Page 18 of The Wolf and the Chimera
Leave,I mouthed to Ryder.
The vampire wouldn’t kill me. Ryder could come back with reinforcements later. Regardless of their shaky relationship, I wouldn’t let him sacrifice his mother to save me.
I only hoped I wasn’t too late.
Go,I mouthed, but Ryder snarled at me and shook his head.
Why did I ever think he would listen to me?
Behind him, a female vampire sprang from the shadows onto the Sovereign’s back. The mighty wolf twisted and shook the vampire in a deadly grip, but another vampire leaped upon him. Though the bloodsuckers were no match for him, they kept him thoroughly distracted. He showed no awareness of his mate’s absence.
“I’ll go with you willingly,” I said softly. Luckily, vampires and wolves both possessed advanced hearing. “Just call off your followers, and I’ll go, all right?”
Ryder shook with rage, and the vampire cackled in delight.
“Sick of the dog smell, eh?” he joked.
As the vampire leaned closer, his grip on my throat tightened. The rot on his breath and the bone-chilling cold of his nearness made me quiver like a leaf in his arms. I loathed the weakness of my knees and the pounding of my heart, but I was powerless to control my own fear.
“Just one taste for the road then,” he whispered.
His fangs grazed my throat, and terror paralyzed me. I braced myself for the pain of his bite, but it never came. Something crashed into us, and the vampire fell to the ground on top of me. I thought his weight would crush me, but he was gone in an instant. Despite the pain of the impact, I forced myself to my feet and tried to clear my swirling vision.
A small, brown wolf chased the vampire deeper into the forest.
Kalli,I realized.She must’ve been the one to knock us to the ground.
The other vampires noticed their leader’s absence and jetted into the night, except Ryder. He remained crouched in front of me in a protective stance. With the danger out of sight, I succumbed to my dizziness and sat on the ground. Throbbingwith pain, I brought my knees to my chest and tried to fight off the remaining shivers from the vampire’s icy embrace.
Bones crunched, but I didn’t open my eyes. I recognized the familiar crunch and pop of a wolf shifting. A second later, warm hands caressed my face.
“Elle,” Ryder demanded. His gruff voice contradicted his gentle touch. “Ellie, I need you to tell me where you’re hurt.”
I opened my eyes and stared into his amber ones. They glowed in the moonlight. Ryder crouched before me wearing the jeans he’d strapped to himself to change into. I checked every inch of his exposed skin, but the vampires hadn’t even scratched him. From what I could see, he was completely unscathed.
I told myself the relief that bloomed in my chest was nothing more than the result of the magic that bound our souls.
“Ellie,” Ryder whispered. His thumb brushed against my cheek, and I leaned into his touch.
“I’m okay,” I promised. “I got a little dizzy from the crash, but it’s already fading, and nothing is broken.”
It was true. My head ached from getting bulldozed by a wolf and vampire, and my hip was on fire from my collision with the tree, but I could breathe normally and move all my limbs. Ryder studied me and nodded, but anger quickly replaced his concern.
“Obviously not,” Ryder growled and stood. “There is somethingseriouslywrong with you. Why do you keep sacrificing yourself to monsters? First, you gave yourself over to the High Witch, and now this?”
Anger and embarrassment cut through my pain. I had so foolishly offered myself to the vampire to save Kalli. I had never considered that no one seemed worried about her because she was sneaking behind the Leader of the vampires to save me.
Never would Ieveradmit any of that to Ryder Blake.
“Not all of us can wolf out and eat our enemies,” Igrumbled. “Some of us have to make sacrifices to survive.”
“First,” Ryder spat and paced in front of me, “I wouldnevereat a vampire. Second, that’s bullshit.”
My anger spun out of my control.
“What’s bullshit?” I yelled. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but every time I use my powers, I ampossessedby a crazy sorceress!That leaves me pretty freaking defenseless.”
“If you had an ounce of training,” Ryder argued, “you could’ve freed yourself from that hold without any magic at all. You’ve seen Freya fight. She does just fine with or without her power, and you’re half a foot taller than her.”
