Catherine's confident smile acted like a lit match dropped into a pool of gasoline.

The stunned silence of the single males shattered. The primal, biological urge to claim the most beautiful, vibrant female in sight overrode all logic. They surged forward, a tidal wave of muscle and desperation, swarming the base of the cliff leading up to Amon's cave.

A massive man with short, coarse brown hair shoved his way to the front. It was Gus, a bear shifter.

He dropped heavily onto one knee, the impact kicking up a cloud of dust. He held up both hands. Resting in his massive palms was a jagged, glowing red crystal. It was dripping with fresh, foul-smelling monster blood.

"Beautiful female!" Gus roared, his voice booming across the clearing. "I am Gus! A five-star warrior! Take my core! Let me be your mate!"

The metallic stench of the blood hit Catherine's nose. Her stomach violently lurched. She took a quick step back, pressing her hand over her mouth and nose to block the smell.

Her retreat only fueled the frenzy.

"Choose me! I can hunt the fattest beasts for you every day!" another male screamed, flexing his arms until his veins popped.

"My beast form is the warmest! You'll never be cold in the winter!" yelled another, half of his face covered in thick wolf fur.

The noise was a physical assault. The air grew thick and suffocating with the aggressive heat of dozens of males competing for dominance. Catherine felt a wave of claustrophobia crash over her. Her hands started to tremble again. She hated this. She hated being treated like a piece of meat on an auction block.

Brooke and the other females watched from the sidelines, their faces twisted in ugly masks of jealousy, but they couldn't intervene. This was the law of the Shifter World.

Catherine dropped her hand from her mouth. She opened her mouth to scream at them to leave her alone.

Before she could make a sound, the sky above them suddenly darkened.

A terrifying, high-pitched screech tore through the air. A massive shadow plummeted from the sky, accompanied by a crushing wave of energy that made the air heavy and hard to breathe.

BOOM.

The impact shook the entire cliffside. Dust and loose rocks exploded outward, forcing Gus and the other males to throw their arms up and stagger backward.

When the dust cleared, Amon stood between Catherine and the mob.

He looked like a god of war. In his left hand, he held the massive, bloody carcass of a seven-star flying beast by its neck. His right hand had completely transformed into a lethal, black-scaled claw.

His golden eyes were pure, slitted lines of murderous intent. The energy radiating from him was so cold and violent it formed a visible black mist around his boots.

"Get away from my female," Amon snarled. His voice was a demonic rumble that vibrated in the marrow of everyone's bones.

Gus was pale, sweating under the oppressive weight of a seven-star aura. But the intoxicating scent of Catherine gave him a suicidal burst of courage.

"She doesn't have your beast mark!" Gus yelled, pointing a trembling finger at Catherine. "The Chief said we all have the right to court her!"

"Yeah! She's not yours yet!" the crowd echoed, feeding off each other's bravery.

Amon's sanity snapped.

He tossed the massive dead beast aside like a ragdoll. The black scales on his hand began to rapidly spread up his forearm, crawling toward his neck. His breathing turned into ragged hisses. He was going to slaughter every single one of them.

Gus roared, his torso expanding as thick brown fur erupted from his skin, preparing for a fight he couldn't win.

Catherine saw the black scales creeping up Amon's neck. Her mind raced, calculating the terrifying odds. If he slaughtered these men to protect her, he would become a hunted outcast, and she would lose her only true ally in this brutal world. She knew what mating meant-the absolute, terrifying surrender of her body and future-but looking at the desperate, suicidal fury in his golden eyes, she realized he was already willing to throw his life away for hers. It was a massive gamble, but in this savage realm, it was the only play she had left. She took a deep, steadying breath, burying her modern sensibilities beneath a layer of sheer survival instinct.

Catherine lunged forward and threw her arms around Amon's solid waist from behind. She pressed her cheek flat against the center of his broad back.

Amon's entire body went rigid. The violent black mist swirling around him froze instantly. He jerked his head around, his lethal eyes wide with shock as he looked over his shoulder at her.

Catherine didn't let go. She stepped out slightly from behind him, keeping one arm wrapped tightly around his waist. She locked her eyes on Gus, her gaze cold and unyielding.

She took a deep breath, projecting her voice so every single person in the clearing could hear her.

"Who said I haven't chosen him?" Catherine declared, her voice ringing clear and absolute. "I, Catherine Mays, will mate with Amon Peterson and take his beast mark today!"

The words hit the crowd like a physical shockwave.

