by Becca Van
“Hurry.”
He moved away from Ashton and then changed back to his human. “That fucking coward is going to know what it’s like to live without you,” Con snarled as he took a step closer. “He killed the love of my life. He’s not going to live a long, happy life if I can’t.”
Mari took another step back and gripped the branch hard, the bark abrading the skin on her palms. She was so scared, but she wasn’t going to go down without a fight. But when she looked into Con's cold, crazed gaze, she wondered if she would survive. There was absolute fury and insanity there.
“Spicer was mine. He took my heart away. Now I will take his.”
A loud howl rent the air, followed by two more, and it was really hard not to drop the branch and take off running. Mari took a deep breath and tried to calm her fear as Con changed back to his wolf, but when faced with the huge beast, which was currently creeping toward her with murder in its eyes, she knew didn’t stand a chance.
All of a sudden the wolf leapt off the ground, heading straight for her throat. Mari made herself wait until the last possible minute, and then she swung the branch with all her might straight at the wolf’s head before jumping to the side.
The sickening crunch of the wood connecting with the wolf’s skull turned her stomach, but she quickly jumped to the side, keeping him in her sights. That was Mari’s downfall. She had no idea there was another wolf nearby until it was too late.
* * * *
Taylor's heart stopped beating in his chest when he heard Mari’s fearful call. He shoved his chair back and was on his feet running before he realized he’d moved. He didn’t have to look back to see if Sin and Michael were following him. He could smell the fear emanating off them for their mate. But that wasn’t all he smelled. His Alpha and Betas were right on their heels.
He didn’t stop to remove his clothes when he barged through the front door to the main house. There wasn’t time. He called to his wolf as he jumped from the top step, and by the time his four paws hit the ground, his clothes had ripped and fallen away from his body. He sniffed the air and latched onto Mari’s apple-cinnamon scent and sprinted away. He had a moment of panic when he ran around in a large circle, but then he shot forward toward his mate.
He heard the faint snarls of wolves fighting and he nearly stumbled with fear when a yelp of pain drifted on the air, and he prayed like he’d never prayed before that Mari was safe.
The loud scream of terror and pain was almost too much to bear, but he pushed himself forward and ran faster than he’d ever run in his life. The scene that greeted him was one he hoped to never see again. And the rage that he’d been keeping at bay surged up through his body until every muscle began to quiver. Con was on his side and looked like he’d been knocked out. There was blood on his head, but the fucker was still breathing.
But what made him see red was one of the Sigmas from his pack with his mouth locked onto Mari’s arm. Blood was trickling from Wayne’s mouth, and it looked like he’d bitten his mate to the bone.
Taylor surged forward and went straight for the fucker’s throat. He growled as his teeth closed around the bastard’s esophagus and bit down hard. Blood pooled in his mouth, but he didn’t care. All the mattered was killing him so he could get to Mari. He let his animal take over, shaking his head back and forth in a frenzy of rage until he knew that Wayne was dead. He spat out the blood and tissue just as Con rose to his paws. He was about to pounce, but Sin beat him too it.
Sin leaped onto Con's back and sank his teeth deep. Con spun around fast, his wolf body bucking, but he wasn’t able to throw Sin off. Sin used his larger wolf body to push the asshole to the ground, and then Taylor heard bone crack when Sin severed the prick’s spine and no doubt his spinal cord, too.
Taylor pushed his wolf back and then hurried over to Mari. He knelt down at her side and tore open her sleeve. Blood continued to seep from her arm at a rapid rate. He applied pressure, hoping to stem the flow, but it didn’t seem to be helping. Sin and Michael raced over to help.
“We need to change her,” Michael said in a hoarse voice.
