Fury tried to focus on the present. He had his enemy within his sights and he had the opportunity to finally give some payback to at least one person who’d harmed him. So far he hadn’t been given a single occasion to even up the score. The worst offenders hadn’t been arrested to face punishment for what they’d done while others had fled into hiding. That left the woman before him as his only outlet.

His heart hammered erratically and an image filled his mind of the last time she’d run from him after she’d betrayed him. Memory returned so strongly that he staggered back a foot from the blow of emotions washing through him. She’d been so rushed that she’d missed the door and smacked into the wall in her haste to see him punished for what she’d done.

The animal inside him howled out for him to grab her. Chains no longer restrained him and drugs didn’t hold his body immobile. He tensed, every muscle rigid, and he saw her move back a step. He inhaled sharply—her fear was so strong he could taste it. It made his instincts scream to cover her, to protect her, even though it enraged him that she had that effect on him. He snarled as conflicting emotions battled.

She was the enemy yet he desperately wanted to touch her. The second she spun around and sprinted away, he lunged forward, charging after the woman he wanted more than anything else he’d ever desired in his life. There wasn’t a thing he could do to stop his animal from taking over.

Once again he’d totally lost all control.

Ellie felt the blood drain from her face as she watched raw emotions play over Fury’s features. The good intentions that held her in place scattered when she saw his feral look, heard his pained, animalistic snarl. She spun and sprinted away in panic. Fury closed the distance between them. Terror urged her to run faster. Her MP3 player slipped from her terrified fingers to crash onto the sidewalk a second before he grabbed her from behind.

Ellie opened her mouth to scream but slammed into the grass before she could get it out. His heavy body knocked the air from her lungs. He tore her headphones away. The weight on top of her shifted. Ellie sucked in air before he grabbed her again and his weight returned when Fury rolled her onto her back.

His large body pinned hers tightly against the damp grass. She attempted to shove him off but he didn’t budge. Her palms futilely pushed against his steely chest. She moaned in fear as she met his furious dark rage. Canine teeth flashed inches above her face in the dim light.

His hands gentled when they gripped her arms, jerked them quickly above her head, and he enclosed her wrists within one of his hands. He clenched his teeth, still showing fang-like canine teeth, and growled deep inside his chest. He vibrated against her body with the very terrifying sound he made.

“Please don’t hurt me,” she panted.

His chest shifted off her slightly, enough to let her breathe. Ellie gasped in more air. His eyes searched hers for something and she wondered what he wanted to see. Whatever he discovered made him softly curse. He released her wrists and rolled away suddenly to leap to his feet. Ellie remained sprawled on the grass staring up at him in shock that he’d let her go. She ached from his rough treatment and her heart raced.

“Get up,” he ordered harshly.

Ellie had to fight to stand. It wasn’t graceful, to be sure, but she rose to her feet. She wanted to flee again but didn’t have the strength.

“I told you that I’m sorry. What more do you want from me?” She inched closer to peer into his narrowed gaze. “Whatever it takes to make this up to you, just say the words. I’d do it. I’ll do anything to make things right between us. Name it.”

Fury watched her as he stepped closer but he remained silent and guarded. His hand shot out suddenly and wrapped slowly around her throat. Confusion turned to panic as Ellie realized that while his grip didn’t cause pain, something weird was happening to her. Both of her hands grasped frantically at his wrist. He used his free hand to tear her fingertips away from his skin.

Ellie’s knees collapsed under her but Fury didn’t allow her to fall, instead he held her up with his grip on her throat. She tried to scream but nothing came out. She stared into his eyes while she silently begged him to stop. Something in his gaze flickered and he suddenly released her fingers to wrap his arm around her waist instead. He tugged her tightly against his taller frame and cradled her as his head lowered to her ear.

“Don’t fight it,” he rasped.

Don’t fight? her mind screamed in terror. She knew she had to be turning blue. Her vision became spotty and his voice sounded far away. Ellie jerked inside his hold but Fury never looked away from her frightened eyes. Blackness threatened to overtake her but she fought it, wanting to live.

He swore he’d kill me and he is. I really didn’t believe he’d actually do it.

Fury released her throat the second Ellie’s body crumpled against him and pulled her tighter against his body. Now that he had stopped restricting the blood supply to her brain, she relaxed against him, unconscious and breathing easily. He had chosen the safest, quickest method to subdue her. She would have struggled harder and longer if he’d done anything else. This way, she was not harmed, just sleeping peacefully against him. He inhaled deeply, brushed his nose against her throat, and groaned. She smelled so good he wanted to strip them both bare and rub skin to skin against her.

A dog barked in the distance and Fury jerked his head up. His gaze darted around the park, instincts on instant alert. Guard patrols would be along soon. He knew their routine since he kept a close eye on the humans who thought they were in total control of Homeland. They had no idea that Fury and Justice secretly plotted to speed up the process of taking command of their own lives by training their people to do the human’s jobs. The humans thought they’d need a lot more time to learn how to be independent but they were wrong.