Page 51 of The Alpha's Silent Mate

One hand leaves the side of my face and closes around my hips. He’s easing back, ready to slip back inside me, when he breaks the kiss and jerks his head to the door.

“Shay?”

In the next moment, he’s off me, his face more serious than I’ve ever seen it. “Get dressed, Lexa. And stay here. I’ll be right back.”

I sit up. “But why? What’s—” And then I smell it.

Blood.

Shay takes advantage of my silence to cross the room and slip outside, closing the door behind him.

Everything in me wants to follow so I can make sure that he’s not walking into trouble. But Shay wouldn’t have run out like that if it wasn’t something he could handle, so I get up and try to prepare myself for when he returns.

I’ve just slipped the oversize t-shirt over my head when the door bursts open and Shay stalks in. He has the body of a light brown wolf draped over his shoulder, and from the blood dripping on the floor and matting the wolf’s fur, he’s hurt. Badly.

It’s the same wolf from before. Daniel. For him to be this hurt means something has gone very wrong in the courtyard.

Shay’s face is like stone as he lays Daniel on the bed. Moments later, the wolf’s fur ripples, and what was once a bloody wolf is an even bloodier man.

My hand flies to my mouth when I take in the horror of his injuries. Every inch of him is covered in bites and claw marks. The worst is a ragged tear across his stomach. He looks like he’s been savaged by a pack of wolves.

This is my fault.

“Daniel,” Shay murmurs. “Let me get a—”

Daniel’s hand snaps out and locks around Shay’s wrist, halting him before he can head to the kitchen for a cloth or bandage. “Wait. I have to tell you something.”

After a pause, Shay nods, his face harder now than before as he sinks beside Daniel.

“You’re probably thinking I’ve looked better,” Daniel chokes, his face twisted in pain.

“And I’d be right.” There’s no amusement in Shay’s voice. “What happened?”

More blood slides down his belly and soaks into the bed. Daniel’s eyes tighten with fresh pain, but he doesn’t make a sound.

I turn and walk away.

Although I feel Shay’s gaze on my back, he doesn’t call out to me or stop me. After rifling through a few cupboards, I find a small stack of clean rags in one beside the sink and grab them all before returning to the bed.

I perch on the other end of the bed and press a cloth against Daniel’s belly to stem the worst of the bleeding, wincing when Daniel does. “Sorry.”

“No need to go to the trouble, Luna,” Daniel murmurs.

“It’s the least I can do,” I tell him.

Shay’s hand touches the ends of my hair, but I ignore it. “Can I get you some water?”

Daniel shakes his head. “No need.” He turns back to Shay. “Don’t take her back there. Not yet.”

“The fight is going badly.” Shay’s words echo my thoughts.

“We’re winning.”

“But?” Shay probes.

“It’s taking longer than we thought. None of us expected them to be so determined. And they are determined. Ewan guessed you’d come back to the courtyard either today or tomorrow, and walk straight into an ambush, so I volunteered to—”

“Walk through the ambush yourself?” Shay interrupts.

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