Page 149 of The Hunger
They could starve me.
They could humiliate me.
They could make me bleed.
But by the gods, they would not harm what was mine.
That thin barrier inside of me gave way under the pressure of that dark thing that would no longer be denied. I howled with pleasure and relief as it broke free and hunted for what it needed.
Aubrey’s lust was closest. I stole it all, disregarding her resistance as easily as she’d disregarded mine. Fenris’s sweet lust flooded me. My heart. My soul. My purpose for existing. I took what he willingly gave.
“You want strength? I’ll show you strength,” I purred as my hunger called to those farther away. “I was made in the image of a goddess most loved to incite the folly of man. No one will stand in my path and survive. Kneel before me. Kneel before your mistress.”
Aubrey fell to her knees, hate lacing her features. It grew as more wolves entered the clearing and witnessed her fall from power.
“Your violence isn’t your strength. It’s your weakness. You proved that when you succumbed to the urge to eat human flesh.” I breathed in more lust. The shaking stopped. The coldness went away.
Around us, wolves started to pant and yip. A few paired off.
“This will be the strongest pack of your race, but not because of you, Aubrey. It will be because we—Fenris and I—will change things to make it stronger.”
Fenris’s desire to come to me shook him as he fought the command Raiden had given him. I raged at his father’s abuse of power. My gaze sought him out.
“Release him.”
Immediately, Fenris strode toward me and wrapped me in his arms. I breathed in his lust, then took it a step further. Setting my hands on his shoulders, I jumped up and wrapped my legs around his waist. His hands drifted to my legs, gripping me and holding me in place.
“I’m yours, Fenris. Will you be mine?”
“Always and forever.”
I kissed him hungrily, feeding as I gave him what he most desired. I publicly staked my claim to him. When I pulled away, he groaned but released me.
I faced Raiden.
“You will never again command your son.”
He bowed his head. To the others, it might look like he was conceding to me. But I knew better. I’d implanted the thought, binding Raiden’s control over his son like Raiden’s pathetic druid had tried to bind me.
“And you will remove his tracking spell. It’s no longer needed.”
Another incline of his head.
I looked at Fenris, threading my fingers through his.
“Let’s go home, my mate. You can show me your boot trick.”
I slathered an ungodly amount of peanut butter on his sandwich as Fenris sat at the kitchen island and watched me.
“Are we going to talk about what happened?” he asked.
Adding the jelly, I wrinkled my nose at him then slid the food his way.
“Depends on what part has you feeling so happy.”
He grinned at me.
“Everything after the part where you stopped hurting so much. But I’d like to know what happened to get you to that point.”
