Page 61 of Possessive Alpha

He’s right there. Maybe only a step away.

A hand brushes my hair, and I throw myself to the right, smacking into a wall hard enough to stun me. I push off, manage two steps, when a hand fists in my hair and yanks.

My back slams into the ground as I moan in pain.

I’m functioning on pure adrenaline as I grab his ankle. He stumbles. I don’t wait for him to fall, already shoving myself to my feet to run.

I don’t make it.

On my knees, a hard blow rocks my head to the side and makes my world tilt and whirl like I’m hanging upside down. When my vision clears, Cody is smiling at me.

I seize the nearest thing to me, a rock, and slam it into his face. Too slow. His hand slashes out, grips my left arm, and wrenches.

Bone cracks. I shriek as suddenly, my arm is pointing in the wrong direction.

He smiles and is still smiling when it happens.

A gust of wind blows my hair into my face. A furious snarl echoes through the cave chambers and then Cody is gone.

I shove myself upright.

By the time I’m on my feet, Cody doesn’t have a pulse.

I’m sure because a wolf is standing on his chest, and a pool of blood grows wider under his body.

The wolf turns. Brilliant green eyes glitter as I lose all the strength in my legs.

I’m on my ass so fast I don’t realize what just happened, and I’m shaking all over.

Why can’t I stop shaking?

My arm.

I have to do something about my arm.

Holding my breath, I grip my left wrist and pull, straightening until it pops and cracks back into the position it’s supposed to be in. There’s no silencing my scream. It hurts. It fucking hurts a lot. Better I do it now or it will heal bent and I’ll have to break it again.

I’m still breathing through the pain when gentle hands lift me from the floor and press my back to the cave wall. “Sweetheart?”

I have never heard a much-needed word than I do that one. The perfect word. It slices through my pain, returning me to a place I can think again.

Through my watery vision, my gaze connects with the naked man crouched in front of me.

Then his eyes dip, taking in the arm I’m tucking against my chest. “He broke your arm.”

My smile is watery. “You broke his face, so maybe it evens itself out.”

He doesn’t return my smile. “You should have let me do it.”

“You did plenty,” I tell him.

He slides his hand into my hair, cradles the back of my head, and tugs.

My face collides with his bare chest, and I wrap my unhurt arm around him, squeezing him so hard I’m in danger of breaking his ribs.

He doesn’t say a word for the longest time. But I don’t need words right now. I just need him to hold me.

Over his shoulder, I take in Cody’s body.