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I head for the other building near the SUVs. There’s a light on inside, but I don’t hear anything. Tobias punches my shoulder to get my attention.
“What?” I hiss at him.
His mouth is set in a grim line as he points toward the SUVs. There are three bodies lying motionless on the ground. Based on the bloody gashes at their throats, a shifter got to them. And based on the fact that the bodies still look fresh, that shifter hasn’t gone far.
“Shift!” Dominic’s voice rings out at the same time that a growl tears through the night.
I start to shift immediately, but I’m already too late. I’m mid-shift when searing pain tears through my left leg. A flesh wound on a shifter is easy enough to heal, but it’ll hurt like a bitch for a few days.
The other shifter—a mid-sized, brown wolf—turns in an attempt to jump me again. Fuck that. As I reach full form, I compartmentalize the pain I’m feeling and leap back at him. I have a fighter’s brain. I’ll fight to my dying breath if I have to. I never tap out.
The brown wolf isn’t ready for me and goes down easily with a yelp. I’m seconds from tearing out his throat when I’m knocked away from him.
I glare back at Dominic’s black wolf as he swings his head from side to side. It’s a pain in the ass to not be able to mind link. Luca solves the communication problem by shifting back to human form. “A wolf this size wouldn’t take out three humans so easily. Alpha Dominic is prepared to consider sparing him for information.”
Control your temper, Tobias warns, startling me across mind link.If you kill a rogue out here, you’ll have to go home answering to the Luna Sovereign. There won’t be any way to keep it quiet.
It’s a dig at our brother. We swept his death under the rug to protect Leah.
Whatever. Greg deserved what happened to him, and this wolf deserves what’s coming for him too. I don’t care whether he’s responsible for all three of those dead humans or not, the asshole attacked me unprovoked. Innocent shifters don’t pull that crap.
I start to answer as much, but there’s motion at the corner of my vision. I keep still so I don’t give myself away as I watch another brown wolf creeping along between buildings, moving away from us. I don’t see a sign of any more.
I jolt into a sprint, ignoring the sound of Luca yelling out for me to stop. The other wolf has already turned at an angle, eyes zeroed in on my approach. As I get close, he slows and starts to move a circle around me. I’m fine letting him think he still has the advantage. That will only make him cocky. The reality is that him facing me has turned this into a fair fight—and no one is taking me down in one of those.
Recognition sparks in the wolf’s eyes. It takes me another minute to place him in this form though.
Baylor.
I’m assaulted by memories of my heartbroken sister sobbing over this asshole. He tricked her into turning on her own brother. He kept her around as a pawn and used her when the time called for it. Dominic can offer mercy to the other wolf, but this one won’t be getting any.
Give me the best you’ve got. My wolf is snarling and ready.
I give him the chance to pounce first, and I take advantage of the fact that he doesn’t know what the hell he’s doing. I move low as he leaps so I can bite his leg while he’s still mid-air. He growls and tries to bend his neck to get a piece of me, but I use the momentum of his own body to send him reeling to the side. He crashes to the ground but doesn’t stay there.
I’m not surprised. Some assholes don’t know when to quit.
He lunges again, this time pivoting at the last minute to fake me out and grab me where the other wolf bit me. Cheap shot. I can feel blood trickling from the wound, but it isn’t deep enough to stop me.
I pull away easily. Baylor obviously wasn’t intending to fight, and he knows he’s outmatched. Especially when Tobias comes skidding up.
It’s a trap,Tobias says urgently.
No shit.It’s not a coincidence that Baylor is here. But it will be the last damn thing he ever does.
He tries to circle again, low and stalking while he looks for an opening. I’m not interested in playing with him. Now that we know this was a set-up, we need to get back to the family and Dominic’s pack.
I throw myself full-force at Baylor, taking great pleasure in the way his eyes widen with fear as I pin him to the ground. I’m bigger than he is. He tries to roll out from under me, but I latch on at his shoulder and tear deep into the flesh.
He releases an agonized groan that echoes around us. He tries to thrash against me, but I hold fast as my mouth fills with the metallic taste of blood.
Baylor’s movements become more erratic until he’s barely fighting back. He’s losing a lot of blood from how deep this wound is, and his eyes are unfocused. There’s already no chance of survival for him, but this asshole put my mate at risk and broke my sister’s heart in one fell swoop. I don’t just want him to bleed out slowly, I want the chance to deliver the fatal blow. I’ll happily go to Tasha with his death on my hands.
I release him, intending to go for his neck, but I hesitate when a cold chill sweeps over my spine. I’m tempted to look over my shoulder even before I hear Tobias’ panicked yell.
“Paxton, watch the fuck out!”
I don’t even have time to react; everything goes black.
