Dr. Daphne Panetta, her boss and best friend, had been the one to slam those doors, but itd had to be done, they couldnt risk releasing the virus. Shed understood, and Daphne had stood with her, watching her transformation as much to bear witness and be with her as to study her. Daphnes nearness had been a comfort, and Bethany had felt like she wasnt facing the darkness alone.
When the attack on the facility had begun, she had been glad to see Konstantin, the other test subject whose virus was like Bethanys, carry Daphne away from the carnage. Hed promised her hed keep her safe, and Beth didnt doubt it. There was some connection between them, and whether Daphne accepted it or not, they were mated. They belonged together.
When Konstantin had scratched Beth, hed infected her as a way to help her. His action prevented her from becoming a mindless beast; but it changed her, too, on a cellular level, and there was no undoing it.
Bethany was no longer humanshe was a werewolf.
She assumed Stefan had gotten The Callthe next-of-kin notification done by the Department of Defense. But if he thought she was dead, what insanity made him think he could storm the facility like some avenging god? She shook her head and scanned the landscape for Stefan again. She had to find him. The jet with the containment protocol was most likely already in the air.
Her appraisal focused on a man who smelled like Stefan, but the man in her line of sight couldnt be him.
He was bigger somehow, tallerstronger. He wore his uniform like a second skin, barked orders like a man used to being obeyed. This man cut through his enemies with deadly precision. Each Aeternali soldier who engaged him paid with his life. He was a stone-cold killerthe perfect weapon. There was no hesitation, no remorse. Only death. If this man was an accountant, it was in hell tallying the dead he sent before him.
Epiphany splashed over her like ice water.
Hed lied to her.
It was obvious Stefan was here to kill the things shed studied, maybe even kill her now that shed been infected. Hed used her to mine information. How could she have been so stupid?
The knowledge settled with heavy weight in her human consciousness, but in her wolf form it was the beast who was in control. The beast didnt understand betrayalthat was a human emotion. All the beast knew was that her mate was under attack. When uninfected werewolves poured from the blast hole in the facility wall, Bethany launched herself toward him.
Even as she leaped, he pulled out knives that caused lycanthropic flesh to smoke and tear without regenerating. There was no tang of fear to his scenthe obviously knew exactly what he was doing and exactly what kind of creature he faced. He ripped through the werewolves like paper. They roared and he roared backa guttural war cry filled with rage.
Beth added her own roar, drowning out the other wolves. Since there were only two of her kind, by default Beth was a Beta wolf to the Alpha of Alphas. She was an Alpha in her own right, and wolves, even of another species, would submit to her might.
Beth added her own roar, drowning out the other wolves. Since there were only two of her kind, by default Beth was a Beta wolf to the Alpha of Alphas. She was an Alpha in her own right, and wolves, even of another species, would submit to her might.
Mine, she said to the other wolves. Mine. She lay claim to all the men with Stefan but left the remaining Aeternali for the others. The soldiers were the ones whod imprisoned themtheir own government had handed them over for testing without pause. The tide of wolves turned on the Aeternali soldiers with fierce jaws and brutal claws. She pushed images of the destruction headed their way into their minds and hoped they understood.
She turned to Stefan and his knives were still at the readyhis brows drawn together in confusion as he looked into her changed eyes. He may have been confused, but disdain curled his lip back in a sneer.
Looks like you have a fan, a voice echoed from the throng.
Silence, Stefan demanded, and silence reigned.
Beth stood bipedal, her wolf form making her as tall as Stefan. Her breath came out in quick puffs, bringing her tongue out as she tasted the pheromones in the air. The coppery tang of fear and blood splashed together, but none of it was from Stefan. She wondered if revulsion had a taste and if shed mistaken it for something else.
Her heart twisted in her chest and all the hopes and dreams shed had for their future together were discarded. He hated what she was, and even if he didnt, hed never loved her. Hed used her, lied to her, and all those dreams shed mourned were nothing but broken glass.
She didnt want to feel this as the beast; Beth needed her humanity. She didnt care how hed react.
As soon as her human consciousness was in the forefront and her human form washed over her, she was hit with a tidal wave of memories. All the planning that had gone into their weddingthe seating charts, the chapel, her colors... Things they were going to do together, memories they talked about making. Shame flooded her. How stupid he mustve thought her with her silly plans.
What are you doing, Stefan? You know about the bomber.
He flinched away from her when she changed form. Her nakedness and humanity were somehow more abhorrent to him than her wolf form. We were supposed to be in and out. Then the wolves came. His voice was devoid of emotion.
