The Siege of Kadenburg (21 page)

Her eyes widened as she scrambled into a sitting position, breathing heavily. Holy shit…did she just do that?

“What the hell is your problem?” Tim growled, pushing himself up from the floor. His eyes were glowing more intensely and she knew he was getting angry. Well, she was one step ahead of him.

Her skin was crawling, begging to shift as her head began to swell.

I want to kill him,
her bear declared.
He is not allowed to touch us like that! He is not our mate!

Tell me something I don’t know,
Presley thought in annoyance.

“We can be together now,” Tim insisted as he moved towards her again. He gazed at her with wild eyes, baring his fangs. “We can have everything we ever wanted, Presley. I can take care of you.”

“Oh, sure you can,” she snarled, pushing herself up onto trembling knees as she stared at him. “I’m sure you’ll take care of me just fine, huh? Get what you want and toss me aside-or if you can’t get what you want, you’ll throw me out and humiliate me.”

“I made a mistake!” He bellowed, towering over her as he chomped his fangs together. “Everybody makes mistakes. I’m only hu—oh wait. That’s not true anymore. I’m something so much better,” he laughed. “Come on, Presley. We were so good together, Baby. Tell me you don’t feel something for me anymore.”

“I don’t feel
anything
for you,” she promised as her upper lip curled back in disgust. “I don’t know what Breslin told you, but there’s not a snowball’s chance in hell that I’d ever want to be with you ever again.”

“You don’t mean it,” he growled, pinning her body against the stony, damp wall. “We had something special, Presley. We can have something extraordinary now. A wolf and a bear…think about it. Our baby would be invincible.”

“Get away from me, you lunatic!” She shoved him backwards again, but this time, he didn’t budge. Shit!

“You know you miss me,” he said in a huskier tone, pressing his forehead against hers. “We were going to get married, remember? We were going to have a happily ever after. What happened, Goldilocks? What made you hate me so much?”

“You are….get away!” She screamed, stomping her foot down against his. He howled in pain, stumbling backwards. “You are absolutely insane if you think I want anything like that with you! You threw
me
out! You said I was broken!” Angry tears rolled down her cheeks as her body began to tremble uncontrollably. “That was your fault, Tim.
I
moved on. You can’t just waltz into
my
town and think your new wolfy abilities give you a pass to win me back. They
don’t
, and you never
will
win me back. You are a heartless bastard and so help me Urseth if you ever touch me again I will rip your head off.”

She was breathing heavily. Her chest was tightening and the world seemed to be getting smaller and smaller by the second. Or maybe it was just the room…she had to get out. She needed to get away from him.

Tim stared at her in shock, as if he didn’t know what to say. His sharp fangs grazed over his lower lip as he tilted his head the opposite way. What was running through his mind? Did she even want to know?

“Breslin said there needs to be a baby,” he whispered. “A baby born with both gifts. We can make that baby, Presley.”

“You are insane,” she spat back at him, shaking her head furiously. “Take a good listen, Tim. Use those new wolfy powers of yours and listen hard.”

A confused expression crossed his features as he blinked, “What do you mean?”

“Listen.” She repeated, resting a hand against her stomach.

And he seemed to do just that. She knew he would be able to hear the rapid heartbeat that was not her own. It sounded like the flutter of hummingbird wings.

“What?” He whispered in disbelief.

“There’s
already
a baby.” Presley confirmed as she straightened her posture significantly. She felt braver in that moment. Perhaps it was only the mama bear making itself known, but she was no longer afraid of him.

Tim sneered as his eyes darkened. The glow around his pupils disappeared as he bared his fangs, “You let him knock you up,” he muttered. “You little whore! I’m going to kill you!”

A furious roar escaped her lips before she could stop it and she lunged at him. Everything past that moment became a blur.

Another growl sounded in the air and Tim was suddenly being tackled to the ground. Strong arms wrapped around Presley’s torso and she screamed bloody murder. She was
not
going down without a fight. She would
not
surrender to the wolves.

‘Lorcan!’
She shouted in her mind.
‘Lorcan, where are you?! I don’t know where I am, but I need you.’

“It’s okay, Presley. Stop fighting me!” A hushed voice whispered near her earlobe. The grip around her body relaxed, but Presley couldn’t process the words being spoken to her. She was blinded by rage and the need to protect her cub. She flung her head back, listening to the loud
crack
of her skull making contact with a nose.

“OW!” Her captor shouted in pain, releasing her completely as she fell to the ground.

Presley scrambled back to her feet, darting towards the doorway. She didn’t even take into consideration that the door had been broken down. She was in survival mode and she wasn’t going to stop to ask questions. She just knew she had to run.

So that’s exactly what she did.

———————————

T
hat. Hurt. Like. A. Bitch.

Was this going to happen every time he tried to play hero? Rutley was beginning to question his life choices as he clamped his hands around his nose, groaning from the intense pain pulsating through his head. The hot blood flowed like a damn faucet as he doubled over and squeezed his eyes shut.

“Get off me!” Tim wailed as he threw a punch at Dimitri’s face. Dimitri pulled back slightly, snapping his fangs in warning to the newer werewolf.

