Still seething, Joseph hefted two large stones from the shore and smashed them together. Sparks spat in the dusk. The others flinched instinctively at the crack of impact.He sifted through the shards and chose the thinnest, keenest piece—the best substitute for a blade—then grabbed the dead rabbit by the ears and strode toward the sea, fury rolling off him. He looked, in that moment, every inch the butcher.The stone knife rose and fell. He opened the veins cleanly, slit the belly, and tossed the entrails aside. The motions were fluid, unhesitating, almost graceful in their efficiency.To Joseph, the unlucky rabbit wore Naomi Martin’s face.The edge was sharp enough; he peeled the pelt off in a single piece. That could make a decent seat pad—Alice would like it. As for the meat, there had to be at least four or five pounds of it, a fat hare by any measure. But with this many mouths to feed, it wouldn’t go far.He hauled over two flat rocks and weighed down the meat and the pelt separ

The alpha had halted. It didn’t rush Alice and Charles. It seemed to know they had nowhere left to run, watching them with a cold, amused patience. In its eyes, they were already caught—meat within reach. It was toying with them.“Why am I so damned unlucky…” Charles broke down, sobbing.Dusk had fallen and they’d found nothing. By their agreement they should’ve headed back. But Charles hadn’t wanted Alice to think he was less of a man than Joseph, that useless nobody. To show off, he’d led them after a lone deer. Now there was no deer, and a wolf pack had found them.He could’ve choked on the regret. If only he’d listened to Joseph from the start—back by nightfall, empty-handed or not. He would’ve looked like a fool to Alice, sure, but they wouldn’t be here. He never should’ve set his sights on her, never should’ve agreed to cooperate with Joseph. Better to have waited to die on the beach—or to have taken Alice the moment they entered the forest.Then at least, even if he died now, h

They watched Joseph vanish over the edge, then glimpsed him again—springing from ledge to ledge with the agility of a mountain macaque, ricocheting down the rock face.He’d mapped his descent at a glance, picking out footholds even before he jumped. That was why he hadn’t hesitated.Archie Turner didn’t, either. He leapt after him and followed every placement Joseph had used, testing each with meticulous care.Even so, Joseph left him behind within moments.“Is this man even human?” Archie muttered, breath ragged.Joseph had been mauled—his shoulder torn by a wolf’s bite that would have ruined another man’s arm. Yet Archie still couldn’t match his pace. Maybe he really was getting old. Maybe the engine was shot.Pale moonlight gave Joseph just enough to read the cliff. He moved with a deliberate, measured precision, never wasting a step.He couldn’t stop. He couldn’t stall.Everything below was an unknown. For every second lost on the descent, Alice’s peril sharpened.She was already

Out of the wolves’ jaws and straight into a bear’s den.The black bear loomed fully into view—massive, well-fed by the island’s abundance. It stood a full two meters tall, a living wall that shrank Alice’s already slight frame to something small and breakable.It roared, drumming its chest with both forepaws.Their intrusion had shattered its rest; its fury was absolute. To the bear, Alice and Charles were nothing but meat brought to its door.Charles had never faced anything like it. His legs trembled, refusing command, and wouldn’t move at all.Warmth spread down his thighs, sharp with ammonia. It slicked his calves and soaked his shoes.“Run!”Alice’s brow knotted. Was he going to stand there and die?She seized his arm and dragged him backward. He moved like a puppet with its strings in a stranger’s hands—no will of his own.But where could they run? In moments the bear had pressed them to the cave’s lip. One more step and there was only the abyss. Another fall and they would have

Archie Turner seethed with unwillingness.He’d sold his soul to Charles long enough to know just how ruthless the man could be—and that he meant every ugly word he said. But right now Joseph was clearly losing ground, no match for the raging black bear. Even if Archie charged in and likely got swatted to death, standing by while Joseph fought alone while he cowered in the shadows—no. As a man, as a former soldier, the blood in his veins would never allow it.“Don’t come over!”Joseph had noticed Archie. After slipping past a sweeping paw, he barked the warning. He was on the back foot, yes, but he had begun to read the bear’s weakness and set the tempo. If Archie charged in now, he’d shatter that fragile rhythm—and only make things worse.“Well, look at the backbone on this piece of trash,” Charles drawled, mockery dripping from every word. “Death’s breathing in his face and he’s still playing proud. Fine. I’ll just stand here and watch you die.” He sneered at Archie. “See that? You w