Page 77 of The Wolf

I sigh. He’s got a long road ahead of him. But at least now, it’s his road to walk. That’s a start.

Then, suddenly, Meg screams. The sound is piercing and sharp, cutting through the air like a blade.

“Alex!” Julia’s voice follows immediately, filled with urgency that sends a jolt of alarm through me.

I whirl around, my instincts already screaming danger.

The minotaur is charging.

Massive and terrifying, his muscular frame barrels forward with single-minded determination, curled horns angled low. His nostrils flare, eyes are wild, bloodshot, and locked onto Meg with an intensity that leaves no doubt about his intentions.

Meg doesn’t move. She’s just staring at him, frozen in place, like all of her usual sharpness and snark have been stripped away, overtaken by sheer terror.

She’s completely vulnerable, and it’s wrong. It’s so fucking wrong I can’t process it fast enough.

In an instant, I’m in motion, snarling in a warning, claws fully extended ahead.

Vernox dives down from his perch, spreading his wings and dropping from the tower in one fluid motion beside me. Together, we cut off the minotaur’s path, positioning ourselves between him and Meg. And for once, I don’t care that the bastard is here. But that hardly earns him any points.

“Stop!” I roar at the charging mass of fur and muscle ahead, my commanding voice reverberating through the castle grounds. My claws flex, prepared to fight if it comes to that.

The minotaur skids to a halt, his hooves gouging deep grooves into the earth. He snorts, his chest heaves as he glares at me, his nostrils flaring wider, the scent of his overwhelming desire thick in the air. He’s barely holding himself back, hismuscles tensed, ready to spring again. I don’t move. I wonder if he even hears me. His eyes are wild, filled with an animalistic hunger that I recognize all too well.

“We don’t act like this around here,” I say, my voice steady, even though my heart is pounding with a rush of adrenaline.

He huffs again, and for a second, I think he’s going to charge anyway. His hands clench into massive fists, and his gaze flickers between me and Meg, still lingering behind me. I can see it in his eyes—he’s lost in something bigger than me, bigger than him.

I square my stance, bracing for the impact, my mind racing through every scrap of knowledge I have about minotaurs. I’ve never fought one before. Hell, I’m not even sure if I can win this, especially with the current state he’s in—feral, unhinged, horny. I don’t like my odds. But I brace myself either way.

“Julia,” I say, my tone low and deliberate, though I don’t take my eyes off him. “Get Meg out of here. Now.”

Julia doesn’t argue. She grabs Meg’s arm, tugging her away. “Come on, babe,” she urges, her voice gentle but firm, but I catch the sheer panic on her face.

Meg doesn’t resist, though her body is stiff as concrete, her feet dragging slightly as the two head toward the safety of the castle. She’s not even trying to hide how shaken she is. It’s so unlike her that it makes my chest tighten.

Once their scent fades into the distance, I turn my attention back to the minotaur.

He’s still staring after Meg, nostrils flaring as he sniffs the air, completely fixated on something he doesn’t yet fully understand.

But I know that look—the primal, overpowering, hunger that comes from instincts left unchecked. That raw, unbridled need when every fiber of your being is suddenly screamingmine.It’s all-consuming and impossible to reason with.

I know it because I’ve felt it—this pull, like something deep inside me clicked into place. The first time I saw my Julia, it hit me like a thunderclap, obliterating every thought except the desperate urge to claim her, protect her, make her mine in every sense of the word. It wasn’t love—well, not at first. Love came later, softer and deeper, as I got to know her sharp tongue, her defiant heart, and the gentleness she hides beneath her walls. Yet, that first moment, that visceral intensity, it was pure instinct, and it terrified me how little control I had over it.

That’s why I recognize the minotaur’s gaze now. He’s trapped in that moment, unable to see anything beyond the haze of desire, a prisoner to the monstrous nature his captors have forced him to embrace. Where I had the chance to grow beyond it, he doesn’t even know there’s anything more. I feel for him, but that behavior is unacceptable and won’t be tolerated here.

The minotaur’s pulse eventually slows, but he’s still trembling with unspent energy as he fights internally to contain himself. His wild gaze follows their retreating forms, and I step into his line of sight, forcing him to look at me instead.

His ears twitch, but he doesn’t move, locking eyes with me, his breaths harsh and guttural.

“Breathe.” I step closer, though I remain ready to defend myself if he snaps again. “You’re not a beast anymore. You’re free. But freedom comes with rules. Do you understand me?”

He growls low in his throat, the sound vibrating in the air between us.

“You’ve been kept like an animal, trained to act on instinct, to take what you want.” I pause, keeping my voice steady. “But that’s over. Here, we’re better than that. You want to stay? You learn control—and you learn it fast.”

His breathing begins to even out, though the tension in his frame remains.

“Do you even know what you were doing just now?”

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