Deliya’s soft purr sounded next to his ear, and her arm reached out to grasp a steel bar. Jacob shifted to move her farther away from the portable cage, but a barely audible growl from his mate made him pause. It rumbled through his back and straight to his cock. His own beast wanted to growl back in challenge, but Jacob found the soft warning insanely hot.
Watching her intently and preparing to move quickly if necessary, Jacob waited as Deliya’s hand made contact withthe cage. Inside the steel structure, the shadowed mass stepped from the darkness and into the low light. Standing on two feet was a creature who looked like he could just as easily drop to all fours and sprint off into the night. Midnight-black fur covered him from the tip of his pointed ears to his feet, and if the shadows weren’t deceiving him, a tail slowly swished back and forth in his wake.
Clarence had mentioned that Deliya had been caught when she’d visited one of their caged freaks. He’d described it as a wolf-boy, but from what Jacob could see, this creature was a fully grown male, and an alpha, according to his scent.
A steel collar circled the male’s neck. The padlock on the front was twice the size of a standard lock, and the gleam of the metal revealed its nature: silver.
Shifter. He was another genetic anomaly born from the Cataclysm.
A soft clink against the bars drew Jacob’s attention to where Deliya’s small hand circled the steel. The ring with a multitude of keys in all different shapes and sizes he’d taken from Clarence dangled from her finger.
“Free yourself and the others, Scartian,” Deliya said. “Clarence is dead, so it’s time to go before they can figure out what to do. My mate and I…” She paused to look at Jacob before continuing. “…have to go. We’ll meet you at the waterfall. You know which one?”
“Your mate?” The words from a mouth that shouldn’t have been able to form speech sent a chill down Jacob’s spine, and the threatening tone made his hackles rise in preparation to defend his mate.
“Mine.” Deliya’s low growl sent shivers down Jacob’s spine again, this time for an entirely different reason.
A low rumble came from Scartian, but the alpha beast inside of Jacob translated the deep sound as one of agreement ratherthan threat. He kept still as eyes such a light blue they seemed otherworldly studied him.
After another low grunt, Scartian nodded. “The waterfall.”
Deliya tapped Jacob’s left shoulder in a silent signal to leave, but then Scartian’s deep voice rumbled again from the shadows.
“Tell her I’m coming, Deliya.”
A choked laugh from his mate surprised Jacob, and he paused in turning away from the shifter.
“She’ll run,” Deliya responded.
“Good. I hope she does. I love a good hunt.” The air filled with Scartian’s musky scent, and Jacob turned back toward the heavy darkness of the forest, the sound of Deliya’s husky laugh and the jingling of keys echoing in the dark.
Deliya’s weight on his back didn’t hinder his movements. If anything, her slight form gave him the incentive he needed to make sure his pace was swift and sure. His awakened alpha senses flooded him with sharper scents and sounds from around the open air. The dark forest in front of him called to the primal alpha inside him, promising safety and the ability to lose anyone who thought to pursue them.
Wrapping his forearms under her thighs to give her added support, Jacob took off at a jog for the treeline, letting the moonlight be his guide and the crisp scent of night-blooming jasmine fill his soul.