Page 66 of Untamed

"Alpha Jax and Alpha Macon taught me about them," I tell Lyri. She's gone pale. She knows of theWild, too.

Wilds are rare. And rare things are coveted. A Luna who can commune with the forest is far more than some hippie tree-hugger. We are on the verge of war, and my Qitsuk is valuable. She's a weapon. She's a target. An Unclaimed Luna. And Orion Ferax is MateLess.

My wolf makes his demand clear.

I close my fingers over my cat's soft thigh and pull. My cat comes into my arms without a struggle, but her body is stiff. She knows something is wrong, but she can't free herself with the chain still locked around her waist. My free hand comes up to tangle in myQitsuk'shair, bending her head back, revealing her neck to my teeth.

I hear Lyri's inhale, but by the time she shouts her denial, my teeth are sunk deep into myQitsuk'ssweet spot. Mating venom pools, then wells into the ragged holes I've just ripped into my mate's delicate golden skin, just above her collarbone.

Our Bliss.

"Inuit, stop it!" Lyri screams. Fingers did into my shoulders, the nape of my neck. They tighten, many hands, so much pressure, but they can't yank me away. Not without hurting my mate. My teeth won't give any quarter. No mercy in my alpha wolf. She is ours. No one else's.

Finger tighten and tighten. My head swims, spots dancing in front of my eyes. My mate is limp. The punch to her system from my Mark was too much for her. She's fainted in my arms.

Ever so carefully, I retract my canines from my Bliss's flesh. Her taste is sweeter than anything I could have ever imagined. It's hard to let go. Gently, I smooth her soft, golden mane out of her face. Just a minute ago, I would have laughed at the thought of thinking I could desire my mate more than I already did. Now I know I can be more obsessed, more in lust, more in love.

I love my Bliss.

"Grab hergently," Lyri's angry tone should have warned me, but I'm too busy admiring the fluttering, soft eyelashes brushing my mate's cheekbones.

One touch on my arm, and I'm spinning away. My mate is ripped from me in the opposite direction a half-heartbeat later. Roaring in fury, I turn to face the threat. The male blocks my claws with his forearm. Droplets of blood fly, the warm liquid splattering on my bare skin, sliding down my fingers and chest.

I don't attack him again, too concerned with the other male holding my mate. Mine.

Snarling, claws distended, canines bared, I threaten the male holding my female. The other males circle me, looking for weaknesses. I scent another female, a luna, her distress, and anger lingering at the back of my throat as something foul. I let the snarl rip from my gut. We are not happy with these intruders.

My wolf and I... we are furious. I tilt my head back and howl my rage to the sky. Let these wolves search. There are no weaknesses in us. We will destroy them all and reclaim our mate.

The softest moan drifts through my fury. My eyes fix on my beautiful female being held in another male's arms. I growl, low this time. My attention is torn between the threatening males and the golden female who belongs to us.

"Easy, In," the luna-wolf approaches me from the side, her hands held out in supplication. "Hey, sweetie. Listen, your mate needs to sleep, ok?"

I growl again. She sleeps in her nest with me. Our den.

"Right. So, calm down, In. Calm down, and you can go nap with your mate."

I growl, threatening. My wolf rumbles his agreement. The scent of blood hangs in the air, overpowering my mate's sweet arousal on my body. Claws move faster than these males, quicker than they can stop me. Another male falls back, clutching his arm and swearing.

"Can I set her down, and we back away?" the male holding my precious mate asks the other female in a low voice.

"She's so young, Ez," the luna-wolf says. "She needs medical attention. Look at how pale she is."

My mate's face has lost its golden color. I roar in fury again, my attention focusing on my mate. They've hurt my female, made her sick. Her body has started to tremble, whimpers of pain falling from her mouth. Her she-wolf is hurting.

"In, calm down! She needs you calm!" The luna-wolf,Lyri, snaps at me.

The hit to my spine, at the base of my skull, is perfect. Thjis, trained as a medic, knows how to make one hit count.

I make one last rumble of warning before darkness takes over.

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20 – Audacious

Alpha Jax

There have been three moments in my life when I could measure time in seconds, in heartbeats. Just one dull thud to the next, waiting for something to pass in between those faint, life-giving sounds. One beat, alive, the next, dead and gone forever.

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