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  “No, you can’t. It’s cute that you think that, but the war that’s coming isn’t your war to fight. You can try, and you will die trying. The Council is stronger than all of us combined, and that’s if you throw all of the Primals in your cottage into the mix. Slaughter is coming. Blood is going to be spilled. And most of your village won’t be standing by the time it’s all said and done. This I know for a fact. But if I’m going to make this world better for my child and ensure my child’s safety in all this—then I have to fight. I have to use the strength this child is instilling in my veins and step up. I have to make sure my child is safe because that’s what a mother does. She doesn’t cower in the face of danger, and she doesn’t bow down to forces stronger than her.”

  Joel’s nostrils flare as his eyes make their way back to mine.

  “She fights,” I say. “My mother fought to bring me into this world. She died giving birth to me. She was on the run for most of her life after the experiments they did on her. My father was killed in an attempt to save her, and she traded the only life she knew so she could give me life. I owe it to her strength and to my future child to be the same mother from which I came. And if you can’t understand that, then get the hell out of my way. Because I will take you down if you stand in between that Council and me.”

  I turn on my heels and make my way back for the cottage. I don’t want to stick around and hear Joel’s rebuttal, because there shouldn't be one. I know I’m right. I place my hand on my stomach and begin to rub, and I swear I can feel my child tumbling around in there. My feet curl into the ground, and I feel it giving way. I feel my toes digging into the dirt even though I’m doing nothing but walking. My body is teeming with strength I’ve never felt before, and I can’t help but think this is a byproduct of being pregnant.

  Is this what all Primal females experience while pregnant?

  I wish I had one to talk with. I feel alone in my pregnancy. I have no idea who the father is because of my negligence, and none of the village women can sympathize with what I’m going through. The urges I’m trying to suppress around the men and the strength that is growing and becoming harder to control. Every time I walk by Sebastian his odor of metallic strength makes my nipples pucker. And every time I walk by Theo, his woody scent prickles the hairs on the back of my neck.

  When I walk by Toshi, his flowery mixture sends chills down my spine. And even walking by Vlad is tough. He smells of rebellion and ecstasy and sea foam. It physically hurts to walk by him and not reach out for him. Every single one of them calls to me in some way, and keeping my distance is the only way I know how to keep myself in check.

  I walk back into the cottage and find the men hovering over the table. They all whip their heads up, and I can see their nostrils flaring. My scent must be changing, and I know they’re picking up on it. Electricity starts surging through my veins. My eyes connect with each one of them, and I see them hunching over something on the table.

  “What’s that?” I ask.

  I try to keep the breathlessness in my voice out of the picture, but I watch Sebastian’s brows furrow.

  He hears it, and I know he’ll question me later.

  “Just some mockups for battle,” Toshi says. “Once they’re finalized, you’ll be the first to know.”

  “Why am I not helping?” I ask.

  “We figured since you’re still recuperating you’d be better off sleeping,” Theo says. “So you can be battle ready when the time comes.”

  There’s something off about their words. They aren’t lying, but there’s something they’re hiding from me. My eyes connect with Vlad, and a shiver runs down my spine. His seafoam and sandy scent rushes up my nostrils, and I feel my knees weaken. I nod without another word and force myself to turn down the hallway, desperate to get into the bedroom.

  I have to put barriers between us.

  I have to get myself under control.

  Chapter 10

  Joel

  Iwatch Clarissa until she steps back into the cottage. Her stubbornness is overwhelmingly annoying. She’s strong and very independent, but with that comes the automatic assumption that she’s always right. Her strength is fascinating, her abilities uncanny, but I don’t believe she isn’t fully human. She is. She’s a full-blooded human woman who calls to me in ways no woman ever has. Josie has been pestering me for years to find a woman to take at my side. To take as not only a warrior to stand next to me in battle but to also create a family with. To carry on our lineage and instill in them the wisdom and knowledge our parents passed to us.

  And I found her.

  I found her in Clarissa.

