Page 133 of The Wolf and the Chimera
Without their support, I tumbled backward, into a solid wall. As wolves grunted and snarled, I landed in a heap on my side.
“Quick,” Kalli instructed, “inject them with this.”
“What the hell is this stuff?” a familiar male voice asked.
Kieran.
Was I hallucinating?
“Among other things,” Kalli explained, “liquid silver.”
Something slid across the floor, and breaths mingled. I tried and failed to open my eyes. My fall had zapped me of my remaining strength.
“He hit his head pretty hard,” Kieran said.
“He’ll be fine,” Kalli promised.
Something small and sharp jabbed into my thigh, and Kieran cursed.
“Good gods, Mom,” Kieran exclaimed. “That’s one hell of a needle.”
Fast as a lightning strike, energy coursed through me. Gasping, I jolted upright.
Wide-eyed, Kieran and Kalli stared at me. Though my brother appeared healthy, Kalli sported a gnarly bruise and three scabbed gashes on her cheek. Behind them were two metal tables, both covered in intricate runes. The twowolves who had led me here—both male and muscular—were unconscious and laid in a heap beside me. Otherwise, the room was bare and unnervingly cold.
As energy coursed through me, I struggled to contain the need to shift that chafed my skin and grinded my bones.
“What in the gods’ name is going on?” I asked and gritted my teeth. My gaze caught on Kalli’s brutal wound, and my confusion only worsened.
How had the sorceress made my mate do such a thing?
“It wasn’t Elle,” Kalli said quietly.
Rage brimmed in Kieran’s green eyes.
“Then who…” I balked.
Impossible...but who else?
My voice was hoarse. "How long?"
Kalli swallowed, and her gaze drifted to the floor.
"How long has Lyall been hurting you?" I demanded.
All the comments I had made about my mother's leash echoes in my mind.
I fought the urge to puke.
"I should've known," Kieran whispered. Anguish twisted his face. "How did I not know?"
Kalli rubbed his back.
"Is that why you never visited?" I asked.
Kalli chuckled bitterly.
"My sweet boy." She gestured toward her ruined face. "This wouldn't have kept me from you."
