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“Phe, get down!” I screamed as I threw the dagger with everything I had.
Phe, to her credit, listened and dropped. The blade found purchase in the shadowy figure’s thigh, causing him to stumble off the branch he was perched on. Her wide amber eyes tracked his fall, which left her open to the first man’s attack. I saw the glint of his sword an instant before he sliced the back of her hind leg, her yelp of pain piercing the air.
Fury pumped through me, fueling me with its strength. I started sprinting toward them, intent on helping her. I may not have a weapon, or my wolf, but I would still tear a motherfucker apart if I had to.
Phe growled, low and menacing, leaping up onto her assailant and biting deep into his shoulder. They went down, the force of her attack combined with her weight sending them both to the ground, blood staining the newly fallen snow. The unique scent caught my nose, and I stiffened.
Fae. What the hell are they doing here?
All the air was knocked out of me as I fell to the ground, tackled by the man I’d hit with my dagger. He grinned down at me, his eyes cold and filled with loathing.
“Pity I have to take you back with me.”
He pushed off me as I wheezed and tried to catch my breath, little stars still exploding behind my eyelids from my skull bashing into the frozen ground. Before I could do more than curl up into a ball, he cocked his leg back and kicked me straight in the ribs. There was a distinctive crack, and I cried out as pain shot through me.
“Get up,” he growled.
Channeling Kingston, I gritted out, “You’re sending me some mixed signals, Tamlin.”
He grabbed me by the hair, completely missing that reference as he pulled me to a standing position. Nausea curled in my belly as the break in my ribs throbbed.
Oh God, he’s going to take me.
A deep rumble radiated around us, a vibration so strong I felt it in my bones.
“Bloody fucking hell,” my captor groaned. “Godsdamned wolves.”
He released my hair, giving me a chance to turn my head and see the six werewolves, including Phe, as they stood in a menacing semicircle, all ready to tear these fae bastards to shreds.
“We need to go,” the other fae said. “We can’t face them all.”
“This isn’t over,” he spat, dropping me and making off toward the trees.
The man Phe had taken a bite out of was right behind him, worse for wear but still alive. I thought for sure the Farrells would go after the intruders, but all of them circled around me, even Phe.
Kingston shifted first, not caring at all that he was butt-ass naked in the snow. His eyes were wild with panic, his voice filled with tension. “Sunshine, are you all right? Is the baby hurt?” His hand trembled as he reached for me, as though he was unsure if it was safe to touch me.
I needed my mate’s skin on mine. I pressed his hand to my cheek, turning my head to brush a kiss to his warm palm. “I think the bastard broke my rib.”
His eyes narrowed, panic replaced by frustration. “What the fuck were you doing going after him like that?”
“I couldn’t just leave Phe.”
She walked toward me, back in her human form, totally nude and unbothered, the slight limp in her gait and blood streaking her leg the only indication she’d been hurt. Eyes locked on me, she held out the dagger I’d thought I’d lost to the fae.
“Here.”
I took it with shaking hands. “Thank you.”
Nodding, she turned away and headed into the house. It wasn’t much, but that was the first time she looked at me without hostility banked in her gaze.
The searing heat of my bracelet cooled with each passing second, though it didn’t diminish entirely. It probably wouldn’t so long as the fae were near enough for it to register their presence. My eyes scanned the trees, trying to seek out any sign of them lying in wait.
The smallest wolf let out a soft whimper.
“It’s okay, Trouble. I don’t think Sunday will mind if you come check her out for yourself.” Kingston’s tone was gentle and sweet. I loved the way he was with his little sister.
Tessa slunk over, making wolfy noises of concern as she sniffed at me and then nuzzled into my hip. She offered me one wet lick on the hand Kingston wasn’t holding before she hurried back to her mother’s side.
