by Becca Van
She spun on her heels, feeling guilty for wallowing in her own problems when her best friend was probably scared and upset.
Just as she took a step back toward town she heard a rustle behind her and turned back around. Her breath hitched in her throat when she saw the big blond, blue-eyed man climbing out of a deep ditch. He was smiling at her but the smile didn’t reach his eyes. The hairs on her nape stood on end and she took a step back.
“What are you doing?” Tammy asked, as she back stepped again.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you. I fell into the hole and it knocked the wind out of me for a moment. I’m lost and I was wondering if you could help me.”
Nothing the man said rang true and although he was smiling affably at her, his blue eyes remained ice cold. Whoever he was, he wasn’t a nice person, of that she was sure. Tammy withdrew another step and just as her heel touched down on the ground a gust of wind blew in her direction. She caught an aroma she wasn’t familiar with and tried to figure out what was so different about it.
She heard Tarik roar in her head just as the blond-haired man charged toward her. Tammy was stronger than any human man and didn’t expect to have any trouble getting away from him.
That assumption was the biggest mistake she’d ever made.
* * * *
Brendan couldn’t believe what he was seeing. He’d been down in the ditch for what seemed like forever, but when he saw the dark red-haired woman walking his way, he knew his patience was about to pay off. He’d seen the bitch hanging around with his woman a time or two. It was fortuitous to have her coming toward him. He’d be able to use her to get to Celestial.
He knew then that fate was stepping in to help him achieve his four-year long goal. To get Celestial by his side. Now he had the means to bring her out of hiding and he wasn’t about to pass this opportunity up.
He could tell by her expression she hadn’t believed any of his lies, but it didn’t matter. When he saw her tense in preparation to run, Brendan pounced. She was strong but he was stronger. He ignored the pain of her nails digging into his neck as he wrestled her to the ground. When he inhaled through his nose he ended up laughing. This was unbelievable. The little slut he was pinning into the dirt had shifter in her, but the scent was weak. He was a wolf shifter and had the strength to take on a crowd of human men all by himself. He might come out of such a scuffle with a few nicks, cuts, and bruises, but he’d win every time. The little cunt beneath him was no match for him.
He grabbed he wrists and pulled her arms behind her back enjoying her moans of pain. Once he’d secured both wrists in one of his he dug into his jacket pocket and pulled out the handcuffs. When she was secured he grabbed hold of her hair and tugged her back onto her feet. She opened her mouth to spit something at him, but Brendan wasn’t interested in listening. He backhanded her across the face and laughed when her lip split, sending a few drops of blood spraying into the air. She turned and glared at him. He felt her tense again and since she couldn’t use her arms he figured out right away she’d try to use her legs.
She couldn’t hurt him badly but he was already over this shit. He needed her to call Celestial. This time when he hit her he punched her in the jaw with his clenched fist. Her mouth opened on a silent scream and then she groaned softly.
“You’ll do what I tell you or I’ll cut your fucking throat.” Brendan kicked her legs out from under her and pinned her on her stomach with a knee pressed into the middle of her back. He grabbed the duct tape from his pants pocket and wrapped it around her ankles, tethering them together. He shoved his hands into the pocket of her jeans, making sure to cop a feel as he did, and then pulled her cell phone out. Fate was still on his side. She hadn’t password protected her phone.
Brendan went down to his knees, straddling her hips, and keeping her anchored to the ground by putting all his weight on her and scanned the contents of her phone. When he saw Celestial’s real name he pushed call.
He smiled when she answered but didn’t say anything. His woman was smart and knew he’d come for her. She was just waiting for him to give her his instructions.
* * * *
Celeste finished preparing the food for dinner and then cleaned up the mess she’d made. She wasn’t hungry after the lavish lunch Jenny had put on for everyone but figured her mates would still want to eat. They were big, muscular men who were shifters and did a lot of physical work. She glanced over to the table where Hodge was working on his laptop but he was so engrossed in what he was doing he didn’t look up. She wouldn’t need to start cooking for another half hour or so and decided to take the opportunity to have a bath in the big spa in the adjoining bathroom off the master bedroom.