Taylor swallowed around the lump of fear lodged in his throat, and although he couldn’t reply, he nodded his head. He could see that Mari was losing too much blood, and if they wanted to save their mate, their only recourse was to give her their blood. He lifted his wrist to his mouth and tore into his own flesh with his canines. Sin pried her mouth open, and Taylor held his arm over it. He held still as his life-giving essence dripped into her mouth and prayed to the fates that she would survive. Michael leaned forward and began to massage her throat, and tears burned his eyes when she swallowed convulsively. When he’d gauged that he’d given her enough blood, he moved back and allowed Sin to do the same.
By the time they’d all given Mari their DNA, the rest of the pack had arrived.
Lucien was giving orders for the bodies to be removed, and Rafe was helping Gabe with Ashton. Ashton was already healing, but it would be a few days before he was back to full speed.
Taylor checked Mari’s arm and was pleased to see that the bleeding had slowed and the jagged edges of her wounds seemed to be starting to heal. And that’s when he knew she wouldn’t be taken from them.
He carefully pulled her into his arms and held her against his body while Sin and Michael bound her injuries. When they were done, Taylor stood adjusted Mari in his arms and headed back to their cabin. He and his friends needed to clean their mate up and get her settled in bed. She was going to need a lot of rest to recover from blood loss and her wounds.
“Do you want me to call a doctor?” Lucien asked when he caught up to them.
“No,” Taylor replied in a raspy voice. “We gave her our blood.”
“You did the only thing you could.” Lucien squeezed his shoulder. “She was bleeding out, Taylor.”
Taylor nodded, knowing that Lucien was right. He and his friends hadn’t wanted to change their mate, but he hadn’t hesitated when her life was in jeopardy. He couldn’t bear the thought of losing Mari. He hurried up the steps and walked over the threshold with Mari in his arms when Sin held the door open.
Michael rushed ahead and went straight to the bathroom to fill the tub. Between the three of them, they had her clean, dry, and in bed fifteen minutes later. Taylor didn’t want to leave her side, but he was covered in blood so he headed to the shower. Sin was stepping out just as he entered the bathroom again, and Michael was sitting next to Mari, holding her hand.
There was no way in hell they were leaving her alone. Not until she’d gone through the transformation and woken up. Taylor stepped in the shower and under the hot water. Normally he wouldn’t hurry and would enjoy the water flowing over his body, but this time he washed quickly and was walking back into the bedroom with a towel wrapped around his waist in about two minutes flat. He didn’t even want to take the time to put some clean clothes on. He climbed onto the bed next to Mari and stared at her beautiful pale face, listening to each breath she took.
“Any change?”
Michael shook his head, and then he, too, went to shower. Sin was lying on Mari’s other side, watching their mate like a hawk. “At least we now know who was targeting you.”
“Yeah.” Taylor paused to swallow. “I just wish I had figured it out before Mari got hurt. God, she nearly died and it’s all my fault.”
“No. You can’t blame yourself, Taylor. Mari wouldn’t blame you, and she sure as hell wouldn’t blame you for what someone else does.”
“That doesn’t make the guilt go away. It was my job to keep her safe. I didn’t do that.”
“It was our job,” Sin said. “Do you blame me and Michael for her getting hurt?”
“No.”
“Then how can you blame yourself.”
“They were members of my pack. I knew someone was pissed about the amalgamation. I should have spent more time trying to find the source of the angst. If I had, she may never have been injured.”
“You don’t
know that, Taylor,” Michael said as he entered the bedroom.
“I should have realized that Con would hold a grudge. He and Spicer were lovers.”
“So?” Sin said. “Just because they fucked each other doesn’t mean anything.”
“I always thought that there was something off with him.”
“You mean crazy, don’t you?”
“Yeah, I guess he was lacking a hairball or two.”
“What about the other guy?” Michael asked.
“Wayne was one of Spicer’s cousins. A second cousin. He never seemed to care about Spicer one way or the other. I was keeping a close watch on Ridge and Chad. I’d even heard Wayne spouting off to the other Sigmas about what a douche bag his Alpha was and didn't even think he was a threat. I guess blood is thicker than water after all.”
“Don’t beat yourself up, Taylor. You couldn’t have known that he would be bent on revenge.”
