Page 64 of Forged By Heart and Claws
I cradled my wrist against my chest as if I could muffle the magic unraveling beneath my skin. The sensation wasn’t just painful. It felt like something was being woken inside me, but I didn’t know what.
The guardian stopped inches away, lowering its head until its muzzle hovered at my chest level. Its breath hit my skin like a heavy winter wind tinged with the metallic scent of ozone and ash.
My instincts screamed to run, but my muscles locked. I lifted one trembling hand.
Briar,Vad connected, and even mentally, his voice was strained.
I’ll let you know if something goes wrong.My voice was steadier than I felt.
The wolf’s wet nose brushed my forehead. The touch was feather-soft, almost reverent, and the heat of its breath sliced through the surrounding cold like a flame in winter.
Something ancient stirred deep inside me…and tightened.
A surge of power slammed into me—first glacial, then molten. My knees nearly buckled, and my vision blurred. The butterfly mark on my wrist ignited, heat searing down to the bone. A scream lodged in my throat but refused to break free.
My wolf whimpered, claws scraping just beneath my skin.
The guardian’s gaze held mine, unflinching. Light flickered in its eyes.
I can’t get to you. Come back here.Vad’s fear crashed into me thunderously. His anger flared in warning, rising like a storm against the walls. He was ready to burn down the world.
My wolf knows it.I forced the thought through the bond, though every cell in my body trembled. Energy pulsed inside me, unfamiliar, yet familiar all at once. The butterfly sigil burrowed deeper with each beat of my heart.
The air thickened with unbearable electricity. My hair lifted at the roots, and the shadow wolf exhaled. Its power rolled through the chamber and made the stone vibrate.
Then the pain struck. Not just in my wrist, but ripping through my chest, clawing up my throat, and burning behind my eyes. The guardian's power wrapped around me like a tether, sinking in deep.
We were locked together now.
Suddenly, the wolf stepped back, like a cord had been cut. The motion broke my trance and nearly sent me stumbling. Around the chamber, the other wolves stirred, muscles twitching, eyes tracking.
Then the guardian tilted its head back and howled, a sound so powerful it shook the air. The others joined, one by one, until the cavern trembled and the stone walls thrummed.
I couldn’t move or blink. My muscles had fused to the stone, bound by some force beyond comprehension. The howling didn’t sound like an ordinary sound anymore. It became pressure, thick and oppressive, seeping beneath my skin and pushing into my lungs and blood and marrow.
Briar!Vad’s desperate voice lashed through the bond. He still couldn’t move. Whatever had locked me in place had shackled him, too.
I’m trying—I tried to push to him, but my mind refused to form words. I was drowning in the wolf’s gaze. The guardian’s crimson eyes pulled me down and deeper still.
My wolf thrashed, snarling inside me. She fought against whatever was happening, fear tearing through her as her instincts howled to run. Adrenaline surged through my system with nowhere to go. I couldn’t lift a hand. Couldn’t scream.
A broken whimper scraped from my throat.
I’m here. I’m with you.Vad’s voice pounded against the barrier between us, fury and helplessness vibrating through the bond. “Let go of her, you fecking beast!” he shouted, raw and ragged.
The pressure in my chest built until every breath felt like shattering glass. Our bond stretched thin, vibrating like an overwound string one breath away from snapping. The butterfly mark on my wrist no longer merely burned; it seared, as if etched anew by a blade forged in shadows and flames.
Agony broke over me as every cell on my body seemed to be lit on fire. Heat collided with cold in a brutal rush, igniting every nerve. Power surged through my limbs, flooding my veins with raw, pulsing energy. Then my knees buckled.
The wolves’ howls swallowed the sound of my scream as I collapsed, hitting the stone hard. Pain lanced through me. My back arched, and tears ran down my face, blurring the world into streaks of silver and shadow.
Then the power inside me twisted once…and let go.
I’ll find a way to get to you!Vad’s ice-cold fear slid into me, adding even more discomfort.
My hands scraped cold stone, and my fingers curled tight. My chest heaved for breaths that wouldn’t come fast enough.
The chamber fell silent. Only my ragged breathing echoed off the stone walls.
