131 | LIKE FATHER, LIKE DAUGHTER

Ares shifted into his human form immediately, not once glancing back at the remaining wolves circling us. He strode towards Scillian, his eyes narrowed, his jaw clenched, and without thinking I shifted too, following him into the fray.

As we crossed the last of the distance, I realised that the wolves surrounded us had stilled. Anger rose in me, scalding my chest and stinging the back of my throat. I swallowed hard, trying to keep my expression neutral as we neared them. Ares wasn’t faring so well; he glared at Scillian with pure, unadulterated hatred burning in his bright blue eyes.

But it wasn’t Scillian that I looked at. It was Aliana. She looked different like this, the wispy curls of her blonde hair somehow appearing less innocent, less delicate, than they had before. Everything about her had hardened, from her round pale eyes to the gaunt cut of her bones. Rather than frail or malnourished, she looked like a sharpened spear ready to strike.

‘Where’s Annia?’ I mindlinked to Ares