“But I should have,” Taylor all but shouted. “I fought for the position of Alpha. I should have known what the fuck was going on with the Nomad Pack.”
“No, that was my job.”
Taylor, Sin, and Michael turned to face Lucien. Palmer, Edison, and Barrett were standing in the doorway behind Lucien. Primrose pushed her way through the men and hurried to Mari’s side, nudging Sin aside so she could sit close to her friend.
“I’m sorry, Primrose,” Taylor said in a quiet voice.
“God, you men are such idiots.” She met each of their gazes before looking at Lucien. “How the hell are you expected to know what everyone is going to do? Are you mind readers?”
“No,” Taylor replied.
“Are you psychics?” This time her gaze was locked to Lucien’s, but none of them answered the rhetorical question.
“How the hell were you to know that Mari would wander off? The only way you will know where she is at all times is to keep her under lock and key. Do you think that she will accept that? That any of the women living here would?”
Lucien sighed, and then to Taylor’s surprise he smirked at Prim before winking at her. “Prim’s right. We can’t keep our women and children locked up. That would smother them and they would come to resent us. Shit happens! Life happens, and we just have to hope that the fates keep us safe.”
“Hallelujah.” Prim sighed. “You three need to go and get dressed. I promise to stay with Mari and I’ll let you know if there’s any change.”
Taylor nodded and, after a last look at his mate, left to get some clothes on. He headed to the kitchen, where he could hear all the other men talking. Even though he felt a little better after Prim’s revelation, he wasn’t going to be able to settle until Marigold was awake. He didn’t think she would be upset that they had changed her into a werewolf. Especially after she’d already asked Tessa, but reality was often harder to accept than theory.
But that didn’t matter anymore. What mattered was that he and his friends stood by her side to help her through her first change and to make sure that she was happy and knew that she was loved.
Chapter Thirteen
“Thank you, Prim,” Mari whispered and then tried to moisten her dry lips by licking them, but it didn’t help since her tongue felt as dry as a desert, too.
“Mari! Oh my God. We’ve been so worried about you,” Primrose whispered back and took Mari’s hand in hers.
Mari opened her eyes and stared at her friend. She seemed so much more vibrant than she remembered. After glancing around the room and noticing that everything seemed brighter with more clarity than she expected, she didn’t need to ask her friend the why of it. She knew immediately that her men had changed her into a werewolf.
“How long have I been out?” She glanced toward the window and noticed it was dark, but to her amazement she could still see everything beyond the glass as if it were daylight.
“Half a day. Your mates got to in you the nick of time. They saved you from being killed.”
“Yes. Wow, I expected you to say days. From what I was told, you and the other women slept for a long time,” Mari said in a hoarse voice as she pushed herself into a sitting position. She swallowed around the lump of emotion constricting her throat and looked down. She was glad she had on one of her large sleeping shirts. She hadn’t even thought about clothes and was pleased she hadn’t flashed her boobs at her friend. Although, now she thought about it, she figured she was going to have to get naked in front of the whole pack when she was taught how to call to her wolf. She could actually feel the animal deep down inside of her and was a little in awe when she looked inside to herself to see that her wolf was curled up, looking as if it were half asleep.
“Yeah, but our injuries were more severe.”
“How badly was I hurt?”
“Your arm was a mess, so your men said. That asshole had bitten through an artery and you were bleeding out.”
“Where is he? Shit, there was another one. What happened to them?” Mari asked, her heart racing and her breathing becoming rapid.
“Calm down, Mari. Your mates will feel and smell your fear. You obviously wanted time to talk to me alone, otherwise you would have let them know you were awake. Those assholes can’t hurt you anymore. They’re dead.”
“Thank God,” Mari said and nodded her agreement to having time alone with her friend. Although she felt a little guilty for playing possum, she did need to talk to Prim first.
“Does it hurt?” she asked a little anxiously and then took a deep breath before exhaling slowly.
