Page 71 of Forbidden Wolf

The blades of the helicopters began to slowly move, and vampires and lycans emerged from the castle and ran toward them.

A familiar tingle rippled up and down my spine, and a magnetic tug formed in my solar plexus. My aura pulsed with awareness and I felt the heat of a powerful stare land on me.

Levi’s grip on my hand tightened and his back stiffened. He half spun to glance behind us. “What’s happening?”

“The master hellspawn…” I whispered, torn between fear and excitement. There was something about this man that drew me to him even though I didn’t want to go. A connection existed that made me want to cower in the safety of his arms.

A figure emerged from the shadows, his crimson eyes glowing in the darkness. He called to my blood with a sensual song that halted my footsteps. His arm raised as he held his hand out to me.

Part of me wanted to go, needed to find oblivion in his embrace.

“I don’t fucking think so, buddy. This vampire already has a mate.” Levi grabbed me around the waist and tossed me over his shoulder like I weighed nothing. His hand landed on my ass, the other hand levering us in through the door of a helicopter.

The master hellspawn stepped forward, the magnetism in his eyes screaming for me to come to him. My soul was torn between two men, both summoning me in different ways.

The helicopter began to move into the air, the sound deafening yet I heard the master hellspawn’s soul-wrenching scream. His arms stretched toward me and his fangs were illuminated by the moon overhead.

Levi’s hand cupped my face, moving it so that all I could see was him. His tawny gaze bored deep into me, infusing warmth into my soul where ice had started to form. I began to shake, unable to bear the burden of the emotional weight that was drowning me.

I finally understood why my mother could not resist the man who claimed her. Whatever was wrong with me meant that I was susceptible to that monster who sent his people to kill without remorse. When I was caught in his gaze, I felt powerless to resist him. I burrowed myself deep into Levi’s embrace, borrowing his strength while he stroked my hair.

The future formed in a vision in my mind, and pain erupted in an inferno in my chest. Levi lay dead with the master hellspawn standing over him, blood dripping from the long talons on his fingers. I sat impassively watching from a throne made of bones and skulls. Queen to an army of the dead.

***

Tasha

Levi’s base was a huge metal and concrete structure with massive guns and spotlights protruding from the sides and roof. The helicopters landed outside to allow us to jump out, before they flew off to permit the next helicopter to land.

Large metal shutters slowly rolled up to reveal an entrance hall. Dozens of black-clad lycans with weapons met us. For a moment, I wondered if they were an execution squad. My gaze met the fear filled eyes of some of the other vampires. Dean took a position in front of them, as if he alone could prevent their demise within this lycan facility.

The air sizzled with testosterone and tension, fangs and canines on display.

Levi waved his arm. “Put your weapons down. These vampires are our allies. Find them somewhere to call home until we get this sorted out.”

The vampires relaxed their shoulders. Their faces were pale, and the stress showed around their eyes. Stretchers with injured soldiers were carried into the building. Not sure where I fit into all this, I began to move behind the other vampires being shown to their new accommodation. A strong hand grabbed my arm and held me in position. My chest tightened and my breathing became erratic at the contact.

Levi continued to talk behind me to his pack leaders, instructing them to keep their eyes open and ears to the ground. He was so self-assured that his confidence could be confused with arrogance. His thumb caressed a small circle on my arm, and my stomach exploded in a cascade of butterfly wings sounding a tribal beat.

Some of the lycan females cast curious looks in my direction. Another wave of uncertainty crashed over me. They were tall and beautiful, their eyes glowing amber in warning as they stared at me.

When was the last time I washed my hair?

“We’re in the middle of a war,” Levi snapped, startling me as his heat pressed behind me. “Do I need to find you all something to do?”

Their curious gazes turned into indignant stares before the three lycan females stormed off without speaking a word.

I sighed while watching them. This treaty was never going to work if there was this much hostility.

“I should be with the other vampires.”

Levi didn’t reply, his grip on my arm tightening before he marched me through the base. Every time I tried to stop to examine the architecture, I was carried forward by the force of his powerful stride. My heart rate spiked as fear and excitement mixed in equal measure in my blood. There was no evidence of the affection he showed me at the vampire castle earlier, just a suppressed aggression that tightened his jaw and made him seem twice as tall.

We finally came to a room and Levi pushed me inside, before slamming the door behind us. My mouth went dry at the sight of him standing with his back to me, one hand on the door as if by his will alone he kept everyone outside.

“What’s going on, Levi?”

He stood there for so long I didn’t think he was going to answer. My life was haunted by one perfect summer. No one had ever matched up to the Levi I created in my head. Now the man was here, I was clueless to what I was supposed to do or say. He was more than I remembered, more determined than the man who saved me a few months ago. My body reacted to his presence instinctively.

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