ATASHA’S POV


    I didn’t know how long he carried me slung over his shoulder. My head swam, the constant jolt of his stride making me dizzy. Just when I thought I might be sick from the motion, he finally stopped. Without warning, he shifted his grip and dumped me onto the snow like I was nothing.


    The cold punched through my cloak at once, burning against my back as I hit the ground. Snow clung to my clothes and slid down my cor. I pushed up on my elbows, breath catching, and red up at him.


    Was he not nning to feed me to the beasts? My eyes darted around, and that was when I noticed where we were. The entrance of a cave loomed ahead, narrow and half–buried under


    snow.


    My grip on the dagger tightened. Was something waiting inside? Another beast? Was he nning to throw me in and let it finish me off?


    “Inside…” Cassian said suddenly.


    I froze. Since this madness began, he hadn’t spoken a word. Mendez had warned me. Once they turned, their minds slipped, speech became impossible. But now, his voice was sharp and


    clear.


    “Now…” he added.


    I blinked, stunned. “Cassian, you can–ah!” The words broke off into a startled cry as his hand mped around my arm. He yanked me up with no effort, then in one motion hurled me straight into the cave.


    The impact knocked the breath from me, but I forced myself upright, dagger in hand. My eyes darted around the cave, every sense on edge. The space was narrow, the ceiling low, shadows stretching across the rock walls. It was dark, but I half–expected to see glowing eyes staring back at me from the ck.


    I crouched low, ready to strike at the first movement. My grip tightened, pulse hammering in


    my ears<b>. </b>


    But no beast came.


    Instead, a long, guttural howl split through the night.


    I spun toward the entrance just in time to see Cassian colliding with something massive in the snow outside. My breath caught. It looked like a wolf, but bigger, triple the size at least, its


    body thick with muscle, fur bristling, eyes wide and crazed.


    It hit Cassian like a boulder, knocking both of them into the snow. Only then did it sink in, he hadn’t thrown me in here to feed me to anything. He had thrown me here to keep me out of the way.


    He didn’t want me to interfere. Or maybe he thought I’d only drag him down if I tried to fight.


    I slowly exhaled, my chest loosening for the briefest second.


    Then, the beast pinned him.


    Cassian mmed against the snow, the weight of the creature driving into him. His sword arm was trapped. The beast’s jaws snapped inches from his throat, its teeth dripping that same foul, poisonous liquid I had seen before. My hand shot to my mouth before I could stop myself, stifling the sound that tried to escape.


    If it could overpower him, I had no chance against it.


    The wolf–beast lunged again, but Cassian twisted his head aside, teeth raking across his shoulder instead of his neck. Blood spurted hot across the snow, staining him instantly. He snarled through gritted teeth and drove his free elbow up into the beast’s jaw. The strike stunned it just long enough for him to wrench his sword arm free.


    Steel shed.


    The de drove deep into its ribs. The beast howled, thrashing, but Cassian didn’t stop. He ripped the sword sideways, tearing flesh and bone apart. ck–blue blood poured out, sttering the snow, coating both of them.


    The beast still writhed.


    Cassian let the sword fall into the snow, his hands snapping up to grip the beast’s skull. His fingers dug into its matted fur as he nted a boot on its chest for leverage. The muscles in his arms swelled as he twisted, veins standing out across his forearms.


    The sound that came next turned my stomach. A wet, grinding crack echoed through the trees, followed by the rip of bone tearing away from sinew. The beast let out onest shudder before its head tore free in his grip.


    Cassian stood over the body, the severed head still clutched in his hands. The carcass hit the ground with a heavy thud, limbs jerking in useless spasms before finally going still, ck–blue blood soaking into the snow beneath it.


    His chest heaved as blood slick across his torso and arms. The foul liquid covered him head to


    toe, soaking into his clothes, dripping from his fingers. The head of the beast was still in his grip, its jaw ck, poison drooling into the snow.


    And he was smiling.


    A wide grin, stretching ear to ear was stered on his face, his eyes still burning red. He looked less like a man and more like something that had crawled out of the dark to kill for the sake of it.


    Then he turned towards the cave.


    I stumbled backward until the cave wall stopped me. The rock was cold and damp against my spine, seeping through the fabric of my cloak. I pressed myself against it, but there was nowhere else to go. The stench of blood filled the cave, mixed with that bitter poison stink from the beast. It coated the back of my throat, making it hard to breathe.


    Cassian moved closer. One step was enough to fill the cave with his presence. His size blocked most of the entrance, and the air itself felt heavier with him inside.


    My grip on the dagger tightened, but the de still trembled in my hand. I couldn’t stop it. Cassian stepped into the cave, his frame filling the narrow space. His boots crunched against the stone floor, each step closer, the blood dripping from him leaving dark streaks behind.


    I pressed harder against the wall, unsure if I should raise the dagger or drop it. He closed the distance until only a few steps remained between us. My chest tightened, every muscle screaming to move, but I couldn’t.


    Then he stopped.


    Without a word, he lifted his arm. The severed head of the beast dangled from his grip, its jaw ck, poison–dark blood still leaking down its torn neck. He held it out toward me, like an offering or a warning.


    My breath caught.


    Then he smiled and said, “Food.”