by Dana Archer
My twin would kill me if given the chance. He’d kill me to protect Lyla…to save her from me.
“Let me save my mate.” I speak the words into my twin’s mind.
He pauses with the tips of his claws in my flesh while the sensation of Ezra combing through my thoughts and memories leaves me exposed. I don’t fight him. I open my mind, giving him access to anything he wants.
After a moment, my twin shoves me toward Lyla. “Do it. I’ll call Shifter Affairs.”
To share the information he dragged from my memories: the location of where Cedric is hiding and his plans to prove he’s strong enough to be the next in line to be alpha…to be a male his pride mates will fear.
I nod, then focus on Sam leaning over my true mate with her hands pressing against Lyla’s side. Blood seeps around Sam’s fingers. More blood drips from Lyla’s nose and the corner of her mouth. I pierced her lungs. Punctured organs. Humans die from such wounds.
Sam raises her head, her glassy blue eyes meeting mine. “Lyla’s going to die.”
The tears in Sam’s voice threaten to reawaken my guilt. I force it back. There’s no place for it here or now.
“No, she won’t.” I shake my head and stumble forward, my body still weak from the battle to break Cedric’s mental hold and my struggle to stop my twin from ending my life. “I won’t lose my true mate.”
Sam grabs my arm, steadying me as the world around me sways. “Hurry, Uriel.”
“Uri,” I correct Sam, even though I think this is the first time she’s ever addressed me. “Call me Uri.”
“Uri…you need to save her. Please, I can’t…”
I block out Sam’s words. They don’t matter now. Nothing does besides saving Lyla. Dropping to my knees next to Lyla’s prone body, I press my ear to her chest and listen. Her weak but steady heartbeat greets me. Ezra’s blood helped. I feel the touch of my twin’s strength surrounding her. He stopped her slide into death. Now it’s my turn to ensure she never faces it again without me.
“I got you, baby.” I stretch out on the ground next to Lyla, my chest to her back, and wrap my arms around her.
“Uri.”
My name on Lyla’s lips is sloshy, but the knowledge she knows I’m here encourages me. I kiss her cheek and lick the salty and coppery blood from her lips. Then I breathe, drawing Lyla into my soul and reaching out to hers. I want to ensure she feels my love, understands I’m going to help her, realizes it wasn’t me who turned on her and Sam.
It was Cedric.
“We’re going to make him pay.” I whisper the words against Lyla’s lips, then let myself bask in heaven.
Lyla opens to me. No hesitation, no doubt. She welcomes me inside, just as she’s done every time I sought my home.
Heaven doesn’t wrap around me, though. Pain does.
“Lyla.” Guilt slithers over me, stealing my air and tightening my throat. I shove hard against it and draw Lyla’s pain close, giving my true mate a moment of relief, but I can’t take it away completely. I don’t share a soul bond with this woman. We’re still two halves of a whole. “It’s time to finish this thing between us. Are you ready?”
“Please.” Lyla’s plea is torn from her heart. “Love me, Uri. Love me forever.”
“Always.” I ease back, breaking our connection when all I want to do is bask in Lyla’s goodness. I’ll have eternity to feel the brush of my angel’s wings, starting now.
Lyla arches in my embrace. A cry slips from her lips. My name is twined into it.
The rage returns. Cedric did this to us. He stole our beautiful mating and turned it into…
The path we’re meant to take. How we got here doesn’t matter now. It’s what we do next. And the longer it takes me to act, the longer my true mate suffers.
I brush Lyla’s hair from her shoulder and drag my tongue over her skin, numbing the delicate spot where my mate bite will brand this woman as mine, and then I bite. No hesitation. No doubt. This is our path. We’ll emerge from this fight together.
My teeth scrape her bones, and her blood fills my mouth. Another pained cry escapes her. My name isn’t twined into her shriek, however. It echoes in my soul.
“Lyla.” I let my awe over finding her and the devotion I feel for her bleed into her name.
