Chapter 276
I burst into the room and Karolina looks up at me with wide, startled eyes.
There’s a garden hose filling arge stic tub, and Aaron is chained to a chair bnced precariously
on the edge. One slight tip in the wrong direction and Aaron goes under, unable to save himself from
drowning in the water.
Aaron stares at me surprised and desperate with longing.
“Aaron!” I lunge forward, but someone catches my arm and tugs me back again.
I turn in confusion, thinking James is holding me back for some reason, but I find Ryker standing there
holding me, while James is crumpled unconscious on the ground a few steps behind me.
At least I hope he’s only unconscious.
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I was so focused on Aaron, I didn’t even realize Ryker had arrived ande up behind us, let alone
got the jump on James.
“Let me go!” I shout angrily, tugging on my arm.
“Now, Leah,” Ryker says in an admonishing voice. “I believe I told you what would happen if you went
after my mate.”
“I’m not going after your mate,” I tell him furiously, struggling
against his hold. “I’m trying to save
“Ah, but I’m afraid in doing so, my dear Karolina might get caught up in some unfortunate conflict,”
Ryker answers reasonably, as if we’re not standing in a literal life-or-death situation.
“I told you I can fight my own battles, Ryker!” Karolina says furiously. “You made it clear you weren’t
willing to help me, and I told you to stay out of things. Why did youe here?”
Ryker’s gaze narrows on Karolina in anger.
Wow, things really are that bad between the pair.
“My honor can only stretch so far, Karolina,” Ryker replies. “The Old Ways aren’t just a set of rules or
traditions to me. They are in my blood, set into my bones. I told you I wouldn’t help you, but I also told
you getting between me and my sense of duty to the true ways of wolves was a dangerous thing to do.”
Karolina throws up her hands in furious exasperation. “The Old World is gone! When are you going to
see that? I don’t care what you say, and I don’t care if you’re my mate. I’m doing what’s right for our
species, even if you’re too far buried under your st upid ancient honor to see that.”
With that, Karolina steps forward and shoves Aaron, so that he tips back andnds in the tub with a
huge ssh.
“No!” I scream, finally able to break free of Ryker’s hold.
“Oh no you don’t,” she says, shoving me back again. “Aaron is dead, and those Alpha powers are
going to be mine!”
I growl and bare my fangs, even as my ws spring out and I partially shift.
I’m about to spring forward, nning to shred Karolina into tiny, bl oody pieces, when Ryker gets in
between us and shoves us apart.
“This stops now. All of it!” Ryker yells, and he seems to be talking more to Karolina.
I manage to dodge Ryker’s restraining hold and then avoid Karolina-who tries to turn on me, but is still
being held by Ryker herself-and rush over to the tub.
At first, I think I should pull Aaron out, but between the chair and the chains, it’ll be awkward and heavy
and take precious minutes I’ve already lost.
Instead, I throw my entire weight into the side of the tub and send the whole thing tumbling over
sideways. A mini wave of water sshes out and rolls into the far wall.
I scramble around the tub, shoving it aside.
Aaron is on his side, still chained to the chair and he’s not moving. He wasn’t underwater for more than
a minute, but he’d been bound, chained with something that must have sapped his
strength entirely, if it could keep him held in the first ce.
He’s not breathing.
“No, Aaron, no!” I say desperately.
I smash the chair into bits and frantically pull at the chains, even though they’re burning my hands
down to the bone and the pain is agonizing.
“Karolina!” Ryker says in rm, and I look over to see she’s fallen to the floor and gone rigid with pain.
Aaron is dead.
And the transfer of his Alpha powers to Karolina has begun.
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