Page 117 of Primal Bonds

He pushed himself to stand on wobbly legs, and snarled at the night fae.

Tyrus stalked toward him—and Jace struck.

A jaguar’s bite was twice as strong as a lion’s. He could kill an animal by sinking his teeth into its skull. Jace went for Tyrus’s spinal cord, determined to end this.

But the night fae was incredibly fast. In the blink of an eye, he was on the other side of the small room. Still, Jace had him on the run. The dark feeding stopped as the other man focused on surviving.

Evie scuttled into a corner, smart enough to get out of the way. Something glowed in her hand—a fae light. She held it up, casting a light over their battle.

Tyrus raised a hand and muttered a phrase in an ancient fae language. The air gathered into a sharp point and flew at Jace. It would’ve taken out his eye if he hadn’t flung himself to the side, but instead, it sliced open his cheek.

He leapt for Tyrus and again, the fae evaded him. Jace’s jaguar rumbled angrily. They circled each other, breathing hard.

Tyrus raised his hand and muttered another spell. This time, the air formed itself into a rope that wrapped around Jace’s throat like a noose. He clawed furiously at it, but it was some magical material that repelled his attempts to dislodge it. The noose tightened. His vision darkened at the edges. He made one last, desperate attempt to sink his teeth into Tyrus but the other man easily pushed him off.

“No!” Evie dashed between them, the fae light in her hand, and shoved it into Tyrus’s face.

The room seemed to explode. Tyrus’s body lit up with an eerie blue fire that danced up and down his limbs, burning through his clothes. The scent of scorched flesh filled the air. He shrieked and stumbled backward.

Jace blinked, temporarily blinded, but he could hear Tyrus moaning to his left. He growled and moved toward him, the cat in ascendance. The fae was slumped against the wall, hands to his face.

Jace pounced, slapping his paws on Tyrus’s chest and ripping open his throat. The sickening taste of metal and decay filled his mouth. He gave Tyrus a hard shake, and the body flopped lifelessly in his grip. He let Tyrus fall to the dirt floor and stood over him, still partially blinded. He was quiet, but was he dead? He cocked an ear and heard the faint beating of the fae’s black heart.

Evie was moaning. “Ohmigod. Ohmigod.”

The rock over the entrance shifted, and shadows moved down the ladder. Jace growled, still unable to see clearly, until he recognized the scents as Marjani and Zuri.

Tyrus’s breath rattled in.

“He’s not dead,” Evie breathed. “Oh, God.”

Jace’s vision cleared enough to see Marjani thrust an iron blade beneath Tyrus’s rib cage. A single expert stab to the heart, one of the only sure ways to kill a fae.

Tyrus grunted and then went limp.

“Now he is,” Marjani said.

Chapter 36

Adric ignored Kane to focus on Corban. He and his oldest cousin were evenly matched, his cougar as large as Corban’s wolf. He’d beat Corban once before in a fair fight—the duel for alpha, with the clan’s lieutenants and top soldiers as witnesses.

This time, it wouldn’t be fair, and his animal was coldly pleased. Fuck the rules. Corban needed to die.

Adric crouched low, ears back, and bared his teeth. Kane circled uneasily, his gaze darting between Corban and Adric.

Adric’s tail twitched. Traitor.

Kane’s eyes cut to his brother. Corban growled, and Kane whined. Then he made up his mind and ranged himself next to Corban.

So be it. Adric would take them both on.

Corban’s muscles bunched, preparing to attack. Adric struck first, darting in and sinking his teeth into Corban’s ruff. The wolf’s blood filled his mouth, hot and salty.

Corban shook him off and snapped at Adric’s leg. Adric danced away. Kane sidled closer for a sneak attack, and Adric snapped, tearing a gash in Kane’s muzzle.

The battle started in earnest then. The two wolves came at Adric from either side, but he twisted and leapt straight up, and they crashed into each other.

He came down and ripped into the nearest nape with his teeth. It was Kane. He gripped his vertebrae and gave him a vicious shake. There was the sound of snapping bones, and the wolf grunted and went limp, his head at an odd angle.

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