Page 67 of The Wolf's Bullied Pregnant Mate
I sprinted down the tunnel for the exit onto the Green Trail. My only thoughts weren’t even on my own escape but needing to know that Adalyn had gotten herself to safety, protecting our baby and herself.
Panic rushed through me.
Where is my mate? Where is my mate?
A demon grabbed the back of my calve, digging claws in. I screamed, slamming my gun into its face, with no time to accurately aim. The demon flew off, its claws raking down my muscles. Everything hurt, everythingburned. I needed backup. I needed to escape. I couldn’t risk leading the demons into the town, but I couldn’t let them stay in the sanctuary.
For years, I had hunted witches, but now the thought of causing the downfall of a sacred place to them made me feel ill.
Stopping almost at the exit, I turned to face the monstrous creatures all crawling towards me. Some slithered, others moved spindly limbs, while others simply danced through their portals, laughing and jeering. They all came for me, their hisses filling my ears.
Wolf, wolf, come and play.
I aimed my gun and set off a round of bullets, spraying black blood everywhere. Demons burst apart, vanishing, leaving only their scorch marks and the smell of burnt asphalt behind. I needed to meet my mate and know she was safe. That our baby was safe.
I had to protect them.
A claw raked down my back and I roared, bucking the demon off who had surprised me with an attack. Claws almost punctured me through, but I wrenched the thing off me, throwing it back into the fray.
“Forgive me, Adalyn,” I whispered, staring helplessly at the growing mass.
I ran, sprinting for the exit. The seal broke, allowing me through. A few demons filtered out after me, but I fired bullets at the loose rocks around the cave mouth. A rumble sounded through the woods, and the entryway caved in, sealing the hellspawn inside.
I had trapped them in Adalyn’s sanctuary.
I could only hope it was yet another thing she could forgive me for.
I thought of her, running for her life, standing alone. If I needed to run from demons…
I tried not to think of any worse scenario she might be in. I couldn’t. The thoughts weighed me down as I dispatched thefew creatures who had left the cave with me. Spinning on the spot, I caught the breeze and let it carry Adalyn’s scent to me. It was coming from the town.
Good, I thought. At least there, she might have other chances of being protected if the other shifters spilled out and noticed the heavy demon energy. I could only hope Hec was awake, ever glued to those damned screens, but it would come in useful right now if he was.
Without giving myself another second to hope, I ran for the town, my feet carrying me with a speed I knew was fueled by rage and adrenaline. Nothing would hurt my mate. Even if she hadn’t accepted my claim—or even agreed she wanted me in her future—I knew nothing would keep me from protecting her and the baby of ours she carried.
The night air was too quiet for comfort, as if more demons were just out of sight, waiting to pounce. It unnerved me. But I kept moving, kept running, and kept thinking of my one goal: Adalyn.
Always Adalyn.
My clever witch, my brave, strong mate.
I would leave this damn town in two to send the demons back to hell where they belonged if that is what it took. Nothing in the world could keep me from Adalyn.
***
I followed her scent to Greta’s Emporium, cursing myself for not knowing where she would immediately run to. It was her safe space, full of anything she might need to cast a spell or shield, some sort of protection.
Not to mention the store already held heavy wards.
But as soon as I crashed into the main part of town beneath the cover of the dark night, frantic, my lungs burning, I stopped short. The door had been torn off the hinges. Windows were smashed, books and vials were thrown out, and littered outside the street. I noticed a map and a pendant, all torn and shattered on the floor.
A scream split the night.
It came from the Emporium.
“Adalyn!” I yelled. Only darkness writhed in the store. And it wasn’t until I got closer that I realized it wasn’t simply a lack of light. It was a mass of demons, all of them pressed and packed together in the Emporium.
And in the center of it all, Adalyn stood, her face wet with tears but set into hard determination as she shielded herself, facing down the horde of demons.
