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How are you hearing them, Wulfe? Lyon asked quietly

And that was the real question The one he didn’t want to answer He hesitated as the lump in his stomach slowly turned to lead He was the only one who could see the warding Warding that was ar had said He was the only one who could hear the High Daeoddess had knohat she was doing when she gave hio Perhaps his outside matched his inside end, he told them, that the wolf clan, at leastof a female wolf shifter and a Daeht be true

Fuck, Wulfe, Jag said You’re part Daean to pound

Melisande knelt at the huge fox’s side, stroking hi and lay down, not , Fox?"

My animal has been compromised

"What do you mean?"

The flashbacks I haven’t told you about all of them Inir infected my animal spirit with darkness after he cut it out of Sly, one of my predecessors It’s not the same as the seventeen--I’ to be able to controland my actions He won’t let meyou helped you regain control"

Yes The fox spirit see a deep breath, she pressed her hand to the top of Fox’s furry head, closed her eyes, and called on her gift But though she felt her hands war you"

You are But the darkness is growing stronger

Melisande refused to give up She dug deeper, pulled harder, until sweat broke out on her brow Finally, she felt hi her hand away, she sat back on her heels, catching her breath, as he turned back into a man

He kissed her softly "Thank you"

"You’re welco her up with hi, dodging the sentinels’the area But as they reached an open space between the forest’s trees and those hugging the rocks, three Mage sentinels approached

Melisande and the two Ferals ducked behind the nearest trees Her heart thudded in her chest, the tree bark biting into her back as she listened for any indication they’d been spotted, and heard none The sentinels’ footsteps didn’t change teaze to where Fox once more shifted into his animal, but this time he downsized quickly and did not appear to be in distress

Did you do that on purpose? she asked hi to have to silence these three, I’ theto escape with Kara Assu one of the Mage, the memory of the bodies they’d left in the snow ca oncein their death throes

As if he heard her thoughts, the s your sword unless it’s for self-defense Not yet Proht disgusted the warrior in her But she was still badly shaken by her e any of theht, she told him And she was relieved because that old, old part of her, the Ceraph, recoiled fro

Are you still a dead aim with your knives, Castin? Fox asked

I am, but I only have one

Keep an eye on o after the second Then, without further talk, the s into the bushes not far froe approached Two of the sentinels walked side by side, but a third trailed them by several yards

As Melisande watched, Fox shifted directly behind the trailing man, covered his mouth, and yanked him into the bushes Moments later, the s pair A bolt of lightning tore across the clear blue sky

Out of the corner of her eye, Melisande saw Castin twirling his knife between his fingers She was still reeling from his words, his claim that he’d never betrayed her, that he hadn’t even knohat happened to her All the years of her captivity, he’d been a slave to the wolverines

And she believed him Not once had she seen hih she’d cursed his naood side to all of this, at least she’d found him when she couldn’t mist and couldn’t easily kill him Because, apparently, he’d never deserved to die

Deep inside, soated herself for being duped, for believing hi at all

As she watched, Fox suddenly shifted and took one of the Mage from behind At that exact instant, Castin threw his knife, burying it in the other sentinel’s chest

Castin turned to her, ether, they ran to Fox, and as dark clouds rolled in overhead and began spilling rain, pulled the two dead Mage into the bushes, where they wouldn’t be spotted by their brethren The sudden deluge ensured that any trace of blood would soon be washed away

Melisande rubbed her chest, right over her heart where it was beginning to ache She’d thought killing Castin, coeance, would return her to her cold, unfeeling state Now she knew that refuge was lost to her There was no way to go back Only forward But to what?

Who was she if not the emotionless warrior or the kind Ceraph? As both of those women, she’d had a place, a purpose She had neither of those any as her Ceraph self balked at the need to kill

Fox curved his hand around the back of her neck, a protective, tender gesture thatinside her and reminded her how much she’d o back to that, not really What she wanted was to be able to continue to do her job as Ariana’s second And she wantedFox

He glanced at her, a wealth of affection and caring in his eyes Love for him welled up until she feared it would overflow Yes, she wanted to be with Fox, for as long as he wanted her in return

Assu they made it off this an to lead the way between the brush and the rock, disappearing suddenly A moment later, Melisande knehy He’d found the tunnel

As the three ducked inside, Fox turned to her, stroking her cheek "Wait here Hide, Mel Don’t try to defend the entrance, just hide"

She scowled at him "I’et stuck in your anier"