KAEL'S POV
My claws hovered at her throat, a breath from piercing skin. Her pulse fluttered against them, frantic and uneven, as if even her own body didn't know whether to live or collapse.
Ayla's voice throbbed faintly through the bond, a thread fraying with every heartbeat. "Do it. Trust me."
But my wolf bellowed in my skull, tearing at the edges of my control. Not her. Never her. Tear the shadow, not the mate.
The First Luna leaned closer, her smoke-flesh curling around my arm, whispering like silk and poison. "You can't resist forever. Every second you hesitate, she breaks a little more. You feel it, don't you? Her soul splintered beneath my claws."
Ayla convulsed in my hold, her body thrashing, her scream layered—hers and the parasite's, twisted together. Her nails tore lines down my chest, leaving blood in their wake. Not her will. Not her touch.
I ground my forehead against hers, closing my eyes, trying to drown in the bond instead of the shadow's whispers.
