A Cursed Bloodline (WG 4) (30 page)

“No!” Animal-like screams tore from my throat. “No,
no.
You can’t do this!”

Aric growled. Thick white foam slid down his mouth, drenching the damaged muscles of his torso. His eyes twitched, and his head jerked as if convulsing. He was so sick, but the tension in his back legs demonstrated he stood mere moments from attacking.

No one moved despite Makawee’s order. Gemini, Koda, Liam, and the other
weres
exchanged apprehensive looks, torn between obeying their Elder and sparing the Leader they loved. And while they openly feared Aric, sorrow was the prominent emotion they collectively shared. It hunched their shoulders and smeared their expressions with grief. Heidi and some of the younger students openly wept.

Their trepidation gave me hope. I thought they were incapable of hurting him.

I thought wrong.

One by one, they
changed
into their formidable beast forms and stalked closer toward Aric. “
No!
Please don’t do this, it’s still Aric!” I sobbed.

Makawee pursed her lips. “There is no choice, child. He’s already gone.” She and Martin maintained their hold. My anguish did nothing to relax their grip; their power remained obstinate and absolute. My heart threatened to stop. I didn’t want the Pack to tear him to pieces or to hear his anguished howls before he was silenced forever. I didn’t want to watch my baby’s father die.

My eyes burned with how hard I cried. “I brought him here so you could help him. You can’t kill him. There has to be another way!” Martin turned his face away from mine. Makawee’s expression stayed fixed on the Pack.

Aric whipped around in circles, ready to strike. I cursed, screamed, and struggled, but my efforts were in vain. Even if I broke free, how could I possibly take on a pack of wolves?

I looked up to the sky. For a moment, everything turned quiet and eerily still. A cool breeze gently hit my face. I didn’t understand what was happening until my body convulsed violently and I
changed.

I didn’t become the formidable tigress that would fight to the death to protect her mate. In her place wiggled a rabbit. A rabbit small enough to slip through the stunned Elders’ hold.

I dashed toward Aric, dodging the astonished
weres
who were oblivious to what had happened.

Martin’s voice boomed across the yard. “It’s Celia! Stop her before Aric kills her!”

They were too late. I reached Aric and leapt at him in a burst of feathers. I dug my talons into his flesh and took flight…as an eagle.

Chapter Twenty-six

The element of surprise saved us.

I was a bad swimmer, but I positively sucked at flying. My cursed-with-blo
odlust mate didn’t help. He growled, writhed, and tried to bite.

Ingrate
.

I batted my wings and continued upward. The Pack snapped out of its shock and gave chase, sprinting at full speed, scurrying up tree trunks and ricocheting off branches. Some didn’t appear to try very hard. Others drew close, determined to bring us down. I flapped harder and faster. It made a huge difference. The wolves below me became smaller and soon we left the Den behind us.

My new form was tremendous, easily four times as large as an average eagle. And, more important, strong enough to carry a distressed werewolf. I carried us north toward Canada, searching for solace despite my doubts that we’d make it that far. My eagle form didn’t come naturally. I had to concentrate to maintain it. It wouldn’t be long before my body would surrender to exhaustion and
change
back—and I really didn’t want to do it midair.

I focused on how the wind blew and ruffled my feathers and swept over my magnificent wings. I looked to the heavens, determined to join them as one. Aric collapsed and threw off my balance more than once. And still I worked to keep my form.

We soared for what seemed like hours. Aric had either fallen asleep or collapsed from his illness. He hung limp from my talons, but his heavy breaths proved he still lived.

The sun set deep into the mountains. I descended into the sprawling forest below, trying to slow my pace as I dove down and alternated between not flapping and flapping. It worked—well, sort of. I released Aric a little too far from the ground. He banged into a thick pine, smacked against a large branch, and crashed to the ground.

Oops.

