Page 171 of Primal Bonds

Fane jerked, and she realized she’d snarled aloud.

“Jani?” Their eyes met, and she knew he must see the cougar. And then he did something unexpected. Instead of pulling away like any sensible person would, he wrapped an arm around her. “Shh. I won’t let them get you. Now how many?”

She gulped. To her surprise, the cougar subsided, soothed by his scent and calm voice.

Quickly, she sorted the voices and footsteps into separate people—a man and two women. Keeping the switchblade ready in her right hand, she held up her left, showing Fane three fingers.

He nodded and put his finger to his lips. Taking her hand, he made the two of them disappear, and together, they crept toward the door.

Marjani sent a last look at Corban. He panted softly, painfully, head on his paws, eyes half-shut.

Waiting for death.

She gritted her teeth, feeling cheated and angry and deflated, all at the same time. She’d come all this way to kill him, hated him for so long. The man wasn’t just her enemy, he was her brother’s enemy, too.

And he’d proven he would do anything to be alpha, even tear apart their still-healing clan. Just like his father.

She didn’t want to pity Corban. He’d made her and Adric’s teenage years a living hell. And later, when he couldn’t beat Adric in a fair fight for alpha, he’d tried every dirty trick in the book to undermine him. Marjani and Jace had simply been collateral damage.

Corban needed to die. But not like this, weak and maddened from iron poisoning and as mangy as a third-world dog.

The three fae were on the landing below. “The goblins reported activity in the tower.” A man’s voice.

Fane eased the door shut and pulled her into a corner opposite the door, keeping her tight against his body. He’d put himself between her and the fae, but she peered around him as the man reached the top of the stairs.

Her jaw loosened. It was the tall, leather-clad fae with cropped silver hair that she’d followed through the portal. So she’d been right to be uneasy; he must’ve known she was there. But why hadn’t he captured her immediately?

Behind him came two women. One rail-thin with ebony skin and silver hair who Marjani would bet was his sister; the other curvy with a night fae’s black eyes and an ice fae’s blond hair. Both wore short dresses that appeared to have been spun from glitter and cobwebs.

Marjani caught a whiff of the curvy blonde’s scent and recoiled. Night fae smelled of graveyards and dank basements, and this woman’s odor was strong. She had to be the fae lady in Fane’s story.

The silver-haired man shoved the door open and strode inside, followed by the woman who looked like his sister.

“Someone was here,” he snapped at Corban. “Who?”

The wolf responded with a feeble growl.

With a curse, the man reappeared in the doorway. “He can’t tell me anything as a wolf,” he told the curvy blonde. “Can you force him to shift?”

She gave him a level look. “Of course.”

He nodded and turned back to Corban.

Marjani gulped soundlessly. Fear sheeted up her spine. Only a fae who knew the secret of their quartz could force an earth fada to shift.

How many fae had Corban told, anyway?

The curvy blonde glanced around, black eyes narrowed. A dark, questing energy whispered over Marjani’s skin.

She stilled, afraid to even breathe. Beside her, Fane did the same.

Calm. Cool. Emotionless as a chunk of cheese. A slice of bread.

Night fae fed on negative emotion; the blonde must have sensed Marjani’s spike of fear. The only way to hide from a night fae was to remain still—and very, very calm. Another hint of fear, and the woman would be on them.

Marjani’s fingers tightened on the switchblade.

A frown creased the blonde’s unnaturally perfect face. The seconds ticked by.

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