Page 99 of The Weakest Wolf

I blink. My vision changes and I know I’m looking out through my wolf’s eyes.

For her to be here? Facing Bowen is… impossible.

But then I feel her rage. Her despair at all I suffered. Because of him.

Her hatred of Bowen overtakes her fear. Now she wants him dead more than she wants to hide. I peel my lips back and snarl.

Bowen laughs. “Has that alpha been making you feel brave?”

“I don’t need an alpha to make me feel brave. You should know that from how many of you animals I wiped out.”

“Animals? And what are you? Human? Wolf?”

“You’re no wolf. You’re a jackal, and a diseased one that someone should’ve put down because all it does is infect everyone else. No, you’re a plague.” I let him see the disgust I’ve spent a lifetime hiding. “You’re no man. And you’re certainly no wolf.”

All amusement drains from his face, and his eyes glint at me. “Well, we’ll see about that, shall we?” He forces me toward the gas stove. “Let’s see how the alpha you opened your legs for feels when you’re not so pretty to look at.”

Sheer terror nearly overwhelms me. It crawls up my throat as Bowen walks my half-bent body over to the stove. The few body blows I manage don’t provoke a single reaction. It’s like Bowen doesn’t even feel them.

He shoves my face against the counter beside the stove and, with his free hand, twists the dial for the gas burner closest to my face.

Click.

I flinch. But the gas fails to ignite and I start thinking that maybe it won’t. Maybe I’ll be okay.

Click. Click. Click.

Other than a brief flare of blue light, nothing happens.

Please don’t work. For once, let something go right for me in this place.Please.

Bowen wrenches the dial harder than before.

The blue light flares into bright red and amber flames. A few inches away, the heat fans my cheek.

“You still have time to beg,” Bowen murmurs. “If you make me the right offer, I might consider it.”

I stare at the flame so close to my face and try not to think about how much it’s going to hurt.

A lot, Sierra. A melted face is going to hurt a fucking lot.

Bowen shakes me. “No? Nothing?”

“Fuck you,” I snarl, even as tears fill my eyes.

My wolf’s presence lingers in my mind, reminding me I’m not alone. If I could concentrate hard enough, I’d shift my hand into a claw and take off Bowen’s face. But the fire an inch from my eyeball makes concentration all but impossible.

“If that’s what you want.” Bowen grips my head and jerks it toward the naked flame.

“Wait, wait. Just wait.”

He stops. The end of my hair dangles over the fire. I watch as the ends catch alight before they burn out a second later.

“Does that mean you have an offer for me?”

I swallow hard. “I have to tell you something. Something you’re going to want to hear.”

“And that is?”

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