Chapter twelve

This fog is pissing me off. Every few steps, I hit another wall. No matter how much I call for Adara, I can't hear her voice reaching back out for me. The only source of comfort within this damned mist is the mate bond, taut in my chest and reminding me that she's alright, even if I can't see, hear, or smell her.

"Gideon!"

I lurch forward, finally hearing her voice like a lighthouse shining me to her through the mist. My paws pound at the tile floor below me, and I breathe a sigh of relief when I see a shadow through the fog—Adara's wolf. Stepping forward, I inhale, missing the comfort her scent brings me, and freeze.

Mint,my wolf growls.

"Gideon!" Adara's voice calls, but I hear it now—the slight difference in the way she says my name, the heavier accent on Dee. "Are you alright? Can you see me?"

Adara isn't here. Aramin is.

I launch myself at the shadow, tackling the wolf to the ground—a black wolf that looks almost identical to Adara's, but the eyes are wrong—silver speckled with green. Mint clings to her every pore, and the scent makes me want to vomit.

She nuzzles into my chest from beneath me. "Oh my gods, you finally found me. I was so worried about you."

Play along until she's vulnerable,my wolf says, knowing all I want to do is tear her throat from her body.

"I hate not knowing where you are," I grind out.

"I promise, I'll never leave your side again," she purrs. "I'll do whatever you tell me to do."

Narrowing my gaze at her, I lower my head to rub my snout against hers. "Even when I tell you to stay behind?"

She feigns innocence, widening her eyes as she bobs her head. "Anything. I'll do anything for you." She licks the side of my snout, repeating, "Anything," in a breathy whisper.

The act only makes my temper flare. Adara would never act like this—so desperate to please me that she'd do anything, follow any command. She would never stop thinking for herself. As much as it drives me crazy, I know I never have to question her loyalty or love for me. She chooses me and my pack every day, and she makes that choice all on her own, not just to please me.

Dipping my head down, acting as if I'm going to lick her snout back, I snap toward her throat, but her paws slam into my stomach, shoving me off her as she rolls to the opposite side.

Shifting, Aramin holds both hands up, palms out and facing the fog. "Damn, I really thought I had you fooled with that."

Getting to my feet, I stalk toward her, lips curled back in a snarl. "If you think that pathetic act is enough to trick me into mistaking you for my mate, you're stupider than I remember."

She pouts. "We could've had so much fun, Dee. You don't need her." She glances down at her naked body, pushing her arms together to make her breasts swell. "Don't you remember all the fun we used to have? We could have that again if you'd just let that stupid witch go."

Growling, I launch myself at her, but my paws slam into an invisible force standing between us. I bounce off it, landing back on my feet and pacing in a half circle before her. "I'll destroy you before I ever let you touch her."

Glaring, she scoffs, her hands still raised in front of her. "If that's how this is going to be, then it's only fair I follow all the rules, Dee."

Pain shoots through my head, exploding in my brain as my body contorts, shifting back into human form, my wolf shut away. Blinking through the blinding sharpness of the sudden shift, I cradle my temple with one hand, propping myself up on my knees with the other. "What the fuck is that, Aramin?"

"I only cast that spell for her—to lock away her wolf—but you've always been so stubborn. It's only fair to lock your wolf away too, I guess." She walks forward, her hips swaying, then she crouches down before me. Her hand runs up my arm, nail scratching over my skin. "I hate doing this to you. Your wolf has always been so… hot and feral."

I smack her hand away from me, almost falling forward, and glare up at her.

"I really should've known better than to think I could trick you, though I did for just a second, huh?" She smiles, green eyes sparkling, and I want to rip that smile right off her face.

"Where is she?" I growl through clenched teeth, my hand shooting to her throat. I shove her back onto the tile, her head cracking against the hard surface. "WHERE IS SHE?"

Aramin only laughs, the sound choked as I squeeze harder. She starts to claw at my fingers, a sick smile splitting her reddening face. "Which… one?" she wheezes.

I loosen my grip just slightly. "What the hell does that mean?" I say, trying to pull my wolf to the surface enough to get my claws out, but I can't even hear the bastard in my head any longer.

"Your bitch… or your pup?" she spits out slowly, voice hoarse and cracking. Tears trail from her eyes, trickling down her temples and into her wild red curls, but her cackling only increases, building into a wild hysteria.

Gripping her throat, I launch toward the wall, slamming her into it with all my weight. I hesitate when a question bursts through my mind.

Could Adara be… pregnant? Is that the pup she's talking about?

No, if that was the case, then why would my pup be somewhere different from Adara?

