Dominic didn’t think she’d be stupid enough to ignore his spymaster’s offer.
But of course, stubborn thing that she was, he knew she’d have gotten it into her head that she needed to do this on her own. Some foolish notion of obligation, of desperation to prove herself.
He could only hope it hadn’t already gotten her killed.
Theodore and Julian’s paws pounded on the rock behind him. They were halfway up the mountain now; they’d reach the top soon.
Not soon enough.
Layla’s scent was old. Hours old. She’d passed this way and not yet returned.
Dominic pushed himself harder.
“I’m sorry,”Julian repeated down the pack link,“I really thought she would ask me to join her. That she would tell you.”
Dominic just growled, too furious to respond. Julian should have come to him instantly. Should never have trusted her.
“How did she manage to be gone an entire day without you realizing?”Theodore snapped. Dominic wasn’t sure which of them he was talking to.
“Three Nordan scouts are dead,”Julian snarled,“we’ve all had our hands full.”
“Quiet,”Dominic rumbled,“we’re getting close.”
They broke through the cloudbank, fur drenched, breath steaming in the frozen air.
Dominic’s teeth snapped. They were close. So close.
The scent hit him like a blade through the night.
Blood. Cold air. Wet earth. And beneath it all…her.
Layla.
Dominic’s chest constricted. He didn’t think; instinct took over. He was a dark blur tearing through the forest, claws gouging furrows in the mud, breath coming in ragged bursts.
The world narrowed to sound and smell.
Wind whipping past his ears. The rhythmic crash of paws behind him, Theodore’s brown form, smaller but faster, keeping pace. To his right, almost unseen, Julian ran like a phantom, his black coat blending into the shadows.
The forest reeked of corruption.
It clung to the trees, heavy and rancid, that same stench of metal and decay they’d found at the last hybrid attack. Everybreath burned his lungs, every step sinking him further into his rage.
He should never have left her alone. He should never have shared his doubts with her, driven her to try to prove herself. He should have done a dozen things differently.
It didn’t matter. Now, every pulse of his heart matched the same thought.
Find her.
The sound came next.
Not a scream. Not yet. But a low, guttural noise from somewhere ahead, the kind of sound that didn’t belong to any living thing. His hackles rose. He exchanged a brief glance with Julian, who bared his teeth in silent understanding.
Then…the scream.
It sliced through the night, high and human and terrified.
Dominic’s blood turned molten.