I tried to land smoothly. I might have managed had a pissed-off Aric not tackled me just as my talons skimmed across the earth. He struck me hard enough to knock out feathers. I tried not to fight him, but he didn’t make it easy. He buried his front claws into my wings and growled in my face. I
changed
back, hoping to appear less threatening as a human.

It didn’t work. He growled louder, appearing more angered by my sudden transformation.

Drool dripped on my face. It would’ve grossed out me out had I not been terrified he was about to eat me. “It’s okay, Aric. No one’s going to hurt you.”

Nothing of my Aric reflected in those ferocious brown eyes. He was all rabid wolf—volatile and incapable of reasoning. My primal instincts implored me to fight. But I couldn’t. If we fought, it would be to the death, and no way could I kill him.

I realized I shouldn’t have met his eyes. Aric had always welcomed my gaze, but he wasn’t himself and perceived my stare as a challenge. I played the submissive and glanced away, lying before him with my throat exposed and praying the man I loved wouldn’t hurt me. His snarls intensified and panic twitched along my spine.

I broke away, but not fast enough. Aric’s fangs dug into my shoulder. I thought for sure he’d kill me, but at the sound of my screams he released me and kept his jaws from clamping down.

He backed away, stopping suddenly when his light brown eyes fixed on me. His stare softened and he whined, his attention bouncing from my face to my damaged shoulder.

I rolled onto my knees, watching him. Tears filled my eyes as he continued to whine. He wasn’t attacking. He wasn’t aggressive. He was simply sorry for hurting me.

Aric knew me. By some miracle, he’d recognized who I was.

I reached to touch his face. “It’s okay, love. I know you didn’t mean it.”

Aric sniffed my hand and wagged his tail, then slowly leaned forward to lick my wound. It tickled a little and made me laugh. He stopped and cocked his head to the side before continuing until the site was free of blood.

He sat next to me, nuzzling my neck. I stroked his head and absorbed his scent, taking a moment to gather my strength.

Finally, I rose. “Come on. We need to find a place to sleep.”

Instead of following me, Aric collapsed into a massive seizure—the convulsions so violent, they flipped his hulking form in the air. He howled with every brutal strike against the ground. I stood, petrified with fear, watching helplessly until his head slammed with a sickening crunch against a boulder.

I raced to his side when he fell limp. Blood dribbled down his scars from the deep gash on his head, and his jaw hung slack and twisted. He’d broken it, and cracked his skull. For the first time, I began to doubt whether I could save him. I knelt and buried my face in my hands, taking several calming breaths until I erased all thoughts of defeat from my mind.

“No, Aric. You won’t leave me. Not like this.”

I lifted him in a fireman’s carry. My strength made hauling him manageable but awkward. His limbs draped past my ankles, forcing me to drag them along. I tried to avoid stepping on sharp rocks and debris, but wasn’t very successful. The added weight caused tiny shards to embed deep in my soles. I
changed
into a tigress from the waist down, hoping the thick pads of my paws would provide some cushion.

Balancing became impossible. I toppled over with Aric and landed hard on my chest. Every swearword I knew belted out of me. Our situation sucked. I had absolutely no camping skills and no money to lodge us somewhere in civilization. I didn’t even have clothes! But Aric needed me. And our baby needed him. So I dissolved my paws and forced myself to my feet, lifting him once more.

I walked for a long while, until the sweet sound of running water beckoned me forward. A small waterfall emptied into a large pool of clear water. I lowered Aric near the edge. His breaths remained ragged and his face oozed with foam and drying blood. Thankfully, though, his wound and jaw had healed.

The cold water soothed my bare feet when I stepped into the pool. I cupped a small amount in my palms and sniffed, welcoming its pure scent. I moved Aric closer and washed his face and chest. After a couple of splashes he woke, confused by his surroundings.

His angry barks and growls made me back away. He stopped when he realized who I was and waded into the water to rub against me.

I bent to wrap my arms around his neck. “Hello, love,” I cooed.

