He felt what seemed like a hazy affirmation from her end, a wave of love and trust sweeping over him.
I won’t let you down. I promise.
The water rose with shocking speed, chopping and churning around them with a deafening roar, but the two of them were left untouched by its turbulent fury. Now that he was getting the hang of it, he found that he could easily lift himself with a gentle surge of water that kept both him and Chloe safely at the surface.
Almost there,he urged, as the lowering sun became visible over the edge of the gorge.We’re so close.
Chloe’s fingers tightened for a moment… before falling loose.
Her body slumped forward, and Ethan quickly adjusted his wings to keep her from falling, tucking her in safely.
Our mate!the pegasus cried out in anguish, and Ethan was stunned at the depth of its feeling.
His stomach turned over on itself in fear. He refused to believe that it would end here, when they were so close to safety. It just couldn’t.
Chloe. Please, hold on.
The water surged up toward the top of the gorge, and he pulled himself over the edge, hooves scrabbling desperately, before, finally, finding himself on solid ground.
He shifted immediately, barely noticing as the water started to recede once more, and held Chloe in his arms.
“Chloe!” he whispered, checking to see if she was breathing. The mate bond let him know that she was still alive, but it was weak, and she was so, so cold.
The slightest hint of warm breath touched his cheek, and he almost sagged in relief. If she was breathing, then that was the most important thing right now.
Still… he had to get her back to the cabin, and fast. And he really didn’t know how he was going to manage that if she was unconscious.
Hemightbe able to shift while holding her in such a way that would see her sitting on his back once the shift was completed, but he didn’t know if he could keep her on there safely while flying.
Ethan was confident in his ability to keep level and adjust where necessary, but it was still a risk he would prefer not to take if at all possible. If she happened to wake up and panic while in mid-air, things could end very, very badly.
“Chloe,” he whispered again, holding her close and willing some of his warmth into her. “Please, wake up.”
She stirred a little, making an almost inaudible sound, and his heart leapt. She just needed to be awake enough to hold herself in place, and then he could take care of the rest.
A sudden movement at the edge of his peripheral vision had his head snapping up, and the pegasus did likewise.
Is that what I think it is?he wondered, looking at the distant figures that were flying toward them.
Shifters,his pegasus confirmed, instantly on edge.
Normally, the sudden presence of other shifters would’ve hadhimon edge as well – especially since these were clearly both mythical shifters. But this time, as the distant silhouettes resolved into the shapes of a griffin and a chimera, all he felt was overwhelming relief.
“We’re saved, Chloe,” he said, pressing a kiss to her forehead. “Just hold on.”
Her eyelashes fluttered for a moment, before her lids opened to reveal confused hazel eyes.
“Ethan…?” she murmured.
“Shh,” he said, stroking her damp hair. “Help is on the way.”
“Mm,” she said, snuggling up against him.
The two shifters landed, having covered the distance quickly, and shifted into their human forms.
The chimera turned into a solemn, dark-haired man, who raised his hand in greeting.
The griffin shifted into a man with floppy blond hair who seemed to be awfully chipper about their whole near-death experience, though Ethan supposed that he might not realize just how close a thing it had been.
