Suddenly, Garrick was ripped from her and thrown so hard he hit the side of her car. Teine pushed up shakily on her arms, trying to see what was happening. Her vision blurred as she watched him being torn limb from limb by a bear. Make that three bears. No, four? She couldn’t tell, there were so many, and her mind was becoming so foggy.
Teine let her eyes slowly drift shut and she fell back to the ground as she began to drift away. She felt as if she were floating toward the heavens. Away from everything she knew, everyone she cared for.
“It’s okay, sweet child,” a beautiful, almost musical voice said softly. “Let go and come with me. You have lived a good life taking care of others, I am so proud of you. Let me take care of you now.” Somehow, before the words even came to her, she knew who was there with her. The Goddess. She’d come to take her home.
“No,” Teine whispered softly, knowing she couldn’t go anywhere. She had to stay where she was for some reason, even though it was hard to remember the reason why. She had to stay. No matter the cost to her. Someone needed her.
“There will be no more pain, no more suffering for you,” the gentle voice insisted. “Come. Let me help you.”
No more suffering for her. That meant others would suffer, right? She couldn’t let that happen. Teine moaned softly, shaking her head. “No, I can’t go. I won’t. They need me.”
“You are in so much pain, my child.”
Opening her eyes, she stared at the Goddess in front of her. She was beautiful, more of an impression of love and kindness than an actual physical body, but beautiful nonetheless.
Teine whispered, “Any pain is worth it to go back to them, Goddess.”
She felt more than saw the impression of a smile, and then heard, “As you wish, my child.”
“Teine, please, come back to me. I need you! Dammit, Knox, do something!”
She heard the words spoken roughly from her mate, and struggled to surface from the fog she was under.
“I’m sorry, Nolan, there’s nothing I can do.”
She heard the regret in the deep voice and knew that he meant it. This was a family full of love. One who would live for each other. Die for each other. That’s what Miracle had been trying to tell her. They would be there for her, too, because she was Nolan’s mate. They would protect her and the way they’d just torn Garrick to shreds, they just might be able to do it.
“Teine, I just found you. You can’t leave me now!” There was so much pain in his voice. He was suffering because she was. A small whimper left her lips. She couldn’t allow that. “Teine, if you go, I will follow. We will leave this Earth together. I refuse to live a life without you in it.”
He was telling the truth. She could scent no lies. If she chose to follow the Goddess, he would come, too. Teine couldn’t let that happen. He had a family who loved and needed him.
“Nolan.” His name was a soft breath on her lips. Swallowing hard, she tried again. “Nolan.”
“I’m right here, baby,” he rasped, gently pushing her hair back from her face and kissing her forehead. “Stay with me, Teine. You stay with me, dammit!”
Teine was so tired, and her chest was on fire, the pain almost more than she could bear. Her head pounded and her throat felt raw, but she had to make sure nothing had happened to Nolan’s sister or Athena. “Miracle?”
“She’s fine,” a soft voice said, as a woman knelt beside her, completely naked. The only thing that saved her was the fact that she smelled like Nolan, otherwise Teine didn’t care how hurt she was, the other woman would have been dead.
“Teine?”
At the sound of Miracle’s sweet voice, Teine slowly turned her head, wincing at the pain, and looked to where Miracle stood, Athena in her arms, still in bear form. A frown crossed her brow when she registered the fact that Miracle didn’t smell like Nolan. She was his sister, but not by blood. Why hadn’t she noticed that before?
“Athena,” Teine rasped, her eyes filling with tears.
“She’s okay,” Miracle promised, running a hand over her fur as the child clung to her. “You saved us, Teine. I’ve never seen anyone fight like you did. No matter what that man did to you, you never gave up. I was so scared. Useless after what the other one said. I’m sorry. I should have been there. I should have helped you.”
Teine shook her head, crying out in pain.
“Baby, you have to stay still,” Nolan growled in fear, accepting a towel someone handed to him and placing it over the holes around her heart. Garrick’s claws had done a lot of damage, but he hadn’t actually gotten to her heart, thank the Goddess.
