Falling For The Demon Wolf-Chapter 42: Far From Home

ZAIN

I ripped myself away from the door like it had burned me.

Which, in a way, it had.

Every inch of me was tight with need, my muscles coiled and aching from holding back. My wolf clawed at the surface, howling, claim her, claim her, claim her, and it took everything I had not to turn back around and give in.

But I didn’t.

I stormed down the hallway, my steps loud, angry, echoing through the silent pack house like thunder.

I needed air.

Space.

Sanity.

The second I hit the back doors, I shifted—bones snapping, fur bursting from skin—and took off into the trees like hell was on my heels.

Because maybe it was.

Maybe she was.

The cold wind whipped against my face, but it did nothing to cool the heat raging through me. My paws tore through the underbrush, breath heavy, heart louder than ever. The forest blurred around me, but her scent clung to my nose, thick and maddening. Every moan I’d heard played on repeat in my mind. The way she gasped. The way her voice cracked. The way I felt her pleasure inside me like it was my own—

I growled, deep and violent, crashing through the trees until I found the edge of the river.

I skidded to a stop and shifted back, falling to my knees, chest heaving. The cold air stung my skin. But it still wasn’t enough.

Nothing would be.

Nothing except her.

Her skin under mine. Her lips. Her voice. Her fire.

I wanted her more than I wanted my next breath—and it was fucking dangerous.

She wasn’t ready.

I wasn’t allowed.

Not with Roman still alive in my dungeons.

Not when the elders would tear her apart if they knew what she really was.

Not when I was meant to be the one who kept the wolves in line—not the one who lost control over a girl with stormfire in her blood and a target on her back.

I gritted my teeth and punched the ground.

Again.

And again.

Until blood dripped from my knuckles and the ache in my bones finally distracted me from the other ache—the one she caused.

She’d been mine from the moment I saw her.

But if I gave in now... I’d destroy us both

The moon was shinin brightly indicating that the hunt was finally over.

She survived it.

For now.

I sat by the river bed, waiting for the rod betwey legs to go back to its normal relaxed sized then a noise caught my attention.

Ispun around, every muscle tight, his senses crackling with tension. The shuffling from the nearby bush was subtle—but not subtle enough to go unnoticed.

I crouched slightly, a low growl building in my throat. "Who’s there?" I snapped, voice rough with command. My nostrils flared as i caught a faint scent—one he didn’t recognize... and yet, something in it reminded him of Violet.

And Human.

Then—movement.

A girl stumbled into the clearing, hands raised, eyes wide and fearful. Behind her, a large wolf-dog followed, teeth bared but not aggressive, more protective than anything else.

My growl deepened the moment my gaze landed on the intruder.

"You’ve got five seconds to explain before I rip your throat out."

"Please don’t kill me," the girl said quickly, chest heaving. "I-I’m not here to fight. I’m Violet’s sister. Jade Hawthorne."

My entire body stilled—then moved like a storm, advancing with the precision of a predator. How dare she speak the name of my mate!

I grabbed her by the collar and slammed her against the nearest tree, fangs bared just inches from her face.

"Violet’s what?"

"Sister!" Jade choked out. "She sent a message—she warned us! I had to find her. I had to make sure she’s alive!"

My eyes blazed, not with compassion—but fury. And slight anger towards Violet, how the hell was she able to send a message across to her family?

"You crossed my land. My borders. You brought a damn wolf-dog through the forest like this is a stroll through the village market? And you come here spreeing nonsense"

Jade whimpered, defiant despite the tremble in her voice. "I’m not afraid of you."

Typical.

"You should be." My grip tightened. "You don’t know what the hell you just walked into."

The dog-wolf growled, but I snapped his head in its direction with a look that silenced it instantly.

Yes, bow to the fucking alpha.

"You’ve got a death wish, don’t you?" I sneered. "Violet’s already hanging on by a thread, and now her sister shows up in my territory like you own the gods-damned place?"

"I just want to see her," Jade whispered. "Please I won’t stay."

"No. You won’t." I released her with a shove, stepping back just enough not to tear her throat out.

"You’ll be locked up until I decide what to do with you. And if you so much as look at someone the wrong way, I’ll throw your mangled body right back over the border."

I turned sharply, calling for two guards nearby with a howl that echoed through the trees.

Jade sank to her knees, shaking as the dog-wolf nuzzled her protectively.

