Page 51 of Savage Claim

“Why were you at Rosewood Cemetery?” Fane asked, changing the subject. “I felt heartache and pain.”

Thankfully, he hadn’t decided to visit me in the cemetery in his phantom form while I sobbed. I didn’t want anyone to see me so vulnerable.

“I had to visit someone.” The tears blurred the room, so I turned away, staring out the window where an overcast afternoon sun greeted me. “A dead someone.”

“The little girl from your dreams.” Fane didn’t pose it as a question because he already knew. “The one my brother…”

Had he seen the events of that night unfold in my nightmares? Did he see Warin attack them? Did he understand why I had no choice but to end his brother?

“I don’t want to talk about it.” A stray tear slid down my cheek as memories of losing Jayla tried to drown me.

Fane unexpectedly brushed his thumb over my cheek to wipe away the moisture. Our eyes met, electricity crackling in the air between us. It always felt like he could see into my soul, even when we first met and hated each other. Kaspin’s spell didn’t change that either.

He opened his mouth to speak, but the words never came. Maybe he just wasn’t ready to say everything weighing on his mind. Instead, he wrapped his hand around mine, and the sharp anguish in my body lessened to a dull throb.

I breathed a sigh of relief and melted into the pillows. “You didn’t have to do that. I know you don’t like it.” Taking my physical pain reminded him of how strong our bond was.

“Don’t tell me what I like or don’t like, Teague.” His voice came out in gruff pants, and sweat beaded his forehead from consuming my pain.

The door opened, and Valeria floated in, her long silver hair half up in a bun. Her expression brightened when she saw that I was awake. “It’s so good to see you up.”

“Uh, yeah.” I’d rather be sleeping, blissfully unaware of the pulsing wound in my abdomen.

The old healer approached the other side of the bed and rested her hand on my forehead. “How are you feeling?”

“I’ve been better.” I tried to sit up, but I hissed as searing lava coiled around my torso. “A lot better.”

Valeria chuckled and poured a glass of water from the pitcher in the corner. “You’re in good hands with your mate. He hasn’t left your side.”

The thought of Fane keeping watch over me had warmth flooding my heart, and I smiled when my gaze met his.

And, of course, that freaked him out. He pulled his hand out of mine and awkwardly cleared his throat. “I should get Barric. He wanted to know when you woke up.” He stood and darted out of the room like a fire lit his ass.

I sighed and tried not to let the disappointment consume me. I should have been used to it by now, but it still hurt.

A strange smile pulled Valeria’s lips apart. “I’m so glad you’re feeling better. You certainly gave us a scare.”

“Why did you show me that symbol?” I asked.

The healer busied herself with fixing the covers. “What’s that, dear? What symbol?”

“The one on Barric’s painting?” When Valeria gave me a confused look, my mouth fell open. “You pointed it out.”

Valeria shrugged, the beige sweater hanging off her thin frame. “You must have me confused with someone else.”

What in the actual hell? Was I going crazy? Was the Infernal Sol affecting my mind that much?

She helped me take another sip of water and then smoothed my hair back. “No more sneaking off, at least not without your mate. We can’t have any more young ones vanish.”

“Did someone else go missing? Someone from Silver Ridge?”

Her mouth pressed into a tight line. “Charla Campbell’s friend reported her missing this morning.”

This morning?

A cold, sinking feeling hit my gut, and my palms grew clammy. That was definitely not a list of missing shifters in Barric’s office but a list of bitten shifters. Was the head alpha simply collecting names of possible victims?

Or was he providing those names to someone, maybe even The Collective?

---