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ease the pain that radiated off him. Stroking his fur, she tried to ascertain the extent of his injuries. Behind her, the black alpha wolf limped to where they sat. He whimpered, sensing her distress at her silver’s injuries.
    “Richelle.”
    She raised her head at the sound of her name. Looking about, she saw no one. She lowered her head to her wolf again.
    “Richelle.”
    She raised her head and looked at her wolf, his eyes boring into hers.
    “Follow the black alpha. He will lead you to safety.”
    “But what of you?”
    “I am tired. I need to find sleep.”
    “You saved me. And I don’t even know who you are.”
    “You know me. You have always known me.”
    “Who are you?”
    “I am he who has always watched over you and protected you from those who would do you harm. I am he who has been destined to be your life mate.”
    She gasped at the words life mate .
    He was an Immortal. Could it be him? She tried to see into his mind, but she couldn’t. It was as if he had surrounded his mind with a shield she could not penetrate. Her brows furrowed as she tried to delve deeper, to see who he was. Nothing. She was perplexed. She had never met anyone who could keep his thoughts secret from her. It was a singularly unique situation, leaving her feeling almost at a disadvantage. Yet, she still needed to know.
    “Who are you?”
    “I am Valya, the Guardian, and I love you.”
    Like a dam bursting, emotions she couldn’t name flooded her being at his words of love and endearment. Feelings she didn’t understand clenched at her heart as silent tears trailed down her cheeks. And while there was an

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    awareness of the world being reborn into something unfamiliar, she wasn’t afraid. Rather, she was encased in a great serenity.
    She had sensed there was something about the silver that gave her soul peace and now she understood.
    He was the wolf from her childhood, coming to her when she needed comforting.
    He was the man who came to her in her dreams, holding her and chasing her fears away.
    And she would not desert him when he needed her.
    “I cannot leave you.”
    “You must. You must be protected.”
    “I cannot be without you.”
    “Another will find you. You will not be alone.” Barriers that had prevented her from touching his mind disappeared. He was lying to her. “I don’t want another. I want the one who has always been there for me, protected me, loved me. I want you.”
    Richelle didn’t know where these emotions came from. Nor did she understand why she affirmed them so vehemently. But in her heart she believed she could not be without him.
    Valya did not answer. Richelle could feel his energy ebb from him as the dawn approached. She looked beseechingly at the black alpha.
    “Help me,” she implored.
    The black alpha stared at her and then turned his gaze to the wolf dying in her arms. Richelle sensed his admiration of Valya—how bravely he had fought. When Valya was injured, the black alpha pressed on and protected her from the man who had gotten away from the rest of the pack.
    “He is an honorable creature worthy of survival ," thought the alpha. He turned back to Richelle and nodded his head.
    “I will help.”

    54
    Mia Bailey

Chapter 2
    Valya’s mind wandered in the realm of dreams. They had to be dreams because they could not be real. They could not be happening. In his mind, he saw Richelle, coming to him without fear. She cleaned and tended his wounds. She bathed him and laid him on a bed. She stayed by his side, stroking his brow and speaking soft words of endearment to him as she lulled him to sleep with her voice.
    How he wanted it to be true. If he could only believe that Richelle could truly care for him. But he knew it was all too much for a mere mortal woman to handle, even one as extraordinary as Richelle. If there were only a way he could break through the walls she had built around her heart, he would show her such love that she would never feel the