Page 31 of Fury

"Yeah, they've got bait," he said into his phone.

Those were the only other words Sawyer caught before the wolf pushed past the last thread of his control. The muscles of his arms and legs stretched and the bones popped and reformed, forcing him to drop down on all fours.

"Stop! As your Alpha, I order you to stand down. Now, Sawyer!"

The human half of his brain somewhere way in the back of his head heard Dante's frantic order, but it was too late.

Any other time or situation it might have had an effect, but this time it was different.

Nature had given him one ingrained instinct that could never be denied no matter who or what tried to stop him and he had no choice but to succumb.

Still. He had to warn Dante what they were dealing with so he didn’t hurt anyone who tried to stop him. He turned his quickly changing head and looked up at the Alpha glaring down at him with wide, unbelieving eyes.

"Mate," he said, the word far more guttural than any human could understand.

However, in this case he was talking to a wolf who understood well the fierce drive now coursing through him. It was too late now. He would kill or be killed until the wolf got what he wanted. Simple as that. No one was safe.

Save the mate.

Those were the only words left in his mind. That instinct had been strong during the fire when he'd felt compelled to save Creed's mate, but that was nothing compared to what he felt now. This bordered on insanity as he lost control. It didn't matter that they weren't yet linked by blood, this need went deep into his bones. Maybe even his soul.

If he'd thought the hunters had gone too far before, this fury boiling through his veins transcended beyond every bit of anger and fear from any he had experienced before.

"Shit!" Dante put the phone back to his ear. "This situation just went sideways. I think the FBI chick might be Sawyer's mate."

Sawyer snarled and snapped at Dante, his transformation to the wolf now complete.

"Oh, I don't know," Dante continued. "Maybe because I have a killer wolf standing in front of me about to take my head off if I don't get out of his way."

He hesitated, listening.

"Yeah, I'll follow him. Just get your asses up here. We're going to need lots of backup."

Dante pressed a button and set his phone on the counter slowly. While Sawyer instinctively knew it was good for his Alpha to move slowly when dealing with an agitated wolf, it did not settle him down when the man hidden inside knew that Dante would try and ‘handle’ him.

He peeled his lips back from his teeth and growled low and loud, making sure that the other shifter understood this was his final warning to get the hell out of his way.

The fact Dante stood between him and the door only bought so much time.

“Chill out, dude. I'm going to open that door before you do something stupid like attack me, but not until I'm ready to. We're going to do this together.”

Sawyer growled again. He didn't like that idea, but if that's what it took to get the job done, so be it. He dipped his head while still growling and sat down on his haunches, giving his Alpha about thirty seconds to get this done.

"Better," Dante said, toeing off his boots and reaching for his belt buckle.

This time Sawyer whined and turned his head. He did not feel the need to watch the Alpha undress in front of him. He had no problem with nudity, but at his wolf height he'd be eye to eye with his—

“You should have told one of us about the situation with the FBI lady. If she's your mate that certainly complicates everything. The pack needs to figure out how to handle that. This isn’t something to handle on your own.”

Sawyer turned his head and snapped his jaws. The pack didn't get to decide his fate in this. He loved the pack and Devils Point, but he was talking about a mate. That rare, mythical creature no one fully believed they would find.

They could go fuck themselves.

If he wasn't feeling the fury of the wolf, maybe he could look at the situation objectively. Maybe. He swung his head. Nope. Doubtful.

As it was, he could barely think. Except about Penelope. Her scent filled his nose even though she was no where nearby and had never been in his house. He pictured her curves barely camouflaged by her non-descript black pant suit. Hell, even the click of her no nonsense ridiculous looking shoes filled his ears.

"I better not catch you looking at my ass," Dante warned.

Sawyer yipped. He had no time for fun and games. As if he'd be caught dead looking at his ass.

Then the sounds of bones popping and the heat of muscles stretching filled the small room and he knew Dante's wolf now stood behind him. The larger wolf would normally be able to contain him, but not today. Mating instinct fueled him now.

When he turned, he realized that Dante had managed to open his front door without him noticing. Spying an escape route was all it took for him to take off at a dead run. He didn't care whether Dante followed him or not, although he knew that he would.

Nothing would stop the fury of the wolf.

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