Wild Girl pulls to a stop, and I slide from her back, pressing my palm to her neck. Her pearlescent coat gleams in the darkness and Reaper’s violet eyes glow.
They both look on me with trust and faith.
I allow a little of my power to rise, sending a trickle of it toward Crone to test what happens, but the entire space shrieks and groans and, to my shock, both the runes and the insects attack the wisps of my power immediately.
I quickly stop.
It seems that the war of magic will pay no attention to me unless I use my power, and then it will attack me.
How can I help Roman, if not with my power?
Picking my way between glowing script and attacking insects, I approach Roman slowly. The only way to tip the scales in his favor is to attack with something other than magic.
I take a deep breath and allow my instincts to lead me.
Brushing the rune on my wrist, I unclothe myself and shift into my wolf’s form slowly and carefully, watching at every moment for any change in the war of magic around me. My shift completes, and it seems that taking her form won’t cause the magic in this place to attack me.
The world becomes monochromatic and my beast’s instincts take over, dominating my demon for the first time in…damn, it’s actually been a while since I gave my wolf complete dominance. Even when I ran with my sister through the forest in the angels’ realm, my demon power was close to the surface.
I walk to Roman’s side, testing the barriers around him, edging closer before I leave him to prowl closer to Crone. My lips draw back from my teeth as her scent fills my senses. She reeks of decay. Of a life extended far too long.
The time for caution is over.
My jaws open as I leap for her throat, trusting my instincts that tell me to tear her apart.
Her formless hand flies up and lands on my wolf’s chest, stopping me from reaching my target by a scant inch. The force of my leap should have knocked her over, but she remains suspended in the air.
Her eyes fly open, even though she makes no other move.
“No.” She speaks without moving her lips, but her voice is a horrified whisper. Her wild gaze flies from me to Roman. “It can’t be you! It was supposed to be him.”
I shift back to my human form, suspended inches away from her, caught in her magic now.
I narrow my eyes at her, preparing to ask her what the fuck she’s talking about, when she shrieks, “You are not the wolf-demon who will kill me. I saw my fate! It is not you! It was supposed to be him, but I destroyed him.”
I make the mental leaps to piece together the meaning behind her shrieks. She was the one who killed Roman’s wolf, but she did it because… “A wolf-demon was destined to kill you,” I say. “And you thought it was him.”
“As soon as I heard of his existence, I looked for ways to destroy him. Only a wolf-demon with iron in their blood is fated to end me. You weren’t born to the Iron Wolves. It can’t be you,” she snarls. “Not you!”
I may not be descended from the Iron Wolves, but as for having iron in my blood… I forged that through the challenges thrown at me over my life.
I exhale slowly. “Fate is strange.”
I allow my jaw to shift and my teeth to sharpen. And then I fight the push of her magic with everything inside me. Every moment of fear and dread I’ve experienced since Koda came into my life. Every minute of heat and pleasure since I met Roman. Every second of my life with my pack and the knowledge that they chose me, and I chose them.
My jaws close around Crone’s neck and her blood fills my mouth, real blood despite her appearance.
With a savage snarl, I rip out her throat.
CHAPTERFORTY-SEVEN
There’s a second of silence and then the energy in Crone’s body releases. The explosion hits me, knocking me backward in the blast, where I collide with Roman.
“Nova!” His strong arms close around me and his wings shoot out, protecting me from the explosion of energy.
Nearby, I’m aware of Wild Girl and Reaper taking cover and keeping each other safe, although the main explosion is right where Roman and I remain.
I throw my legs around Roman’s waist, my arms around his chest, and I hold on tightly, safe in the dark cocoon of his wings while the air around us fills with the destruction of Crone’s energy.