The light in Lyla’s soul flickers. The pain of her injuries on top of my bite strains her hold on life. I latch on to her soul, digging my mental claws into the glowing white orb I’ll soon never lose.
The shrieking scream reverberating in her mind—in my mind—would’ve cast doubt within me days ago. The guilt might’ve won out. I might’ve floundered, not biting Lyla in time. Her light might’ve faded, her soul moving on, had I not broken the hold Cedric held over me.
None of those outcomes came to pass, though.
I’m here. Lyla’s here. We’re both alive. We’re both sure of our love.
“I’ve got you.” I repeat my promise. “Now, tomorrow, for eternity.”
With that, I wrap my essence around Lyla’s soul, preventing her from slipping away, and open myself to the pain ravaging her body and her soul. In another quick move, I yank a piece of Lyla’s soul, freeing the section I’ll forever carry. Lyla’s agony cripples her—cripples me. The warmth of Lyla’s soul in my mental hand chases the pain back. I started this. I need to finish it.
Giving my true mate a piece of my soul doubles the sheer agony. I shoulder it, as much as I can. There’s no escaping it.
“We face it together.” Lyla breathes the truth into me as the pain of the first soul bond she must form eases.
“Two hot messes—”
“—who are perfectly perfect together.”
“Yes.” My smile brightens my soul. Or maybe that’s the piece of Lyla I’ll forever carry. Either way, I treasure it. I love knowing I’ll have this woman with me always, to worship and to tease and to share my secrets with.
“And nobody but us will know.” Lyla finishes my thought.
“Yes, once our bond is complete.” I tighten my mental arms around Lyla and brace for the next round of agony.
“I’m ready. As long as I have you, I can face anything.” The sensation of Lyla’s lips on mine tears a sigh from me. “So make us strong, my mate.”
“We already are strong. We survived in this world long enough to find each other.”
“Then make us the ultimate predator. We have a coward to hunt.”
“That we do, baby. That we do.” And Cedric will bleed. He’ll hurt. And then he’ll die.
Thirty-Three
Uri
The notion of leaving my true mate behind goes against every promise I made. I have no choice.
Lyla brushes my hair from my cheek, then dances her fingertips over my skin. A tingling sensation skips down my spine and awakens the need to join our bodies. Even if this had been a planned mating, Lyla wouldn’t be in any shape for loving me. A human who mates a Royal literally walks through the valley of death in order to claim eternity.
“And it was worth it.”
Lyla’s voice is stronger than it had been immediately after our mating. Actually, she sounds normal without a twinge of pain.
“That’s because you’ve taken it away.”
My true mate responds to my inner thoughts as if I’ve spoken them out loud. With my soul completely merged with hers so I can draw away any lingering pain from her, she has open access to my mind and every memory I hold.
“And I feel your anger.” Lyla pushes up on her elbows, my head resting on her chest sliding to her stomach. “I share it, and I want you to hunt Cedric with or without me. Your victory will be mine too. That’s how this thing works between us. We’re extensions of each other. Your wins are mine, and mine are yours.”
I let my gaze skim over the most beautiful woman in this world. Dried blood covers her cheeks and neck. There’s more on her shoulder and soaked into her clothes and on the couch she’s resting on. Her fiery personality reflects her strength, however. She’s damaged, not
broken, and stronger because of it. “You’ve finally figured that out, then?”
Nodding, Lyla runs her gentle caress along my jaw, down my neck, and over my shoulders. Had I not been kneeling next to her on the couch, she’d likely pull my borrowed shirt off and continue her exploration over my naked body. Her desire blends into mine, stirring my lusts and my need to eliminate the threat Cedric poses to us once and for all so I can enjoy every moment with my perfect match.
“I’ll come back to you.” That’s all I can say. We both understand me leaving is the way it has to be.
“Of course you will.” Lyla pushes up into a sitting position, her legs slipping between my chest and the couch. “You love me.”
I slide my hands over her cheeks and into her hair, then I press my forehead to hers. “With everything I am.”
“The retrieval team is assembled. They’re ready to leave when you are.” Ezra’s voice cuts through this moment with the other half of my soul.