“The change?” Prim asked.
“Yeah.”
“No, not really. Did you ever get growing pains as you were going through puberty?”
“Yes.”
“The first change is like that. Just an ache in your bones. They don’t even feel like they’re breaking and reshaping. It’s quite amazing actually.”
“That’s good. I had this image in my head of me making a fool of myself by screaming. That would have been humiliating.”
“Yeah, I know what you mean. I vowed that I would bite my own tongue off before I made a sound. Thank God that didn’t happen.”
“Who was the other dude?”
“That was Wayne. He was a second cousin to the Nomad Pack’s previous Alpha. I think he was batshit crazy.”
“Ya think?” Mari rolled her eyes and gave her friend a smile. “You know what?”
“No. What?”
“I feel wonderful. I can’t remember the last time I felt so energetic.”
“Yes, it’s wonderful, isn’t it? I’m still in awe over how much stronger I feel. Plus everything looks brighter, smells are more pungent, and I have never been so strong or been able to run so fast in my life.”
“Would you believe I’m actually looking forward to being a wolf?”
“That’s good,” Prim said. “I was scared out of my freaking mind. Palmer said that Ashton offered you a job? Are you going to accept it? If not, what do you want to do? I know damn well you aren’t going to want to sit around on your ass all day long.”
“I have two options, but I’m not sure which one to choose.”
“What’s the other one?”
“I could work in the school in the office and as a first-aid officer. That’s tempting too. You know how much I love kids.”
“Yeah I was kind of surprised you didn’t go into teaching like I did.”
“I hate being the center of attention. There’s no way I could stand up in the front of a classroom. Being a dental hygienist was great. I got to interact with kids and put them at ease, but I wasn’t the boss. Ya know?”
Prim nodded.
“How much of a need is there for a nurse around here?” Mari waved her hand in the air. “Everyone here heals by themselves.”
“Not everyone. Tessa’s still human, but I see your concern. You’re worried that you won’t have enough to do and will become bored. You could always take both positions.”
“You mean work part-time in the school and then part-time for
Ashton?”
“Yeah.”
“I like that idea,” Mari said. “I can study at night to become a nurse. Work in the school office in the morning and Ashton’s clinic in the afternoon.”
“Not to mention you’ll have the skills to patch any of the kids up if they get hurt.”
“There is that.”
Mari sniffed the air when she smelt food cooking, and her empty stomach growled loudly, making Prim laugh. She stood up and then came closer to give her a hug. “I’m so glad that you’re okay.”
“Me too.”
“I’ll see you at the wedding tomorrow.”
“Oh shit. That’s tomorrow?”
Prim nodded.
“So much has happened. I’m sorry I haven’t helped you as much as I should have.”
“Hey, don’t sweat it. There wasn’t much left to do and Mel was helping, too. You’ve had so much to contend with.”
“Yes, I have, haven’t I? I can hardly believe everything that’s happened myself.”
“Yeah, it’s pretty awesome, huh?”
“You know as soon as I leave the room they are going to come rushing in?”
“Hang on a minute,” Mari said and flung the covers aside. She grabbed some clothes from the dresser and pulled on some jeans and a light sweater before slipping her feet into her sheepskin slippers. “Okay, let’s go.”
Mari followed Prim out to the kitchen. Palmer, Edison, and Barrett looked up and smiled at her. Taylor was sitting at the counter with his head in his hands while Sin and Michael were at the stove cooking dinner.
They must have smelt her or felt her presence because all of them turned to look at her. The stunned expressions on their faces would have made her laugh if she hadn’t known how worried they’d been for her.
“Mari!” Taylor moved so fast he would have been a blur if she didn’t have her own wolf inside her. He pulled her into his arms and squeezed her tight. “How are you feeling, baby? Are you hurting any?”
“Should you be out of bed?” Sin asked as he pressed up against her back.
“God, beautiful. You had us all so scared,” Michael said as he stopped at her side and stroked a finger down her cheek.