Free Ascend (Wolf in Exile Part 3): Werewolf Shifter/Vampire Paranormal Romance by Ambrielle Kirk, Amber Ella Monroe Page A

heights. Even her balance was a little shaky. But was that a side effect of the drug, Thane’s shifter DNA, or her fear of falling?
    As Brant hastily fastened them securely inside the helicopter, she glanced up at the cockpit to see the pilot and co-pilot manning the controls.
    The co-pilot turned around and narrowed his steely dark gaze at both of them. He was completely bald and his very appearance sent chills straight down her spine. The undertones of his flesh were dark and earthy, but the color of his skin appeared dull, almost pale. Something was odd about him. He seemed…lifeless somehow.
    She shook her head and tried not to stare, but her curiosity lured her again.
    His mouth was set in such a taut line that she made out the sharp tips of fangs pressing against his bottom lip. He certainly wasn’t human, but he didn’t resemble Thane or the man who’d just introduced himself as Thane’s Beta, either.
    Suddenly, his depthless gaze flickered over to Brant. “We’ll speed it up this go ‘round. It’s almost past my dinner time.” The fangs were gone when he shifted his gaze over to her once more before turning his attention back to the controls.
    She took a deep breath, noting how the small, claustrophobic space was filled with the various scents of each of the men. Smells that she probably wouldn’t have noticed before were now magnified. She even picked up the faint remnants of laundry detergent on their clothing.
    David, who was right next to her, smelled of grass and peat moss. Brant, who was on the other side of her, smelled of sweat and animal and something else wild she couldn’t pinpoint. From the cockpit, she could differentiate the smells of the two pilots. Their smells reminded her of some type of iron or metal…and blood.
    When she swallowed to alleviate her dry throat, her thoughts suddenly shifted to Thane. She craved his company. She could feel the changes in her system. But was she just sick, or was her body responding to the cure that Thane had passed to her?
    A headache rose up against her temples. To combat the nauseating smells, she ducked her mouth and nose into the collar of her shirt and settled back in the chopper’s seat. She closed her eyes as the helicopter lifted from the ground.
    She couldn’t—and wouldn’t—turn back now. Her life was entwined with Thane’s, even after they were no longer confined to Area S2 together.

CHAPTER TWO
    E verything in Thane’s quarters was just as he had left it over six months ago when he had last slept here. Of course, remnants of the scents from a couple of the different maids employed at his estate lingered in every corner of the room.
    They’d kept his linens clean, the Calamander wood floors shined, and the surfaces dusted in his absence. It was almost as if they’d known he would return, even when the chances of him being killed at Area S2 were high. Proof of his death would’ve given his Pack the go-ahead to secure another Alpha. But they hadn’t. He respected their loyalty to him.
    When an Alpha went missing, was presumed dead, or abandoned his Pack, it wasn’t odd for everyone who once ran with him to join other Packs or disband under weak interim leadership. But the ShadowRock Wolf Pack was not made up of weak leaders, or Pack members for that matter. Most of the credit for keeping the Pack morale high enough to prevent them from splitting up went to his Beta, Brant Cedona. Cedona could have easily ascended to Pack Alpha and claimed the title in Thane’s six-month absence. But he hadn’t.
    Thane had lost six months of his life to Area S2 because of Gavril’s attempts to play God. Of course, he would do it again in a heartbeat if it was what it took to unravel the mess that Gavril started.
    Thane took a seat in a leather side chair near the windows. Dusk was beginning to set, and the amber-colored sky reminded him of the highlights in Kalena’s hair. Her lovely scent was all over him, and not one moment passed that he