Gus's jaw dropped. The aggressive energy drained out of the mob, replaced by stunned, bitter defeat.

Brooke let out a sharp, mocking laugh. "You're insane! Mating with a snake shifter? His rut will tear you to pieces! You're signing your own death warrant!"

Catherine narrowed her eyes at Brooke. She tilted her chin up, her expression pure, modern defiance.

"None of your damn business," Catherine snapped.

Brooke choked on her next words, her face turning a violent shade of purple.

Catherine didn't give anyone another second of her time. She slid her hand down from Amon's waist and grabbed his large, rough hand. His fingers were still trembling slightly from the adrenaline.

"We're going home," Catherine said softly, looking up at Amon. She gave him a reassuring smile, turned, and pulled him toward the dark entrance of the cave, leaving the stunned tribe behind.

The heavy stone door of the cave scraped shut, sealing them in absolute darkness and silence.

Catherine dropped Amon's hand and let out a massive, shuddering breath. Her heart was still hammering against her ribs from the confrontation. She turned around, opening her mouth to explain that she only said those words to stop a bloodbath.

She never got the chance.

Amon moved faster than her eyes could track. He stepped into her space, his massive frame driving her backward until her spine hit the cold, rough stone wall.

He slammed both hands flat against the rock on either side of her head, caging her in.

The heat radiating from his body was scorching. His chest he heave, his rapid breaths ghosting over her forehead. In the dim light of the cave, his golden, slitted eyes burned with a terrifying, desperate fire.

"What you said out there..." Amon's voice was a broken, gravelly rasp. His jaw ticked violently. "Was it true?"

Catherine stared up at him. She was trapped. The sheer physical dominance of his body pressed against hers made her breath catch in her throat.

She looked into his eyes and saw the raw, bleeding vulnerability hiding beneath the predator. He was begging her for it to be true. If she told him it was a lie, it would destroy him.

Catherine swallowed hard. Her hands trembled as she raised them, resting her palms flat against his burning chest.

"Yes," she whispered. "It's true."

The word was a spark dropped into a powder keg.

A guttural groan ripped from Amon's throat. He ducked his head and crushed his mouth against hers.

There was no hesitation. No gentleness. It was a kiss of absolute, starving desperation. His lips were hot and demanding, forcing her mouth open. His tongue swept inside, tasting of wildness and a strange, intoxicating coldness that contrasted with his burning skin.

Catherine's knees went weak. The world spun out of control. She grabbed fistfuls of his hair, holding on for dear life as he devoured her.

Then, everything went wrong.

Amon's body violently convulsed against hers.

He tore his mouth away, throwing his head back as a horrific, agonizing scream tore from his lungs. It sounded like a beast being burned alive.

Catherine stumbled forward as Amon staggered back. "Amon? What's wrong? !"

He didn't answer. He couldn't.

A shockwave of pure, black energy exploded from his body. The temperature in the cave plummeted instantly. A layer of black frost crawled rapidly up the stone walls, freezing the moisture in the air.

Amon fell to his knees, clutching his head. The veins on his neck bulged, pulsing with thick, black energy. The human skin on his face began to tear, revealing thick, jagged black scales underneath. His golden eyes flickered wildly between round human pupils and the lethal slits of a snake.

His rut had triggered. The emotional extreme of her acceptance had shattered the dam holding back his unstable, violent energy.

"Amon!" Catherine screamed, terrified. She rushed forward, reaching out to grab his shoulders.

"DON'T TOUCH ME!" Amon roared.

He threw his arm out. The back of his hand struck her shoulder, sending her flying backward. Catherine hit the fur-covered stone bed hard, the breath knocked out of her.

She gasped, clutching her shoulder, staring at him in horror.

Amon was on all fours, his fingers digging into the solid rock floor until his nails cracked and bled. He was fighting a losing battle against the monster inside him. The black energy storm whipped around the cave, shattering the clay pots and sending shards of pottery flying like shrapnel.

His spine arched unnaturally. The sickening sound of bones breaking and reforming echoed in the cave. He was being forced into his full beast form.

He turned his head, his eyes bloodshot and wild, locking onto Catherine. The predator inside him wanted to tear her apart, to consume her entirely.

"Run," Amon ground out, his teeth cracking under the pressure of his clenched jaw. "Get out. I will kill you."

Catherine couldn't move. She was paralyzed by the sheer terror of the energy storm and the monster he was becoming.

Seeing that she wasn't running, Amon let out a sob of pure despair.

