Page 83 of His Mark

Loud. Too loud. Fuck.

Instantly, every wolf in the group stilled.

Silas turned first, his gaze locking onto me immediately. For a moment, we just stared at each other.

Then he stood up straight and my stomach dropped into my boots.

Silas’s jaw clenched as he stalked toward me, his movements predatory and carrying the kind of quiet rage that was somehow more terrifying than him just yelling at me.

The others stayed where they were, watching, waiting.

He grabbed my wrist—not rough, but firm, his fingers wrapping around me like a shackle. “You’ve got about three seconds to explain what the fuck you’re doing here.”

I lifted my chin, meeting his glare head-on. “You know why I’m here.”

His grip tightened. “Do you have any idea what you’ve done? How dangerous it is for you to be out here?”

I forced myself to hold his gaze, even as my pulse hammered. “You left me behind.”

“For a reason, Lia,” he snarled, his frustration radiating off him in waves. “I told you to stay. Put.”

I exhaled, standing my ground. “I know and I don’t care. You may punish me—and I’m sure you will—but I’m still coming with you.”

A muscle ticked under his eye, his golden eyes flashing with something hotter than just anger.

For a second, I thought he might actually throw me over his shoulder and haul me back himself, but then his grip loosened and his furious breathing slowed, as if he was working very hard to keep himself in check.

Rowan and Varek approached. Varek looked somewhere between amused and irritated, while Rowan just sighed heavily, shaking his head.

“Well,” Varek drawled, crossing his arms, “this just got interesting.”

Silas let out a slow, controlled breath, trying not to snap. “We can’t send her back now.”

Rowan nodded, rubbing his jaw. “It’s too far for her to go on her own without one of us to protect her.”

Apparently, he missed the part where I’d gotten this far without them. Still, I kept quiet, waiting to see what came next.

Silas’s eyes burned into mine. “Fine. You stay.” His nostrils flared. “But I promise you, Lia, when this is over?—”

I sneered, cutting him off. “I know: I’m in so much trouble.”

His fingers twitched, like he was holding himself back from dealing with me right here, right now.

“You stay close. You do exactly what I say. You don’t wander. You don’t argue. You don’t run off on your own.”

I gave him my most innocent smile. “Of course,Alpha.”

His grip on my wrist tightened painfully.

I was so dead.

But at least now, I was exactly where I wanted to be.

* * *

The rest of the day was a brutal march south.

The men barely spoke as we moved, their attention fully focused on the path ahead, their eyes constantly sweeping the terrain. Even Varek, who had spent the first few days of the journey needling Rowan and Silas for entertainment, was quiet, his silver eyes scanning the trees like he expected something to crawl out at any second.

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