Page 36 of Rescuing Red

“Same as before. You hearanything, you run. I’ll always find you,” he whispered.

The flood of love through their bond was her answer. It was all he needed. He knew she hated the distance between them, but she also knew it was important.

Moving off their trail and deeper into the cover of the jungle, Blaide headed back the way they’d come, hoping maybe something had delayed the soldiers but knowing in his heart it was unlikely. He ran into the scout far too soon, coming upon him suddenly and having no choice but to silence him before he could warn the men not far behind.

Snarling to himself at his carelessness, Blaide cleaned the blood from his knife as he ran toward his mate. He went through every idea that popped into his head as his legs pumped, knowing he had to slow the men behind them, especially now that they would know someone was ahead of them and had killed one of their own. He hadn’t come up with anything by the time he reached his weary group.

Liz lurched to her feet when she saw him, shock written across her face. The others followed her lead, and he realized crimson still smeared his arms.

When he stopped to assure her the blood wasn’t his, an alpha interrupted him.

“Would a trap slow them? Do we have time?”

Blaide’s lips spread in a feral grin, the others lingering around them scrambling after the people already moving deeper into the jungle. Giving the man a nod, Blaide turned to Liz, resisting the urge to pull her against him so he didn’t cover her in filth.

“The soldiers are close, and they won’t stop. You must keep them moving. We’ll set a trap and catch up.”

Her lip trembled and he let out the richest purr he could manage, trying to steady her nerves.

“I—Okay.”

She squared her shoulders, turning to her task and ushering the last few to catch up with the disappearing group.

Turning to the alpha by his side, Blaide tried to think of the easiest traps that would slow down the troops behind them. In the end, they could only set up three small ones before shouting alerted them to the soldiers finding their downed scout. It wouldn’t take out many men, but hopefully it would make them more cautious.

The two raced in the direction their group had taken, catching up too soon for Blaide’s comfort. The alpha who’d helped him continued on to the front of the group as Blaide slowed beside Liz.

He took her hand, having washed himself while he was beside the river. She gave it a squeeze and shot him a shaky smile, but he knew her worry was growing. Her eyes locked on her nana, still walking ahead of them but having dropped back further in the group. He was opening his mouth to say something when the other alpha caught his attention again.

The grin on the man’s face spoke of bad things for the soldiers behind them, and Blaide couldn’t help the rush that flooded through him at the thought of dealing the enemy another blow. Dropping a kiss to Liz’s cheek, he released her hand to talk with the man again.

“There’s a cliff up ahead with a bit of an overhang, and we have something that could cause a little shake.”

The man held something out toward Blaide. It took a moment before he realized what the man was saying. The little tool wasn’t strong enough to be a weapon on its own, but the battery would explode if they overloaded it, which could do some serious damage if it were in the right place.

“The only issue is someone would have to be close enough to set it off.”

Blaide chuckled, taking the machine from the man with a nod of thanks.

“Let’s get these people past the cliff, then leave it to me.”

***

The first of the troops came into view between the trees, following the trail the villagers had left. Baring his teeth in a wide grin, Blaide slipped his knife between the battery’s terminals and flipped the machine on. It would take a few minutes to overheat, and by then, the soldiers would be beside the cliff. The explosion might only hurt a few of them, but, hopefully, the rockslide that followed would take out more.

Turning, he darted to a safe place to wait and watch. They were closer to the city, and he planned to stay behind to make sure the others had as much time as they needed to reach the gates before the soldiers made an appearance. He knew this trap wouldn’t take out all of them and would likely enrage the others, but he’d do what he could to slow them and buy his mate as much time as possible.

Chapter 21

Liz

The guards had to let them in, otherwise they’d die. The good guys didn’t let good people die, right?

Liz’s heart hurt, not only because terror had a tight fist around it, but because her mad dash to reach her nana when she stumbled had left her legs burning and her chest heaving. She clamped her fingers tighter around her nana’s hand and pulled her onward, desperate to reach the gates. The ground shook under their feet, making several in the group ahead of them stumble again. It was the second rumble since Blaide left her side with his dangerous plan, and her heart clenched in worry.

If anyone in the group fell, they’d lose momentum, and with how everyone’s feet dragged, Liz doubted they’d be able to even get back up. She shouted encouragement and urged them on.

With her focus aimed forward, she gasped and sent a plea to whatever god would listen. The bond connecting her to Blaide throbbed at their separation, and her fear over his survival made it hard to breathe.

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