“Or it will mean that you die an excruciating death. I kind of like that idea.”

CHAPTER NINETEEN

Growling, the male wolf tore out the throat of a hyena and tossed it aside. He hadn’t even lifted his head before a jackal latched onto his leg while another bit into his already injured throat—giving him no reprieve, no moment to catch his breath. The wolf slammed his body against a tree, cramming the jackal between him and the tall oak, dislodging his grip. Then the wolf clamped his jaws around the jackal’s throat, tasting blood. Death. Victory.

As teeth dug harder into his leg, the wolf reached back and bit hard into the second jackal’s ear, ripping it off. The animal made a sound of agonizing pain, bounding away. The wolf didn’t intend to let his prey flee. He crashed into the shifter, trapping him on the ground, and moved to deliver the killing bite. But then a heavy weight landed on his back. Another jackal.

The wolf yowled as the animal’s teeth sank into his shoulder, scraping bone. More blood soaked his fur. He rolled onto his back, crushing the jackal until he yelped in pain and released him. Righting himself, the wolf then sliced open the jackal’s stomach and left him to bleed out while he tore out the throat of the other jackal.

Sides heaving, the wolf glanced around, searching for new prey. He was tired. Bleeding. Panting. In much pain. He was covered in bites. Claws had sliced into his sides and muzzle. His badly chewed legs were unsteady. His fur was matted with blood—some his, some not. And he was weakening. But he could not rest. He had to protect his mate. He had to protect her pack.

He charged at a hyena that had pounced on an injured submissive wolf—Kent—and tackled him to the ground. Jackals came at him from both sides. The wolf had been repeatedly attacked by many at one time. He concentrated on the main threat: the hyena. He clawed, bit, maimed, and destroyed his enemy.

The wolf’s badly hurt hind leg buckled when sharp teeth pierced through fur and muscle, grazing bone. The Mercury Head Enforcer suddenly slammed into the animal, forcing him to release the leg and—

Several sharp cracks split the air. The wolf froze. Bullets. More angry sharp snaps. Coming from the direction of the Alphas’ home. The wolf howled, raging that harm might reach his mate.

He rushed through the trees, intent on reaching her. But the breath left his body as jackals barreled into him from either side and leaped on top of him, teeth latching onto painful wounds. The wolf howled again, bucking in an effort to shake off his attackers. They held tight, pulling his legs from under him. One went for his throat but then yelped as another wolf slammed into it. A Phoenix wolf—Trick. More of his pack appeared, joining the fight.

His Alpha female skidded to a stop in front of him and shifted into her human form. “Marcus, you need to shift and let me heal you. Jackals got into the main lodge. You need to get to Roni.”

The wolf didn’t understand the words, but he felt pressure from Marcus, knew he feared for their mate’s safety and that he wanted dominance. Reluctantly, the wolf drew back and allowed his human half to take control.

Marcus fell onto his back, chest heaving as anxiety for Roni rushed through him. “Tell me you didn’t say the jackals got into the lodge,” he panted. There wasn’t a part of his body that didn’t hurt. The jackals had repeatedly leaped at him, crawled over him like ants, and attacked every vulnerable area he had. He knew he’d lost a lot of blood, knew he was mostly running on rage.

Taking his eyes briefly from the scene around them, Trick grimaced. “Shit, Marcus, you’re in bad shape.”

Squatting, Taryn placed her hand on Marcus’s forehead, causing all of his injuries to illuminate. She winced as the extent of his wounds became clear. “Shaya called me. Dumping the body here was just a distraction. The jackals wanted you far away from the main lodge. I think they’re after Shaya. We sent Dominic and Tao to help so we could join the battle.”

“God, the fuckers are everywhere,” Trick commented, wrestling a jackal to the ground and stamping his boot against the animal’s throat, crushing his windpipe. “Looks like the Scorpio Pack called in a few favors and brought along their business associates—and maybe even the alliances of their business associates.”

Marcus suspected that the intruders were acting as a diversion while most, if not all, of the Scorpio Pack was at the lodge. Which meant he had to get to Roni fast. “I can feel Roni through the bond. She’s pissed and scared. I have to go to her.”

“Yes, you do, so stay still.” Taryn put her mouth to his and inhaled deeply. She then lifted her head, and blew out a heavy breath. At that, black particles whooshed out of her mouth. Again and again, she did it, but stopped before the luminous patches had completely disappeared. Although the worst of his wounds had closed, they hadn’t faded and he was still a mess—covered in bruises, lacerations, teeth marks, and jaggedly healed scratches.

Having stabbed his claws into the throat of a jackal that came too close, Trick asked Taryn, “You okay?” Healing tended to weaken her.

A little pale, she nodded before turning back to Marcus. “I can’t afford to fully heal you, I’m sorry—I have to save some strength to help the others.”

With a nod of understanding, Marcus shifted once more into his wolf form. The wolf raced through the forest, not slowing until he approached the Alphas’ home. Two of his pack members—Dominic and Tao—were wrestling hyenas while his mate’s mother—Kathy—fought two jackals.

There was a gunshot, the sound of a hyena whimpering, and then a voice screeching, “Marcus!”

The wolf turned his head to see the Mercury Alpha female leaning out of a car window, gun in hand. Giving his human half control again, the wolf drew back.

“Where is she, Shaya?” demanded Marcus.

“She’s in the basement,” cried Shaya. “I didn’t want to leave her!”

Stone, who was leaning out of the other window with his Glock in hand, shouted, “She locked herself in to keep them from getting to Shaya!”

Typical Roni. She was extremely protective of those she cared for, and her position of enforcer meant protecting her Alpha female was her job. That didn’t mean he didn’t want to spank her ass. “She’s alive,” he reassured Shaya, realizing the Alpha female was panicking that Roni was dead. “I’ll get her out of there.” It was a promise to his wolf as well as to Shaya.