Page 82 of The Piece You Stole

Seven car alarms shriek as smoke pours from their engines.

Seconds later, my ears are still ringing. I check to make sure they aren’t bleeding, but I’m good. For this round at least.

Rylan’s lip curls as he takes in the vehicles Aden just reduced to spare parts. If they want to leave, they’re going to have to fucking walk. He moves to climb back into his Lexus, the only car that doesn’t have its engine steaming.

Boom. Boom.

Halting, he clamps Saige even tighter in front of him as he angles his body a little to the right.

He’s thinking about making a run back up the road.

Wolf snarls and growls continue beneath our tree, but I keep my eyes trained on Rylan. Dariel has his part to play, and so do I.

Boom.

The ground inches beside Rylan’s leg explodes.

“Try it,” Aden breathes, “Let’s see what a fifty-caliber exploding bullet does to your brain.”

Aden doesn’t raise his voice, but he doesn’t need to. The dark stare Rylan aims our way confirms he doesn’t have a problem with his ears.

“Stay there and die,” I taunt, letting him hear the smile in my voice. “Or if you don’t think you can take three men, I’d say the only thing you should be leading is a dog up the street.”

I wait because this is where we find out if our plan will come together.

Half of Rylan’s pack is doing their best to kill Dariel below us, but we need the other half—we need Rylan—in that burning and smoky forest behind us.

A fucking eternity later, Rylan takes his first steps toward us, still using Saige as a human shield.

I let out a quiet breath of relief as I prepare to leap down.

She’s still breathing, so she’s alive, but she’s not in a good way. Not with the blood soaking through that white sheet. She just has to keep breathing, keep living, until I get her. That’sallshe has to do.

Hold on a little longer, angel eyes. We’re here to get you.

The rest of Rylan’s pack continue to circle him, lips peeled back in a snarl.

Three booms follow in fast succession.

One wolf goes down, brains spraying across the grass. Two dodge.

Rylan glances at the dead wolf and away again with no change to his expression. He could be looking at a bag of fucking flour, that’s about as much interest he shows his dead packmate.

Cold fucker.

I peer down to see how Dariel is getting on.

He’s tearing into a black-brown wolf with so much ferocity that even I’m impressed. Two bodies with their heads barely attached and guts hanging out has me nodding.

Go to fucking town, brother. Go to fucking town.

He’s released the reins of his wolf. There’s nothing human in his attack, nothing controlled, nothing…Dariel in this wolf. This is pure animal rage, and I love every single fucking second of it.

Rylan and his circle of protection enter the forest. He’ll be looking for some other way to get Saige out of here, and it’s my job to make sure that doesn’t happen. I get to my feet. “Aden?”

“I’m not shooting Dariel.” Aden’s words are barely audible as he angles his rifle an inch to his left.

“Wasn’t what I was going to say. The priority is Saige. If it’s a choice between protecting me and Dariel or her—”

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