Page 89 of Tethered to the World
It was the only way she could think of to save him.
Chapter Twenty-two
Mason panted, his senses returning as his baser urges to murder and destroy released their hold on him, and he scanned his surroundings to see the forest drenched with carnage, only breathing easier when he found no sign of Annora…or her body.
Dozens of wolves lay scattered around him, none of them moving. He lifted his head, scenting the air, nearly dropping to his knees when he was sure none of the blood was hers.
He hadn’t hurt her in his rampage.
As his logic returned in fits and starts, he began to track her. Then nearly cursed when he noticed she’d headed away from the house and farther into the woods.
His fault.
This was all his fault.
If he hadn’t wanted time alone with her, hadn’t wanted to show her that the forest he loved so much wasn’t a threat, she wouldn’t have been in danger. He picked up his pace and began running, uncaring that he was plowing through small trees and vegetation.
He reached for the connection between them and felt her ragged breathing…the fuckers were still chasing her.
He pushed the connection harder and reached for the guys.“If you can hear me, Annora is in trouble. She needs you.”
His thoughts were cut off when two wolves shot out of the forest, knocking into him with enough force to lay him flat on his back. Their fangs and claws sank deep into his flesh, and a bellow of pain escaped him. He kicked one in the face, bones crunching, tearing a chunk of flesh out of his thigh when the dog refused to release his hold when he flew back. He climbed to his feet, grabbed the wolf gnawing on the back of his neck by his scruff, and threw him across the clearing.
The beast gave a yip of pain, his spine cracking against the trunk of the tree, before he dropped to the ground with a heavy thump and didn’t move. But by the time he took off again, the connection to Annora was completely gone.
The silence at the back of his mind was deafening, and his troll gave a roar of denial.
She was gone.
* * *
Annora raced through the trees, the slap of branches and twigs shredding her skin. The wolves kept pace with her, driving her forward, and instinct warned her she was being herded.
She could ghost and escape them, but they were too close to the house.
She couldn’t endanger the men.
For the first time in a long time, the pain in her chest brought her no pleasure. If she lost the men, she was very much afraid the darkness inside her would take over and consume everyone around her.
When she burst into the clearing, she wasn’t surprised to find Tyson and his group of goons in human form. The smug smile on the bastard’s face made her want to wipe it away. She pulled up short, skidding to a stop, her breathing raspy as she surveyed her opponents.
“Why are you doing this?” They couldn’t know who she was. Why target her?
Tyson raised a brow, his nasty smirk revealing wicked fangs that pierced his lips and drew blood. “Wolves have been denied their station for too long. This drug will show everyone that we belong on top of the food chain. We’re destined to be in charge.”
He strutted forward like a cocky rooster, and it was all she could do not to roll her eyes. “Do you even have any idea what the drug is doing to you? Do you honestly believe the others will stand aside and allow you to kill other shifters so you can get your fix?”
The audacity of the plan took her breath away.
“By the time the others figure it out, it’ll be too late. We’ll be in charge.” He closed the space between them, his eyes a feral yellow, the drug so rooted in his system he was fucking insane.
With every step he took, the darkness unfurled inside her.
When his eyes flickered behind her, his smile turned into a scowl.
Annora whirled, trying to ghost.
Only to have Terrance slam a rock against her temple so hard the world went dark.
