Page 50 of Bullied Wolf Mate

I turned and sprinted for the woods, but I slammed into an invisible barrier. I turned, and there was another one. Andothers on each side. She had trapped me in an invisible two-by-two box.

“Caught you,” Inara smirked, holding out her hand. A fireball emerged in her hand. “Let’s see if that amulet keeps you fireproof, too.”

Chapter 21 - Mark

I charged through the portal I had just created with the knife we’d bought from the witch. Nausea washed over me as I crossed the threshold, but I pushed it to the side. I didn’t have time to think about that.

I lifted my head, sniffing the air. A jolt of something like triumph mixed with fear washed over me and my wolf as I caught the faintest trace of Lorelei’s oak and vanilla scent. She had been here recently. Unfortunately, mixed in with her scent was another familiar one. One I was far less happy to encounter. Inara’s.

Several other wolves appeared through the portal behind me. Jameson and Declan stalked forward, both of them looking at me, waiting for me to take the lead. Malcolm, Klyte, Oliver, and Sam lined up behind Jameson, while Jackson, Nolan, and Will padded behind Declan, claws digging into the ground, waiting to race through the trees. The rest of both teams had stayed behind to protect from any counterassault. Letting out a low growl, I turned and followed Lorelei’s scent down a thin trail.

Just as her scent was beginning to grow in strength, another vaguely familiar scent masked it. Crashing brush sounded to the side, and a moment later, a women with a suppression collar locked around her neck came racing down the hill. Holly. She caught sight of us and charged toward us.

“Lorelei is up there!” she cried. “Hurry!”

She clambered onto Jameson, and we continued moving up the slope. We came to the middle of a clearing, and I pulled up short. Lorelei stood on one side, clutching a staff, crouched as though ready to spring. On the other side was Inara, her facecontorted in fury as she glared at Lorelei. I watched in horror as she hurled something that looked like a fireball at Lorelei.

Lorelei stayed where she was, not even ducking. A moment later, I understood why. The fire dissipated feet away from Lorelei as if it had slammed into a wall.

“It’s not going to work,” Lorelei jeered. “You’re going to have to try better than that. No magic is getting through.”

Inara took a step toward Lorelei, unsheathing a knife.

I let out a guttural snarl and charged toward Inara. Lorelei gasped, looking toward me. Relief broke out across her face. The witch spun, her eyes widening in surprise. She took a single step back, then her eyes narrowed, growing shrewd.

“I should have known your wolves would get here eventually,” she drawled. “No matter. They’ll be simple enough to deal with.

As I charged forward, she made a gesture with her hand. Something shifted in the air. Behind me, I could hear the other wolves snarling and growling their protests. Reluctant to take my gaze away from Inara, but needing to know what had happened, I turned to glance quickly over my shoulders, only to see several of the wolves trying to push forward but getting nowhere, as if an invisible wall was there.

I looked over at Inara, understanding what had happened. She had created a barrier so it was only the two of us, preventing the rest of the Silver Wolves and Gold Wolves from being able to charge in to help.

Before she could cast anything else, I jumped in the air, lunging toward her, jaw open, ready to crunch around her neck. Inara hurled what looked like a black mass toward me.

The spell slammed into me, and I yelped. Even though the amulet absorbed most of the blow, it was strong enough that it knocked me to the side, and I collapsed to the ground. By the time I staggered to my paws, Inara had already started walking toward me, the blade outstretched.

“I’m going to kill you nice and slow,” she hissed. “And make sure that all of your friends and that bitch over there get to watch. And then I’ll kill her and your pup, and I’ll pick you all off one by one.”

I lunged for her again. This time, when she hurled another, all I felt was a warmth against my chest. Whatever she had thrown this time, the amulet had taken care of it. My paws landed on her shoulder, pushing her to the ground.

With a shriek, Inara grabbed the talisman around my neck even as I tried to bite down on her. The strap snapped, and the amulet broke free. She gave a triumphant laugh and flung it away, deep into the grass and out of reach.

Her hand wrapped around my front leg. Burning pain ran up it to the joint, and I yelped. But that was nothing compared to the agony that erupted in my side as a knife plunged into my side. Inara yanked it out, holding it, poised to strike again as the hurt threatened to consume me.

I couldn’t let her keep going. I had to fight through the pain.

I swiped with my claws, dragging them across her stomach. She screamed and doubled over, which was when I sprung into the air.

My front paws slammed into her shoulders, knocking her onto the ground. She cried out, arms reaching out to hold me back. But it was too late.

My jaw wrapped around her neck, and I bit down. Bones crunched beneath my teeth. Inara jerked, giving a final indistinct, guttural sound before she stilled.

Her body crumpled to the ground as I released it. I stepped back, watching to make sure she didn’t stir. When I was finally satisfied she was gone, I shifted back to human, groaning as my aches and bruises slammed into me.

My gaze landed on a wide-eyed Lorelei, her face pale and terrified. It was only when I gave an exhausted smile that she ran over, wrapping her arms around me.

“Thank god you’re okay,” she said. “I thought she would…” she trailed off, shuddering. “I’m just glad you’re all right.”

“I’m glad you’re okay, too,” I said.

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