2

GEORGIA

✿

That was not good. Not good at all. I watched the forest floor so as not to stumble again - which wasn't easy in heels - as Beau pulled me furiously further and further into the pine forest with a firm grip. He led me straight to the healer werewolf camp, where I lived in a small stone house.

"Beau, slow down!" Even though I'd only had one drink, I could feel the alcohol spreading through my body, making it harder and harder to keep up with it. In any other circumstance, I would have done the hell to let Beau know, but as it was, I had to focus all of my concentration on not falling flat on his face before him and on getting even more into the predicament I was in already was. Though his grip wasn't quite as tight, I could feel his unbridled anger. Head forward, he didn't look at me once while his mouth remained sealed. I didn't know which I preferred. That tense, seething silence that threatened to burst at any moment, or his outright anger,

His short, short brown hair looked almost black in the night, as did the ends of his tattoo, which peeked out from under his shirt. I had never seen it in full before. I was just wondering what it would look like, how it would feel to trace every line on his skin when I stumbled again. Heavens, what did Isaac put in that drink?!

Beau must have noticed because he steadied me briefly with his hand so I didn't lose my balance. As soon as I caught myself, however, he immediately quickened his pace.

I stifled an annoyed groan. "Beau, please! Not so fast."

Ignoring my objection, he tightened his grip and marched even faster through the conifers. His olive-colored shirt stretched across his broad back, which seemed to consist entirely of muscles hard as steel, and fitted her perfectly, so that every single strand could be seen under the movements. I'd never gotten close enough to explore for myself how his skin would feel under mine. What it would be like to bury my nose in his throat and inhale his scent deep into my lungs. I instantly warmed to the thought.

I bit my lip, then after another few minutes of silence as we almost ran through the woods, I said, "I'm sorry, okay? I shouldn't have gone."

He stopped abruptly and let go of me, almost running into him. Swaying slightly, I was just able to stay away from it. He turned to me, only centimeters separated us. I lifted my head to look up at him.

Except for the twinkle in his eyes, his face was as still as if it were carved from stone. A ten. He was definitely a ten. Distinctive features, sensuous lips and those wonderful eyes that couldn't let you go until late at night.

"Your soldier training is canceled tomorrow."

It was like he taught me a bucket full of ice water about myself. My eyes widened. "But-"

"You will also be withdrawn from your patrol," he interrupted bluntly, and there was not a shred of pity in his voice.

"Beau!" My mouth fell open and I took a step back. The patrols were the most important units of the last year of a soldier's training. Each of us was assigned to a shift with a trained gamma soldier in order to be introduced to later assignments. It was an honor, but at the same time a great responsibility that was not easily forgiven. "You can't do that!"

"I already have that. Everyone who was here at this party will be deducted from it.” His gaze sharpened, as did his voice. "Or could you assume responsibility for the safety of the pack in this condition tomorrow?"

I stood bolt upright while feeling completely different. It was only with difficulty that I held his gaze, which hit me to the core. The fresh autumn wind, which brought the light sea breeze from the nearby coast of Nesvahda te morih , suddenly seemed several degrees colder and I wrapped my arms around my torso with the bitter thought that I should have thought of a jacket after all.

'It was foolish of you, as if you were nothing more than little children thinking only of themselves! You all failed the pack.”

A pang in my heart and my eyes got wet. The pack was everything to me, it was my family.

His teeth ground and the air between us shimmered as if charged. "You could have fucking given yourself away, what were you thinking?"

"Nobody saw me!" I countered, while meanwhile my guilty conscience was already nagging at me. Beau was right, things could have gone wrong. And that's just because of me.

“You're not the only one in danger if it comes out what you are. You put everyone in danger.” His voice was like a whiplash.

I flinched under the stern command, almost a hint of dominance. That had stuck. Something deep inside me literally puffed up. He wasn't allowed to talk to me like that. Never. not with me . If he did that and brought hierarchy into play with his dominance, I would have to bow to the order of the pack and would have to go so far as to offer him my bare throat if need be - because the distance between his wolf and my wolf was huge. Everything between us would be destroyed.