Not that she expected him to have any. Hed lied about everything. Seduced her with cold calculation, inserted himself into her life until she believed a life without him was unthinkable. Even as she tallied his sins, the love she felt for him didnt diminish. Though she desperately wanted it to. The man shed fallen for wasnt real; it was a pretty mask hed made. Still, her beast roared, Mine.
No, not ours. Not real.
Mine.
That wasnt a very good plan, was it? she said softly. Beth wanted to flee, not just the bomber but everything he made her feel. The pain, the humiliation and that damned torch hed ignited in herlove. Only, it was so much more than love. It was unquantifiable. It was more and it was less, it was everything and nothing. It was the reason she couldnt leave him here to die alone.
The beast wouldnt let her, even if her humanity told her he had it coming.
He stood, knives drawnfrozen. They told me you were dead.
I know. She reached out to touch his arm, but he jerked away from her like shed tried to burn him with a hot poker. Beth was struck by the ridiculousness of the situation. He was the one who had betrayed her, but he got to play the injured party. She was so angry with him, but with death looming, it didnt matter so much.
The sound of the jet rumbled in her ears.
Do you want to live? she asked him, her tone still low and soothing. Beth wasnt ready to give up yet. She didnt want to die, and even though she wanted to kick him with a brick, she didnt want him to die either.
One of the uninfected werewolves, obviously an Alpha by his size and bearing, took human shape and approached them. Bethany, the jet comes. Leave the Gypsy scum.
The Gypsy scum freed you. You owe them a debt, Beth said.
He snarled, muzzle erupting from his face as his beast overcame him.
Stefan immediately shoved her behind him, his grip like a brand on her wrist. Beth put her hand on his shoulder, and once he realized she was touching him, he shrugged her off. It hurt, but Beth was determined. They had only minutes left. She stepped around her would-be protector.
Konstantin was once the Beta to Luka Stanislav, your Alpha. He still speaks for him and I speak for Konstantin. Help me save the Gypsies and your debt is resolved. She turned to Stefan. Drop your silver and you can save all of your men.
We do not fear death, Stefan assured her.
You owe me a debt, Stefan. You betrayed me. Let us save you and then we can both walk away. She fought as much for her own life as she did for his.
He looked at her, an unrecognizable expression on his face.
As the seconds ticked by, Beth knew they were reaching the point of no returnwhere even if he agreed to let her save him, theyd be doomed. She wouldnt leave him. It didnt matter to her beast what hed done, he was still her mate.
She sighed and turned to the other wolf. Go. You dont need to die here.
Beth had already resigned herself to death once; maybe he was just now catching up with her.
The other wolf looked at her, head cocked to the side. We stand with you.
Take my men, Stefan croaked, and then called the order to stand down.
Beth nodded to the wolf and watched as they bounded away with their passengers. She knew shed done a good thing. Shed been unable to stop or cure the infection, but saving those lives would have to do.
What are you doing, Beth? he asked, sounding tired and dejected.
Staying with you.
Go. You can still make it. He narrowed his eyes at her.
She shook her head. No. I cant. Wolves mate for life. You were my mate when I was turned. You still are. I couldnt leave you here if I wanted to.
But it was a lie. Incredulity stained his words.
She snarled and pushed at his shoulders with no care for his silver or his weapons. Dont you think thats obvious? I may have been stupid enough to fall in love with a pretty mirage, but I can see the writing on the wall. If I could leave you here, I would, you bastard. Its what you deserve. I dont want to die! she cried and shoved at his shoulders again. I had dreams, and just because youre not part of them anymore doesnt mean theyre gone. I still want a home, a family. I want to help people. I could still have that. But no, youd rather stay here and rot instead of accepting help from something you hate. The animal doesnt understand betrayal. It doesnt understand lying. The human part of me wants to hate you, but the beast wont let it. Fear choked her as the roaring of the jet reverberated ever louder in her ears. So thanks for making that choice for me, too.
Thats ironic as hell, isnt it? he asked gently.
Because you kill them? Things like me?
Yes.
Thats not irony.
Then what is it? His dark eyes searched her face as if he actually didnt understand.
Tears streamed down her face as a million memories crashed over her in a tsunami. Her first chemistry set, her doctorate, the night when shed met him. The way hed touched her, the first time hed told her he loved her. When he asked her to marry him. It was nothing nowjust like her. In about one minute thered be nothing left of them but ash. None of it mattered. What she wanted, what shed hoped, even his betrayal. In the endless ocean of time, she was nothing more than a molecule.