Page 62 of Forged By Heart and Claws
A massive shadow wolf lunged through the wall and clamped its jaws on my skirt.
A scream ripped from my throat as the stone vanished beneath my feet. My hands scrabbled for purchase, nails scraping uselessly across the slick wall.
"Briar!" Vad’s roar hit the tunnel like a shockwave.
My body slammed down, my skull cracking against the rock as the wolf yanked again. My legs slid forward, and the portal swallowed me, inch by inch.
“Letgo!” I clawed at the stone, fingers tearing against the unforgiving rock. Blood slicked my palms. My wolf surged inside me, growling and snapping, desperate to fight, but there was nothing to bite.
Vad dove after me, his hand locking around my wrist in an iron grip. Our bond flared hot and frantic, his panic thundering through my chest.
“Hold on!” Elara’s voice cracked as she shoved forward, her small frame wedging into the narrow wall beside me.
Elias dropped flat to the stone, reaching out past her. “Grab her—grab her!”
The wolf snarled and pulled steadily, its red eyes glowing brighter as shadows surged around it. The air warped andtwisted as the cold void wrapped around me like a current, dragging me inside.
Vad’s fingers crushed around mine. “I won’t let you go.”
My shoulder socket burned with the strain as Vad held tight, his face contorted with effort. The transition through the portal slammed into me like a physical blow, the air pressure shifting, temperature dropping, and the smell of wet fur and old blood overwhelming my senses.
The wolf released my slip, and I scrambled away, gasping, my back hitting something solid.
No. It couldn’t be.
CHAPTER 14
Briar
For a moment, I couldn’t breathe.
Vad’s presence—his weight, his heat, his shield of wings—stole the air from my lungs almost as much as the wolf had. He’d followed me through the portal, and now he was in danger.
Are you hurt?He moved in front of me, blocking me from the beast by flaring his wings wider. He snarled, and his back coiled tightly.
No, it just got my skirt this time.
Everything had gone deathly still.
I stood and prepared to fight. The run bag had fallen off my shoulder, and I didn’t have any weapons other than my human hands and teeth since shifting was out of the question. Concern and confusion raced through our bond as Vad remained in front of me. But the sensation of anger wanted to shred me from the inside out. I had no doubt he thought he would lose me.
He moved to block me from the wolf again, but I caught his wrist. The jolt coursed between us, anchoring us to reality.You shouldn’t have come.
I always will. I protect what’s mine until I take my last breath.
He took my hand, and the fight that had built inside me dissolved just long enough to let me feel everything; the panic, the relief, the ache of still being alive.
Then silence hit.
No snarling. No growling. Still and unnatural.
Something shifted in the air. My wolf raised her hackles, uneasy but on defense, sniffing the currents with a low whine that curled in my throat. Vad tensed again, his concern laced with confusion as his grip on my hand hovered between protective and cautious. The air hummed around us like a taut wire pulled too tight, and I looked around.
We were surrounded.
We stood with our backs to the wall of a circular cavern. Wolves ringed the chamber, all standing with their attention fixed on me like statues carved from shadow and instinct. They weren’t attacking, but they weren’t retreating either. Every single one had crimson eyes.
A chill ran down my spine.
