Page 104 of Blade's Battle
She spun around and threw her arms around her shifter. Blade’s arms, bloody, sweaty and shaking, pulled her into a tight embrace. He buried his face in her hair and she listened to the sweet sound of him inhaling her scent. Her face felt like it was on fire as he crushed her to him, but she didn’t care. When she brought her hands up against his side, he winced, and she pulled away to examine his wounds. He was covered in bites and claw marks. Behind him, Callen, also naked but with fewer bites, stood with his arms crossed over his chest.
“I thought you were gone. Feral. And then Frank took me away and—”
“Still here, Angel,” he said, but without his usual grin. The anger pouring off him made her shudder.
As Blade’s hands roamed her body, she glanced past him to Callen and mouthed, “Thank you.”
“I want to kill them all over again,” Blade spat out with an intense growl that made both Frank and Callen take a step back.
“You should blood-bond now,” Frank said. “Not risk another shift.”
“I won’t lose control as long as Anna’s with me,” Blade bit back.
“And if something happens?” Frank argued. “We almost put you down, Blade. In fact, Callen should have. What the hell happened, Callen?”
“He heard her,” Callen said, nodding toward Anna. “And shifted. He wasn’t fully gone.”
“Too damn close. They need to blood-bond, now. I’ll go back to the cabin and get a knife.”
“No,” Callen said. “We’re all leaving. Hehowled, Frank. The mercenaries would have heard it.”
“They’ll think it was a wolf,” Frank countered.
“Can’t count on that. Either way, blood-bonding will weaken Blade, and then he’ll be useless to us.”
“Useless?” Anna said.
“Once he shifts, he’ll be weak, not much better than a human.”
“Watch it, Callen,” Blade said, his tone harsh.
“Don’t challenge me, Scout. I’m doing my job,” Callen bit back. “I’m not allowing a blood-bond. You currently have all of your abilities. Even if you don’t shift—and I strongly suggest you resist shifting at all costs—your strength, speed. . . everything is an asset out here. And we may need every advantage if we’re going to get Anna back to the safety of the pack. One of her attackers got away.”
Blade was no longer glaring at Callen, but peering out into the woods. She didn’t like his sallow color, not to mention all the wounds he sported. Was he thinking of going after the man who’d escaped?
“My priority is Anna.” Blade lightly brushed a finger over the cheek where she’d been punched. She winced. There was no hiding her pain, but she needed to keep Blade calm. They had to make it back to the pack without him losing control to his wolf. He wouldn’t survive another take-down.
“I’ll be fine,” she said, forcing a smile as best she could, given the pain in her face.
His hand continued down her arm where she held her ribs.
“Really, Blade, I’ll heal. It’s no big deal.”
“When?” Blade asked Callen.
“Now.”
“No,” Anna said, shaking her head. “I’m not ready. My work—”
“Anna, sweetie—” Callen began.
Blade growled, loud and clear. Callen held his hands up. “I’m making sure she’s hearing me.” Callen faced her again. “We’re sitting ducks here. More than likely, the guy who escaped has a sat phone. They were WSSO mercenaries, Anna, and you can sure bet it won’t take them long to send more men in.”
The bloody mess around them sickened and engrossed her. She had trouble tearing her gaze from the scene.
“More will come here, Anna,” Frank agreed. “And they won’t let this go unpunished.”
The walk back to the cabin was long and quiet. All three shifters seemed spent. While their wounds were healing, the males remained barely spoke to one another. None of them complained when she had to stop several times to rest.
