Casimir swore under his breath, then his gaze shifted, and our eyes met.
“Serafina,” he said, voice softening. “You’re awake.”
“Looks like I missed something.” I swallowed. My throat felt like sandpaper.
“Just Brumous claiming Foster,” he said, coming to my side and brushing a strand of hair from my forehead.
I glanced at the pup, now dozing as he lay on Foster, tail twitching with puppy dreams. Then I looked at Casimir, whose green eyes had never left my face.
“You’d let him stay here with us?” I whispered.
“Not like I have a choice.” He shrugged, and his next words made me giggle. “Once a stray has a name, it’s already too late.”
21. Army of Nightmares
Foster
Pain was a funny thing when you were a werewolf. It came in blinding bursts of agony, then vanished like smoke once the healing kicked in.
But Devil’s Breath? That shit lingered and left scars. I’d spent nearly a full day sprawled on the Cimmerians’ med bay floor, slowly knitting together seared flesh and singed fur while my pride took an even worse beating. Nothing like being rescued by a tiny slip of a witch to make an alpha wolf feel like a goddamn damsel in distress.
The dire wolf pup, Brumous, hadn’t left my side for more than a few minutes since I woke up. He’d circle me, sniff at my healing burns, then plop down with his head on my flank, linking me these weird, jumbled thoughts.
Alpha Toast better? Smell better.His mental voice was young, almost childlike, but there was intelligence behind it. Just scrambled, like someone had taken the wires in his brain and crossed them all wrong.
Stop calling me Alpha Toast,I linked back.
You toast. Black and burned. Alpha Toast, he teased, followed by an image of bread popping up charred from a toaster.
Real funny, I muttered.
Finally, I felt strong enough to shift back. The familiar ripple of magic washed through me, bones cracking and reforming, fur receding into skin, Brumous yipping in worry the whole time. The sensation wasn’t painful, but it always felt like being turned inside out and then right side in again. Back in my own body, I lay on the cold med bay floor, blinking up at the lights.
The door swung open, and four sets of footsteps entered.Perfecttiming.
“Brummy? Is he—” Seri’s voice cut off abruptly as her wide gray eyes landed on me and her cheeks flushed a deep crimson. “You’re so big!”
Zane stepped in front of her, his expression murderous.
“Put your damn dick away, dick!” He snapped.
“I can’t help it shifters shift back naked!” My voice sounded like I’d been gargling gravel, but at least I could talk.
Casimir’s face remained as unreadable as ever as he tossed a white sheet in my direction. I caught it one-handed and wrapped it around my waist while Koa stood there with his arms crossed, muscles bunched like he was ready to throw me through a wall if I made one wrong move. Brumous, meanwhile, danced around excitedly, nosing at my legs and sending me images of his confusion at me shifting.
Where wolf go? Man now. Smell like Alpha Toast.
“I meant, you’re so tall and muscley!” Seri clarified, her cheeks turning a delicate shade of pink. “I saw you on the video calls, of course, but there was nothing for scale! I didn’t realize you were enormous!”
I couldn’t help myself. I smirked as I adjusted the sheet around my hips.
“Enormous everywhere, too, as you just saw.”
Damn, white girl could turn red! Her face flushed so quickly, it was like someone had flipped a switch, and she ducked her head as her three mates let out growls that rattled through the room.
I growled back instinctively. Alpha to alpha, or whatever the hell dhampirs considered themselves. I wasn’t looking for a fight, but neither was I going to be cowed.
Brumous’ confusion at the sudden tension warred with his belly-scratch agenda, and it was enough to help me chill.
