Eyes rolling in my head, I spotted Graeson mid-shift. The tension left my body, a weightless sensation ebbing from my center. This wasn’t the way I wanted things to end for us, but at least he would be the last thing I saw on my way out of this world. That mattered to me. A lot, I realized.

Roaring a battle cry, Graeson pivoted on his heel and lunged at Aisha. Jaws ratcheting tighter, she rumbled an eager sound in her chest. Sharp points pierced my skin, hot blood trickled down the sides of my neck, and I gasped a soundless cry as the former alpha female brought her jaws together with a powerful clacking of teeth. I gurgled a scream that died in the throat I no longer had and sank into darkness.

Chapter 19

Sunlight bathed my cheeks and teased my eyes open. Exposed beams slashed dark lines across a white ceiling. Thick log walls and rustic décor swam into focus, and recognition kicked in about the time a grizzled face leaned over me.

Graeson was here, and he had brought me to his home to recover.

“Hey,” I managed, wincing at the searing burn in my throat.

“Hey.” Graeson braced his hand on the pillow beside my head, his thumb smoothing over my cheek. “Are you staying with me this time?”

Eyes tender, I blinked him into focus. “Hmm?”

“You’ve been unconscious for three days.” His thumb ventured lower and stroked my bottom lip. “You’ve woken up a few times, and I’ve fed you and forced you to take blood. Your eyes weren’t so bright then. You look like you’re all here now.”

I rubbed my thumb over the nail concealing my spur and found it crusty with dried crimson flecks. “I’m not a vampire.”

“My blood helped heal you once.” He wisely moved his hand before the thought entered my head to bite him. “I figured it was worth a shot.” He tucked the covers in around my hips. “Aisha did a number on you.”

“Harlow?” My hand went to the bandage wrapping my throat. “Is she okay?”

“She’s gone.”

“The pack?” I jolted upright, tangling my legs in the sheet as I swung them over the edge of the mattress. “We have to get her back before—”

“No, sweetheart, I mean she’s gone.” He grimaced. “I turned my back on her when you were attacked, and she ran for it.”

“We have to find her.” Head swimming, I fisted my hands in the sheets to anchor me. “We can’t leave her out there for Bessemer.”

“The pack swept the forest.” When I would have protested, he added, “I searched the caves myself. She didn’t go back there. An erasure spell was used. There’s no trace of her.”

Gone again. Free in the world half-mad with Charybdis’s influence and no one to protect her. “Is Isaac okay? Aunt Dot?”