Reaching up, Teine gently ran a hand over the side of his face, a face that was becoming so familiar to her, even though she’d only seen it three times now. Turning her head slowly to look back at Miracle, she whispered, “You were right where I wanted you to be. Protecting my little girl.”
“But… you almost died.”
Teine’s gaze went back to Nolan, her eyes beginning to close as she murmured, “I knew my mate would come.”
Eleven
Nolan sat beside his mate, holding her small hand in his much larger one and gently tracing her soft skin. He’d never been more terrified than he was when he burst through the trees and found her small, slender body held under a huge male, his claws embedded into her chest. A rage had filled him like no other, and after removing the bastard from her, he’d torn him into small pieces, with the help of his family. He wished he could bring the asshole back to life, just to do it all over again. You did not fuck with the Channings. And whether she wanted to admit it or not, Teine was now a Channing. She was his, and he wasn’t giving her up, no matter what.
There was a soft knock on the door, and then Miracle stepped in, closing it quietly behind her. “I thought you might want to take a break,” she whispered, her eyes going to Teine, full of sorrow and regret.
“I’m fine.”
“Nolan, you haven’t left her side since,” Miracle paused, her blue eyes filling with tears, “since she was hurt.”
“Miracle, this is not your fault,” Nolan told her roughly, fighting a silent war within himself. No, it wasn’t her fault, but a part of him wished she had the confidence that she did before she was attacked over a year ago. He felt guilty as hell thinking it, but maybe if she did, then Teine wouldn’t be lying so still and pale on the bed next to him. He’d thought she was slowly coming back to her old self when she stepped up and fought for Emery against her herd not too long ago, but it didn’t look like she’d even bothered to try and help his mate. Why hadn’t she?
“You say one thing, but you feel another,” Miracle whispered, moving toward the bed. “I know you blame me, Nolan. And you should. I blame myself. I froze. Instead of helping Teine, I hid inside like a coward, telling myself it was what she wanted me to do.”
“Why?” he asked quietly, unable to stop himself. “You fought for Emery, why not Teine?” For some reason, he had to know. Teine was his world now, and he’d almost lost her. Miracle may be sweet and shy, but she was very powerful. Just as powerful as they were, maybe even more so. There was no doubt in his mind that she could have saved his mate before they even got there. The male had been a fox shifter, for fuck’s sake. Miracle was so much more.
Miracle sat down gently on the other side of the bed and leaned over to softly brush a stray strand of hair from Teine’s forehead. “I froze,” she finally admitted after a moment. “One of the men said something about keeping me for himself, and everything the Howard brothers did to me when they took me came back, Nolan. Every word said, every slice made into my skin, every horrible violation. Everything slammed back into me, and there wasn’t a damn thing I could do. Your mate could have died while I stood frozen in terror. She could have died, and it would have been all my fault.”
***
Teine couldn’t handle the pain in Miracle’s voice anymore. She had woken just moments before Nolan’s sister entered the room, laying in silence, just enjoying the feel of h
er mate’s skin on hers. She’d stayed silent when Miracle came in, letting the siblings talk, but she could no more. Reaching up, she covered Miracle’s hand gently with hers and murmured, “You did nothing wrong, Miracle. Nothing. We all have fears that are hard to overcome, and something like you went through takes longer to get past. It meant everything to me that you were there with Athena.”
“I wouldn’t have been able to save her if they came in after us,” Miracle whispered, tears streaming down her face.
“I don’t believe that,” Teine responded, squeezing her hand gently. She closed her eyes for a moment, swallowing hard as pain sliced through her head. Taking a slow, deep breath, she looked at Miracle again. “Someone threatening an adult is one thing, them going after a defenseless child is something totally different. Your cat wouldn’t have allowed it, even if you were frozen in fear.”
Her eyes widening in surprise, Miracle nodded slowly, “I think you’re right, Teine. She is the reason I went to Athena as soon as the fight began. She made me.”
