Page 79 of The Wolf and the Chimera
What stopped me from facing him was that he was right.
Though my powers were free here, I had never been more out of control.
When my skin pruned and the water became lukewarm,I clambered over the white lip of the tub and wrapped myself in a plush towel from under the sink. Sitting atop the glittering, black quartz countertop was a neatly folded stack of linen that I hadn’t remembered spotting before I had gotten in the shower. I picked up the fabric and realized there were clasps on it.
“A chiton,” I mused.
Ryder must’ve brought it for me, so quietly I hadn’t heard him enter the bathroom. His thoughtfulness tightened my chest. He had known I wouldn’t want to put my sandy, blood-stained clothes back on and had brought me something clean to sleep in, even after how I had fled from him.
Why give him to me?I asked the universe.
As I struggled to wrap myself in the ancient Greek garment, it was a question that plagued my thoughts. Ryder was fearless and powerful and under that rough-edged exterior, kind.
Why give him someone so lost and scared and vulnerable that she didn’t even understand her own power or inner beast?
From what I had come to understand, mate bonds could not be revoked or changed. Just as I was bound to him, he was bound to me.
The steam cleared, and I glimpsed my reflection in the broad mirror. Dark circles hung under my round eyes, and the chiton drooped over my soft, feminine form.
I couldn’t glimpse the woman I had been in the coliseum—the one Ryder had seen as an equal, instead of a damsel, but I wanted to find her. Ineededto find her, not only for him but for myself.
You will,I vowed to my reflection.You will find her, and you will put an end to fate’s twisted games.
???
I ran my fingers across the waist-high, gently swaying grasses and basked in the sun’s warmth. The blue sky and golden plains stretched for miles and miles, interrupted only by the dark-haired witch before me.
Much to Ryder’s annoyance, Circe had appeared in our room before sunrise and instructed me to get dressed. For a moment, my skin had itched with the need to shift, but as soon as I realized we weren’t in danger, the need had evaporated.
It was odd to suddenly share my mind with a beast.
Grateful for the chance to escape Ryder after last night’s incident and the lingering lust from sleeping by his side, I had dressed quickly, and Circe had brought us here. My stomach still churned from the trip.
“Do you know why I’ve brought you here?” Circe asked.
I studied the red dirt mounds, endless skyline, and Baobab trees. My beast prowled under my skin and raised the hair on my neck. Though irritated to be separated from her mate, the creature was intrigued by the new scenery.
“These plains,” I said, “they’re the perfect climate for a lion.”
Circe nodded. “Exactly. Tell me what you smell.”
I took a deep inhale. “Earth? Lots of dirt and grasses—”
“No,” Circe clipped. “Use yourothersense of smell.”
I swallowed. “I don’t really know how to shift.”
“You can access your keener senses without shifting,” Circe assured me. “Haven’t you seen your mate do so?”
I nodded and closed my eyes to concentrate, but my chimera disappeared. Searching for a muscle I had never located, I reached for her, but nothing happened. My skin didn’t prickle, my power didn’t heat my veins, and my senses didn’t sharpen. Time stretched, and I grew uneasy.
“It’s not working,” I said and gritted my teeth.
“Just think about what you want,” Circe advised, “and take a deep breath.”
C’mon,I told my inner beast,all I need you to do is smell.
As power warmed my veins, hope lightened my heart. Smiling softly to myself, I took another deep breath and—
