The hunters came with fire at dawn.
Smoke rolled over the forest, thick and acrid, choking the air. Wolves howled as flames licked across the snow, setting the ancient pines ablaze. Men with silver blades pushed through the smoke, their faces twisted with hatred.
Aradia ran into the chaos, Kael at her side, his wolf form tearing through the hunters with terrifying ferocity. But there were too many.
"Stay back!" Kael roared as he shifted back to human mid-battle, blood streaking his chest.
But she couldn't. Something inside her broke loose.
The fire that had burned inside her since the night she was born surged outward, wild and untamed. Flames erupted from her hands, racing across the battlefield, melting steel, splitting shields, reducing men to ash. The ground trembled beneath her feet as lightning cracked the sky, her scream echoing with the storm.
The wolves fell back, staring in awe and fear. The hunters fled, but the fire did not stop. It roared higher, consuming the trees, curling toward the wolves themselves.
"Aradia!" Kael shouted, forcing his way through the blaze.
She couldn't hear him. Her body burned, her veins alight with too much power, too much hunger. Her eyes glowed like molten gold, her breath ragged.
Kael grabbed her, his massive frame wrapping around hers, his hands gripping her wrists. "Look at me! Look at me, witch!"
Her fire seared against him, but he did not let go. His forehead pressed against hers, his voice raw. "You will not lose yourself. Not while I hold you."
Her chest heaved, her body trembling as the fire fought to consume her. And then his lips crashed against hers.
It was not gentle. It was fierce, demanding, desperate. His mouth claimed her, his hands pulling her against him, his heat anchoring her storm.
The fire roared—and then bent. Her flames curled inward, no longer wild, no longer consuming everything, but wrapping around them like a crown.
When she finally tore her lips from his, she collapsed into his arms, her body shaking, tears spilling down her cheeks. "I can't control it," she whispered.
Kael held her tighter, his voice low and rough. "Then I will control it with you. Every storm, every fire—you are mine, Aradia. And I will never let you burn alone."
Her heart pounded against his chest, and though fear still lingered, desire coiled hotter than ever inside her.