After making love with Tarik and Hodge at the same time, she was feeling a little stiff and sore in places she’d never even imagined. They’d blown her mind, literally, when they’d taken her together and she couldn’t wait to do it again. Hopefully, soaking in hot water would relieve the stiffness and some of her aches. Even if that didn’t help, she still hoped her men would make love with her together again.
Celeste had just entered the bedroom and was halfway across the room when she heard her cell phone vibrating. Her heart slammed against her sternum and sweat broke out on her skin as the adrenaline surged through her blood. She didn’t want to look at her phone but she couldn’t seem to ignore it either. Something compelled her to pick it up from the dresser. She stared at the lit-up screen and exhaled in relief when she saw it was Tammy calling. As she swiped her finger across the screen she wondered why her friend just hadn’t come over for a visit if she wanted to talk.
She pushed the answer button and held the phone to her ear. At first, she thought Tammy might be trying to prank her because all she heard was heavy breathing, but when a deep raspy voice chuckled in her ear, her legs began to tremble and her knees got weak. She’d heard that awful sound once before and knew in an instant it was her creepy stalker.
How the hell did he get hold of Tammy’s phone? Oh, God. No!
“If you want to see your friend again I suggest you get that sexy ass in gear.”
How Celeste had the foresight to close the bedroom door before she replied in a low voice she had no clue. “Where is she? If you’ve hurt her—”
“Now, now, now, don’t get your panties in a twist. Listen carefully. Get out of the house and make sure no one sees you. If I see anyone coming other than you I will kill your friend. Head toward the east side of town. If you tell anyone, your friend is history.”
Celeste stared at the phone as her body quaked with fear. She wanted to go out into the kitchen and tell Hodge about the call and that Tammy was in danger but if she did that, the fucker said he’d kill her best friend. Tears burned her eyes and though she knew she couldn’t fall apart, she was having a hard time getting her fear under control.
After glancing toward the closed bedroom door, she quickly tiptoed toward the window, unlocked it and opened it. She just hoped that if she survived whatever she was about to face, Tarik and Hodge would forgive her. She didn’t matter right now.
Only Tammy did.
Celeste kept to the side of the buildings as she raced toward the edge of town and then turned east. She glanced every which way, hoping that Tarik or any of the other men weren’t out and about.
It took her about five minutes to make it to the east edge of Savoonga but it felt much longer. Her legs were weak and she wondered if each step she took would be her last.
Her heart stopped beating when she saw Creepy Stalker sitting in the middle of nowhere with a big smile on his handsome, ugly face. Just because he was good-looking didn’t mean he was attractive. To her, he was one of the ugliest people she’d ever seen.
It wasn’t until she was about a hundred yards away that Celeste noticed he was sitting on top of Tammy, pinning her to the ground. Her friend looked up and shook her head but Celeste gave her a sorrowful gaze and continued forward. Tammy had a thick piece of silver tape o
ver her mouth, her hands were cuffed behind her back and her legs were tethered with tape, too.
What scared the absolute shit out of her was the small pocket knife the bastard had against the side of Tammy’s neck. The point of the blade was right over her carotid artery. If he cut or stabbed Tammy, she would bleed out and die.
“I’m here.” Celeste held her hands up in front of her in a non-threatening manner. “Let her go.”
“Come closer,” Creepy Stalker ordered.
Celeste drew in a deep breath and thought of Tarik and Hodge as she took another step closer. She hoped that the story about a sabear not being able to mate after meeting their one and only was just that… a story. She hoped that they would be able to continue to live their life to the fullest and maybe meet someone else they could love and mate with.
“I love you, Tarik, Hodge.” Celeste wasn’t sure if her men would hear her through the mating bond since they’d explained that they were only able to feel her emotions, but she had to try. Had to tell them one more time how much they meant to her.
