Page 27 of Grace of a Wolf 1
The darkness swallows me whole. Without the wolf's ethereal glow, I can barely see where I'm going. My hands stretch out in front of me, batting away branches before they can take out my eyes.
Thorns tear at my clothes. I trip on far too many things, and at least one sends a shooting pain through my ankle, leaving me with a limp.
But I keep going. I can't slow down.
The Lycan King (maybe). I just ran from the Lycan King (maybe). Or he's a serial killer. Or something.
Oh God, oh God, oh God.
A heavy weight explodes against my back, and my consciousness decides then and there to give up.
Chapter twelve
Caine: She's Not Mine
CAINE
My wolf's glower burns into my back as I finish tying his little human obsession's hands together.
"Will you stop that? I'm not going to hurt her." Not yet, anyway. Or maybe ever.
"She was running away."
"Yes, and isn't that interesting?" Grunting, I push myself off the ground, stretching my back. My entire body's sore fromsparring, and I just had to chase my wolf's little rabbit through the woods for no reason at all.
I wasn't even trying to scare her. She just ran for no reason.
Fenris scoffs."You know what effect you have on others. You should have treated her more gently. She's going to hurt when she wakes up."
One little tackle to the ground and she even lost consciousness. She's pathetically weak, and the faint prick of guilt against my conscience is unwelcome. "Not my problem, Fenris. We agreed you would stay away from her until I finished my investigation."
To his credit, Fenris doesn't argue, instead padding over to rub his head all over the human girl.
Her obnoxious blueberry muffin scent wafts through the air, and I grimace. It's mixed with the scent of other wolves; one stands out stronger than the rest. My skin crawls and tightens, and I tell myself it's because human scents should never mix with wolves. "We'll have to find a place to put her until tomorrow."
A distinct sense of disapproval emanates from my bond with Fenris, but I ignore it.
"Just keep her with us. Is that so hard?"
"Stop it. You know the restrictions. I'm only here to investigate why they hid her existence and brought a human into a Mate Hunt. This is Brax's second time flaunting law."
Fenris scoffs."You would be hard-pressed to find a pack who hasn't broken this one. Humans are historically desirable."
"Humans are weak, and bringing them into any pack is considered kidnapping under international laws—"
"Only if they don't like it."
My eyes narrow as I stare down my wolf. "This investigation will proceedlawfully. Get your obsession under control, Fenris. Humans only bring trouble to a pack. And stop marking her."My voice comes out rougher than intended as Fenris continues rubbing his massive head over the girl's unconscious form. "You're acting like a pup with a new toy."
"Her scent is tainted with other wolves."
"And that's none of our concern." The words are like rotten blood in my mouth as I get another whiff of the foreign wolf scents clinging to her skin. The one is particularly strong, and I want to scrub her skin raw until it's gone. My jaw clenches. "Back off."
"Make me."
The girl's sweet scent floods my nostrils—warm blueberries and fresh-baked muffins. Nauseatingly sweet. Artificial. Wrong. My body responds anyway, and I blame Fenris's obsession seeping through our bond.
I nudge her hip with my boot. No response; she's still out cold.