  She’s beautiful and strong. Fluid and graceful. Intelligent and self-sufficient and everything I could’ve wanted in a woman. She stands up for what she believes is right and always takes the moral high ground. She commands a room the moment she walks into it, and people have no choice but to listen to her. And her voice. It’s like icing along my skin. Smooth and sweet, but a little sticky to force your attention toward it. She’s sharp, and I like that about her. Nothing gets by her. She can read a room before even speaking into it.

  Primal females are nothing like her.

  I should know.

  I’ve encountered many of them.

  Some Primals wander deep into the forest and find us back here. They are always welcomed, of course, but a few of them have been killed by our hands. Those who conspire against us and want to report us to the Council are eliminated. Our village out here has been a secret for decades. Josie says our secret has been compromised. That the Council has mapped out the forest and knows where we live. But I don’t believe her. We were patrolling the edges of the woods. If anything, they only have it mapped a few miles in.

  Nothing more than that.

  “Earth to Joel. You there?”

  I glance down at Josie as a chuckle falls from my lips.

  “What?” I ask.

  “You’re staring off into space.”

  “Not into space.”

  “Then you’re staring off into the direction of the cottage,” she says.

  “I am.”

  “What for?”

  “Clarissa and I had an interesting talk.”

  “Ah. Of course.”

  “What does that mean?” I asked.

  “Brother, I know you’ve taken a liking to her. But you know she’s a Primal, right?” she asks.

  “No, she’s not. She’s been enhanced to have attributes of a Primal, but she’s not actually one of them.”

  “We can debate the logistics all day, but you know you can’t have her.”

  “And why not? Why shouldn't we be the ones responsible for taking care of her and her unborn child?” I ask. “She’s human, Josie. She has some abilities we don’t because she was injected with something, but that doesn't make her any less human.”

  “You gave her the car speech, didn’t you?”

  “Because it’s got a point.”

  “There’s another point to it you never take into account,” she says.

  “Josie. Don’t.”

  “If you continue to replace the parts of that car until there are no original parts on it, is it still the same car?”

  “It doesn’t change the fact that it’s a damn car!”

  “But it does alter whether or not it’s the original car in the first place. If you put a V8 engine in a car meant for a V6 engine, you’re going to blow something up. I don’t know how all the mechanics work, but I know it doesn’t work. It isn’t until you switch out the pipes and clean the cylinders and do all that stuff to it that the engine works with the car.”

  “Josie.”

  “But fundamentally, it isn’t the same car.”

  “Enough!”

  Birds scatter above our heads and snow comes falling onto us from the trees. Josie’s standing there, her eyes hardening onto my face as I close my eyes. I hate her analogies. I hate how she can always get into my head and make a point even when I don’t want
her to.

  I hate it when both of us are right.

  “We need to keep her here and keep her safe,” I say.

  “We can’t do that. Because we don’t know if we can keep her safe.”

  “If we can’t keep her safe, Josie, then how can we keep any one of ourselves safe?”

  “By no longer harboring those Primals,” she says.

  “What are you saying?” I ask.

  “Joel, come on. You can’t honestly tell me you trust them.”

  “You don’t?”

  “They’re Primals. And at least one of them in there is a direct descendant of someone on the Council. For all we know, that animal’s reporting everything we do back to them to gain the upper hand.”

  “They aren’t animals, Josie.”

  “And when they find out that one of their own—and don’t backtalk me on that point—is pregnant, they will stop at nothing to protect her. To protect what’s growing inside of her. We don’t even know how this pregnancy will affect her. Some Primal females get protective. Some get strong. Some get rabid, Joel. It depends on the part of her that rears its head throughout her gestation period.”

  “What?” I ask breathlessly.

  “Clarissa shows many traits from all types of races. It’s how she’s compatible with all of them. Wolf females get stronger the farther along their pregnancy goes. Bear females get protective and have a tendency to harbor her own pregnancy away from the father for the duration of it. Cat females get almost rabid. Crazy with paranoia. Bat females get—”

  “All right. All right. All right. I get it,” I say.

