I raised my voice so my words carried across the clearing and into the forest where chain members had started to gather. “You’re wrong. Caelan is a good alpha. He never should’ve been forced to protect us from you.”
My echo-sense hummed with agreement from the building crowd, along with my mate’s pride in me.
Ravik’s face twisted, fury curdling at the edges, but I didn’t look away. I was determined to stand strong at Booker’s side, exactly where I belonged.
Caelan stepped forward, every inch the Nightbriar alpha. “My sister is right. Six months ago, you gave me no choice but to exile you. And now you’ve proven that wasn’t a harsh enough punishment.”
A ripple of motion spread through the forest as warriors emerged from the trees, forming a wall behind him.
Ravik realized how outnumbered he was. He whirled around, his claws digging into the dirt. He searched for an escape route, but there was no way out for him. Not anymore.
Booker shifted even closer to me, his thigh brushing mine. The growl that rolled out of his chest was low and lethal, a promise more than a warning.
Ravik’s gaze darted wildly between all of us—Caelan and his warriors, Booker and me, Keane’s hulking grizzly form, and Kace’s massive wolf. His lips peeled back, but the bravado faltered in his eyes, collapsing under the weight of reality.
He finally understood the truth.
There was no path forward for him on Nightbriar land. Not after what he’d done.
His snarl tore out of him a heartbeat before he lunged. He didn’t come for me, though.
He aimed directly for Caelan, the alpha he’d been ranting about since this started. He was still in human form, but his claws were extended, every ounce of despair in his body sharpened into a killing strike.
Caelan braced, but he never had to meet the impact. Booker moved first.
My mate surged forward, a wall of muscle and fury intercepting Ravik midair. They crashed together with a sound that ripped through the clearing—flesh meeting stone, claws scraping, and a deep growl.
Booker was proving just how powerful he was, but fear still slammed into me.
“Stay back,” he commanded without looking my way, his voice ragged as he grappled with Ravik.
Kace moved closer to my right, his massive wolf form pressed to my thigh, and Keane lumbered to my left, towering as a grizzly. They kept me boxed safely between them while the battle erupted in front of us.
Booker fought with raw, controlled power. His every movement was brutal and deliberate. Ravik slashed wildly,desperation fueling him. But Booker anticipated every strike, turning his opponent’s momentum against him.
Caelan joined the fight with the precision of a seasoned alpha. Where Booker shoved Ravik back with force, Caelan slipped in with speed, tearing punishing cuts into his skin to push the exiled lynx further off balance.
My heart lodged somewhere in my throat. I wanted to run to Booker and drag him away from the danger, but I held the line where he’d told me to stay, my muscles trembling.
Ravik managed to rake claws across Booker’s ribs. I gasped, but my mate didn’t even flinch. He slammed Ravik to the ground so hard that it shook loose leaves from the branches above.
My brother swept in from the side, catching Ravik’s head in a ruthless grip. The lynx kicked and thrashed, but he was already beaten. While Booker’s weight pinned him, Caelan twisted sharply.
The crack echoed through the clearing, and Ravik went limp under Booker’s hands. My breath left me in a rush, my knees nearly buckling as I realized it was over.
Booker lifted his head, his wolf still blazing in his eyes as he looked back at me. My lungs finally worked again, and I pressed a hand to my racing heart.
He was safe, and so was I.
And now that the danger had passed, nothing stood between us and the future fate had promised.
12
BOOKER
The battle had been swift and brutal. Even with the exiled lynx dead, my wolf wasn’t convinced it was truly over until Caelan stepped forward.
“The threat to the Nightbriar Chain has been neutralized.”
