Such strange words…such strange amount of care.
“You will not be taken from me for nothing. Go home. Be safe. Get away from here. Fromme.”
“Ryder—”
He whirls suddenly, his hand manacling around my neck, fingers gripping my jaw. His pupils flash silver and stay, and when he speaks, his lip curls to reveal the teeth he’s hidden from me. The wolf fangs capable of ripping me apart.
“Leave!”he roars. “Fucking go, Carina! I’m about to lose my father and I, I…I won’t lose you too. Go now before I make a big fucking mistake. Before Icare. Leave now…while I can still walk away.”
Did he just…?
“Ryder.”
For all the distance he’s gained, he steals it again, his hands clenched tight around my waist as he pushes me back into the tree, his head ducking down. He rips my hair, tipping my head back, his lips nearing and?—
“Ryder! Come quickly.”
He launches himself away, staring at who’s interrupted: Conan, his eyes wide as he flicks them between the two of us. “It’s your dad. He…he—Marissa’s asking for you.” Then he takes off, presumably towards Alaric’s cabin, leaving the unknown to linger.
“I’m sorry,” I whisper, reaching for him. “If I could do something—save him. Prolong this…I would.”
“You’ve done enough.” He releases me and gives me his back again, walking towards camp. It’s there he pauses, muscles tense. He flicks a glance over his shoulder that allows me to notice the despair—the emotion he lets seep out just enough before shielding me from it again. “Go home, Carina, and good luck.”
He walks away.
Thirty-Three
RYDER
Protect her.
Mate her.
Claim her.
Bite her.
Instead, I walk away.
I walk away from thenîkâkîstisbond.
I walk away from the woman designed to be my mate.
I walk away fromher. From Carina.
From the woman I’ve genuinely come to care for. Me, not the wolf.
I walk away to mourn my dying father and ex-Alpha, and by the time I’m done here, she’ll be gone. If she has a lick of fucking sense, she’ll disappear and return to her people. She’ll stay safe and alive. Or, if she goes to Twilight Grove, convinced it’s the only way, then at least I won’t be aware.
The wolf won’t let her walk into danger. It never wanted to. Protecting Dad was one thing, but getting to know her meant being stuck between two people. Now, with one of them gone, all my wolf’s attention will shift to her.
Reaching Dad’s cabin, I shove every thought of Carina from my mind. For now, there’s another person to focus on, and then an entire pack who’ll be looking to me for support.
I can do this.It’s not the first parent I’ve been forced to say goodbye to, but at least it’ll be the last. Accepting it is another thing entirely, because doing so forces me to accept yet another loss in my life. Dad…and then Carina. All in one night.
Conan and Xander stand vigil outside, with many of the others spread around them. Leah and Claire stick close to Xander, each claiming one of his hands. I avert my eyes as I pass them and enter Dad’s cabin, utterly unprepared for what’s inside.
The sickly scent, for one, which has grown in the hour I’ve been gone. It lingers like a dark cloud, removing all traces of sunlight that was once present, erasing the peace I felt for the briefest flicker when holding Carina in my arms.
