Page 34 of Fated to the Wolf Billionaire

“What thefuckare you talking about?” Reed snarled, eyes starting to glow as his panic grew.

But she ignored him, focusing on me with a frown. “Sleep now, child.” The words were barely more than a whisper, but the command in them dragged me under nonetheless.

Reed’s terror was the last thing I registered as my consciousness flew away.

SIXTEEN

Reed

For the second time, Fiona collapsed in my arms. But this time, it was the witch’s fault, and my wolf was ready to tear her limb from limb.

“What the fuck did you do to her?” I demanded answers with a snarl, clutching Fiona’s limp blue form to my chest, even as her head lolled on her shoulders.

“I don’t know!” the witch snapped, worry evident as she stared at Fiona. “No one but Brielle should have been affected, and she’s fine now.”

Kari stabbed a finger over toward the edge of the lake, where Brielle and Kane were locked in an all-consuming kiss.

“Brielle!” I bellowed, my rage and my wolf’s barely contained.

She pulled back from Kane’s embrace, and as soon as she saw my collapsed mate in my arms, she bolted across the clearing with speed I’d never seen her use before.

Brielle skidded to a stop at my side, eyes glowing frosted mahogany with her wolf as she lay one hand on Fiona’s cheek, one hand on her dangling arm.

I wasn’t sure I even breathed as she worked her omega magic, but time seemed to drag as we stood still, and I felt Fiona’s life force ebbing, pulling further and further away from me as I stood helpless.

My wolf was raging, throwing himself with feral fury against my mental barriers. I don’t know how I held him back, only that if I shifted while she was defenseless in my arms, she’d be hurt.

And I would never hurt her. No matter how badly I wanted to shred this damned witch who’d done this to her, even accidentally.

Brielle’s gaze sharpened on Fiona, and then her hands began to glow with white light where they touched.

“What’s happening?” I was starting to shake, my terror in this moment all-consuming.

Brielle looked up at me with sympathy before focusing back on Fiona. “The curse-lifting spell lingering in the water seems to have found something inside her to latch onto. I don’t know what it was, but clearly, it’s brought her power to the surface as it attacks whatever was repressing it. I’m feeding her energy, and she’s probably stabilizing, but her own magic is blocking mine somehow. She’s not a wolf, so my omega powers don’t affect her the same way they do another wolf. Ithinkshe’s going to be fine.”

“When is she going to wake up?” I demanded, glaring at the witch again.

“Not until the spell runs its course, or I release it,” Kari said solemnly—and with an undercurrent of weariness—at Brielle’s side. “Bring her into the water. We’ve got more work to do.”

* * *

The lake watersloshed around my knees as I treaded out into the center, my insides hollowed out by terror as I clutched Fiona to my chest.

There was no way she’d want to stay within a thousand miles of my pack after this. She was an innocent bystander, sucked into a realm she had no idea existed, and now she was going to?—

I viciously cut off the thought, forcing myself to focus on putting one foot in front of the other. No matter how badly I wanted to go back in time to before she’d been hit by the witch’s magic, I couldn’t.Shecouldn’t. I just had to get her through this, and I couldn’t do that if I was spiraling.

I had to be stronger than that; stronger than the feral wolf raging inside my chest for release.

“Stand her up,” the witch said, exhaustion making her voice scratchy as she gestured for me to put Fiona on her feet.

As if she could sense my protest, Karissma added, “I’ll release the sleep spell.”

With absolute care, I shuffled Fiona until my grip was around her waist and lowered her, so her legs were in the water, close to the ground. A second later, she gasped and thrashed in my arms, calming a bit when her feet found purchase on the soft, silt-coated bottom of the lake.

A low moan fell from her lips, and I wanted so badly to snatch her back into my arms and run away from here, from the witch, the maidens—even my own pack. No one felt safe to me while she was hurting.

“Be still!” Kari snapped, placing her hands firmly on Fiona’s shoulders, locking eyes with her before waving me away with an annoyed snap of the wrist. “I’m not going to hurt you, Fiona. There’s some kind of spell on you, and I don’t have much energy left after draining my talisman’s reserves on Brielle. If you can, I need you to work with me, lend your own power to the cause. It’s there, under the surface. You have to grab hold of it andpush.”

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