Page 63 of Savage Fate

His roar of pain made me smile.

I yanked my talons through his flesh to kill him, the force of it sending me backward.

And I tumbled off the cliff, soaring right toward the river below.

Chapter

Nineteen

As I plungedinto the frigid water, sharp pins and needles stung my body, and the air catapulted from my lungs. The force of the hit rattled my bones.

Since the fall didn’t kill me, the river was determined to give it the old college try by tossing me around and smashing me against rocks. Pain sliced across my arm.

Bubbles burst from my mouth as panic erupted through my bloodstream. I couldn’t tell which way was up or down. If I didn’t reach the surface soon, I’d drown.

Don’t let this be the end.

Not long ago, I would have relied on the Infernal Sol to help me in a mortal jam, but I could only rely on myself to drag me from this watery grave.

I’d survived nineteen years of hell before that damn amulet burrowed inside me. I didn’t need it to save me now.

A sinister laugh sounded in the depths of my mind, calling bullshit. It only pissed me off, and I kicked harder, fighting to reach the surface.

Finally, my head burst out of the cold water, and icy air filled my lungs. The sunlight blinded me until my eyes adjusted to the frosted banks, rushing water, and snow-capped trees. Myhead tilted back as I searched the cliff’s edge for Hailey but saw nothing.

She would be fine, though. I’d killed those two Collective members, so she was safe—as long as more weren’t following close behind.

Once the effects of the silver wore off, she could shift and alert someone from Mohan Wilds. They would come for her. And all I had to do was get my ass out of this freezing water and reach out to Fane.

Getting out of the river was easier said than done. The current dragged me for at least a mile before I could use my talons to latch on to a collection of rocks and slowly claw my way to the edge.

My numb hands trembled, and I could barely feel my limbs. I hadn’t been this cold since Fane bit me. Shifters ran hot, but they could still freeze to death in the icy cold like any warm-blooded creature.

I sure as hell hoped I didn’t lose an arm or leg from frostbite. Or my nose.

Water dripped from my long hair, and rivulets ran down my soaked clothes to pierce the thin layer of snow covering the ground. Of course I had to end up plunging into a river when unseasonably cold temperatures plagued the south.

“Fane!”

As I trudged through the forest, trying to work my way back toward a road, I attempted to contact Fane a dozen times without a response. Maybe the cold had zapped my concentration. Or maybe he’d connected to me and I couldn’t see him.

A frigid wind blew, and I groaned, my breath fogging in front of me. I’d pass out and become a popsicle if I didn’t get out of these wet clothes soon. Abandoning the sopping material andshifting would help warm me—except I couldn’t focus enough to grab hold of my wolf.

“Fane!”

I continued my tortuous trudge through the wilderness. Was I still in Georgia?

Something in my gut pulled me toward the left, so I followed it, hoping my inner wolf was pushing me in the right direction. After a few minutes—hell, it could have been hours—a musky scent drifted on the wind, and a blond-and-tan wolf emerged from the tall pines.

Once the shifter’s large head swung in my direction, he trotted toward me.

“Is there a house around here? There was a car accident, and I fell in the river.” I omitted the part about being abducted by The Collective Hunt so he didn’t freak out. “My friend is out there, alone and injured.”

A streak of panic blazed through my chest. How could I be so stupid? He could be part of The Collective, and I’d just sealed mine and Hailey’s fate.

I took a shaky step back as he closed the gap between us.

Shit.

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