Kieran POV
"Your destination is on the right," my phone informs me.
It is dark and cloudy. Leaning forward in my seat, I scan the side of the road for a driveway. I almost miss it because I am driving too fast. The turn is a sharp right, and I turn the wheel quickly without hitting the brakes.
The tail end of my car slides against the gravel, and I almost lose control. I quickly correct the wheel, and I can hear Tish's body thumping around in the trunk. She screams out in pain, and laughter bubbles up in my chest. I really hope she dies back there.
I have barely turned onto the lane when the scent of lavender surrounds me. Slamming on the brakes, the car skids to a stop. I don't bother to put the car in park before I jump out. The car continues forward and crashes into a large tree in the front yard, but I am too focused on the scent.
I know it is Mae's scent, but it is much stronger than it has ever been before. The wind is beginning to blow the clouds in the sky, and I look up and see the full moon shining down on me. The memory of Narah's rant sends a shiver down my spine.
'We have to find her,' Karr growls in my mind.
Searching the ground around me, I see a metallic trail of blood leading toward the beach. Bending down, I stick my fingers in the blood and lift them to my nose. Karr growls angrily in my mind and urges me forward.
Not wanting to waste any more time, I head in the direction of the beach. The scent of lavender continues to get stronger the closer I get to the beach.
There is a large dune in front of me. Using my hands, I climb the dune as quickly as I can. Once at the top, I can see two figures on the beach. One is Francesca. She is holding a half-shifted wolf in her hand. I can see her claws digging into the flesh of the wolf, and blood is running down the wolf's neck.
I am mesmerized by the wolf in Francesca's grasp. Despite being tortured, she manages to complete the shift. She has a gorgeous silver coat that shimmers like metal in the moonlight. I have never seen a wolf her color before.
The wolf struggles against Francesca, but it is a losing battle. The wolf is too young to know how to fight back and save herself.
'That is our mate,' Karr breaks me out of my trance.
'That is Mae?' I reply in awe.
'That is her wolf, Celeste,' Karr grumbles. 'Save her.'
Karr is pushing me forward. I stumble down the dune less than gracefully. I land on my hands and knees at the bottom of the dune. Looking up, I see Celeste hanging limply in Francesca's hand.
Panic washes over me. I fear that I am too late.
"Drop my mate," I scream.
"How quaint," Francesca laughs. "The Alpha has come for his mate."
Much to my surprise, Francesca drops Celeste to the ground. Celeste whimpers as her body hits the sand, and I exhale a sigh of relief. She is still alive. The waves crash around her roughly, and I know I need to get her away from the water.
I step toward Celeste, but Francesca blocks me. "Did you think I was going to give her up so easily?"
"Why don't we finish this then?" I snarl at her.
I step to the side, trying to circle around Francesca, but she refuses to let me out of her sight.
"You wouldn't fight a woman, would you?" She asks sarcastically.
"Step away from my mate, and I won't have to fight you," I reply.
"Did you feel it?" Francesca taunts me. "When she betrayed the bond?"
I push my feelings to the side. Deep down, I know that Mae didn't willingly betray the bond. But I don't want to think about what happened to her.
Looking down at Celeste, I see the waves crashing over her head, and I worry that she will soon drown. Her legs are twitching awkwardly every time the water covers her face.
"Move out of the way," I warn Francesca.
Francesca peers over her shoulder at Celeste and shrugs her shoulders. "Are you worried that your precious mate is dying?"
"Move!" I scream at her.
Francesca laughs hysterically at my demand, but she doesn't move. My fathers always instilled values within me not to hurt a woman unless completely necessary. Unfortunately, Francesca is leaving me no choice.
My claws have already sprouted from my fingertips in preparation. Francesca has stepped away from the water and is beginning to circle around me. She tries to take a step to her left, but she falls to the ground.
She is screaming loudly, kicking her foot. I look down and see Celeste holding onto Francesca's ankle with her mouth.
Celeste growls loudly as she bites down on Francesca's ankle. Francesca squirms as she attempts to shift into her wolf, but Celeste refuses to let go.
The sound of bones cracking is loud. Celeste shakes her head furiously and releases Francesca's ankle.
Dragging herself away from Celeste, Francesca is whimpering in pain. I look down at Francesca's ankle; her foot is hanging on by a thread. Blood is pouring from the wound, and Francesca howls in pain every time the salt water hits it.
Celeste has done too much damage to Francesca, and she is unable to shift. Celeste has managed to get to her feet. She shakes the water out of her fur and stalks Francesca like she is her prey.
'I can take it from here,' I tell her through the mind link.
Celeste looks at me from the corner of her eyes, but they immediately dart back to Francesca.
'She is mine,' a voice comes through my mind, but that voice does not belong to Mae.
'Celeste?' I respond.
She growls in response as she inches her way toward Francesca.
Francesca doesn't seem to notice that she is near death. She is holding her ankle and screaming in pain. Celeste lunges toward Francesca and pushes her back onto the sand.
Celeste digs her paws into Francesca's shoulders as she snarls in her face.
Francesca turns her head in my direction. Tears are streaming down her face. "You need me alive," she cries. "Only I can tell you about the other recusants."
Celeste swipes her paw across Francesca's face, causing massive gashes on her cheeks. Francesca tries to lift her hand to her face, but Celeste nips at her.
"Please," Francesca pleads, but Celeste is listening.
A growl rumbles in Celeste's chest before she bites down on Francesca's neck. I can hear the sound of her canines sinking into the flesh. Blood squirts out from Francesca's neck, and her eyes go blank and lifeless.
Removing her canines from Francesca, Celeste backs away from her body and sits in the waves. She cocks her head to the side, and panic flows through the mate bond.
'I killed her,' Mae's voice comes through the mind link.
"You were so brave," I try to help her to feel better.
'I killed her,' Mae repeats.