Chapter 10
Jun 1, 2025
With a growl, Rowan slashed the rogue that had stabbed Ace, his claws slicing clean through the enemy’s throat. The rogue let out a strangled gurgle before collapsing.
Blood was everywhere, dripping from Ace’s side, staining Rowan’s hands, soaking into the ground beneath her.
Rowan’s heart hammered in his chest. His wolf was on edge, pacing, snarling, howling at him to move—to do something.
Just then, Kane appeared beside him, panting. “The others fled.”
Rowan didn’t care.
His focus was on her.
Ace groaned on the ground, her body twitching in pain. Rowan dropped to his knees beside her. “Ace!”
She didn’t respond.
“Crap,” Kane muttered, watching the blood pool around her.
Rowan’s jaw clenched. “Help me get her on my back.”
Kane raised a brow. “You serious?”
Rowan snarled. “Now, Kane!”
Kane sighed but did as he was told. He reached for Ace, but she weakly swatted at him.
“Don’t… touch me,” Ace mumbled, voice strained.
“Not the time to be stubborn,” Kane muttered, hoisting her up.
Ace gritted her teeth, but the fight was leaving her. Blood gushed from her wound, her breathing ragged. And then she went limp.
Kane cursed. “He’s out.”
Rowan didn’t waste another second.
“Get the doctor ready!” he ordered, his voice sharp as he took off into a sprint.
Kane hesitated only for a second before nodding and shifting into his wolf, speeding ahead.
Rowan ran, faster than he ever had before.
Ace’s weight against him was nothing. What was something was the terrifying realization clawing at his mind.
He couldn’t lose Ace.
Not now.
Not after she had saved his life. Twice.
His heart pounded. He had been testing her, doubting her, pushing her limits, thinking she was nothing more than a tool—a soldier.
But tonight, he had been proven wrong.
She was more than a warrior. More than a weapon.
She was loyal.
She had sworn allegiance to him the night she had become his captive—trading herself in exchange for her sister. She had promised that her strength would serve him and his pack.
And she had kept her word.
But Rowan had been blind. Testing her was pointless. He didn’t need to see if she was strong.
He needed her by his side.
He could no longer deny the gnawing fear in his gut. The fear that came from two things; the way his body reacted to her and the fact that Ace was unbeatable.
Rowan’s hands tightened around her legs as he ran.
She had seen him kill his father.
And no matter how loyal she was to him now, he knew that someday—someday—Ace would want vengeance. That thought sent ice through his veins. But an idea struck him. An idea that would ensure she never turned against him.
Just then, the house came into view, its doors already thrown open, the clinic lights glowing inside.
Kane stood at the entrance, waving. “Doctor’s ready!”
Rowan didn’t slow down. He burst through the doors, into the large room where warriors were treated after battles. The scent of herbs and antiseptic filled his nose.
The doctor, an elderly woman with sharp eyes, rushed toward him. “Lay him down!”
Rowan knelt on the thick mat spread across the large bed. As he loosened his grip, Ace’s body slid from his back.
But before she could hit the bed, he felt something in her upper torso.
Breathing.