  “There are too many unknown variables, not to mention the fact that I don’t trust them. We have to stop harboring them. If the Council is coming after them, then we make ourselves a target by being around them.”

  “And by making them leave and trek through the cold that might lead to their eventual slaughter, we protect ourselves,” I say.

  “You can phrase it however you want, but yes,” she says.

  “I thought nurses were supposed to look out for everyone.”

  “Well in this village? We all look out for our own. They’re strangers, Joel. Outsiders. And we don’t know what their hand is in all this. I know for a fact that they’re lying to Clarissa about a great deal of things, so who knows what they’re lying to us about.”

  “Lying? What do you mean?” I ask.

  “They keep telling Clarissa they’re formulating war plans to solidify, then they’ll bring her into the loop. But that isn’t happening. They’re already solidifying plans that don’t include her so she doesn’t fight.”

  “That’s a good thing. I don’t want her fighting either. She needs to stay safe,” I say.

  “Do you want to know how they’re trying to keep her safe?”

  “How?”

  “By placing her in our care.”

  “That’s perfect! That’s exactly what I want.”

  “Until the Council finds us and slaughters every single one of us to get to her. You know she’s the one they want. You know she’s the woman they’ve been talking about for months. She can’t stay with us. If we want to protect our way of life and defeat the Council, we have to get rid of them. And that means getting rid of her.”

  I grit my teeth as my eyes slide back to the cottage. Smoke is rising from the chimney and coating the land around us in a fog. The trees are dense above us and smoke won’t penetrate the foliage. The fires help to keep us warm, and the smoke helps to conceal our smells in case any Primals come out here looking for trouble. Or worse, if the Council tries to come find us. I’m conflicted. On the one hand, I know my sister has a point. We don’t know if they can be trusted, especially if they’re lying to Clarissa.

  Lying to her.

  That makes me irate.

  But on the other hand, if they wanted to betray us, they had ample opportunity to. They’ve been with us for over a week, but they’ve been nothing but hospitable. Yes, they fight. Yes, they bicker. We’ve got seven people cooped up in a small cottage. Things are going to get tense. But none of them have made a move to hurt anyone. Hell, Vlad and Sebastian took it upon themselves to patrol the edges of the woods for us.

  To keep us safe.

  I hardly think we should repay their kindness with suspicion.

  But I can see my sister’s fears. I can see her eyes filling with uncertainty. I have a dedication to her and this village as much as I do to this war. And while I want Clarissa at my side, I’m not sure that’s an option. I want it to be. I want to run my hands along her curves. I want her to swell with my child. I want to fill a cottage with our lineage and watch them grow into big, strong, charismatic individuals.

  But that might not be a possibility for me.

  She might not want me, and I have to be okay with that. I can’t jeopardize the whole of the village and everything we’ve prepared for because I’ve been entranced by the most perfect woman to ever exist.

  “We have to stop harboring them, Joel. You know I’m right.”

  I look down at my sister as steam falls from my nostrils. I don’t want to admit it. Not yet. I still want a chance to convince Clarissa to stay with us. At least to allow me to protect her. If the guys in our cottage are formulating the same plan I’m trying to convince her of, then she might listen. She might relent.

  The chance is small, but I still have to chase it.

  If anything, so I know she and her unborn child are safe.

  Chapter 11

  Clarissa

  My teeth are bared , and my claws are scraping. I can hear all of them yelling out my name. Calling out for me to snap out of it. To come to the light. To look down at what I’m doing. My heart is racing, and my blood is pumping through my veins. I’m bulging everywhere as my pregnant stomach hangs low to the ground. Toshi’s yelling and Theo’s bellowing and Sebastian’s growling.

  And Vlad.

  Vlad’s whimpering on the ground with claw marks opening up his face.

  I’m thrashing about, sinking my teeth into everyone. Josie. Joel. The villagers. Kyle. All of them, screaming for help. All of them trying to pry themselves from my grasp. All of them filling with the saliva I’m pumping into their body as they fall limp.

