Ryan barely thought about the unconscious woman at Seth’s feet.He’d save her if he could, but his priority was Seth.He’d do anything he could to save his boyfriend, including using magic.He’d been reluctant to do so since he’d arrived in pack territory because he hadn’t wanted to scare pack members or intimidate them, but right now, he didn’t care.
He stepped forward as the mage raised his hand.Seth growled, but beyond launching himself at the mage, there was little he could do, and it looked like he didn’t want to leave the woman alone.It was touching but also a bit stupid.If Ryan had to guess, that woman would’ve run away screaming instead of protecting Seth if their roles had been reversed.
The mage waved his hand, and purple light rushed toward Seth.Ryan was too slow to react, and he had to bite his lower lip hard to stop himself from screaming and attract the mage’s attention.The light hit Seth in the chest and sent him backward.He landed against a tree and cried out.
The mage raised his hand again, but this time, Ryan was ready for him.
* * * *
THE AIR WHOOSHED OUTof Seth’s lungs when he hit the tree.For a second, he couldn’t breathe, no matter how hard he tried.His back and head hurt, but luckily, he’d managed to shift before the mage had sent him flying.He would be in much more pain if he’d still been in his human form.
Shifting had helped, but that was all Seth could do, and he didn’t know if it would be enough.As he watched the mage who’d attacked him raise his hand again, no doubt to finish what he’d started, he wondered if he would have survived this if he hadn’t been alone.Technically, he wasn’t, but the woman who’d yelled at him earlier was of no help since she’d fainted.
What would happen to her?Would the mages kill her?Would they kill every pack member they found like they had the dragons when they’d attacked the clan?They were here for a reason, and Seth couldn’t imagine it was a good one.
He tried to get up, even though it wouldn’t help.He wasn’t going to take this sitting down.
Purple light glowed from the mage’s palm again, and Seth closed his eyes.He wasn’t going to make it.
He’d thought he would die so many times when he lived on the streets, but it hadn’t happened.Instead, he’d survived and had found a home, even though it hadn’t been for long.
He hoped Theo would be fine.He had to be.He wasn’t alone anymore, and with all the support he’d have, he’d forget all about Seth in a few years.Seth would become a story to tell Theo and Chance’s children during family reunions.
But the pain Seth expected never happened.He heard someone swear and the sound of feet on the forest ground, and he blinked his eyes open to see what was happening.He tried to get to his feet, but his body felt heavy.
The mage wasn’t facing Seth anymore.He’d moved toward someone on Seth’s right, and when Seth turned to look, his stomach dropped.
Ryan.
He had both hands raised, too, and purple light danced on his palms.He looked like an avenging angel, and he’d never been so beautiful, but Seth was terrified.He didn’t want anything to happen to Ryan.
“Traitor,” the mage spat out.
Ryan didn’t seem to care what the man thought of him.“Better a traitor than a murderer.”He waved one hand, and the light shot forward, but it didn’t hit the mage.No, it continued moving, slamming into the second mage square in the chest.The man had been hiding behind a tree, either to surprise Ryan or because he was afraid.The reason didn’t matter.The man cried out and dropped to the ground, clutching his chest with both hands.
That spurred the second mage into action.He rushed forward, light shooting from his hands, small explosions making Seth jump.He had to make sure the mage wouldn’t hurt Ryan.He was sure that Ryan could defend himself, but it didn’t mean that he was going to sit there and watch him do it without helping.
He’d been trying to get to his feet, but he was struggling, so he stopped.Instead, he stretched out, reaching one of his paws forward.The mage who’d sent him flying seemed to have forgotten that he was there.He didn’t look down as he ran past Seth, which meant that Seth could catch the man’s ankle with his claws.
The man screamed.The light vanished from his palms as if it had never existed, and he dropped to the ground.Seth could smell blood, but he didn’t care.He struggled to get to his feet again, ignoring the pain in his back and head.He was worried about his condition, but that would have to wait until he was sure that neither of the mages was a danger to Ryan.
Ryan moved forward and stopped by the mage who’d attacked him.He glanced down at the man.Seth finally managed to get to his feet, but the world around him tilted sideways when he did.He had to lean against the closest tree, which, accidentally, was the same one he’d slammed against.
“You should be ashamed of yourself,” Ryan told the mage.
The mage had stopped screaming.He was doing something to his ankle, maybe using magic to heal it, but he looked up at Ryan.His lips were twisted, and his gaze flared with what Seth was pretty sure was hatred, although he didn’t know if it was for Ryan, for him, or for anyone who associated with the pack.
“I’m not ashamed,” the man said.“I followed orders, unlike you.I didn’t betray my coven.”
Ryan waved the man’s words away.“Yes, I know.I betrayed the leaders and my coven, yada, yada, yada.You really should come up with something more original.I already heard that from the leaders, and if I didn’t care about it when Raymond tried to shame me, imagine how little I care about it now.”
“The coven will come.We will destroy the pack.”
“Well, you certainly tried.”Ryan wiggled his fingers, and a tiny speck of purple light rushed toward the mage’s face.It exploded on his cheek, causing him to yelp and reach for it.From where he was, Seth couldn’t see any blood, so he didn’t think the mage had been hurt.
Not any more than he already was, thanks to Seth’s claws.
“You know, I was there when Raymond, Maureen, and Eldora met the alpha,” Ryan continued.“I heard them agree not to attack the pack.What do you think is going to happen now?”
