“Sh*t,” I growl, stepping back.
“Ryder Paige says, sounding confused as she reaches for me again.
I cup her face and force her to look me in the eye. “Inside. Now.”
She freezes “What’s happening?”
“It’s Callen. He’s been ambushed. It’s hunters, Paige.” I press my forehead to hers. “Lock the doors. Don’t open them for anyone but me, Parker, or Remy Please.”
She shakes her head. “Ryder, wait…
“Please.”
“I have to get Jaxon,” she says, taking off down the path.
I grab her arm, pulling her back. “He’s safe. We have a plan in place at the school. He is safer there. No one can get to him, trust me. Go inside, lock the door, and don’t leave until someone comes for you. Promise me.”
Her eyes search mine, and then she nods. “Save Callen and then come back to me.”
“I will.”
I take off towards the woods. Pushing my legs as fast as they’ll go. The moment I break through the tree line, I’m already halfway through shifting. My bones crack, muscle tears, and fur rips through my skin as the ground becomes a blur beneath me.
My only focus is getting to Callen. His last message was faint, distorted. But I caught enough.
“Not alone. They’re here.”
I push myself deeper into the trees, the wind howling past my ears, my paws pounding the earth. The pack is moving too, Remy, Parker, and a handful of enforcers crashing toward the same point from every direction. The forest is alive with urgency, the scent of wolfsbane so thick in the air it’s hard to breathe deeply.
I catch Callen’s scent and follow it through broken branches and disturbed dirt. The copper tang of blood hits next and it just fuels the fury burning in me.
How’d
How dare they come into my territory. they ambush my brother and put my entire pack in danger. Including my mate and my son.
We burst into the clearing like a storm.
Callen is slumped in the center, barely upright, blood trailing down his chest and pooling in the dirt beneath him. The hunters haven’t noticed us yet. We are too fast, and they’re too busy deciding how to carve him up.
I don’t give them a chance to speak. The stakes are too high. This needs to end fast.
I slam into the nearest one as he crouches in front of Callen. I knock his weapon out of his hands before my jaws crush his throat. He doesn’t even have time to scream.
To my right, Rerny takes another to the ground with a sickening crunch, his claws already tearing through fabric and flesh. Parker launches into a third, while the enforcers secure the perimeter, checking for any hidden hunters.
The one Parker is fighting slams the butt of his rifle into Parker’s head with a thud, then raises his rifle to fire, but a snarl rips out of me as I lunge. His shot goes wide, the dart flying past my ear as my weight crashes into his chest. I don’t hesitate. I finish him.
It’s over in minutes. The hunters thought they were prepared, but they weren’t prepared for us.
The clearing is quiet again, except for the ragged sound of Callen’s breathing.
I shift back and drop to my knees beside him. “Callen. Hey, hey, look at me.”
His eyes flutter open, his pupils blown wide and unfocused. “They… knew… Jax.”
“It’s okay,” I soothe, tearing at the restraints with clawed hands. “You did good, Cal. You held on.”
“I told you…” he tries to smile, but it comes out more like a grimace. “Strongest… alpha you’ve ever met.”
“Yeah,” I choke out, “You are.”
Remy’s here now, face pale, eyes locked on Callen’s wounds. His hands are shaking as he pulls the darts from him. “We need to get him to the healer. Now.”
Parker’s already mind-linking ahead, calling the medical team, and the enforcers give us the ‘all clear’ to move.
I’m going to carry him,” I say, and no one argues.
Callen groans as I lift him, but he doesn’t fight it. He just leans against me, head on my shoulder. He’s burning up, sweat slicking his skin, but he’s breathing. Still alive, which means there’s still hope.
We move fast, Remy at my side, Parker guarding our backs as we head through the trees. I wish I could feel Paige. Wish I could mind link with her, but without completing the mate bond, there’s no way for me to connect with her.
I try anyway, sending her one thought. “I’ve got him.”
When we reach the healer’s cabin, they’re already waiting. Callen is pulled from my arms and placed on a table, hands working fast, voices barking orders.
I step back, my heart hammering, and blood drying on my skin and under my nails.
Remy’s still beside me, wide-eyed, silent.
“They knew about Jaxon,” I whisper.
His head snaps toward me. “You’re sure?”
“Callen heard them say it.”
Remy’s jaw tightens. “Then either we have a mole or Paige is working..
“Don’t you f*cking dare,” I cut him off with a snarl, stepping into his space.
He flinches, his jaw going tight. “I was just saying…”
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