the force of a mountain. Next thing I know, I’ve hit the ground with a tremendous sharp pain zigzagging across my nose and eyes. Stars blot in and out of my vision, along with a deepening darkness coming for me.
16
Ragnar
Confusion blinds me momentarily as I slam into Narah. She’s falling to the ground from my impact, her eyes fluttering, then closing finally.
Where the hell did she come from?
The deafening roar of the bear is right there, and terror seizes me that Narah’s now in mortal danger. And why hadn’t she just zapped this fucking bear out of existence?
Fuck! I rip my gaze from her limp body, my chest tightening, and twist around just as the bear throws itself toward us.
The world darkens for moments as the dark mass looks ready to swallow the world. It should terrify me, but right now I’m burning with fury that Narah’s life is at risk. A newfound adrenaline soars in me, thumping through my veins.
I throw myself at the beast in my wolf form to destroy him, having had enough of his bullshit.
We collide, and all I see is savagery, dark fur, and anger driving me wild. Nothing matters but eliminating the foe, protecting Narah. My wolf is in charge, and he demands that we save her and then finally claim her as ours. He’s damn pissed with me for dragging my feet, for not rutting her already, as he insists we keep her as our own.
Uncertainty blurs my emotions on this… I’d lost a fated mate and promised myself I wouldn’t take any other female aside from fucking. And Narah… well, she is here for our mission. That’s why I kept my distance.
My wolf laughs in my mind, insisting I’m not fooling anyone.
Fuck! That’s not what I want to hear.
I keep tearing into the bear, over and over, my teeth sinking into soft fur and flesh, ripping away chunks. No blood, which is wrong. The whole thing is horribly wrong.
A sharp burn races up my back, and I howl with agony from the bear’s scratch, tearing up my skin.
I leap out of the way of his next swing, duck another blow and curve away from him. It’s only then that the full extent of my attack on him is shown. Bite marks and missing chunks of flesh dot his chest and underbelly. He staggers, but the wounds are healing from the dark sparks sizzling across them.
I swallow, wobbling on my own feet. How am I meant to defeat the unbeatable? But it does me no good letting that shit into my mind.
“I am invincible,” I tell myself.
Then I turn and sprint back to Narah, knowing we need to run. I have no shame in turning away from a fight when someone’s in danger.
This is our small window to escape.
Skidding by Narah’s side, my wolf retracts, and my limbs stretch, bones cracking. Scorching pain digs into my body, tearing me apart from my injuries. Fire flares across my back and chest from the bear scratches, my head dizzy. I wince through the agony and shake my head to clear my vision.
“I am invincible.”
My wolf is my armor, but right now I need to carry Narah out of here, and I bite back the horrendous pain engulfing me.
A quick scan of the clearing shows no signs of my men, and I’m too fucking exhausted and in pain to even be furious that they’ve vanished. They would have their reasons, as we are one and would never abandon one another. With that a new concern rises through me, one that maybe they are in worse peril than me.
I crouch and sweep Narah into my arms. On fast steps, I carry her out of there. Behind me, the bear still stumbles about, but he’ll be healed quick enough and give chase. And I’m not waiting around to give him the chance.
Narah lays limp against my chest, a big red bruise forming across her brow where our heads collided. Shit! I want to shake her for being so stupid to come to me during the battle, or perhaps she had a magical solution?
Fuck knows, but I am the one protecting her, and that’s how it should be.
“Hell, Narah,” I growl under my breath. My feet pound the ground, and I keep checking over my shoulder, but each time my gaze falls to Narah, my wolf growls his intentions to claim her.
Except I’m still angry she put herself in harm’s way and never listens to reason. “Next time I