman.

“Here,” he said.

“Thanks.” I pulled it on, clutching it tightly around me to fight off the chill in the air.

It was warm with his body heat, and his scent clung to the fabric invading my senses. I stared at him for a moment, wondering what to say. When words wouldn’t form, I bent to grab the feather from the ground and put it in Ben’s coat pocket.

Relief washed over me.

I’d finally gotten what we needed. Now Maribel could do her ritual and send Lucius’s spirit back to hell where it belonged.

Ben cleared his throat. I felt as though it was to remind me of his presence and the explanation he desired.

“Just a second.” I held up a finger and then hurried into the woods for my clothes.

My heart thundered as I dressed.

What should I say to him? How could I even begin to explain something like this to a human?

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