His head jerked and his eyes twitched, and yet he sweetly licked my chin. My hands passed over his face and chest. His deformities were more severe in his wolf form—likely since he’d been burned as a beast. The leathery skin scrunched together forming deep, sharp ridges and indentations. I took my time touching him, trailing my fingertips over every last imperfection. God, his body had been through so much.

And still I loved him.

I kissed his head, needing to feel close to him. “Have a drink with me.”

He didn’t move. I wondered whether he understood or if the moon sickness had damaged his ability to comprehend language. My muscles relaxed slightly when he touched his nose to the water and drank like the poor dehydrated wolf he was. I maneuvered my way to the waterfall and sipped as much as I could then washed my face and hands.

My inner tigress usually kept me warm. Not this time. My teeth chattered and my muscles shivered from the frigid mountain water. I hurried out behind Aric. He stumbled at the edge of the pool and collapsed yet again. I stroked his head and whispered words of comfort. His sleek and beautiful fur was missing from his head, chest, and front legs. I worried about keeping him warm, and how in the world I was going to save him.

A single tear streamed down my cheek, but it was all I would allow. It wouldn’t do any good to keep crying, so instead I decided to find us somewhere to sleep.

“I’ll be right back, Aric. I’m going to look around.”

I
changed
into my tigress form and circled the area near the waterfall. I found shelter a small distance away. A huge tree had fallen against a large slab of rocks. I jumped on top of the pseudocave and was relieved to see it held. I used my paws to clean the debris beneath and to soften the earth before returning for Aric. Although his eyes were incapable of closing, I knew he slept. I
changed
to human and carried him back to our new home.

When I wrapped myself around him to keep us warm, I resumed my tigress form. I’d worry about food tomorrow. For now, I just wanted to sleep with my mate.

—

Our night together was long and torturous. I barely slept. Aric’s seizures and pained howls returned in spurts throughout the night. I held him during the convulsions to keep him safe. He was strong and the process exhausted us both. When I did manage to sleep, I wasn’t able to keep my tigress form. I’d wake up shaking, cold, and forced to
change
back.

Morning finally arrived. I rose on my paws and shook the dirt cloaking my fur. I didn’t return to sleep following Aric’s last seizure. There was simply no point now that the bright sun cut through the tall line of firs and into our tired eyes.

Aric’s stomach growled. I scratched at the earth irritably, knowing I could no longer avoid the inevitable. I needed to hunt. We wouldn’t survive without food. My insides clenched from hunger and from the regret of needing to take an innocent creature’s life. I paced around Aric, using his hunger and mine to encourage my inner predator to track. When I was as ready as I could possibly be, I licked his head and sped off, not wanting to leave him for long.

My tigress sniffed, searching for game. The sun brought the clear spring day, raising the temperature to about sixty degrees, but within the darkness of the forest it dropped significantly. I trampled through the cold mossy floor, grateful May had arrived to put an end to April’s torrential downpours.

I traveled deeper within the woods. Aric’s outbursts must have frightened the animals away. It took several miles to catch the scent of deer. I latched on to the aroma and let it lead me to a grassy knoll where a herd of females munched lazily while the bucks rammed their antlers to win their mates. I crouched, using the thick ferns, the shadows of the mighty trees, and scattered boulders littering the forest floor to camouflage my movements. I worked to bolster my courage with every step. I’d never killed an animal nor had I ever desired to. I reminded myself it was for our survival and to ease Aric’s suffering. But none of it lifted the guilt from the pit of my stomach.

I singled out the oldest buck in the group, reasoning he’d lived a good life here in the pretty forest and would likely die soon anyway. My body trembled, unsure whether I could snap his neck. I swallowed hard and stalked closer. When I was almost on top of the herd, I roared to stimulate my tigress and to frighten the other deer away so they wouldn’t see me kill their grandpa. They all bounded off sure and swift—except my prey. His eyes flew open and he keeled over.
Plop
. Just like that.