When he'd left Nikka, Dmitri flashed to his house and worked in his home office, his little she-cat tickling his mind. The pressure in his head had all but vanished when he touched her. He wasn't sure how she did it. Even The Kodiak didn't soothe his beast like Nikka did. The crimson haze that stayed just under the surface receded, and for the first time in decades, Dmitri had hope.

And hope was far scarier than living with the ticking time bomb of his curse.

His ...