She took another step forward and gasped when he moved faster than was humanly possible. His hand was wrapped around her neck before she could blink and then something pricked her neck.
Her vision got blurry and her shaking limbs stopped trembling. When she blinked, her eyelids were too heavy to force up again and though it was the last thing she wanted to do, she ended up sagging against her stalker.
Her last thought before she passed out was, she was going to die.
* * * *
Tammy whimpered when Celeste’s eyes rolled back in her head and she fell against the wolf. She was in shock and couldn’t manage to hold a thought. She’d known there were other shifters in the world besides sabears but she’d never met one, nor had she ever expected to. Now, she wished she hadn’t. The wolf was definitely a brick or ten shy of a load.
As she watched the deranged wolf lower Celeste to the ground her brain finally kicked into gear. She yelled over the stealth’s communal link.
“He’s here, on the east side of town. I’m tied up and he has Celeste. He drugged her. Be careful. He’s a crazy-ass wolf shifter.”
The roars that reverberated through her head sent shards of pain shooting into her already aching brain, and she whimpered, but the sound was muffled by the tape across her mouth. The silence that followed was deafening, and she tilted her head when she heard the crazy wolf muttering to himself. Tears stung her eyes when she saw how he was stroking over Celeste’s supine body. His hands threaded into her friend’s blonde hair and then he lifted it to his nose and sniffed.
When he started caressing over Celeste’s breasts she got angry. Tammy wiggled and pulled, trying to break or loosen the tape around her ankles and slip her hands from the handcuffs. The silver metal dug and cut into her skin and though it hurt, she wasn’t about to let up. She didn’t care if she ended up losing a hand. All that mattered was that she stopped that sick fuck from molesting her friend.
He must have heard her moving because he turned to look back at her over his shoulder. The evil smile he gave her almost had her cringing, but when he stood, picking Celeste up over his shoulder and then started running, she renewed her struggles. She had to save the sister of her heart.
Chapter Twenty
Hodge’s heart lurched when he heard Tammy screaming through the link. He was on his feet and running toward the master bedroom before he even took a breath. The second he burst into the room and saw the open window, fear coursed through his body permeating right into his heart and soul.
He spun on his heels, raced down the hall, and slammed out of the house, leaving the front door wide open. He caught sight of Tarik, Hopper, and Phelan running toward the east side of town and put on a burst of speed to catch up. He could hear the pounding footsteps of Fin and Cal as they ran behind him.
Serge yelled through the link, “Ward and I will come from the south side.”
“Hurry,” Tarik ordered.
Hodge ran beside Tarik, Phelan, and Hopper but he pointed southwest when he caught a sight of the man running in the distance. He stumbled when he saw Celeste hanging over the fucker’s shoulder but quickly caught himself and began to sprint faster. The wolf was fast but he wasn’t fast enough since he was carrying his mate over his shoulder. The closer he got to the bastard the more his sabear was pushing to get out. White fur rippled over his arms and his gums ached as his long thick canines elongated.
“Don’t shift yet,” Tarik ordered. “Make sure you get Celeste to safety.”
Hodge didn’t reply since his inner beast was making one long low continuous growl, but he did nod to let his alpha and friend know he’d heard.
They were only about ten yards behind when the wolf glanced back.
Hodge roared with fury when the fucker threw his woman to the side. He tried to catch her before she hit the ground, he wasn’t fast enough. Seconds later he was down on his knees with his mate in his arms and tears rolling down his cheeks.
Her head had struck a rock and split her flesh open. Blood was pouring from the wound at an alarming rate. Hodge tore his shirt from his body, wadded it up into a makeshift pad and pressed it hard to the cut. He glanced over when he heard snarling and howling but quickly brought his gaze back to his mate. He didn’t need to watch Tarik fight the rogue wolf because he had no doubt his alpha would come out the victor.
He shifted from his knees to his ass, cradling Celeste’s head in the crook of his elbow and prayed to the fates that his mate would survive. If she didn’t…No. She will live.