“Exactly,” Teine whispered, letting her hand fall back to the bed. “Thank you, Miracle, for watching over my niece.”
“She calls you Mama,” Nolan said quietly, and she slowly turned her head to look at him.
Sadness flooded through her, but a soft smile covered her lips as she told him, “I’m the only mother she has ever known.”
“Does that have something to do with why people are after you?”
Her gaze going back to Miracle, Teine nodded, wincing as pain engulfed her head again.
“Rest, little fox,” Nolan said gruffly, leaning over the bed and holding her hand to his cheek. “You can tell us the story another time.”
“No,” Teine whispered hoarsely, suddenly realizing how tired she was again. “You need to know who to protect Athena from until I am able to do it myself.”
“That’s easy,” Nolan growled, his eyes darkening to a deep brown. “Everyone.”
“That works,” Teine agreed, trying to move closer to him. She wanted him near her. He made her feel safe. It had been so long since she’d felt that way. She cried out when dark agony filled her chest, gasping for breath as she made herself lay still, trying not to lose consciousness.
“Baby, what are you trying to do? I promise you, Athena is safe with my family. They won’t let anyone hurt her.”
Teine stayed as still as possible for several moments, Nolan on one side of her and Miracle on the other, both ready to do whatever they could to help her. She knew Athena was safe. She’d heard her light giggles in the background when Miracle came into the room, and had heard them the other two times she’d woken, with Nolan never far from her. They wouldn’t hurt her little girl. She was safe with them. Finally, Teine rasped, “Wanted you closer.”
Nolan was silent for so long Teine thought that she must have lost her battle and was once again sleeping, but then she heard a small hitch in his voice when he finally replied, “I will always be as close as you need me, little fox.”
Little fox. She liked that. She’d never had anyone call her anything special before. Had never been in a real relationship where someone would want to. Her life was so focused first on training, and then her position as an enforcer that she’d never had time for anything, or anyone else. It was nice, sweet, endearing. It filled her with happiness, something she hadn’t known in a long time.
She felt movement on the bed, and then strong arms picked her up gently, moving her over. There was discomfort, but not the agony she’d experienced just moments before. Then he was beside her, his head on the pillow next to hers. She heard the door close quietly and knew Miracle was gone, but her mind was filled with the man who was kissing her softly on the temple.
“Everything hurts,” she whispered, unsure why she was admitting that to him. He was her mate, but she didn’t really know him. She wanted to, though. Every part of her wanted to. Her hand crept over to slip into his and she clung to it.
“The doctor said it will for a while. That fucking bastard tried to rip your heart from your chest. I should have made his death harsher.”
“I’m pretty sure there wasn’t much left when you and your family were done.” She remembered the grotesque sight of pieces of Garrick all over the yard. Little, tiny pieces. They had definitely made sure he was dead.
A low growl filled the air, and Nolan kissed her cheek before rubbing it with his own. “It wasn’t enough. Not after what he did to you.”
Teine hesitated before asking, “Did the doctor happen to say how long it will be before I can get out of bed?” She didn’t want to leave the bed. She wanted to lay next to Nolan for weeks, months, without getting up. Another loud squeal of laughter made its way to the room where they were, and she closed her eyes to soak in Athena’s happiness.
“No.”
“Why am I here, and not in a hospital?”
“I’m sorry, Teine. Without knowing what was going on in your past, I thought it best to bring you home. We are new here, so Knox got ahold of the local alpha to find out who to call, and they sent Doc Freya over. I wasn’t thinking clearly at the time, and didn’t ask everything I should have, but she will be back to check on you later this afternoon.”
“You told the alpha about me?” Teine whispered, fear filling her and showing in her voice. Would he ask questions? Would he track down her old alpha?
Her chest ached, as did her head and throat, but she pushed past the pain as she tried to sit up. She needed to get out of that bed. Needed to get to Athena and get out of there.
“Teine? What’s wrong?” Nolan slipped an arm around her, holding her gently. “Stop,” he growled when she began to struggle against him, “you’re going to hurt yourself.”