Aramin struggles within my grasp, her hand reaching up to my side. White hot pain bursts through my ribcage, and my grip slackens, dropping her to the floor. She drags wheezing breath after breath into her lungs, scrambling away from me. Her hands slip over the tiles in her rush, and she hits the ground with a cry as her shoulder cracks into it.

I take a step toward her, my leg giving out when another burst of pain plows through me. "What pup are you talking about?" I glower at her from where I kneel on the floor. "Is Adara…" I clench my jaw, unable to say the word aloud if they did capture her.

Aramin's laugh steals the breath she'd just begun to catch. She doubles over, red curls falling forward around her face like two curtains. "Pregnant?" she breathes. "Oh, Dee, you can't be serious. You want to have children with that bitch?"

Bracing for the pain, I lunge for Aramin. "She's more wolf and woman than you could ever dream of being." My foot connects with her thigh, knocking her to the ground. I climb on top of her, pinning her to the tile floor, both hands wrapped around her throat.

"Here…" she croaks, one hand reaching for my temple, a sickening smile splitting her face.

A vision flashes in my mind—Kaylus and Jaz walking through the woods toward Maddie's house. A brown wolf suddenly flies from the trees toward them.

Rathmann.

His jaws closing around Kaylus's feet, he slams the bird at the ground before turning toward Jaz. In wolf form, her pup is dwarfed by his size. He shifts as she cowers before him, fear evident in her wide eyes and shaking legs, and he raises a fist before the vision stops.

"Your bitch is next," Aramin breathes out, my hands tightening around her windpipe. Her face is almost as red as her hair, and her nails dig into my arms as she tries to tear me off her. Pain blasts from her fingertips, fracturing the bones in my arms from elbow to fingertips.

I yell, the pain swelling inside my forearms, my fingers screaming at me to let go. I squeeze harder, stars dancing in my vision when the pain becomes blinding.

Her hands shift suddenly, releasing my arms to grab the sides of my face. Nails scrape over my skin, searing pain following in the wake of her touch. My eyes burn, and instinctively, I let go of her to tear her hands off me. Gripping her wrists, I snap them to the sides, the bones splitting with a pop.

Her screams bounce around the empty hall, hands falling limp. My vision is blurred by whatever magic she's injected into my face with her touch. I barely make out the shape of her body as she sits on the floor, sobbing and muttering to herself.

"No, no, no. She won't be happy if I fail." She hiccups, her breaths coming in short pants. "But she only lets me use my hands to cast anything," she wails, then screams at me. "How could you do this to me? Look what you've done!"

Her blurred image shimmers as her body contorts into a wolf, and though injuries heal faster in wolf form, they don't heal instantly. Her two back paws touch the ground, but her chin slams onto the tile when neither front paw can hold her up. She yelps, howling as she lays on the floor.

I lurch to my feet, stumbling into the wall and leaning against it to keep my balance. Everything within me hurts, but I refuse to stop when I'm so close. One more step, and the never ending headache that is Aramin is over.

"You're done," I growl, leaning down to tower over her, her jade eyes widening as her wolf whimpers. "You're nothing more than a pest, and all you ever bring to my mate is pain. You were a warm body once upon a time, and now, you're not even worth that much."

"Dee, wait, please—"

"I'm done with trash like you." Crouching down, I muster all my strength and grip her throat in my hands. I bite back my scream when my body protests and squeeze. Harder and harder. Staring into her eyes, I watch her struggle, varying emotions flickering across her face.

Disbelief. Panic. Heartbreak.

"It never had to be like this, Aramin."

"Yes, it did," she cries, her voice sounding in my mind. "I could never live a life without you. I'll never stop chasing you. She took everything from me, and she can die for that."

Clenching my jaw, I apply more pressure until there's no resistance left. Until she stops struggling. When she's finally limp on the ground, I brush my fingers over her eyes, closing them, and collapse on the floor. Staring up at the ceiling, I watch the fog dissipate, and relief courses through me when all my pain slowly recedes along with it.

With Aramin gone—and her magic along with her—all her spells are quickly fading. After everything, I've never been so glad to see her and be rid of her altogether. The spell constantly pulling me toward her is gone, and I'm grateful. I hated the feeling of the spell sitting in my chest, so close to where the mate bond lives that ties me to Adara. It felt wrong to be pulled in the direction of Aramin from such a similar place—a place I only want to belong to Adara.

Adara.

I close my eyes and focus on the mate bond, reassured when it's tight inside my chest. I want to push myself to my feet, search for her, but I can't seem to open my eyes again. I never expected Aramin to be so strong, even with Monique's magic, but I underestimated how strong her desperation would make her.

My breathing slows as I'm pulled into unconsciousness, hoping Adara can hold on just a bit longer.