Chapter 29

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Veryn

A gony rips through the bond.

My eyes widen as they meet Anders’s.

I shove myself off the couch, not bothering with a shirt or shoes. Hitting the door, I rip it open to the sounds of Anders’s feet hitting the floor behind me. We make it onto the deck, and even though I have no idea where Lorcan intended to take Ember, my head still whips in the direction I know she is.

My wings erupt from my back, and I don’t think it through. I spin and grab Anders in a bear hug before taking off.

“What the fuck happened?” I hiss more to myself than him. I should have grabbed my phone, so I could call in backup.

“No fucking idea.” Anders turns in my hold, scanning the ground as we fly. “But whatever it is, it couldn’t be happening at a worse time. Lorcan is the weakest the night before the full moon.”

The exact opposite of a wolf shifter. They’re strongest approaching the moon and on the night of.

I curse under my breath, doing my best to keep us from bumping any trees in my haste to get to my fucking woman.

The only thing keeping me from losing my goddamn mind is that she’s not the one who’s injured. There’s a filtering through the link that leads me to believe it’s Lorcan, but I felt him join the bond, meaning losing him would have dire consequences on Ember.

Anders’s hair blows around everywhere in the wind as I grit my teeth to pick up the pace. He’s heavier than he looks, but I’ll deal with the discomfort because Ember is going to need both of us.

“There,” Anders growls, pointing into the heavy trees. “Someone is trying to flee.”

I frown, shaking my head. “We’ll have to come back for them. We need to get to Ember. She’s not far.”

Anders turns, releasing my back where he was holding on. “Drop me. I’ll handle that asshole and cover the rest of the ground on foot.”

“Fuck, no,” I snarl, tightening my hand that now rests on his stomach. My grip is the only thing keeping him flying with me at this point.

“Cats always land on our feet.” He chuckles, prying my hand free. He falls through the air, and I curse under my breath.

My system is torn.

Everything in me says you’re supposed to use the buddy system, but that’s only one guy, and Anders is, at the very least, the anti-aging kind of immortal. Even if he falls wrong and breaks his back or something ridiculous, he’ll be fine until I can kill whatever is bothering Ember and come back to scrape him off the forest floor.

My wings flap and, without Anders’s added weight, I fly through the air, picking up speed. My eyes glow yellowy-green as my dragon tries to pick out any movement. Without Anders spotting that guy, I wouldn’t have any confirmation I’m even heading in the right direction.

Well, outside of the gut instinct that pulls me this way because the bond says my mate is in distress.

I exhale heavily at the sound of Ember’s snarls filling the air. Saying a silent prayer to several higher powers I don’t actually believe in, I tuck my wings as the edge of the forest comes into view.

I scan, desperately searching for Ember’s wolf as I lower into the clearing, but my eyes land on Lorcan with a spear through his chest. It’s a gruesome sight, even worse than the sounds coming from the nearby wolf fight.

Everything in me aches to aim for the trees, where Ember fights against two wolves. At the same time, I’m not sure she would ever forgive me if I didn’t immediately move to offer Lorcan aid.

A string of vile curses slips from my lips as I zero in on the druid. Dirt flies up around my feet as I land in a crouch.

“Bag.” He tries to point, but his arm listlessly falls to the ground. “Calyx.”

Scrambling over, I tug the bag open, digging around inside. I’m not expecting him to have an arsenal of daggers, and I damn near cut off my fucking hand before I wise up and look before continuing to dig.

I grab the phone, preparing to pull it over to unlock the screen using Lorcan’s thumb, but a cascade of heavy feet hitting the ground draws my attention.

At the same moment, a portal opens to my right. Rogue stumbles out with the blond warlock, Cohen. Behind him is a slender man who has to be at least as tall as I am. He has black hair and sharp cheekbones.

“The rest are coming,” Rogue says with that faraway look in her eyes.

“I’ll tend to Lorcan,” the man who must be Calyx says.

My head flies up just in time to see the additional fifteen or twenty wolves that head in our direction.

Dropping the phone, I spread my wings and allow my hands to transform into my claws. It’s a lovely night to slaughter a few traitorous wolves, and I have some fury to work off.