He raised his right hand. His fingers had completely morphed into long, razor-sharp black talons.

Without a second of hesitation, Amon drove his own claws deep into his left thigh.

Blood sprayed across the stone floor. Amon threw his head back and screamed, using the excruciating, blinding physical pain to force his human consciousness to stay awake for just one more second.

"RUN!" he roared, blood pouring down his leg.

The metallic stench of Amon's blood hit Catherine like a physical blow.

She stared at the crimson pool spreading rapidly across the gray stone floor. Her heart hammered against her ribs, a frantic, painful rhythm. Every survival instinct in her modern brain screamed at her to run, to get as far away from this terrifying, bleeding monster as possible.

She scrambled backward on the bed. Her hand brushed against something sharp. It was a jagged shard of pottery from one of the shattered bowls.

Catherine grabbed it. Her knuckles turned white as she gripped the sharp edge, holding it out in front of her like a weapon. Her whole body shook violently.

Amon saw the shard in her hand.

He was still kneeling in his own blood, his claws buried deep in his thigh. He was panting heavily, his breath coming out in white clouds of frost. When his golden, slitted eyes locked onto the makeshift weapon in her trembling hands, a look of profound, devastating sorrow washed over his face.

"Yes," Amon gasped, his voice barely a whisper over the howling of the black energy storm. "If I lose control... if I lunge at you... use it. Pierce my throat."

The words pierced Catherine's heart sharper than any physical blade.

She looked at him. He was a seven-star predator. He could level a forest. Yet here he was, mutilating his own body, begging her to kill him just to ensure she stayed safe.

The terror that had paralyzed her suddenly shattered, replaced by an overwhelming, suffocating wave of heartbreak.

Clatter.

Catherine opened her hand. The sharp piece of pottery hit the stone floor.

"I'm not leaving," Catherine said. Her voice stopped shaking. "And I'm not hurting you."

She slid off the fur bed. The black wind whipped her hair around her face, the razor-sharp energy leaving tiny, stinging cuts on her bare arms. She ignored the pain. She ignored the terrifying beast he was becoming.

She walked straight toward him.

"No! Stay back!" Amon panicked, trying to drag himself backward, but the severe wound in his leg made him collapse onto his side.

Catherine dropped to her knees right in the middle of the blood and frost. She reached out and threw her arms around his massive, trembling neck, pressing her body tightly against his freezing, scale-covered chest.

"You have to tell me what to do!" Catherine yelled over the storm, burying her face in the crook of his neck. "Is this the 'resilience' the system meant? I'm not leaving you to die! How do I help you? !"

The moment her soft, warm skin made full contact with his, the violent black storm in the cave stuttered. The pure, soothing energy radiating from her Highly Compatible body acted like a heavy blanket thrown over a raging fire.

Amon let out a long, shuddering breath. The agonizing pain in his mind dulled for a fraction of a second.

But the physical contact triggered something far more dangerous.

The biological imperative of his rut-the absolute, overwhelming need to mate and claim-obliterated his last shred of human restraint.

With a guttural roar, Amon flipped them over, pinning Catherine flat against the hard stone floor.

His hands, rough and desperate, grabbed the hem of her black t-shirt and ripped it down the middle. The fabric tore like wet paper.

Catherine gasped, a spike of fear hitting her as his heavy, burning body pressed her down. She tried to push against his shoulders, but it was like trying to move a mountain.

Amon's mouth crashed down on her neck. He bit down, not hard enough to break the skin, but hard enough to leave a dark, bruising mark. His kisses were frantic, wild, consuming her.

Below his waist, his legs had completely vanished, replaced by the thick, muscular coils of the giant black snake. The heavy, freezing scales wrapped tightly around Catherine's legs, locking her in place.

The sheer size of him, the crushing weight, and the aggressive invasion of his touch sent a sharp jolt of pain through her.

"Amon... it hurts," Catherine cried out, tears springing to her eyes.

The sound of her pain pierced through the red haze of his rut.

Amon froze. He raised his head. His chest heaved as he looked down at her. He saw the tears in her eyes, the fear in her face. The monster inside him fought violently against the man who loved her.

He squeezed his eyes shut, his entire body shaking as he tried to pull himself away from her. "Catherine... push me away... last chance..."

Catherine looked at his tortured face. She saw the blood dripping from his leg, the black scales fighting to consume him.

She reached up, tangling her fingers in his sweat-soaked black hair, and pulled his face down to hers.

"I choose you," she whispered fiercely against his lips. "Claim me."