“I have to go, Nolan. We have to get out of here!”
“Teine, stop right now!” Nolan demanded in a low, commanding voice that made her pause. “What the hell is going on?”
Looking at him through tear-filled eyes, Teine cried, “I can’t go back there, Nolan! They will kill Athena!”
“Go back where, baby? No one is sending you anywhere. You’re staying right here with me.”
“But won’t your alpha call someone about me?” she asked helplessly, falling back against the bed. She was in so much pain now she could hardly breathe through it.
“Teine, trust me, you and Athena are safe. No one is calling anyone.”
She looked into his eyes, praying it was the truth, but still terrified it wasn’t. “Nolan, she is all I have left of my family. She’s my life. They will kill her if they find us.”
“You have a new family now, little sister,” a deep voice growled from the doorway. Teine’s gaze flew to the man who stood there. Tall and powerful. A real alpha. “You are a Channing now. I am the alpha of this family, and the only one you have to answer to ever again. You and that cub in the other room are under my protection. Under all of our protection. Let whoever is threatening you come. They will meet the same fate as the last idiot did.”
She stared at him for a long moment, weighing his words and the honesty in them, before slowly laying her head back against the pillow and allowing fresh tears to flow.
“We’re safe?”
“You are safe, little sister.”
She heard the promise in his voice, and for the first time in a year, a sense of peace floated through her. “Nolan.”
“Yeah, baby.”
“Thank you.”
“I will always be here for you, little fox.”
It was the last thing she heard before she succumbed to the darkness, knowing for the first time in a long time that she could sleep and no harm would come to them.
Twelve
“How’s she doing, Doc?”
Freya Nickols turned her large brown eyes his way and gave him a small, soft smile. She was a quiet woman, sweet and gentle natured. She had the heart of a healer, but Nolan sensed that she was also loyal and strong-willed. He knew she was a shifter, but he wasn’t sure what kind. Wh
ich was strange. He should be able to tell just by her scent, but it was… unusual. However, if Alpha Wolfe trusted her, then he would, too. That didn’t mean he was leaving his mate alone with her, though.
“A lot better than I thought she would. You’re mate’s strong. A true fighter.”
Nolan looked down at Teine, his heart filled with warmth and the beginnings of something else. Yes, she was a fighter, but she was turning out to be so much more. Over the past week, he had refused to leave her side. They’d talked about so many things while he held her close, and she slept every night in the safety of his arms, as it should be. As it would be, for the rest of their lives. He wasn’t giving her up, he didn’t give a damn who came after her.
“I’m right here,” Teine grumbled, her light blue eyes darkening as she lifted her chin and crossed her arms over her chest to glare at him. It would have been adorable if she hadn’t winced in the process, as she aggravated her wounds that weren’t fully healed, yet.
“Behave, Teine,” he told her, holding back his laughter as he waited for her response.
“Oh! She’s fine,” Freya said, placing a placating hand on his arm.
A deep growl filled the room, and his eyebrows rose while he watched in amusement as his mate stared down the female doctor. Freya’s eyes widened, and she took a step back, removing her hand quickly. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean,” she paused, as if unsure what else to say.
“Of course, you didn’t, Freya,” he said, pleasure filling him at the idea that his mate was jealous. She cared about him more than she wanted to admit. “Teine’s just a bit tired.”
“No, I’m not!” Teine snapped, the growl in her chest building. “I’m sick of sitting in this damn bed all day long. Of being stuck in this bedroom. I want to get out and do something, Nolan. Take a walk, play with Athena, meet your family. I’ve been here for days, and the only people I’ve really talked to are you and Miracle. I haven’t even been able to hold my little girl!”
They’d brought Athena in once to see her, but the child had been so excited, that she’d launched herself into Teine’s arms, tearing open the stitches in her chest, and Doc Freya had to come fix it. After that, they’d kept the little girl away from Teine as much as possible.
Protecting His Fox's Sass (Sass And Growl Book 2) Page 6