Page 17 of The Alpha's Silent Mate

A soft whistle drifts in the wind.

The tension returns. All of it and then some. One of my nails breaks against the tree.

That song.

Squeezing my eyes shut, I fight to hold back my tears.

The song I will never forget winds around me, choking me.

Stop. Please stop.

It all comes back. All the death and the cries.

The blood.

I grind the heel of my hand against my eyes, but it isn’t enough to silence the screams of my dying pack.

My dad is suddenly there. He grips my arms, and his deep brown eyes stare into mine as he wills me to listen. “Go, Lexa. Run.”

I shake my head. “I can’t leave you, Dad. I won’t.”

Growls reach the door, and he turns. “Go. Now.”

Suddenly we’re outside and I can’t remember how we got there.

All around me is death.

A large wolf with reddish fur stumbles and falls. He does it slowly, like a great mountain tipping over. My eyes fill with tears, because he’s always been so strong. Only one thing would send him to his knees.

Dad.

I lunge toward him, even though I’m a small wolf and I can’t catch him. But I have to try.

And then I’m falling.

The impact shocks me, leaving me breathless. A second later, the pain hits.

Aron’s face appears over mine. He smiles. “Careful, Lexa. Wouldn’t want you to hurt yourself.”

He reaches for me, and I cry out. At first I think that’s what stops him, but when he turns to peer over his shoulder, I realize that it’s something else.

He turns back and smiles down at me. “Don’t miss me for long, songbird.”

I blink, and then he’s gone.

The next time I blink, Shay is on his knees beside me, blood covering his body. He smoothes the hair back from my face. “Lexa…” he breathes, his eyes full of anguish.

My head hurts so much that I lift my fingers to find out why, but his hand grips mine. “No, pup. Don’t touch.”

Frowning, I struggle to understand, until I realize it isn’t just the blood of the wolves he must’ve killed that I smell. It’s mine.

I fell out of the tree and hit my head. Hard enough that I’m bleeding.

But Shay is alive, and that’s all that matters. He’s safe.

I tug at my hand, and he releases me. This time, I don’t reach for my head. I reach for him.

He lowers his head enough that I can curve my hand around his jaw. It’s slick with blood, but his face is warm. The touch of him grounds me like nothing else ever could.

---