Zara

Ryan growled as the wolf approached us, his intelligent eyes fixed on my trembling form. My head felt heavy, my muscles utterly helpless. When he shifted me in his arms, my head fell to the side. Like a magnet, pulling us together, I met Kane’s gaze.

His golden eyes were fixed on me, his entire attention focused on my trembling shoulders. Even from a distance, I could feel the surge of all-consuming desire and a protective aura emanating from him. His entire body was tense, and I knew he, too, was fighting the urge to come and take me.

"I can’t be here. They’ll die because of me," I almost screamed through clenched teeth.

I couldn’t afford to distract Kane. He needed to focus, like the other wolves. I was a burden, a huge nuisance who could cost the lives of countless wolves. I wanted to fight, I needed to, but I couldn’t. It made me want to scream in anger, if only I had the strength.

"Get her out of here, Ryan," Kane growled through the telepathic link. "I can smell her from here. Get her somewhere safe, just get her out of here."

Besides Kane, Ryan was the next best option for getting me to safety. A wolf in heat wouldn’t affect family members. Since Ryan was my brother and a member of my family, he was the safest person to be around.

"Mason, protect them both," Alpha growled. "Keep an eye on them until they escape."

Mason’s wolf slowly approached us, visibly tensing as soon as he caught my scent. I saw the determination in Mason’s eyes and admired his strength. Fighting my instincts was one of the hardest tests for a werewolf.

I wish I could say I was that strong, but the fire spreading across my skin paralyzed any attempt at resistance. I weakly extended my hand toward Mason. A pleading plea, asking him to take away the fire that had consumed my body. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

Mason’s wolf snorted softly before lunging at the nearest allies, sinking its teeth into his neck. His wolf was the color of coal, with dark patches of fur. He could smell me, too, but he was having a much harder time controlling his instincts. A snarl pierced him.

When he looked at Ryan, considering him... An enemy who was hiding what he wanted.

"Meson, if you touch her... I swear I’ll kill you!" Alpha’s voice was so blinding that I groaned internally. "Ryan, take her to Sophia. She’ll be safe there."

"No!" I tried to moan, but it came out as a muffled sob.

Ryan knew, I told myself. He knew I shouldn’t have gone to her, that Marcus and Holly would be there too. They don’t react to a wolf in heat, but even though I trusted Marcus, it wasn’t enough to trust him not to take advantage of the situation.

I saw the allure of my scent fade in Meson’s eyes, and I watched him shake it off, as if shaking it off. He nodded at me, his eyes silently apologetic. They did as they were told, driving off countless brown wolves and werewolves from us.

Some of our warriors were distracted, rushing Ryan to get to me. They threw our warriors aside, leaving them dazed but unharmed.

I had no idea where we were going and couldn’t think clearly enough to see my surroundings. I drifted in and out of consciousness, but my wolf continued to pull me out of the darkness. Its overwhelming need to quench its fire overwhelmed everything else, even as I fought to give in to the darkness.

When I opened my eyes again, Ryan was lifting me into the backseat of the sedan. He had put on sweatpants and was covering me with a blanket.

A pained hiss escaped my teeth as I tried to find the strength to rip the blanket off. It was too hot, too hot. The blanket merely held the heat, making me feel suffocated.

"Don’t take me to Sophia." My words were slurred, but clear enough for him to understand. "Marcus and Holly..."

"I know, Zara. I’ll take you somewhere safe," he replied, gripping the steering wheel tightly as they sped through the deserted city streets. "Everything is far from the city. The best thing is to take you away from this fight and find shelter in one of the empty houses."

He continued speaking, but I could no longer make out his words. The fire burning within me hadn’t lost its intensity. It was still strong enough to cause blinding pain, but not enough to knock me unconscious.

I was doomed to endure every agonizing minute until Kane came and relieved me of the pain, if he came at all.

I forced myself to push those thoughts aside. He would survive, they all would survive. Kane’s voice penetrated the mental link, somehow calming the flames enough for me to understand the words racing through my head.

"Your father is here, Zara," Kane growled, as if pushing an adversary away. "No matter what happens, I love you, I love you so much. Never forget that."

***

Kane’s POV

One week, an entire week of planning escape routes, defensive strategies, and safe evacuation. Surviving that week knowing my blue rose was constantly in danger was the hardest challenge I’d faced since becoming an Alpha. Every minute, I felt the mental connection between us was closer to going insane.

The day my blue rose surrendered to her father, Zeke found me in my office. Most of the furniture was destroyed, scraps of paper scattered across the room. None of it mattered. Not the documents outlining potential treaties and alliances, not the computer that held countless emails between other Alphas in need of help.

Zeke was the only one I told; the only person, besides my Beta and Zara, I trusted completely. Zeke and my Beta managed to get my attention, talking me into it before I razed the house to the ground. At that moment, I could do nothing but prepare for the inevitable. Zara had her mission, and I had mine.

Between searching for safe places to evacuate the city’s residents, I found time to break the news to Zara’s family. Zara had asked me to tell them the truth when she was away, as she already knew how her father would react.

Her father blushed, no doubt experiencing the same helpless anger as I did. Ryan placed his hand on his father’s shoulder, holding him in his chair.