“You are a child playing an adult’s game,” Elara says dismissively.
Roiling with fury, every part of Malice demands a life in payment for Aerin’s injury. But the blood-bond holds him back, the promise to only interfere if necessary.
“I am more powerful than you know, Elara,” Aerin says back steadily.
There’s unease, restlessness amongst the Wolves that Malice doesn’t quite understand until he sees it. Aerin’s large wound stitches itself back together before their eyes, much faster than the normal Fae healing would have.
The white Wolf makes a sound.
[He wants to know if you knew that she could do that,]Reikan narrates.
Malice glances at the Wolf. “No, I didn’t,” he responds directly to him. They both look back at the Wolves in the center, circling each other.
“If we were playingmygame, Elara, then I would already be holding your heart in my hand!” Aerin lunges again, this time going for the throat. They roll. It’s scrappy and violent, but somehow Aerin ends on top, claws digging into Elara’s neck. Aerin’s magic fills the air.
“Grant me possession of Emrys and I’ll grant you mercy.” For the second time during the fight Aerin’s Wolf form seems to be smiling.
Elara squirms. Malice can sense the extra magic in the air; Aerin has the Alpha pinned with more than just her claws. An invisible band presses down on Elara, like a slab of marble, promising violence.
The Wolves along the perimeter lean forward. Malice lets out a low growl and six pairs of eyes jump to him, as if remembering they are not the only back up present in the meadow. Aerin draws small drops of blood from the points where her claws meet Elara’s neck.
The blonde Wolf bends to the silver Wolf’s ear.
“Grant me Emrys or I will take them all. Every last one of your pretty little males. They will obey me. They will bow to me. They will fuckme.”
Elara roars, struggling, flailing her back legs. It’s fruitless against the weight of Aerin’s magic. Elara glances at the six black Wolves behind her, then her spiteful eyes fall to Emrys.
“I grant Emrys freedom from my pack and release him from the confines of my magic.”
The silver and gold mists of magic in the air above them crackle. A strangled howl leaves the white Wolf as the silver magic that holds him together is forcibly removed. Emrys collapses. The silver magic is replaced just as quickly with a soft stream of gold, sinking into his skin slowly. When the last whisps of gold are absorbed, the Wolf grows before Malice’s eyes—larger even than Elara and Aerin. Pure white. Healthy and strong. After a moment his brown eyes snap open and lock onto Aerin. To his new Alpha.
Aerin takes her paw from Elara’s throat and backs off cautiously, her magic retreating with her. The silver Wolf stands, shaking the dirt and grass off her fur.
“Leave now,” Elara orders. “You and your pack are not welcome in these woods. If you are detected here again, it won’t be you against me. It will be you against my pack. And unlike you, we do not show mercy.” Elara trots out of the meadow. Only once she is gone do the other Wolves follow.
The blonde Wolf approaches. Despite his size, the white Wolf cowers before Aerin. Emrys keeps himself low to the ground, jaw pressing into the dirt, eyes downcast. Aerin lays her large head over his, her eyes closing in something akin to relief. They shift into Fae-forms together.
Malice doesn’t have time to look at the male standing next to him. The air leaves his lungs when he sees the massive gash Aerin grips on her left side, blood dripping onto the same leggings she had on prior to shifting.
In a weak voice she says, “We should probably get back.”
Malice watches her body sway before the Princess collapses into his arms.
27
MALICE
“Aerin! Aerin!” Malice shakes Aerin’s limp body. He carefully lowers her to the ground once it’s obvious she isn’t coming back to consciousness. How much blood has she lost? What has her posturing cost her?
Malice’s heart races, and Reikan roars loudly in his head, but the Dragon is useless in this situation. Malice shuts door after door on him until the roaring quiets and he can think again.
“In her backpack, there is a first aid kit,” Malice barks at the Wolf. He doesn’t spare the creature a glance, instead pointing in the right direction before peeling Aerin’s limp hands away from her wound. It’s deep, a slash from her lower ribs to her navel. Malice swallows down bile when he realizes the lighter bits he can see are her rib bones. They move as she inhales. After draining her magic in the fight, her body may not be able to heal. This could be a fatal wound.
Rage boils over in Malice’s blood when he realizes she tricked him. Aerin tricked him, Reikan, and their own fucking blood-bond into believing she healed. In reality, she could die at any time.
“I told her not to do this,” the Wolf says desperately. He dumps the contents of the backpack, searching franticly to find the supplies.
“Gauze, give me the gauze!” Malice orders, holding his hand out. The Wolf passes the package to him, and he registers brown eyes, just a few shades darker than Aerin’s. They are full of fear.
