The Wolf's Surrender - By Kendra Leigh Castle Page 0,78

He took what was mine,” Jeff said. “If the Blackpaw had backed off, maybe he could have had a little more time, though trust me, he wouldn’t have had much. So this is how it has to be.”

Mia stared at him, horrified at the implications of what he was saying. “You’re really going to kill them all? Why would you want to help those things? You were a good man, Jeff. Somewhere in there, you were, once. Whatever happened to you—”

That seemed to break through his icy calm. His face contorted, just for a moment, into the same hideous thing she’d seen the night of the attack. “Stop!” he snarled. “I’m not what you think! I’m better than that, stronger than that! I never did a damned thing right in my life. I was never good enough! But this time, I have you. And I’m finally going to get mine. Jenner is doing just what he needs to, which is dying.” He shook his head, lip curled in disgust as his eyes drifted to the crumpled truck. “Stupid bastard. His kind was never going to win.”

“They’re your kind, too, Jeff,” Mia said softly.

“No,” Jeff replied. “They’re not. They rejected me. Just like everyone else. They wanted me to be something I wasn’t, and when I couldn’t be, when I tried for better, they threw me away. But the shadows never have. They’ve always been there. No matter how bad it got.” His sudden grin was cracked, hideous, and even his rough-looking henchmen looked at him nervously. They saw his madness, she knew. They were just hoping to milk him for whatever he’d promised before he went off the deep end completely. But she saw more...for just an instant, she saw the wounded child beneath all the layers of hate and disappointment and want. It filled her with sick, hopeless pity. Maybe, long ago, Jeff might have been reachable. But he was so far gone now. Too far.

Her eyes went to the truck. Nothing moved inside, and all the air felt like it was being slowly squeezed out of her lungs. “Please,” she said. “Please don’t do this.” In desperation, she tried to summon the dark and beautiful music that flowed in her veins. But her terror seemed to have frozen it, leaving her with nothing more than a faint echo and the barest glow of power.

It was one of just a handful of times in her life she truly cursed the woman who’d raised her. So many secrets she still needed to unlock, so much potential. And no more time.

“Fight me, and I’ll finish it now,” Jeff said, eyeing her. He’d seen the shimmer, Mia realized. Terrified he would go for Jenner whatever she did next, she shut it down.

“There’s a good girl. He’s dead anyway, honey. But we’ll let his buddies find the body. A shame. The Shadowkin would have enjoyed him.”

She saw Jeff signal to whoever held her. She felt a sharp pain in her temple. And then there was nothing but darkness.

* * *

Jenner could hear her crying.

It was all that made him push through the pain, through the overwhelming urge to go back under, to sleep, maybe forever.

His eyes slitted open. There was a terrible pain in his head, and his body ached like he’d been run over a few times. As he came to fully, he realized that wasn’t so far off the truth. Raw fury bloomed quickly, overtaking what pain he still felt. He’d been lucky: living through the crash meant his body was already hard at work healing itself. Still, he knew he wouldn’t be one hundred percent for a while yet. Not as soon as he needed to be.

Mia was gone. Pulled away from him, destined to become another sacrificial lamb for the Shadowkin. But this time, their victim had done nothing more than have ancient, magic blood. He could still hear her screams echoing in his ears. She hadn’t wanted this. How could he have ever entertained the idea that she might? She hadn’t even been able to do anything to protect herself!

So much for his fears about her terrible power, Jenner thought, groaning a little as he tried to move. But even that had been just a shitty excuse to walk away. Because he’d realized something when she’d stood there, offering herself one last time, without strings, without anything but concern for him, his kind.

He’d fallen in love with her. And to the part of him that had been twisted