I didn’t look back.

No one gains my sympathy except my mate.

Not even the family that debt her out here to die.

My thoughts were already racing back to Violet—and the chaos that kept tightening around her like a noose.

The moment the two guards broke through the tree line, I didn’t need to say a word.

They saw the girl—saw the anger radiating off me like heat from a blaze—and they moved.

"Take her," I growled.

Jade barely had time to react before rough hands clamped around her arms. She yelped, struggling, but she was no match for trained warriors. The wolf-dog snarled, lunging forward, but one of the guards slammed a silver-tipped staff to the ground, sending a pulse through the earth that made the creature whimper and collapse, dazed.

"Wait—don’t hurt him!" she cried out, thrashing. "He’s mine—he’s harmless!"

"Shut her up," I snapped without looking back.

One of the guards shoved a cloth into her mouth, gagging her cries. The other dragged the dazed wolf-dog by the scruff, both of them stumbling behind me as I stalked ahead—each step heavier than the last.

I could feel my jaw grinding, my fangs aching from restraint. I didn’t trust her—not even for a second. And the fact that she’d made it this deep into my territory without being torn apart only made me angrier.

Was it luck?

Or something more?

Violet.

Everything always came back to her.

My mate. My curse. My undoing.

And now her sister was here, practically gift-wrapped by the gods themselves—uninvited, unclaimed, and a threat I didn’t ask for. I clenched my fists tighter. My body still burned from the memory of Violet. Her scent was still on my skin. Her moans still echoed in my head. And now I had to deal with this?

No.

I wouldn’t allow this distraction to grow roots. Not now. Not when everything inside Violet was waking up—and I was barely holding on.

Behind me, Jade grunted, her boots scraping through dirt and leaves as the guards dragged her like a prisoner of war. Her wolf growled weakly, but I didn’t slow down. I wouldn’t show mercy—not until I understood why she was here... and who she might’ve led to my doorstep.

She was going in a cell.

And gods help her if she gave me even one reason not to let her back out.

The sky had darkened by the time we stormed through the gates of the pack house. The guards flanked me, dragging the girl behind like a sack of trouble. Her boots scraped against the stone floor, and she kept twisting in their grip, her voice hoarse from trying to scream around the gag.

I didn’t stop.

Didn’t look back.

The halls were quiet—most of the pack still out finishing the last night of the hunt. Good. I didn’t need witnesses. Not for this.

"Where are you taking me?!" she screamed as the gag slipped from her mouth during her struggle, voice raw and full of panic.

I didn’t answer right away. Just yanked open the iron door leading down to the lower cells and descended into the dark.

When her feet hit the first stone step, she thrashed harder. "Wait—stop! Please! I didn’t come here to hurt anyone!"

I turned over my shoulder, eyes glowing as the torchlight caught my face.

"Be glad I haven’t killed you yet," I grunted. "Keep talking, and I might change my mind."

That shut her up—just for a second. Her breaths came in short, terrified bursts as I led the way deeper underground. The dungeon’s cold, musty scent filled the air—old blood, wet stone, and iron. I could feel her fear spiking behind me like static.

Good.

Let her be afraid.

She should’ve stayed far away from this place... from me.

"Please," she choked out. "I’m just looking for my sister. Violet. She’s here, isn’t she?"

I stopped walking.

Turned slowly.

The guards jerked to a halt behind me.

"You think dropping her name will save you?" I asked, stepping in close. "You think that means something to me?"

"She’s all I have," Jade whispered, defiant even as her voice trembled. "She wouldn’t want this. She wouldn’t want you to throw me into a cell like some criminal."

I leaned in until our faces were inches apart, letting her see the wolf just beneath my skin. "She doesn’t know you’re here."

And she didn’t.

Violet had no clue her sister had crossed enemy lines and waltzed into the heart of my territory like she belonged here. The fact that she made it this far without being torn apart? That pissed me off even more.

"Put her in the end cell," I snapped, turning away before I did something I’d regret. "Chain the mutt."

"No!" Jade cried as they dragged her down the corridor. "Don’t hurt him! He didn’t do anything! He’s my best friend!"

Her voice echoed behind me, and I forced myself up the stairs without looking back.

She was lucky she was Violet’s sister.

Because otherwise...

She wouldn’t have made it out of that forest alive.