Free Claiming Ana by Brynna Curry Page A

him, tasting blood. No longer human in form, he was wolf. The cool wind ruffled his fur. He cocked his ears to hear a faint scuffling sound, rabbit maybe, some distance away. The anticipation of the chase washed over him. Hunt. Kill. Food . He stopped, suddenly unbearably alone. Mate. Breath heaving, the wolf scraped the forest floor with his thick claws and sniffed, tried to find her scent. Deeper he walked until he came to the tree marked with his blood.
    And he remembered. Oh, Ana.
    Human. I’m supposed to be human. Howl remembered what he should have forgotten with the last change. Ana crooning softly as she cared for him. The rain coming through the open window of the bedroom as they’d made love that morning and all afternoon. Her scent, her shape as she lay under him. Her eyes going blind as she said she loved him, when he lost himself in her. The magic she’d used to shield him and keep him safe.
    Oh, Ana! He howled in despair. His mate was human. The only way to have her was to turn her. I love Ana too much to condemn her to this life . Like a dream, she was there in his mind, linked.
    Howl? Can you hear me?
    Yes, Ana. My love .
    Van is here. Stay away. He says you’ll come, and then he’ll…don’t come for me.
    Did he hurt you?
    I love you, Howl. Be safe always. As long as I live, he will never be able to find you. Goodbye.
    Ana?
    She was gone and would not respond to him. This time she’d blocked their link.
    I’m coming. He didn’t care if death waited for him. As long as Ana lived, he’d die a thousand deaths to save her.
     
    * * * *
     
    Van leaned against Ana’s kitchen counter, her favorite coffee mug in one hand, a .38 special in the other. Raven would show. He didn’t know how she had contacted his nemesis, but he was sure she had warned him. The gypsy woman zoned out, but she’d spoken to that damn monster. He smiled, a vicious flash of teeth. His intent as lethal as the abomination he would destroy. The wolf would come after his mate. Her pathetic glamour weakened the closer he came. He could sense him, just barely. Such a beautiful woman could do better than a were-beast.
    “Raven will come for you. It doesn’t matter what you told him to do. You are in his blood as much as the wolf now.”
    “Howl will save himself.”
    “I’ve got you figured out, gypsy. I can always track him here.” Van tapped his temple. “Now he’s a fuzzy picture. You’re in love with him. You used magic to cast a glamour, but it can’t hide him forever. When you die, so will your magic. Then I’ll have him.”
    “You are wrong. I mean nothing to him.”
    “Oh, I don’t think so. See, I’ve been hunting him a long time. If I have learned anything, when it comes to the woman he’s sleeping with, Raven plays the hero. No one touches what he considers his property. His misfortune. You really are quite beautiful. He’ll fight hard to take you from me.” His blood heated when Ana paled, her fear fueling his hate.
    “Howl will not come for me.”
    Van stood and walked in front of the chair he had tied her to. He used the barrel of the pistol to trace from her cheek down her neck, and down until the gun pointed at her heart. She fought against her bonds.
    “And what does he mean to you, Gypsy? You tried to trick me to save him. Maybe I’ve changed my mind and I’d like a taste of what my cousin enjoys. Very beautiful.”
    Would the tramp deny Howl to bargain for her life? “I love Howl more than my own life. Go straight to hell.”
    “Dangerous words, considering. Such a shame to kill a nice piece like yourself. I wonder if you’d service me the way you threw yourself him?” He hooked a finger in the pocket of space created by the buttons on her blouse. Considered. He’d mostly been trying to scare her into telling him where Raven was hiding. Still, the kiss she had tricked him into had worked its way into his system; he wanted more than a taste. “Then again, I don’t think I do want you.