Page 23 of Knot my Alphas

I look down at the woman in my arms and then, back at the portrait. What the hell is such a painting doing in Callahan’s possession?

Despite the close resemblance, I know the woman isn’t Iris.

“I will fucking kill you for touching her!” Caleb’s ear-splitting roar breaks me out of my spell.

Turning around, I finally look toward Callahan and my brother.

To my satisfaction, Caleb has the upper hand. He’s already straddled the older alpha’s legs, using his weight to keep him immobile while he mercilessly lands punches at his face and chest.

Blood coats Callahan’s nose and mouth. His face is swelled-up and bruised from the force of my brother’s strikes.

A part of me is tempted to join Caleb into inflicting as much pain as I can on the man who dared to hurt my mate. In the end, my concern for Iris wins over the overwhelming temptation.

“Caleb,” I shout, jerking him by the shoulders. “We need to go. Come on.”

He shirks off my hand. “I’m going to kill him,” he screams, continuing to pound at Callahan.

“Get a grip!” I bark. “Iris needs you.”

That stills him. He wildly looks around until he notices Iris in my arms.

Letting go of Callahan, he straightens and comes closer. He’s panting hard but is extremely gentle when he caresses her cheek. “What’s wrong with her?” he asks in a low, choked voice. “Why does she feel so hot?”

“Callahan drugged her,” I say. “She’s in pain, Cal. We’ve got to get her home.”

“What about him?” he says, glancing toward Callahan.

“Forget about him.”

Caleb kneels beside the motionless alpha and places a finger under his bleeding nose. “He’s still breathing,” he says with a disappointed huff.

A heavy breath exhales out of me. As much as I hate the bastard, killing him would land us in bigger trouble.

“We can deal with him later,” I say. “We’ve got to make sure Iris is okay. Come on.”

Caleb glances at me and nods. Taking the lead, he walks ahead of me. Despite knowing there’s no one else in the manor, he’s still taking precaution.

I breathe a little easier when we step outside. A cold breeze blows by, rattling the bare tree branches around us.

“Follow me,” Caleb says, sprinting forward. “We’ll take a different route and avoid the beta we left near the chopper.”

I obey him, trusting him with my mate’s safety. Caleb is our leader for a reason. He’s the most level-headed person during an emergency situation like this one.

We cross the grounds and finally reach the closed gates of the property.

“Stand back,” Caleb warns and moves forward. Lifting his leg, he kicks at the rusting bars. The gates swing forward but the lock keeps it from opening.

Grabbing the iron grills, he shakes the gates hard.

The sound is deafening as the rusting joints squeak and protest.

Iris buries her face in my chest and whimpers.

A wild roar escapes Caleb as he kicks at the gates again.

This time, the whole structure comes crashing to the ground.

Relief spreads through me while my brother pants heavily. We can finally get out of here.

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