SWNOVELS Chapter 100
Chapter One Hundred
I know Oliver. He's one of Philipe's most loyal foot soldiers. He and his brothers, Felix and Emile, are a force to be reckoned with. They trained together to fight as a team, and I've seen what they can do. Emile, the wolf that Eric attacked, sinks his jaws into Eric's flank. I scream as thought it were my flesh between his teeth. At the same time Eric growls, swinging his hind legs back to fling Emile off. I rush forward, knowing what comes next. Emile is the distraction-Oliver is the real fighter. Eric spots me, and snarls, fangs bared at me, before wheeling around to meet Oliver's charge. The snarl is as clear to me as if he spoke: get out of the way.
A gust of wind lifts my ponytail and chills my neck, reminding me that I don't have my wolf. I'm a liability here, not an asset.
I curse the Seer for the millionth time. How am I supposed to purify my heart if I'm defenseless in an attack?
I can't purify it if I'm lying dead in the Alaskan wilderness.
Slowly, I back up toward the truck. I don't look away from the fight. My eyes dart between Felix and Emile, wondering which of them will be the one to kill me.
But the attack never comes.
Eric is bigger than the brothers, but his size doesn't slow him down. He's not defending himself anymore, either-he's on the offensive.
He's a blur of movement, his teeth flashing as he lunges at one brother, his claws flying through the air at another. Fur and blood fly through the air, and there are deep gouges in the asphalt of the parking lot under their feet. It's not a fair fight, because three against one isn't enough to challenge Eric.
Oliver howls, his tail pointed down, and just like that it's over. Emile and Felix limp after their brother into the trees, leaving Eric and I alone in the parking lot again.
Eric's wolf takes a few deep breaths while he heals the minor injuries he sustained. Then he shifts back. His human form is just as impressive as the wolf. I can't help the way my eyes drift down to take in all of him.
He's huge, everywhere. The glimpse I got last night before he shifted didn't do him justice. Heat races through my body, settling low in my belly. Every inch of his skin sparks desire in me, from the top of his powerful shoulders, to his tree-trunk thighs and massive-
This is Eric. You can't want Eric, I remind myself.
When I yank my gaze back to his face, he's not smirking or cocky the way Cam would be if he caught me ogling him like that.
He's livid.
"Who are they?" he demands.
"I-I don't know. Didn't recognize them," I lie.
He stares me down and I know he's counting my heartbeats. Listening to my breaths. Thank the Goddess for adrenaline, because both things are faster than usual.
Finally, he makes a gruff noise in the back of his throat and stalks past me to the truck. He opens the back and pulls a fresh set of clothing out of his backpack.
"That was reckless and stupid," he says, slamming the hatch shut. "I told you to stay in the truck, not because I'm some heartless asshole who wants to confine you. I smelled unfamiliar wolves. I didn't know how they'd react to our presence."
"I didn't sense them," I say, stunned.
"Of course not! You don't have your wolf! And it will help us both out a great deal if you could remember that and stop flinging yourself stubbornly into danger!"
I stalk around to the passenger side of the car and get in.
"You could have told me we had company," I grumble.
"I don't have to tell you anything, especially when you're brother's wolves are roaming around, coming after us. Don't try to tell me those weren't his allies, either. I'm not stupid. From here on out, when I give you an order, you obey it. That's how this works."
He pulls out of the gas station and back onto the highway. A mile slips by. Then two. Then ten.
I stew silently in my seat the whole time.
"I can't imagine what it feels like to lose your wolf."
He rubs the center of his chest, like the thought of losing that part of him is causing him the same physical ache that I feel.
I do feel it—all the time. It's a bruise on my insides, a faint echo of what it felt like when the Seer bound my wolf, but when I bump up against it accidentally, the sensation sharpens.
Most of the time, I can ignore it. I've gotten good at numbing myself to constant pain.
"I shouldn't have yelled at you like
that," Eric adds. "It must be hard, not being able to defend yourself the way you normally would. I know how important this trip is to you, and that you wouldn't risk our lives oma whim."
It's almost an apology. Coming from Eric, it's practically groveling.
"I'm sorry I put us in danger. Thank you for saving my life," I say.
He lifts one shoulder. "You die, I die. Nothing else to it."