* * * *
Tarik let his sabear free the moment the bastard tossed his mate aside. His clothes shredded and dropped from his body as his frame grew bigger as he transformed. The wolf had shifted at the same time and was now stalking toward him with his teeth bared and snarling at him, but he wasn’t concerned.
His animal wasn’t just a lumbering polar bear—although they were vicious and deadly in their own right—but he also had the extinct genes of the legendary saber-toothed tiger added to his genetics. He had the advantage of both animals. He was big and muscular but also fast with lots of stamina. His saber-sharp canines would slide into the wolf’s flesh like a hot knife through butter and he had powerful jaws that had no trouble biting through bone. Like the extinct cat that no longer roamed the earth, his claws were half a foot long, thick and strong with razor-sharp points.
His animal scented Celeste’s blood just before the wolf pounced. With a roar and the swipe of a paw, Tarik sent the wolf flying, making sure to rake his claws over the wolf’s side to tear its flesh open.
The wolf howled in pain and then struggled to get all four paws under him. When he glanced behind him Tarik knew he was going to try and run for it. He couldn’t have that. There was no fucking way he was letting the beast leave to live another day so he could continue harassing his mate or any other innocent woman.
It was time to finish it.
Tarik watched the wolf’s glowing blue eyes and when he saw the lids narrow he knew the beast was about to make his move. As the wolf sprang forward his sabear rose on his hind legs and then came down on top of the snarling wolf, pinning it to the ground. He didn’t remember his sabear lowering his head but he felt his curved saber teeth sinking in through fur and flesh just before foul-tasting blood filled his mouth. His sabear shook his head back and forth as its powerful jaws locked around the back of the wolf’s neck. His teeth crunched through muscle, tendon, and bone until his jaws were clamped down tight.
It wasn’t until he heard a chuffing sound that had him raising his head as he opened his mouth and looked about. Nearly all the members of his stealth were in a circle around him shifting back and forth on their large white paws. The only one missing was Hodge. Tarik gazed at the severed wolf’s head and then turned his back on the dead animal. He needed to find his friend, but most importantly, he needed to see his mate.
His sabear roared with pain and fury when Cal and Fin
parted and he saw Hodge cradling Celeste in his arms. His friend had tears running down his face while his woman lay unconscious in his arms.
He tensed when he saw Phelan carrying Tammy. Her face was swollen and bruised back and blue, but she was awake and breathing. He forced his sabear back and kneeled next to Hodge. “Is she—” He couldn’t finish his question because he wasn’t sure he was going to like the answer. He turned his head and spat the foul-tasting blood from his mouth and swiped his arm over his lips. As he turned his head back his animal pushed forward again and he sighed with relief when he heard Celeste’s steady heartbeat and her even breathing.
She was alive. She wasn’t dead. She’d survived.
“Yes, she’s alive,” Hodge said.
It wasn’t until then that Tarik realized he’d been talking out loud.
“We need to get her back to the house.” Hodge went to rise but Tarik stayed him with a hand on his shoulder.
“Wait. Serge, change back. I need you to check our mate over before we move her.”
Serge changed back to his human side and then kneeled next to Tarik. It was difficult to stop himself from growling at his friend as he ran his hands over their woman, but he swallowed back the rumbles wanting to escape his mouth. Their priority was Celeste. Once they had the all-clear from their medic, they would be able to take her home and watch over her until she woke up.
“She’s got a few bruises but there are no broken bones.”
“What about the head wound?” Hodge asked in a hoarse voice.
“Let me see.”
Tarik sucked in a breath when he saw the gaping flesh on the side of her head. It was too close to her temple and he was scared she would end up with permanent brain damage or being stuck in a coma. The skin surrounding the gash was swollen and nearly black.
“She’s going to be fine.” Serge clasped his shoulder and squeezed it. When Tarik met his gaze, he wasn’t sure he believed him. His stealth mate looked worried. “We need to get her back to your house. I’ll have to put some stitches in it so the skin can knit together.”