Page 66 of Love Bites

“I…I don’t know what to say. I suppose Shannon and the others would have just found another wolf to fill your spot.”

“I think so. It’s so stupid really. But in the end, he got his true mate, so I guess he wins.”

Brie smiled at that. “Yeah. I guess he does.”

Iona opened her mouth to speak then turned on her heel. The hair on the back of Brie’s neck stood on end, and her claws came out.

“Run! Get in the house!” Iona shouted as two wolves came out of the dark and pounced.

Brie would not run.

Another wolf jumped toward her, and she slashed at its side. It would take too long for her to shift, but she could defend herself. She sent a shock through the mating bond, hoping Gideon would come. She wasn’t stupid. There were way too many wolves for her to win on her own.

Iona sliced at another wolf who came at her and she fought them off. “Go, Brie! I’ll hold them off.”

Brie growled, kicking at another wolf, her own wolf not knowing what to do. She didn’t want to fight, but she had to in order to survive. She felt more than saw the lieutenants come out of the darkness, blood covering their bodies. There must have been more fighting than she’d seen.

She’d turned to take down another wolf when someone came up from behind her. A pressure injector pressed against her neck, and she shouted, her mind going fuzzy.

The darkness swallowed her whole.

Brie woketo her own screams.

She blinked once. Twice. She tried to lift her body but found herself chained down to a table.

Her mother had once been in this position. It’s how she’d become a werewolf.

“You’re awake. Good.”

That voice. Sheknewthat voice.

“Leo?” she asked, her voice hoarse. She licked her lips, only to find them covered in blood. Oh goddess, how long had she been out, and where the hell was she? She needed to remain calm. That was the only way she could get out of this because, if she started to let the fear take over, there was no way she’d survive.

The man standing above her smiled, his eyes bright and wild. He looked so much like the other Brentwoods, but the taint of madness on his face changed everything. She’d known that this man was out in the wild…waiting.

How he’d gotten so many wolves on his side,insidethe den wards, she didn’t know.

Gideon was beyond enraged right now. She felt his pain, his anger through the bond, but it was faint, as if she was too far away to feel it fully. If only she knew more about their bond. Some wolves could speak to one another through it, and some could pinpoint their exact locations.

Hers and Gideon’s bond was far too new.

And worrying about what she couldn’t change wasn’t going to help her today.

“I see Gideon has been filling your head with my past deeds.” Leo licked his lips then ran a hand down her arm.

She flinched, trying to pull away, but he’d strapped her down too firmly. There was no way she could move. She might have the strength of a wolf, but these chains were reinforced with something magical. He’d have to release her, or someone would have to find a key in order for her to get loose.

Her heart beat loudly, and suddenly a wash of pain slid over her. It was as if her body was finally allowing her to feelexactlywhat the bastard had done to her. She could feel that all of her clothes were still on, so at least she’d been spared that agony, but there were slices all over her legs and stomach.

Leo grinned again and held up a bloody scalpel. Her eyes widened, and her wolf pushed, trying to get free. It was no use though. She was at his mercy until she came up with another plan.

“Yes, Gideon told you much of what we did. Did he tell you of our experiments on the submissives?” He sighed. “No matter how much we dug, we never could find their wolves. Damn shame but submissives were worthless anyway.” He leaned closer, his putrid breath sliding over her. “I can’t believe my nephew mated a submissive.”

She growled, trying to bite at him, but he pulled away too quickly.

“I like your style, wolf,” he bit back. “Maybe Gideon liked that too. That’s why he stuck with you. Maybe he felt sorry for you because he watched all those little wolves being cut up into tiny pieces.”

He threw his head back and laughed while bile rose in Brie’s throat. If this was part of what Gideon had grown up with, she was surprised the others had grown up as sane as they were. Leo was amonster.

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