Page 86 of Toward Immortal Ruin

Even his whisper made her ears burn, the sound too loud.

Groaning, Eden shoved out of his grip, dropping to the floor. The contact with the wood sizzled against her skin. Her nerve endings were on fire, escalating from pins and needles to something akin to shards of glass forcing themselves intoevery cell. Pressure began pushing impossibly outward, and the resulting sensation nearly ripped her apart.

A scream sounded—her own—but Eden couldn’t concentrate on anything outside of the pain. The sound reverberated in her skill, making her moan in agony. Attempting to center herself, she pressed her hand against the floor, digging her fingers in. The wood splintered.

Her eyes snapped open. Inch long claws protruded from her nailbeds, the stark realization of the situation hitting both her and Nero at the same time.

Eden was turning into her wolf.

Chapter Thirty-Three

Nina, Eden’s attempting theshift! We need Aidan!

Nero’s telepathic shout would have reached Eden’s sire even if she’d been a world away. Fortunately, she was already close by. With theCitizensreleasing nearly one hundred rabid werewolves on the streets of Oahu, they had needed the kind of backup only a Reaper’s gift could bring.

Nina appeared beside him instantly, her ice blue eyes widening. “She’s too far into the process.Youhave to help her through.”

“Get Aidan!” Nero demanded, baring his teeth with a flare of temper.

Warning flashed in those cool blue eyes as she turned on him. “Nero, get ahold of yourself! We’re one step away from immortals being exposed. Aidan stays where he is, protecting our people.Youwill need to help Eden through her change.”

“I’ve never shifted into a wolf!”

“You’ve shifted into your panther,” she growled back, already refocusing on teleporting back to the front line. “Call on your animal if you can’t do it.”

As Nina vanished, Nero jumped into action.

Getting onto his knees, he found his mate’s eyes closed as she struggled against the pain of the transition. The sound of her bones breaking, reforming, and realigning made him cringe, but he pressed onward.

“Eden, submit to the change,” Nero commanded, his every drop of focus on the woman before him. “Allow the wolf to morph your body as she needs. The less you resist, the less it will hurt. You have to surrender, Eden. Trust your wolf.”

Her whimper, more animal than human, scored his heart. In his mind, a proximity alarm bell rang, but he banished the urge to attend to the territory when his mate needed him.

Nero reached outward with his gift, soothing the fear inside her, and encouraging calmness into her psyche. Through their bond, he could feel the agony she was in, the paralyzing pressure that continued mounting while theotherpresence surfaced.

"That’s it, Eden, let your wolf guide you.”

As he spoke the words, her nose elongated, and her legs and arms began to shift. Halfway changed from human to wolf, a pulse of pride barreled through their mating bond, enveloping her in his confidence that she could do this.

A psychic alarm blared as his borders were breached. Immediately, his gifts speared toward the intrusion, cataloging how many minds had run through his wards. There was at least a dozen, if not more. Immortals—but not sane.

The howls from beyond the windows caused a chill to race up his spine. Rabid werewolves were coming for them, and Eden was vulnerable.

Nero snarled. Loathing the fact that his attention was being pulled away from his mate, he telepathically reached out to his lieutenants. None of them could be spared, but he was here—and he’d never leave her.

His panther surfaced, roaring through his human throat. Though the cat didn’t want to leave his mate any more than the man did, both Eden and the Raeths in the shelter below the dome would die if he allowed those wolves to enter the building.

Many argued that fear, guilt, or anger were the strongest emotions, the ones who could drive people to do unspeakable things. Nero knew the emotion that eclipsed all others was the primordial urge toprotect.

A mother bear guarding her cubs, an alpha wolf defending his pack, a Raeth shielding his mate. It was the driving force the compelled Nero to keep Eden safe.

A glimmer of movement was visible through the dome’s windows. Using his elbow to break a pane of glass, he manifested the compound bow he kept in his arsenal. The long-range weapon would be the best defense until they drew closer. If he could pick them off before they arrived, there would be no reason for him to leave Eden.

“I’m here, mate—I’m not leaving,” he reiterated. “Your wolf is rising—let her. You need to become one. Make space for her, let her know she can have control.”

Arrows began whistling through the air only seconds later. His bow seldom saw use, but his aim was true. Four more times, the arrows found their target. With the commotion, the rabid werewolves made Nero’s position. The pack altered course, heading directly for them.

It was an impossible situation. As he turned back to his mate, he hesitated. Touching Eden might only heighten her pain.

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