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Dario whimpered next to him, his body trembling with fear. Sanjay squeezed his hand, trying to offer some comfort. He knew Dario was feeling guilty for what happened, but now wasn’t the time to dwell on it. They needed to focus on getting out of this alive.
Sanjay spotted the knife block on the counter and slowly crawled toward it. He grabbed the largest knife and held it in front of him, ready to defend himself and Dario.
Just as he was about to fully stand up, a shot rang out, and a bullet whizzed by his ear. Sanjay ducked back down, cursing under his breath. Trenton was still in the room with them, and he wasn’t going to give up easily.
Sanjay peeked around the island again, his heart pounding in his chest as he searched for Trenton. He didn’t see him, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t there. The man was like a ghost, appearing and disappearing at will.
“Get up, Sanjay,” Trenton called out. “I know you’re behind the island. Don’t make me come after you.”
Sanjay looked at Dario, who was still shaking from the adrenaline rush of the past few minutes. He knew they couldn’t stay hidden forever. They needed to make a run for it, but he didn’t want to leave Jake behind.
Jake. Tears burned Sanjay’s eyes as the agony of losing his mate nearly crippled him. He never knew pain like this existed. It was as if a part of him had been torn away, leaving behind a gaping hole.
“We need to get out of here,” Sanjay whispered as he wiped the tears away. “Can you make it to the back door?”
Dario nodded, but Sanjay could see the fear in his eyes. He knew Dario was still in shock from what had happened, but they didn’t have time to wait for him to recover. They needed to act now.
“Stay low and follow me,” Sanjay said as he stood up and ran toward the door, hoping that Trenton wouldn’t be expecting them to make a move.
Sanjay reached for the doorknob, but he was yanked backward by his hair before he could touch it. Trenton threw him across the room, and Sanjay landed hard on the kitchen floor, the knife slipping from his hand. He looked up in time to see Trenton looming over him, a twisted smile on his face.
“You think you can defeat me?” Trenton sneered. “I’ve killed stronger men than you.”
Sanjay scrambled to his feet, searching for the knife. But Trenton was too quick. He kicked the knife away and grabbed Sanjay by the throat, lifting him off his feet.
“You should have stayed out of this,” Trenton said as he tightened his grip. “But now that you’re involved, I’m going to make you suffer.”
Dario suddenly appeared from behind Trenton, a frying pan in his hand. He swung it with all his might, hitting Trenton on the back of the head. The man grunted and released Sanjay, who fell to the floor, gasping for air.
Trenton turned around, anger flashing in his eyes. “You little shit,” he snarled as he lunged at Dario.
But Dario was ready. He swung the frying pan again, hitting Trenton in the face. The man stumbled backward, blood pouring from his nose.
Sanjay saw his chance and grabbed the knife from the floor. He charged at Trenton, plunging the knife into his chest and twisting it.
Trenton curled his hand around Sanjay’s throat and choked him again, only this time he didn’t pull Sanjay off his feet. “If I die, I’m taking you with me.”
Sanjay slapped and kicked, but Trenton refused to let him go. Even Dario was punching and pulling at Trenton, to no avail. The room began to spin as Sanjay tried desperately to breathe.
A snarl sounded behind him. In the next moment, a wolf leapt at Trenton, the momentum forcing Trenton to let Sanjay go. Sanjay hit the floor, clawing at his throat as he sucked in large gulps of air.
The wolf took Trenton down, ripping out his throat.
Dario screamed and dropped to the floor, covering his head with his hands. At first, Sanjay thought his friend was terrified of the wolf, until he heard Dario whispering Trenton’s name.
Un-fucking-believable. Sanjay sat on his ass, stunned that Dario was mourning Trenton’s death.
When Sanjay had enough air in his lungs, he lunged at the wolf and hugged it so tightly that he feared breaking one of the wolf’s ribs. “Jake!”
The wolf shifted into Jake, who crashed to the floor, blood coating his shoulder. “I’m not fully healed yet, sweetheart. Easy with the squeezing.”
Sanjay laughed through his tears as he clung to his mate. Jake’s alive! Jake’s alive! That was all that was going through his head as he pulled back and looked his mate over. “I thought he killed you.”
“Just knocked me down for a moment.” Jake hissed as he held his bloody shoulder. “I didn’t think I’d get back up in time. I heard what was going on, but I couldn’t get up, no matter how hard I tried.”
“I’m just glad you’re okay.” Sanjay kissed his face all over. “I love you, Jake. I love you so much.”
“I love you too, babe.” With his good arm, Jake pulled Sanjay close to him. “Call the station and let them know we need them.”