I growled, forcing myself to keep looking into his eyes, even though it was difficult. "Don't talk to me like that!"

I felt the vibration of his rumble in all my limbs, it was so deep and loud. I didn't give in and craned my chin like I'd seen Arya do so many times before. "Besides, everyone already knows that healer werewolves exist," I added. "After all, everyone has heard of Zaira."

“Zaira, is under the protection of Aramis—a demigod. No amount of brain-fucking idiot would dare approach her. And if he does, he's as good as dead anyway. But you're a whole group, and we don't know if the news that healer werewolves actually exist won't spark another hunt for you."

And you're still too weak for that. Too weak, and too many, to take the risk right now. I saw the unsaid words on his face, read them in his dark green eyes. I crossed my arms and looked away. He wasn't entirely wrong - we had been hunted. Thousands of years ago, there were only healer werewolves who lived in packs without any qualms. However, they were soon persecuted for their ability to heal others and take away all pain and captured for their own ends.

Again I saw the small cell in front of me. The dark, cold lava floor, the cell poles that seared my skin at every touch with the silver fused within, and the loud screams that echoed down the corridor. A chill ran down my spine as I clenched my teeth.

“There are over dozens of you here in camp; including children, Georgie. Children . . .” he said urgently.

I was silent, my eyes still averted. Yes, maybe he was right. Maybe I was foolish to come here and risk other pack members finding out about us. Maybe I had risked too much. And I would rather give my life for it than deliver anyone else to the blade ever again.

But a small part of me refused to agree with Beau just like that. A small part that seemed to grow ever larger since that terrible night. "I've lived underground all my life," I whispered, looking straight into his eyes, seeking his support. "I won't hide anymore."

He leaned closer to me so I inhaled his scent with every breath. A touch of pine, sandalwood and pure masculinity. "I'm not asking you to, either," he said, in his harsh, growling voice that never seemed gentle. "Just be damn careful."

"What if I don't want to be careful anymore?" I whispered, afraid of his answer at the same time. i wanted to live live right. My former shackles of years of imprisonment were broken. i was free And that's exactly what I wanted to feel.

Now he straightened up again and increased the distance between us. His bright green eyes narrowed. "We're a pack of Georgie."

"Yes, and in a pack the needs of all should be met."

"Yes indeed. We both know what rank you will hold.”

"Since when do we only pay attention to one side of our being?" I frowned angrily. Of course the wolf side was important in us, but it wasn't the only one in charge. Why couldn't he just see that? 'That's bullshit. I'll be a soldier whether you want it or not."

"Bullshit? That's bullshit to you?” He laughed dryly, but he was far from amused. "It's dangerous Georgie, and you know it, too," he growled, his pupils dilating. Now his wolf looked at me.

Yes, a pack had strict hierarchies to follow so that pack cohesion and trust existed and everyone knew their place. Usually it was the natural rank that the wolf side gave in you, the right place - it filled the wolf side as well as the human side. But that changed for me that night. I wasn't the Georgie I used to be.

I looked at Beau. I didn't know what he saw in me. Still a kid? The stubborn teenager? Or the broken woman? Because maybe I wasn't a child anymore, but I wasn't healed in the least. I bore scars on my soul that would never heal.

"I've been a victim before, Beau," I whispered into the night forest, hoping he'd understand. I stepped closer to him and caught his eye. "I'll never be one again."

I suddenly felt that his anger was no longer directed at me. The wild, seething fire in his eyes wasn't meant for me. I saw his gaze wander to my temple and get caught on my small jewelry scar. He must have approached me himself because suddenly I felt the warmth emanating from his body. Only inches separated us as he still glared at me with that scowl. Just as he seemed about to say something, a high-pitched, pained scream broke the charged silence between us.