Heart of a Beast

Chapter 3 | Part 1 - Tiberius

Finally.

The word repeated over and over in Tiberius' head as he held the sleeping form of his mate in his arms.

Finally, he found her.

Finally, his search was over.

It wasn't too late. He still had time to fix things and set everything right. The next lunar eclipse was approaching, he could feel it in his bones, but it was still a few months off. Surely, that would be enough time.

Easing himself down to his knees, the earth a soft, rich cushion after hours spent running along the rocky shoreline of rivers and creeks, and held her close. He pressed his nose into the curve of her neck, closed his eyes, and relished in the feel of her, the softness of her, and the subtle violet scent of her.

Whimpers erupted as his soul cried in joy.

Finally.

Finally.

Throwing his head back, he howled his praises and thanks to the moon. The sound of it breaking him down even more as he licked her sleeping face.

Her nose scrunched up and he huffed a half chuckle.

She was perfect. Perfect.

But something was off. He knew it. He saw it and felt it the moment she fell from the tree and he caught her in his arms. She shook violently all over. He had to hold her tight to keep her from slipping and hurting herself.

He couldn't tell what was wrong. The stench of vampire blood clung to his fur and saturated the air around him. There was a hint of a musk, one that he recognized and made his blood run cold.

It can't be...

He pressed his nose against her chest and inhaled a deep breath, concentrating on the mixture of smells around him and searching for a trace of the one he feared most.

There. Like a drop of acid on the delicate petal of a violet, there it was. The touch of death feeding off her soul.

He shook his head, no. It couldn't be true. He was smelling himself on her. That had to be it. He'd touched her and tainted her scent with his own.

Then why did she have a seizure up in that tree? Why hadn't she shifted and killed that vampire instead of being drawn away from her pack, shoved, and strangled?

Wolfsbane? Silver, perhaps?

A strand of dark hair escaped her loose ponytail and he brushed it away from her face gently with a claw.

So fragile and delicate, and yet a war waged within her only moments ago. She needed to be protected. She needed him to be strong. She needed him to fix this.

Shelter. Safety.

Instinct gripped him and he rose up on his hind legs and carried her unconscious body in both arms in search of shelter.

He would get the answers to his questions later. Her well-being came first.

Following the creek, he saw a dark cabin on the left side. Overgrown vegetation and trees surrounded it, making it almost hidden from view.

Something about it made his skin crawl and he turned away from it. There had to be something else.

He followed the creek a few more miles before it split in two directions. Sniffing the nearby vegetation, he followed the creek that split two territories and merged into a larger river. Traveling between territories was the only option for now.