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I nodded, then ran a hand through my unruly hair. “Yeah.”
“What happened out there?” Clayton asked. “We were all sitting in here talking, and then out of nowhere you got up and bolted out the door. How did you know she was in trouble?”
I hadn’t stopped to consider that. How had I known? I couldn’t pinpoint what sent me flying out the door mid-sentence, toward an unknown part of the woods. I didn’t use scent or stop to listen, I just ran and I ended up exactly where I needed to be. “Must be the life bond thing.”
Clayton nodded. “That makes sense. Good thing. Who knows what he’d have done to her.”
My hands clenched into fists. I knew exactly what he was going to do to her. I could smell the lust in the air when I arrived. That alone should have been enough for me to end Blake’s miserable existence, but I’d hesitated. The same way I’d hesitated when I fought Morgan’s father.
No more. I wasn’t going to give anyone else the benefit of the doubt. Twice, I’d erred on the side of being the bigger person. Twice, it had nearly cost Morgan everything.
I refused to ever put her in harm’s way again.
An hour passed before Zoe came to get me. “Rosemary says she can be moved to her bed.”
I stood, working to hide the trembling in my hands. This shouldn’t be impacting me so greatly. How often had I been on the other end of this? I’d watched friends die. I’d helped my dad attack. I’d killed our enemies. I never hesitated until I became alpha. And I’d never felt this upset after any encounter or tragedy in the past. It had to be the life bond. It was warping my judgement. I could explain away why I made the wrong call to spare Billy Cordova, but I couldn’t explain away this.
Morgan had been stripped down to her bra and underwear, her dirty clothes a pile of shredded fabric. Strips of gauze were wrapped around her arms and taped to a large area of her upper chest. Scratches and marks covered nearly every inch of her skin. Someone had mostly washed her face, eliminating the dirt and bringing out all the fresh bruises. A clump of matted, bloody hair was wet from where they’d cleaned the wound, but it was still obvious where she’d been struck.
A low growl rumbled deep in my throat. If I hadn’t already killed Blake, I’d do it again. “I need to know if he had any accomplices.”
The air around me seemed to still, and I knew everyone was watching my reaction. I kept my attention on Morgan, watching the movement of her chest, taking in her parted lips, her closed and bruised eyes. She was going to be in agony when she woke. Even with shifter healing, this would take a few days to fade.
“I don’t care what it takes,” I kept my gaze on the injured female, “I don’t care what kind of magic you use. I want them found. Anyone who knew about this. Anyone who was willing to help. Anyone who plans to harm her.” I glanced up and stared at each of the witches in turn. “Find them. So we can end them.”
ChapterEighteen
Morgan
The light was too bright.I squeezed my eyes shut, then eased as I realized that holding them closed tightly hurt just as much.
Pain hammered my brain and as I adjusted under the blankets, I was met with soreness and throbbing aches in every part of my body.Shit. I’d been attacked.
I wanted to cry in frustration at the fact that I was waking, once again, in the bedroom at Luke’s house, too hurt to move. A pathetic little whimper left my lips, and I let myself wallow for a moment before I moved the covers away. I winced as I swung my legs over the bed, then yelped the second they landed on a person rather than the floor.
Scrambling back, I tucked my legs up, hugging my knees to my chest. Another whimper as I adjusted to the pain roaring through me at the rapid movements.
“You’re awake,” Luke said, getting to his knees from his spot off the floor.
A pillow and blanket accompanied him, and I blinked as I realized he’d been sleeping on the floor in my room. “Were you here all night?”
“The last two nights.” He rubbed the back of his neck and avoided looking at me. That strange bout of shyness creeping in that I’d seen once before.
I ignored it, focusing instead on the rather uncomfortable information he’d provided. “Two nights?”
“Rosemary thought it best if you slept through the worst of the pain,” he explained. “She gave you a sleeping draught after I carried you up here.”
“Rosemary?”
“She’s our town healer. Best there is. I swear, she took excellent care of you.” He scrambled to his feet and retrieved a glass jar full of liquid from the top of the dresser. “She made you this. For the pain. Just a sip or two whenever it gets too bad.”
He offered me the jar, and I looked at it, but didn’t reach for it. He set it back down. “How are you feeling?”
“Like I got hit by a car.” I managed a slight smile. “Actually, like I got attacked by a wolf.”
“I didn’t know he was going to come after you,” Luke said quickly. “I’d have taken care of him if I did.”
“He came for you,” I said, the events still hazy, but enough was returning to my memory. “He was trying to kill you.”