I ease back enough to catch and hold Lyla’s stare. Her love burns as strongly in her eyes as it does in her soul.
“I love you.” I mouth the words I want to keep between us instead of whispering them into her soul.
With a small smile, Lyla touches her ear with slightly shaky fingers, then mouths the words back. I don’t hear them in my ear. I feel them in my heart.
After one more precious moment of staring into my mate’s soul, I glance over my shoulder at Ezra. “Let’s hunt.”
“You will hunt. I’m staying here to guard the keeper of your soul.”
As I would expect. “Thank you, brother.”
“Thank-yous are for those who choose to do something.” Ezra motions to Lyla. “There is no choice here. Losing your true mate means I lose you. That’s…” Ezra pauses as if searching for the right word. “Not acceptable. I refuse to lose my twin.”
“You won’t.”
My fingertips trail over Lyla’s soft skin as I step away, then I walk by Ezra, my arm grazing his. No other words are necessary. This isn’t goodbye.
Kade’s probing stare follows my approach, and the pressure against my mind is the same as I would feel when any non-pride shifter attempts to open a line of mental communication with me. Kade can’t force his way into my mind as an alpha normally would. Because he’s no longer mine. Bryon is.
Once I crouch near the edge of the building a block away from where Cedric kept me drugged, I nod to Rick, then open my mind to my distant cousin, former alpha, and always friend. “Kade.”
“What did he do to you?” Kade’s voice hints at an uneasiness that doesn’t show in his posture or expression.
“Cedric made me believe lies.” I link my fingers loosely between my spread legs while the unsettling thoughts of what could’ve happened had Bryon not intervened play through my mind. “Bryon pulled the veil off my eyes.”
“I can’t feel you.”
“But I can see you.” I cut Kade a quick glance. “And the vow I took when you became alpha is still one I uphold. I didn’t disavow you or our pride, even if I’m no longer technically a member. My twin is. Therefore, I will always fight for the Alexander pride and you.”
“Bryon stole you.”
“He gave me the chance to save myself. So I did.” I turn my attention to the ordinary row house in the suburb not far from the city. Humans live on either side and in every other home on this street. They know Cedric by name. They call him friend. I called him master. I crack my jaw. “Now I’m ready to save you.”
“Me?” Kade’s amusement slips through me along with the single word spoken into my mind.
“Yes, you.” I slide my stare to Rick, who meets my gaze. As a single shifter, he can’t communicate like this. He can’t throw his voice the way I’ve learned from Bryon either. Likely Rick doesn’t even know Kade and I are having this conversation. It seems wrong to hide it, but some things can’t be shared. This is one of them. The knowledge would put Rick in danger. Assassins have killed for less. “If Cedric wins, I die. If I die, you’ll have to order Zach to take my place, something you already said you wouldn’t do. I won’t leave Rick without a worthy partner, especially if Cedric convinces the alpha of the Yuran pride to hand over their family’s spirit to him.”
Pressure builds in the air around us as Kade’s tension leaks through his shields. “Cedric as a pride leader?”
“Asa is losing control of the Yuran pride. It started with Tsar lying to the Shifter Council about the contents of the Alexanders’ law book, and then with Nolan betraying Asa’s orders. Now, certain members of our world view the Yuran pride as being out of control. Cedric told me of the failed challenges Asa’s faced and his conversation with his alpha about how to make the shifter world respect the Yuran pride again.”
“And how does Cedric propose to do that?”
“Fear. How else?” I study Cedric’s house. There’s nothing special about it, nothing special about this neighborhood, nothing special about the male who owns it…except for the fact Cedric’s willing to expose the secrets of the shifter world in order to convince his alpha he’s a man worth fearing and a male who can succeed where Asa has failed. “And once people fear him, they’ll respect him. Or so he thinks.”
“And Cedric thinks controlling others is the way to make people fear him.” Kade’s tone turns somber.
“Yes. First by breaking women, then by getting people hooked on Elixir, and now—”
“Convincing people to kill themselves.”
