Total pages in book: 91
Estimated words: 87193 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 436(@200wpm)___ 349(@250wpm)___ 291(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 87193 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 436(@200wpm)___ 349(@250wpm)___ 291(@300wpm)
He crossed the territory fast, leapt fallen logs, tore through brush, and ignored the sting of reopened wounds. Enforcers would have the house locked down. He knew that. He still needed to see her. To scent her. To know she was safe.
The trees thinned and the house came into view.
He slowed only when he hit the edge of the clearing, clocked the location of the enforcers, and stayed out of their way. Nearing the house, he shifted mid-stride. Then he climbed the trellis and swung into her bedroom.
She looked up from the bed, where she had both the grimoire and the notebooks spread out. “Caidrik.” Relief swept over her pretty face, and then she took in his nude body. “You’re hurt.”
“I’m fine,” he said automatically, even as his shoulder throbbed.
“Is everyone okay?”
He moved into the bathroom. “Yeah. We’re all good.” Grabbing a towel, he rubbed off the blood and re-entered the room. “Whoa. How did you get your hands on the grimoire?” He gestured to the books.
Should she feel guilty? “Solomon left it here for safekeeping since he was on a mission. I think he ordered me not to touch it, but I’m a little fuzzy on that order. I’m only about halfway through it. So far, he has been pretty on point.” She tapped her bottom lip. “Though I think the whole ‘death to all’ is up to interpretation.”
He liked that, although he didn’t see Bulwark going away willingly. He reached the bed and gathered up the journals, placing them on the settee. Then he pounced.
She laughed and quickly shushed herself. “The ladies are in the house. We’re so close, let’s not mess everything up now.” Even so, she slipped the bedcovers open and gestured him in. “We can be quiet.”
Man, she was fun. He tugged her shirt off and then settled on top of her, pushing her panties down with one hand. “Foreplay later?”
She grinned. “Sure.”
Excellent. He started to enter her just as an engine roared to life. He stiffened. “What the hell?”
Then, lights flashing, wood cracking, something ripped part of the wall away.
Caidrik jumped up, nude, putting his body at the end of the bed. Before he could move, an excavator ripped the rest of the wall away. Snow and arctic air burst inside. Outside, Bulwark sat in the excavator, pointing headlights at Caidrik’s naked form. Enforcers and other pack members lined up behind him.
The door burst open and Bussy ran inside the room, followed by Margaret.
“Oh, no,” Bussy whispered, her eyes wide. “You didn’t. You just did not.”
Caidrik blanched. “It doesn’t matter. I’m the only one left standing.”
Bulwark stood on the seat of the machine, his voice easily reaching them. “Not true. If you’re disqualified, I’m back in, Brother. It’s your word and Nadia’s that I tried to harm her. I say it was an accident. Your word is no longer good.”
Bussy sighed. “He’s right.” She moved toward the bed, where Nadia huddled under the covers, snow already covering the quilt. “Why couldn’t you wait one more day and not break the rules? They’re real. I told you that. You both have to run. Now.”
Chapter 29
Nadia leaned down to finish lacing her boots as Caidrik drove the icy roads far faster than was prudent. The tires skidded just enough to make her brace her feet, the car shuddering as wind-driven snow slapped the sides. Her fingers ached from the cold, but she finished and reached for her pack in the backseat. There had to be something in the grimoire.
He glanced down for half a second. “You really think it was a good idea to take the grimoire?”
She gulped. “I don’t know.” She leaned back and forced several deep breaths, slow and deliberate. This was unbelievable. They’d been caught. She honestly hadn’t taken the chastity rule seriously, not in the slightest, but Bussy had been insistent. Snow streamed sideways past the windows. The world outside had been reduced to white motion and darkness.
Caidrik took a corner fast and kept driving. “I’ll get you to safety and then I’ll take care of any threats.”
Her temples ached. “You can’t take on the whole pack.”
“I will if I need to.” His jaw clenched harder, and his hands remained steady on the wheel despite the billowing storm outside.
His determination warmed her, even as she feared for the pack. She pulled the grimoire free and flicked on the overhead light. The weak yellow glow barely cut through the dark. Snow beat mercilessly against the vehicle. The storm made everything feel closer and more dangerous.
“Didn’t Solomon say if we broke the rules, the pack had to come after us?” She frowned, searching her memory. “I thought he said something like that at the beginning, but I’m not sure.”
“I wasn’t paying that close of attention,” Caidrik admitted.
Yeah, they hadn’t taken the chastity issue seriously. She flipped pages toward the back third and then yanked out the several translated notebooks. “I don’t even know what word is chastity.” She started flipping through the most complete notebook. Some of the translated words were in Alphabetical order, and many weren’t, like the person went back and translated words as they could. She wasn’t even sure whose handwriting it was. She flipped again. “Here it is. Chastity. Okay.”