Page 31 of Savage Blood
“What did I tell you, Torin?” Barric loomed over the younger shifter, forcing him to his knees with an alpha growl that had the hair on my body lifting. “Tate is off-limits.”
Torin blinked the shadows from his caramel eyes and looked around, his brow furrowing. “I-I don’t remember getting here.”
Barric raised his hand as claws extended from his fingers. “Perhaps I should tear off one of your hands. Maybe then you’ll take my commands seriously.”
The other shifter shook his head, tossing tawny curls. “I was bringing her up here like you asked. And then I…” He trailed off and peered at me, pleading for help.
My teeth ground, and I already hated myself for what I was about to do. “It’s not entirely his fault.”
Speaking even just those few words had pain lancing through my throat. I should have let Barric punish Torin, but the little angel on my shoulder was currently louder than the devil on my other side.
“Somethingtook him over.” I coughed and pushed off thewall, my attention falling to the gold chain around Barric’s neck, the amulet tucked into his sage button-down shirt.
The former head alpha’s clawed hand moved away from Torin and hovered over his own chest. He had to know the demon amulet was doing more than giving extra power to The Collective Nosterium.
“On your feet, Torin,” he demanded, a hint of alpha power weaving through his rough voice.
Torin scrambled up, his head bowed and shoulders drawn in. Gone was the psycho amulet-influenced guyandthe arrogant shifter I’d met in Silver Ridge. Torin hadn’t even looked this submissive—almost pathetic—when Barric reprimanded him and his friends for attacking me.
But Barric wasn’t just his head alpha anymore. With the Infernal Sol, he was nearly unstoppable.
“If I catch you disobeying my orders again”—Barric leaned toward him as shadows crossed his amber eyes—“I’ll make an example out of you. Am I clear?”
All the blood drained from Torn’s cheeks, and he nodded. “Yes, Alpha.”
Torin kept his head bowed as he hurried down the hall and vanished around the corner, leaving me alone with my father.
“Well, Tate, as usual, I find you in the middle of a commotion.”
My jaw dropped. “How is this my fault? I didn’t ask him to attack me, and I didn’t try to escape. I was more than happy to talk to you.”
He chuckled and dragged his hand through his russet hair. “Of course you weren’t trying to escape. You’d never leave Saint’s mother behind.”
Barric had taken Enid for that very reason. He knew he could control me through her.
“Let’s go.” Barric motioned with his hand for me to follow, obviously not the least bit worried I’d fight or try to run.
Once we reached his private quarters, the same place I saw in my vision, Barric disappeared through a large, intricately carved door. Frost crept down my arms at the sight of the slick red walls. The fireplace was lit, casting ominous shadows across the black leather furniture and burnished coffee table.
A painting of The Collective Hunt’s symbol—created with delicate flicks of a brush dipped in burgundy—now hung above the mantel.
Fane would have done a better job.
When I rubbed my arms to melt the chill, I winced at the sting from the gashes Torin had given me. Warm liquid oozed over my fingers.
The sound of rushing water turned on, and Barric reappeared in his living room. “Take a shower.”
My muscles locked up as panic seeped into my bloodstream. “Why?”
Naked and vulnerable was the last thing I wanted to be.
His top lip curled into a sneer. “I know what set Torin off, and I can’t have you walking around a bunch of male shifters, reeking of sex.”
Oh my god.
Blood rushed into my face, and if I’d eaten more than a few bites of food recently, I would have puked.
Barric snorted and absentmindedly rubbed the amulet beneath his shirt. “I know about your ability to visit Fane. I would have thought you’d use that time with him to devise an escape plan, but maybe you realize any plan is futile.”