“Yes. That kind of power is addictive, and for a man who will never be able to hold on to the role of pride leader through strength or respect, it offers a viable option. If people are afraid they too can fall under his influence as easily as others have…as I did…they won’t challenge him.”
“He didn’t influence you. The thing he called forth forced your compliance.”
“While I appreciate your words, it doesn’t change the truth. I would’ve killed Sam had Lyla not intervened.”
“And what about Lyla? How does she fit into his plans?”
“Every alpha needs a mate. I’m to share her with him. It’s supposed to be an honor.”
“She’s human. An alpha needs an heir.”
“But thanks to Nic Kagan and his human mate, we know how to overcome the little challenge our species’ differences pose. He even told me who’d supply the eggs to make the babies Lyla would carry.”
“Nina.”
“Yes. They have no intention of ever letting her go, not when she can become an egg donor for anyone willing to pay for such a service.” I tip my head toward the road in front of us. “Look.”
A human agent walking a similar-looking dog to Odin stops in front of the row house I remember all too well and lights a cigarette, the agreed-upon sign to let us know Cedric is home.
Kade nods. “Game time.”
With that, both Kade and Rick jog to the opposite end of the alley. They’ll circle around and come in through the back while human agents linger in the street. Pulling off a retrieval with innocent bystanders close by took hours in the making. Slipping up and exposing our secrets would be worse than Cedric escaping.
Neither will happen.
I button the trench coat over the clothes I soaked in blood. It’s Lyla’s, not Sam’s, but it’s human. It’ll be enough. It has to be.
With my shoulders loose and hands hanging at my sides, I cross the street and jog up the steps to the historic three-story row house. Compared to Lyla’s simple rental and Kade’s half-finished home or even the layer of newspapers my new alpha uses as a bed, Cedric’s elaborate home is a mansion paid for with the addictions of his victims—abused teenage girls like Lyla’s mom and desperate homeless men like Harry.
My feline’s fury grows, demanding to be let free. I rein in the dark urges to hunt and kill. A slave doesn’t feel anger unless he’s been told to embrace it. Everything’s supposed to be better for me after killing Sam. Cedric told me so, and that’s the image I want to portray. That�
��s the only one I can allow free. That’s the one that will allow me to win.
My lion abates first, followed by my tiger and my jaguar. They hover in my soul—one with me thanks to Lyla—and wait on my command. A slow inhale and exhale settle the last of my instinct to eliminate my enemy. It’ll happen. Just not immediately. My pride mate—even if Izzy will never again be linked to me through Kade—must be secured before exacting revenge.
With a firm push against the heavy wooden door, I walk into Cedric’s home as if I have every right to be there. Voices reach me: Cedric’s and Izzy’s. That’s it. I’m not surprised. Over the days I stayed here, only a handful of people stopped by, and they all called Cedric “Master.” Then they left to do whatever it was he wanted them to do.
I follow the voices to the sitting room, a formal parlor that looks as if it belongs in a nineteenth-century painting. Cedric sitting on an elaborate wingback chair with his ankle propped on his knee draws my attention, but it’s the naked woman curled on the floor with her cheek resting on his shoe that stops my steps. Izzy sits up, leans against Cedric’s leg, then looks in my direction, but there’s nobody home. Her vacant expression mirrors the one I’m fairly certain had been on my face when I slept under this roof.
Eyes closed, I will the anger, the hate, and the determination away. Slaves don’t feel any of those things. They don’t react either. They wait for their master’s direction.
“I smell blood.”
Cedric’s voice forces me to look upon him. It’s what’s expected. My master has spoken. I focus on the ordinary-looking lean man with his dark hair and delicate features. Weak. He’s weak, a coward who has to rely on evil to boost his self-worth. My hate stirs. I stamp it down. “Yes. I smell blood too. I’m covered in it.”
With lazy strokes, Cedric smooths Izzy’s wild hair. “You were successful, then? Sam’s dead?”
“Yes.” The lie rolls off my tongue without a second’s hesitation.