“Do you think me merely a vampire or a Tribemaster you can so easily defeat?” he spat. “I am an Elder. I can summon the power of the Pack and use it to my liking. I can kill Aric and anyone I wish from miles away. No one can stop me—and no one can help you!”

He lifted his palm and squeezed his fingers, choking me slowly from where he stood. Spots speckled my vision. I thought he would kill me until he dropped his hand and released the pressure burning my throat. He paced in front of me, rubbing his jaw, seemingly pleased with the amount of magic at his fingertips. I spat out blood and tried to speak. “Why Aric?” I croaked.

His hot breath stirred against my face. “I will not allow you to taint his bloodline. He is a king among wolves and you are nothing but a whore. I’d rather see him dead than with an abomination like you!” His stare traveled the length of my body with the deepest of loathing. He lifted the edge of my sweater, before yanking it down with disgust. “I never understood what he saw in you,” he scoffed.

Anara’s hold continued as he stalked away. “My followers are everywhere, Celia. I can manipulate them to do my will, just as I did Virginia. I will know if you see him, I will know if you speak to him.”

The realization of his words struck me like a thunderbolt and washed my bleeding form with cold dread. He was the one who believed me the key to his destruction…and to all he led.

Anara stopped at the door, the muscles of his back tightening until they bulged against his red shirt. “If you dare tell anyone about this, your sisters will share Aric’s fate.”

As a testament of his power Anara didn’t release me until about an hour after he left. I crashed to the floor, coughing and shaking. The only thought racing through my head was the need to protect Aric, my sisters, and the baby growing inside me.

Chapter Two

My legs trembled when I struggled to stand. Heavy footsteps pounded at the door. I thought Anara had returned to kill me and hurried to rise. I slipped on my blood and on the scattered pieces of broken wood and glass. My back slammed hard on the floor as the door swung open and a furious Liam charged in. He crouched next to me, poised to protect and growling ferociously.

Liam surveyed the damaged wall and the splintered glass and wood. I couldn’t tell him what happened. Aric and my sisters would be hurt—or worse. But I couldn’t lie to Liam. Like most preternaturals, he could smell a lie. So I worked to calm my racing heart and tried to gather my words carefully.

He helped me to stand once he failed to sense any immediate danger. His eyes widened as he took in my state. “Good Lord, Celia. What happened?”

“I was attacked,” I gasped, still unable to speak clearly.

Liam swept me into his arms, moving me away from the shards of glass. “Tell me who did this to you!”

“Our…enemy.”

Liam sniffed the air. I panicked, thinking he’d detect Anara’s scent. “Wolves. Wolves have been here,” he said.

Wolves?

“I don’t recognize their scent.” Liam threw a blanket on the couch and gently laid me over it. “Hang on, Celia. I’ll call Aric—”

“No! Liam, you can’t call Aric.”

“Celia, I have to, you’re hurt.”

My throat ached and it burned to talk. “I don’t want him to see me like this. He’s already dealing with a lot. Please, Liam, just get me to Misha’s house. Emme can heal me there.”

Liam’s face split with guilt and uncertainty. As one of Aric’s Warriors, he was blood-bound to protect me as Aric’s mate, but he was also obliged to obey him. “Celia, I know he’s in his own personal hell, but you’re his priority. He’ll want to be here.”

“Emme is who I need right now. There’s still blood running down my back.”

In an instant, Liam was behind me, examining my wounds. I wasn’t a were. I couldn’t heal. “Oh, shit. I’ll get you to Emme right away.”

Liam lifted me and raced toward the door, kicking the empty boxes he’d dropped on the porch out of his way. He must have arrived to remove his belongings from the bedroom he and Emme had shared.

The bright sunlight burned my eyes. I shut them tight until we reached Liam’s SUV. The moment he strapped me in, he stomped on the accelerator and roared out of our cul-de-sac. “What exactly happened, Celia? And why did I only smell your blood?”

“I was caught off guard.”

Liam frowned. “What the hell? You’re always on guard.”

“I’ve been distracted because of…everything. Look, I can’t keep talking. It hurts too much.” It was true, but mostly I was running out of ways to be creative with my answers.

“Sorry, Celia—I wasn’t thinking. I’m just trying to figure things out. Don’t worry. You’ll be with Emme soon.”

The relief I felt was short-lived. Almost immediately, he called the one person I dreaded most.

Aric’s voice pulsed with strain from the moment he answered. “Liam, I told you now’s not a good time—”

“Celia’s hurt.”

“What? Is she all right?”

“She’s not dying.” Liam gave me the once-over. “At least, I don’t think she is. But she’s pretty fucked up. Near as I can figure she was attacked by a bunch of Tribe wolves.”

The Tribe were the evil band of bastards who had awoken the even more evil and bigger bastard demon. In stopping them, we’d decimated their numbers, but they were still out there—thankfully providing the perfect scapegoat.

Aric’s breaths came out fast. “When did this happen?”

Liam sniffed the air around me. “By the way the dry blood on her smells, about an hour ago.”

Aric let out a string of swearwords. “By the way the dry blood smells on her!”

“Well, yeah, she’s still bleeding.”

“How bad is it?”

“Pretty bad, but I think she’ll live.” He shook his head when he took another look at me. “Damn, you should see her. She looks like hell….”

I groaned. Way to keep Aric calm, Liam.

“…her face is smashed in and her back is cut up like breakfast sausage….”

I glared at him. I couldn’t believe he was being so descriptive or how quickly Aric flipped out, smashing and destroying what sounded like heavy furniture.