Page 170 of The Soulbond and Her Beloved

A scream came from deep in the woods. A second one closer.

The sound of men shouting in pain. Snapping bone. The wet crunch of flesh.

“Emeriel!?” Daemonikai’s voice, deafening, furious, shook the forest.

She tried to cry out, but her voice was gone. Her throat crushed, lungs empty.

“Emeriel!” Another roar, closer now. Wild, murderous. “I’m going north!”

“Leave this to me,” came Lord Vladya’s voice, more beast than male.

“If you make a single sound, I’ll rip my hand into your belly and drag the little one out myself,” the masked soldier growled in her ear. He wrenched his hand from her throat, clamping it over her mouth. Dragging her backwards, her body pressed tightly to his as he pulled her from the tree.

Emeriel struggled, but her limbs were failing. She wanted to shout, to scream to her beloved that she was here. But her lungs burned, and her vision spun.

I can’t… I can’t…

Heavens, not now… please not now…

Darkness closed in.

She fainted.

***

Daemonikai had been introducing Herodis to Ravenshadow and its people when Emeriel’s call came—and he had to react immediately.

Vladya insisted on joining him, already taking his beast form as Daemonikai shifted partially, the two of them entrusting their duties to Ottai, launching into a sprint toward the forest.

The rage flooding Daemonikai’s veins was indescribable. His feet pounded the earth as he surrendered completely to his instincts, allowing them to lead him to his beloved. He was in half-shifted form when he called her name, his claws tearing through enemies, necks snapping beneath his rage as he searched.

“Emeriel!”

No answer.

His anxiety worsened. “Answer me! Just one word, dearest. One word is all I need!”

But he got nothing.

He had only one thing left to rely on—his nose. He needed to trail her scent.

Moving behind a branch that sheltered a quieter area, he suppressed the whirlwind of emotions long enough to channel his senses. His nostrils flared, his mind honing in on the moment. Focusing. Tracking.

Then, he caught the most distinct scent of her. And her fear. She had beensoafraid.

Growling, he moved fast. Soldiers tried to intercept him, but he dodged them. Leaving them for Vladya, he hunted only the one that mattered.

Then he saw her.

The masked Urekai who carried her was sprinting through the underbrush.

Daemonikai roared, launching himself forward. The assassin caught sight of him—and immediately dropped Emeriel. She hit the ground hard, tumbling to her side.

Daemonikai was about to slam into her attacker when a folded cloth was flung at him. Mid-flight, it snapped open, releasing a cloud of powdered toxins.

He jerked back, nostrils flaring.Dragonblood. Abadin leaf. The distinct scent of snakeskin—probably even snakebone mixed in.

The moment it hit him, his muscles screamed. Any ordinary Urekai would have collapsed instantly—paralyzed and helpless, but he wasn’t ordinary. Zaiper knew that, hence the overkill. A toxin blend strong enough to burn the bones of giants.

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