  Lifeless upon the ground.

  I pounce, biting the head off General Tera. I crunch, breaking Chief’s neck underneath my grasp. I slam back into Doryu and bite the head off several guards.

  Then I look down at my stomach.

  It’s repulsive, and it has to go.

  “No! Please! Stop!”

  “Clarissa! What is it?”

  “Stop! You don’t know what you’re doing.”

  “It’s Sebastian! Clarissa! Wake up.”

  “No, please—”

  “Clarissa.”

  Sebastian’s growl wakes me from my nightmare, and I throw my arms around him. I’m shivering. Shaking. With tears streaming down my face. I’m panting for breath, my pajamas clinging to my body. I bury myself into Sebastian’s neck and feel his fingers running up and down my back.

  “It’s only a nightmare. You’re safe,” he says.

  “I killed everyone,” I say breathlessly.

  “You’ve killed no one. Everyone’s sleeping.”

  “I couldn't control myself,” I say.

  “You’re completely in control,” he says. “And you’re safe so long as you’re with me.”

  He rocks me side to side like a child in need of its mother. I draw in a deep breath, pulling his scent through my nostrils. His metallic scent, signaling strength and vigor and virile grace. I crawl into his lap and straddle his legs, trying to get as close to him as I can.

  “It’s okay,” he rumbles into my ear. “I’m right here.”

  “Sebastian,” I whisper. “A little lower.”

  I cling to his neck as I feel him look down to the top of my head. I know he’s questioning his every move, but I’m elated when he gives in. He strokes down to my lower back, playing with
the small patch of skin exposed to the air. Electricity is sparking on the top of my skin. It’s sending ricochets of heady pleasure up to my brain. I can feel Sebastian’s chest rumbling with his growls.

  “Clarissa—”

  I reach my lips up to his and silence his protests with a kiss. A kiss I know he can’t ignore. A kiss I can’t ignore. We topple to my bed, and he pins me to the mattress, our fingers intertwined as my legs part for him. I can feel his raging cock throbbing against my leg. I can feel his strength as he grips my body. His lips are everywhere. My neck. My breasts. My stomach. He claws at my clothes until they’re nothing but tatters on the cold wood floor.

  Then he pulls me into his lap and pushes himself into me.

  I cling to his shoulders as my head lobs back. Revealing my throbbing veins to him as his cock fills my body. I’m rolling. Bouncing. Giving myself over to him. I can’t resist it any longer. His smell. His primal masculinity. His craving for me. I whip up and crash our lips together as my knees plant into the mattress, his hands cupping my ass. Rolling me closer into him as his cock pulses against my walls.

  My claws come out and sink into the meat of his back. He growls at me, his eyes flashing between ownership and owning. He pushes me to the mattress and scoots my leg over his shoulder as my claws dig deeper. Marking him. Making him mine. Forcing him to stay with me while he fucks me awake.

  My juices are dripping down my ass crack, and I can’t stop shivering. He pulls my lower lip between his teeth as they begin to sharpen. He pierces my lip, drawing blood as I gasp.

  Then he licks his tongue over it, and I lose all sense of where I am.

  He licks my lip, again and again, using his own saliva to close the wound. My world is spinning, and my pussy is throbbing. My back is arching. White-hot pleasure is blinding my vision. I can feel my toes curling, and I can feel my body succumbing to him. He’s pounding into me. Folding me in half as my pussy milks his cock dry. He feels so good. Sebastian feels better than I remembered. My claws fall from his shoulders, and he picks me up, barreling my back into the wall.

  “You’re mine,” he growls into my ear. “Always.”

  “Yours,” I say whispering. “Always.

  I lean forward and reach my tongue out to lick his wounds. I can feel every hair on his body standing on end. I can feel his hands gripping into my hips. Bruising them for the morning as he buries his fingerprints into me. His lips graze down to my shoulder and bite before his tongue rakes over the wound.