“I did not ask him.” Farren stepped closer, lowering her voice and trying for something close to soothing. Not that she’d ever been very good at soothing. “I thought ya’ dead until Regulus opened his trunk to show me yer body.”
Ewan sagged, his head bowed. “I don’t want to live like this, Farren.”
Her heart shattered, and she swallowed hard. “Please don’t say that. Not yet. Give it a few days. Nights. Let Regulus teach ya’ how to be...what ya’ are.”
“An abomination?” he snarled. “I drankblood, Farren. And it was the best feckin’ meal I’ve ever had.”
“So? Vampires drink blood. When ya’ were bitten, how did ya’ feel the first time ya’ shifted?”
“Like I wanted to die,” he said. “I thought my life was over.”
“And it wasn’t. Ya’ adapted. Ya’ discovered how good it felt to run. To be faster and stronger than ya’ were before.” Ignoring Regulus’s warning, Farren rested her hand on Ewan’s shoulder. The young man jerked, and she forced herself not to pull away. His skin, which should have been so warm, was now ice cold. “If I’m still yer alpha, then what I say will carry weight, yeah?”
He nodded, and the brokenness, the confusion, and the pain shone in the deep red irises.
“I’m orderin’ ya’, as yer alpha, to give this new...existence some time. I don’t want ya’ to suffer, Ewan. But let us see if we can find a way for ya’ to accept who ya’ve become. I won’t leave ya’. None of us will.”
Bloody tears spilled onto the man’s cheeks, and sobs wracked his chiseled frame. Farren didn’t know if her words had done any good, and she was too damn scared to ask. If he said no, she’d have one more failure in her ledger, and could her heart survive the tally?
“How long?” he choked out with his head bowed, his gaze on her boots.
“A week. Ya’ will not give up on us or yerself for one full week. After that, if ye’re still feelin’ like there’s no hope, we’ll find a way for ya’ to die in peace.”
“One week.” He didn’t raise his head, but the acceptance in his tone—even though sharpened by grief and rage, gave her a small spark of hope. And a spark was all she needed to start a fire.
Chapter Six
Peter
He should have insisted that Caitlin find his mate some shoes to wear. Her socks were too slippery for these floors. Sameen held onto his arm, and when they reached the top of the stairs, he took a step before he remembered she couldn’t see them.
She yelped softly as her foot found nothing but air, and Peter caught her, hauling her back against him as he went down and landed on his ass. “Shit. I’m sorry.” Her silence worried him, and he got to his feet, pulling her up with him, and cupped her cheek. “Sameen? Are you okay?”
“No.” The word escaped on a harsh whisper, and Peter tensed. At this rate, his fuck ups would soon guarantee she’d never want him as a mate.
“Talk to me.” Instead of leading her down to the first floor, he put his back against the railing, his hands on her hips.
“I’m about to meet a bunch of people I can’t see who are all counting on me to help find a woman I’ve never met, and in order to do that, I’ll have to talk about how a group of witches kidnapped me, tortured me,brandedme, and kept me locked away in my own body for so long, I forgot what it was to be free. And the only man—the onlypersonI trust in this entire world? Says he knew he was mymatebefore I even learned his name.”
The look on her face? Terror. Mixed with frustration.
Peter didn’t know how to allay her fears. She was right—about everything. “There’s nothing I can say to fix this, sweetheart. You’re the only lead we have.”
“I’m not alead.” After a long moment, Sameen blew out a breath. “Except, I am. Just…don’t leave me alone. Please.”
“Never.” Peter framed her face with his hands—one of them scarred—and he wondered if she could feel the difference. He wanted to kiss her more than he’d wanted anything in his entire life. This woman was strong and brave and even though she’d been through hell, she trusted him. “You are my life, Sameen. I can’t explain it. But no one will ever be more important to me than you.” He dipped his head, intending to press a chaste kiss to her forehead, but Sameen moved at just the right time and their lips met.
Fireworks exploded behind his shuttered lids, every muscle coming alive as Sameen kissed him back. Her body fit perfectly with his. As if she were made just for him or he for her. When he drew back, her cheeks were flushed and her chest heaved.
“That…” Sameen sagged against him. “Tell me you’ll do that again. If we survive this.”
“Every day for the rest of our lives if you’ll let me.” Peter brushed his thumb along her cheek. “I know you’re scared, sweetheart. So am I. But my pack and Farren’s—or what’s left of it—will fight so you never have to be afraid again.”
* * *
The great roomwas easily twice as large as Farren’s living room, and someone had lit a fire in the hearth. Liam and Caitlin, Farren and Eli, and Tierney had already claimed various chairs and couches, while Regulus leaned against a pillar in the corner of the room. The myriad of conversations ground to a halt when Peter and Sameen entered, and all eyes focused on her.
“We’re going to sit on a couch about fifteen feet in front of us,” Peter said as he guided her forward. “Everyone but Livie and Cade are here.”
