wrench my gaze over to Ragnar, who is watching us intently like the other two Alphas are.
“The choice will be yours to allow the rest of us to mark you as well, just as you allowed Ragnar.”
The hairs on my nape stiffen. This is happening too fast. I didn’t come on this mission to find four partners who will make me pine after them. I have my sisters to find as priority.
“Please stop talking now.”
The woods whirl around me while anger rises through me. That bastard. This isn’t what I wanted, except he said I would no longer pine… or did he mean it was only Martell I’d stop pining for, but in fact I’d start drooling over him? I don’t know, but I’m suddenly feeling sick to my stomach. I need to clarify this with Ragnar, I need to hear the truth from his lips. Already I feel queasy that he didn’t tell me everything.
When I look at Nikos, he’s not smirking, not seeming happy with making me feel like the world should open up and swallow me.
I don’t put my faith in any of these Alphas. The more I get to know them, the more I question everything. What Crius said earlier is becoming more terrifying. These four Alphas are broken, and if I let them, they’ll take me down to the pits of hell with them.
His brow furrows while my thoughts blur. To find my sisters, I need to track down the witches, then get the fuck out of this place and away from these men. Distance has to be the answer.
A twinge comes from the bite mark on my shoulder, a reminder of my predicament.
“Then tell me,” I say, “what the hell has pissed you off? What could I have done now to make you hate me?”
“You think I hate you?” he asks, his soft tone taking me off guard. I’m reminded of our kiss on our first night in the Poisonous Woods, how he left me entranced with him, captivated in every possible way. “You’re wrong, Narah. It’s the fact that I was never meant to care for you or give a shit if you died. Instead, I question my own decisions to ensure I remained by your side. How fucked up is that?” His shoulders tense, but he never looks away.
Heat seeps into my chest and spreads outward. He wants to be with me to the point of not skipping out on Ragnar’s pack? We’ve clashed from the very beginning, and sure, I’ve fallen prey to his looks and dominance, and the fact that he is an outcast like me makes me like him more than I should, but his revelation is not what I expect.
I suck in the cool air, shaking my head because he’s got to be confused. “No, don’t say stuff like that when it’s not true. I’m leaving you all once this is over. That was the deal. Nothing else.”
Ragnar’s words came to mind again. We may just keep you after all.
“That’s what pisses me off. I don’t want anyone, but then you stormed into our lives.”
I can’t find my voice, unsure how to respond to him. Maybe these woods are messing with all our heads again. It’s making us grasp for those near us to avoid admitting that this place scares the heck out of us.
There’s no air going to my lungs as I try to process everything. But it’s too much, and nothing settles down.
“I need to go,” I murmur and hurry toward the open entranceway, needing air, to be alone so I can think.
The pieces around me refuse to fall into place about what I should do, what I want. I’m doing this for my sisters, so then why do I crave these men? Why does part of me not hate Ragnar for claiming me as his, while the rest of me is terrified he’ll eventually reject me once he gets sick of me?
A sting flares across my chest, a hurt-filled resignation that I got into this mess in the first place by making a deal with Ragnar to find my sisters.
Nikos steps up beside me without a word, and we’re both heading into unknown territory with heavy thoughts.
“Forget about what I said,” he murmurs.
“You really think it’s that easy?” I wish I could forget the whole damn mission.
He gives me a lopsided frown then turns his attention on the open gateway before us. The towering wall that stretches out on either side and vanishes into the