With a final, ear-splitting shriek, it collapses into itself, the form disintegrating into swirling snow and shadow.The temperature spikes back up so fast it’s disorienting, and suddenly it’s just...gone.
Not dead.I can still feel it out there, lurking, waiting.
But beaten.For now.
I stand there for a moment, chest heaving even though I don’t need to breathe, and then the adrenaline crashes and I drop to my knees beside Tessa.
She’s pale.Too pale.Her wrist is still bleeding sluggishly, and there are dark circles under her eyes that weren’t there before.I took too much.Not enough to kill her, but enough that she’s going to feel it.
“I’m sorry,” I say, my voice rough.“I’m so fucking sorry, I shouldn’t have—”
“Shut up.”She reaches out with her good hand and cups my face.“You saved everyone.We won.”
“I broke my rules.I fed from you.I—” The reality of what I’ve done crashes over me.“The bond.Tessa, I’ve bound us together.I can feel you now.Your emotions, your—”
“I know.”Her smile is weak but genuine.“I can feel you too.It’s...weird.”
“Weird?”
“Yeah.You’re a lot more terrified than you let on.”
A rough laugh escapes me.“I’m terrified I’m going to hurt you.That I won’t be able to stop next time.That—”
“Vex.”She pulls my forehead down to rest against hers.“Shut up and take me home.”
Home.
She called the clubhouse home.
Before I can respond, Blade is there, human again and pulling on his pants.His eyes take in the scene, me kneeling beside Tessa, her blood on my lips, the mark on her shoulder still faintly glowing, and his expression goes carefully neutral.
“Everyone in the van,” he says quietly.“Now.We’re leaving before that thing decides to come back.”
Prophet helps me get Tessa to her feet, and she sways, leaning heavily against me.I lift her without thinking, cradling her against my chest, and she doesn’t protest.Just burrows into me, her face pressed against my neck.
Through the bond, I feel her exhaustion.Her fear.Her trust.
And underneath it all, something else.
Something that feels dangerously close to love.
Fuck.
The ride back to the clubhouse is tense and silent.Hannah’s already awake and sitting beside Tessa in the van, holding her hand, shooting me looks that range from concerned to calculating.Blade drives with controlled fury, his knuckles white on the steering wheel.
And me?I sit there with Tessa in my arms, feeling every beat of her heart, every shallow breath, every flicker of emotion through this new connection we’ve forged.
A connection that’s supposed to be impossible.
A connection that could kill her.
A connection that I already know I’ll never be able to break.
When we pull up to the clubhouse, Blade cuts the engine and turns to face me.His expression is unreadable, but his voice is hard.
“My office.One hour.We need to talk about what just happened.”
“Blade—”
