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“You cannot hold him, gentlemen,” she had said firmly to the angry cops who were muttering about turning murderers loose just because they had immunity. “He was only doing what any Kindred warrior does when his mate or the female he intends to make his mate is threatened.”
“But he killed Jason! He ripped out his throat!” Amanda Brannigan exclaimed. She had been there at the station too, playing the horrified heroine to the hilt, making the attempted rape on Melli and the subsequent killing of the would-be-rapist somehow all about her.
Lizabeth and turned to give the girl a cold look.
“And you can be thankful you didn’t get in the way, Miss Brannigan,” she said coolly. “When a Kindred warrior goes into Rage, he cannot be held responsible for his actions. I assure you, he wouldn’t have attacked and killed this other man unless he saw him attacking his female first.”
“Which is exactly what happened,” Liosh said quietly. He was in his right mind and cleaned up—wearing the spare uniform shirt Vorn always kept in the back of his shuttle. “When I came up, Melinda was on the ground and that…” His voice dropped to a lower register and his eyes began to gleam red. “That bastard was pulling down her shorts to rape her. Again.”
“Again?” Lizabeth said sharply. “You don’t mean he had already assaulted her once tonight?”
Liosh shook his head.
“Not tonight, no. Back when they were in school together. He lured her to a human mating ritual called a ‘prom’ and attacked her afterwards.” His voice ended in a positive growl and eyes were getting redder and redder as he spoke.
Vorn looked at his friend, alarmed. If even the memory of what had happened to Melinda could send Liosh into Rage again, they were all going to be in trouble.
Lizabeth Paige seemed to realize the same thing.
“Listen, officers,” she said to the policemen, who were muttering uneasily among themselves as they stared at the changes Liosh was displaying. “If you don’t want to have a repeat incident, I suggest you let my client go and be with his female. Seeing her well and safe is the only thing that’s going to calm him down and get rid of the Rage completely.” She had raised an eyebrow. “Now are you going to release Liosh to me or do I have to go over your heads? I have contacts on the World Council and I won’t hesitate to call them.”
There was more mumbling and grumbling and some pretty unpleasant names were thrown around referring to Lizabeth but at last Liosh had been released, despite Amanda Brannigan bleating about a “miscarriage of justice” and threatening to go online and post everything everywhere.
“Thank you so much,” Vorn had said, when they finally walked out of the police station, free males. “And I’m sorry for the rude remarks those bastards were throwing around back there.”
Lizabeth shrugged, apparently unconcerned.
“Please. It’s not the first time I’ve been called a ‘ball-busting bitch.’” She winked at him. “I do have a reputation to uphold, after all. Now—will you gentlemen be all right? I have twins back on the Mother Ship who need to nurse.”
“We’ll be fine now,” Liosh assured her. “I just want to go to Melinda and make sure she is as well.”
“Of course, you do.” Lizabeth patted his arm sympathetically. “Hey—was it your first time going into Rage?” she asked gently.
Liosh nodded. “I…didn’t know myself. I had no idea I was capable of such violence. I have killed in battle but this…” He shook his head. “It was completely different. I was…savage.”
“My husband, Lone, had the same feelings in the aftermath of his own Rage when he saved me from a fate worse than death,” Lizabeth told him. “And he didn’t just kill one man—he killed almost every man in an entire village. It was a really scary sight.”
“A whole fucking village?” Vorn shook his head and gave a low whistle. “I guess so.”
“I just want you to know there are support groups—both for warriors who have gone into Rage and killed to protect their females, and for females who have seen their warriors in that state,” Lizabeth told Liosh. “So if either of you are having a hard time dealing with it, come find me on the Mother Ship and I’ll give you the places and times they meet.”
“Thank you,” Liosh said gratefully. “You’re more than kind, Counselor Paige. Melinda and I will certainly come speak to you aboard the Mother Ship. But right now, I just want to see her again and know that she is safe.”
He looked worried and Vorn knew his friend wouldn’t feel good until he was holding the female he intended to bond to him in his arms.
Frankly, he wanted to see Jodi again, too. Despite the hard words between them, he cared for her—maybe even loved her, as fucked-up as that was—and he needed to know she was all right.
