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Finding our mate.
Chapter Two
Emmaleigh
My heart is beating harshly against my rib cage as Man Number Two charges deeper into my cell. I can clearly see the murderous intent on his face, and I know I need to get my feet under me. I need to flee, fight, anything.
But the silver nitrate from earlier is still coursing through my veins, stopping me from doing any of the things my mind is screaming at me to do. How the hell am I supposed to defend myself after my body has been poisoned and my wolf has left me? I have never been this alone or defenseless in my life.
Number Two grabs me by the hair and lifts me into the air before smashing my back against the wall. My head hits hard against the bare concrete, my eyesight blurring as crippling pain shoots through me. Darkness creeps in at the edge of my vision and I pray that I will lose consciousness before he gets to do what he has planned. But as usual, nothing ever goes my way.
A large meaty hand wraps around my throat, harshly pressing down, stealing my ability to breathe.
I don’t reach up or try to dislodge his hand. I don’t try to fight for my life as I stare into the eyes of the monster before me. It’s no use, he has set his mind on ending my miserable existence today, and for once I am getting what I want.
When I die, when my last breath and my soul finally leave my husk of a body, I will be free of this prison and the constant pain I have been living in. I may not have lived the life I once envisioned for myself, but I can honestly say I no longer care if I die.
Closing my eyes, I allow the feeling of floating to overtake me. In the darkest corner of my mind, my wolf howls in pain but I ignore her. She hasn’t been present for a long time and I’m not going to let her sway my decision now. Besides, it’s already too late. I can feel my limbs growing heavy.
And then, I don’t feel anything anymore.
****
Nico
My wolf is in the driver’s seat. He runs down corridors and stairs leading us deeper into the bowels of the burning building. The scent of blood and ash clings to the air. Bodies are strewn across the ground as we search for the one thing we never thought we would find—our mate.
She is here, in the bowels of despair. This building that holds so much pain and death also holds the greatest treasure either of us will ever find. Both of us feel it in our souls.
My wolf leaps over the prone figure of a man, blood coursing from a gaping wound in his neck. I pray everyone else has made it out safely because I don’t have the time or inclination to stop and help anyone at the moment. I am solely focused on finding our mate.
The scent grows stronger, the acrid taint of fear more pronounced, and my wolf pushes harder, trying to get to her as fast as possible. Ahead, one of the cell doors stands slightly ajar.
Surging inside, I see a man holding a woman by the throat, pressed against the wall. She has the calmest look on her face as he strangles her, her lips already turning blue. I know that look, it’s defeat. She has given up and accepted that death is the only way she will ever be free.
A howl rips from deep within my wolf and the man drops his victim in shock. Turning to face me, we size each other up. There is nothing special about this human except for the fact he signed his death warrant the moment he laid hands on my mate. Blonde hair, brown eyes, average build. He is what people would refer to as “the boy next door.” All I see is a dead man walking.
“Fucking mutt!” he roars barreling toward me.
My wolf is ready to strike, to rip him limb from limb for what he has done. Suddenly, the man falls to his knees before collapsing onto the floor. The sound of electricity buzzing in the air as the man gets his ass tased.
“We need one alive,” Sayer says from behind me.
Whipping around, I glare at the man I call a friend. In his hand is a taser gun. He stares at me, taking in everything about my wolf before speaking. “Let’s get out of here.”
I easily shift back to my human form. Ignoring the male behind me, I rush to the crumpled female form on the floor, praying I wasn’t too late to save my mate.
Relief floods me when I reach her. I can hear her heartbeat and already some of the color has returned to the skin that had a bluish tint to it not minutes ago. My wolf prowls restlessly in my mind but holds himself back, knowing I need to be in human form to care for her right now.
Lifting her in my arms, careful not to jostle her too much, I walk up beside Sayer where he has the man flung over his shoulder.
“You know I am going to kill him.”
“Yes, and he deserves every moment of fear and pain you inflict on him,” he replies. “But first we need information.”
We make it out of the compound safely, all of us alive and most not even wounded. Relief floods me as I take in all my friends, happy that we are all safe. There were three shifters in the compound including my mate. A male wolf and a female leopard.
Godrick loads the other two into the back of his pickup truck while I take the passenger seat, my mate still cradled to my chest.
