Total pages in book: 81
Estimated words: 77952 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 390(@200wpm)___ 312(@250wpm)___ 260(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77952 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 390(@200wpm)___ 312(@250wpm)___ 260(@300wpm)
And then it happens.
The front door explodes outward.
I’m jerked forward so hard that I lose my footing. Gregory’s arms, which were tight around me, loosen as the knife drops and spears the dirt at my feet. I stumble forward, barely catching myself before my face hits the ground. I hear the crunch before I see the blood as Gregory is lifted off his feet, his scream gurgling into nothing.
Hunter?
He shakes Gregory like a rag doll, once, twice, three times, and then the snapping sound is final. The alpha’s head is torn from his body, his warm blood arcing like a fountain, soaking my chest, my face, my hands.
The head rolls past me.
And everything fades.
The last thing that fills my vision before I pass out is Nixon, covered in blood, his wolf eyes fixed on me like I’m the only thing left in the world that matters.
45
NIXON
I reach her after she hits the ground.
Her body is limp, soaked in blood that isn’t hers, thank the gods, and I lift her into my arms like I’ve done so many times before, but never like this. Never with the copper sting of spilled life in the air. Never with the imprint of another man’s violence still fresh on her skin.
Scarlet is unconscious, her head lolling against my shoulder as I stride into the cabin. Her bloodstained waves are stuck to her cheeks, and every part of me is shaking with a rage I can’t unleash. Not yet. Not when she needs me.
Cami parts the way with a nod, her eyes heavy with knowledge. Goldie is in the corner, rocking Ahya and her babies, and whispering soft comforts as the children whimper.
Finn and Robert carry Reed into the kitchen, his body limp and blood-soaked. I reach out for his mind and find it, weakened but still linked to mine.
Fight, brother, I urge him. Fight for your life, for our mate, for our family. Fight because we need you, and it isn’t your time. Fight to stay with us, brother.
“Make him strong again,” I tell Cami and the bear mystic. They’re already pulling poultices and potions from their bags.
I head straight for the bathroom. The door closes behind me with a snap, and I step into the shower with Scarlet fully clothed in my arms. Warm water cascades over us, washing away blood in rivulets that stain the tiles and the floor with a river of red.
Her breathing is shallow, her lips pale, but she’s alive. She’s mine. Still mine.
I cradle her beneath the falling spray, letting it soak us through. She stirs, a soft whimper catching in her throat as her eyes flutter open.
“Nixon…”
“I’ve got you,” I whisper against her temple.
Her eyes search my face. “Reed? Is he… Finn?”
“Finn’s with him. He’s okay. Alive. Ahya’s safe.”
Scarlet. Reed’s mind connection is weak and hoarse, but it’s there.
Reed, baby. I’m okay. You’re okay.
Tears spill over her cheeks, mixing with water. “I thought he was dying… I almost...”
“Don’t,” I growl, holding her tighter. “You were brave, Scarlet. If Gregory had hurt you… taken you…”
My voice breaks. I can’t say it. I won’t. I already saw her bloodied in his arms. I already felt the terror of almost losing her. I knew I’d be nothing without her love.
I kiss her hard and desperately, the kind of kiss that presses a crescendo of emotion into flesh and bone. She shakes in my arms, whether from fear or shock catching up with her, I don’t know. I know I need to anchor her to this moment. To me. To our lives.
She tries to stand on her own, and I let her, helping her peel off the ruined clothing. I grab a thick towel and wrap it around her shaking frame, rubbing heat into her arms before guiding her to the sink to sit while I dry off and dress. Neither of us speaks, but our eyes hold each other, only breaking the connection when I pull a shirt over her head.
When we return to the main floor, the scent of blood is more potent. The door’s been flung open to allow for incoming wounded. Makeshift cots already line the walls. Finn is hunched over Reed on the kitchen table, his hands slick as he applies pressure to a wound in his side. Cami moves around him with bottles and crushed herbs.
But then Harry and Caleb appear, carrying someone between them, and ice fills my veins. My father.
His face is slack. His body is too still. His scent…
A strangled sound scrapes from my throat as the wrongness of his scent drives a stake into my heart.
Not the sharp copper of fresh injury, but—
Death.
The slow, creeping decay of life, leaving a body.
They lay him on the floor
“No,” I gasp, stepping forward.
Cami rushes to him, fingers pressed to his pulse points, chanting something I don’t understand.