Blood Bond by Kit Tunstall

Already, Sorin’s
ragged breathing had eased, suggesting peaceful sleep, rather than
unconsciousness. As relief filled him, Lucian’s thoughts turned from concern
for Sorin to revenge. Whoever had injured Sorin would pay for what they had done.
He would not stand by uselessly even a moment longer.
    No one tried to talk him out of leaving
Necheau to investigate the forest for signs of whoever had been tracking them.
Lucian didn’t know if it was because they thought he should search, or if
perhaps his air of raw rage made them shy away from trying to reason with him.
He didn’t care which it was right then. All he could focus on was punishing the
hunter who had injured his lover and forced Starr to face unknown danger
without her mates by her side.
     
    * * * * *
    Starr and the werewolves accompanying her
reached the castle a little more than an hour after setting off together. The
werewolves had set a frantic pace that left her breathless, though they seemed
barely affected.
    She kept her eyes focused on the tower
where Anca and Demi slept as they rushed across the courtyard. They encountered
no one as they entered the castle, but it was the middle of the night. She
tried not to worry about the lack of activity as she led the others up the
winding staircases, through the wings of the castle, and up to the tower room
of the queen and king.
    Starr hesitated at the doorway of their
room, wondering how she should proceed. If her sense of timing were off, she
would be bursting in and needlessly putting them in a panic. One didn’t simply
push open the door to the queen’s chamber and rush inside, shouting dire
warnings.
    Undecided, Starr transformed to human-form,
barely aware of her lack of clothing, and knocked on the door. Her senses urged
her to dispense with politeness, but she knocked again, waiting a few seconds
for a response. She knocked louder, but again, no one answered the door.
    She closed her eyes and placed her palm
flat against the wood worn smooth with the passage of time. Starr tuned out the
presence of the wolves behind her, who were in various states of assuming their
human forms. She closed her eyes and tried to concentrate on what was happening
behind the door.
    She searched with her mind, seeking the
reassuring presence of either the Protector or her lifemate. Any sort of
response—even anger at an unwarranted probing of their minds—would have been a
relief.
    She strained mentally, but couldn’t receive
a vision, nor connect with either Anca or Demi. She struggled to relax and
allowed her thoughts to turn to the erotic moments she had spent in Sorin and
Lucian’s arms, hoping the rush of sexual energy would increase her mental
abilities, as it had done exponentially earlier that night.
    Her lips parted with a soft gasp as she
imagined Lucian cupping her breast in his hand, while thumbing the hardened
nipple. Sorin’s phantom fingers toyed with her swollen clit, causing moisture
to leak down her thighs. Her breathing grew ragged, and her eyes moved rapidly
under her lids.
    As she remembered the sensation of having
both cocks penetrate her simultaneously, an image formed in her mind. It was
dark, and someone stood over a bed. At first, she thought it was a memory of
being at the cabin, but as her body recalled the way Lucian and Sorin had made
love to her, the vision crystallized.
    A woman stood over the bed of Anca and
Demi, who were bound by some invisible force. It was the same image Starr had
seen earlier, but now clarified. She gasped when she realized who the assailant
was, as she opened her eyes to look at the door. It couldn’t be, but it was.
How had she escaped the little-known prison in the Ukraine and made her way
back to Corsova? How had she entered the country? More importantly, was Nikia
with her? Was that who had shot Sorin in the forest?
    Sian held a dagger in her hand and wore an
expression of concern as she eyed the door. She must know Starr was on the
other side, and her hand