Page 75 of Alpha Hunt

My jaws close around his wrist. He screams as I bite down, feeling the bones shatter. Sinews and muscle shred. The gun clatters to the floor. So does his dismembered hand.

I release him, and he staggers back, howling in agony, clutching his mangled arm to his chest. “You fucking monster!” he chokes.

Idiot.

What did he expect? Besides, he’s the monster. And he’s going to pay.

I leap for him, my jaws closing around his throat. He tries to fight me off, but it’s useless. I bite down, feeling his flesh tear beneath my teeth. Blood gushes into my mouth, hot and coppery.

His body goes limp, and I let him fall to the floor. I wish I’d had more time with him. I’d wanted him to suffer. But there’s no time to linger. Crag and his men were just the spearhead of a much larger weapon.

We have to go!

“We have to go.” Casey is standing beside me, her words an echo of the ones in my head. Did she hear me?

She rests her hand between my shoulder blades. The other is holding a heavy-looking case. I eye it curiously.

What the hell is that?

“No idea what it is, but I figured we might need this,” she says, holding it up. Again, it’s like she heard my words. The sounds of fighting have died down, the silence broken only by the groans of the dying.

A wolf moves up beside us. Blood coats its gaping jaws. Another joins us, equally blood-spattered. Soon, we’re surrounded. But somehow, I know we’re safe.

“We’re going to have to find a place to hole up until she wakes up.” Casey is nodding back to where the fallen wolf is still lying. “I can’t carry her alone.” She frowns. “Unless you help me.”

I sink back onto my haunches, wondering why it hadn’t occurred to me to shift before now. The others, either. In our half-shifted form, we make a formidable foe. We’d have ended that fight a lot sooner.

I look down at my paws, my furred legs, and the coat that covers my chest. I reach for the part of me that is human. I reach deep. I try until I feel myself shaking. But it’s useless.

I can’t shift back.

Chapter 28

Casey

We’re a motley crew when we limp back into Steel Lakes. I’m exhausted, my body aching from the battle. But beneath the weariness, elation surges through me.

We did it!

We saved them. I glance at Edirn, padding along beside me in his wolf form, his silver-gray fur matted with blood. He’s magnificent. I’d only seen him in my dreams before, but he’s everything I’d seen and more. A powerful beast, a savage fighter…and a worthy mate. My inner wolf settles, a sense of peace washing over me now that I’m close to him again.

How did I think I could hide from this?

“Strangers coming in!” someone shouts from the Steel Lakes gate.

“Open up, Cody! It’s me, Casey Stone. And Edirn Alpen,” I call back.

“What about them?” Suspicion colors his words. I can’t blame him. I’m walking in with half a dozen wolves at my back.

“It’s fine. They’re with me.” I can’t believe I’m saying it. I’m walking into my pack with a band of strange beasts, and I’m certain that we’re safe.

“All clear!” he calls before I can change my mind. As we approach, there’s a heavy rattle as it cranks open.

Beyond the gates, there’s a small crowd gathered. Jagger and the team stare at us in astonishment, their eyes widening as they take in the sight of me leading Edirn and the other wolves. I wait for an angry chewing out from my Alpha. It’s not as bad as I’d expected.

“Stone!” Jagger rushes forward, his voice filled with disbelief. “What the fuck happened? I told you to stay behind.”

“Did you really think I’d do that?” I raise an eyebrow. Edirn is right beside me, and I’m reluctant to take my hand from where it’s resting on his huge shoulder.

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