Rutley blinked, trying to clear the tears from his eyes as he watched the two men scuffle on the ground. He would’ve enjoyed watching it had it not been for the agonizing pain of a broken nose-given to him by the one person he was trying to save.

He wasn’t even sure how it happened, really. They’d been with Beau, determined to ‘hunt’ down the werewolf responsible for the attack on Arnold Goult. Dimitri started acting strange and before they knew it, he was shooting off in the complete opposite direction of where they were intending to go.

Rutley didn’t have an explanation for it. Maybe Dimitri just had a better grasp on his senses. Well, duh-of course he did. He was born a werewolf. He’d had plenty of time to adjust to his talents-unlike Rutley. Either way, Rutley followed behind him, trusting his alpha’s actions.

And here they were.

“She is mine!” Tim snarled before sinking his razor sharp teeth into Dimitri’s shoulder. Dimitri threw his head back, releasing a howl mixed with anger and pain as he dug his claws into the wolf’s side. Tim whimpered and submitted, allowing his head to fall back against the dirt as blood glistened on his chin.

“You will
not
touch her again,” Dimitri promised in a threatening tone. “I will kill you if you come near her again. Do you understand me?”

Tim scowled, keeping his gaze locked with Dimitri’s. It was a battle of wills as the two wolves stared at one another, but he eventually nodded.

Dimitri stood then, spitting at the ground before turning his head to glance at Rutley.

“Where’s Presley?” He asked with furrowed brows.

“She fucking…” Rutley lowered his hands from his nose, sniffling. “She kinda ran off in that direction,” He jerked his head towards the door. “I think I freaked her out.”

“Shit,” Dimitri mumbled. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah,” Rutley sighed dramatically. “She hurt my ego more than anything else.”

The smallest hint of a smile played at the corner of Dimitri’s trembling lips. “Okay,” he wetted his lips, dropping his gaze to Tim again. “Do something with him.” He instructed before he disappeared.

Rutley groaned, rolling his eyes in Tim’s direction as his hands fell to his hips. The fallen werewolf eyed him cautiously.

“On your feet, you bastard,” Rutley muttered as he took a step towards him. “You’re coming with us.”

D
imitri couldn’t explain what he was experiencing as his feet carried him in the direction of Presley’s scent. The only thing he was even remotely worried about at the moment was her safety.

How did he find her? He didn’t know. There wasn’t really an explanation for most things he did anymore. He saved her from Breslin’s beta because she didn’t deserve to die, but how on earth did he know to find her ten miles out from Kadenburg-in the basement of a house?

“Presley!” He shouted, watching as his breath escaped in a huge cloud of white smoke. He cupped his hands around his mouth, calling her name again. “Presley!”

He knew she was scared, and hell, he would’ve been as well. But he had to find her as quickly as possible. He worried about her for reasons unknown to him.

His heart hammered against his ribcage so hard that it made him feel sick. His stomach twisted into knots as he thought about the possibility of losing her.

No,
he thought with a frown.
I’ll find her.

He wasn’t too far behind. Her scent was strong in the air. Albeit it was mostly a stench of fear, it still belonged to her.

“Come on, Presley.” He said softly as the scenery around him blurred. He was in hot pursuit again, letting his nose lead him as his eyes scanned the snowy path before him. He could hear her heartbeat, fast and unrelenting.

“Presley!” He called out. “Stop running!” Damn she was fast. He caught a glimpse of her golden hair, but then she was gone again. Shit.

“Presley!” He shouted over the sound of the wind lashing against his face. “STOP!”

He released a grunt of frustration as he dug his shoes into the snow, kicking off and sailing through the air. He had to stop her. Maybe she was so terrified that she couldn’t recognize his voice-she wouldn’t run from him on purpose, would she?

His thoughts quickly derailed when his shoulder slammed into the hard surface of the ground and pain shot through the entire left side of his body. What the hell now?

The world went topsy-turvy as he was shoved onto his back and he lifted his gaze to meet Lorcan’s furious eyes.

“Dimitri? What the hell?” Lorcan asked through clenched teeth. “I thought you were one of
them
.”

“Obviously not,” Dimitri replied in a winded voice. “I was trying to catch up to your ridiculously fast girlfriend.”

“Presley’s okay?” Lorcan asked as his brows furrowed. He slowly crawled off the wolf, offering a hand to him.

“She’s a bit shaken up, thus, the chase taking place,” Dimitri quirked a brow, eyeing the offered hand before accepting it with his right one. “I almost had her when you decided to sack me,” He winced, rubbing at his shoulder once he was on both feet again.

“Sorry,” Lorcan pursed his lips together, gazing in the direction of Presley’s scent. “She can get pretty far, pretty fast.”

“Then she’s probably halfway to Texas by now,” Dimitri mumbled.

“I should probably go after her,” Lorcan nodded. “You okay?”

“I’m fine. Just go get her. Make sure she’s okay.” Dimitri instructed as he heard Rutley and Tim approaching. It was probably in Tim’s best interest that Lorcan wasn’t there when he made it into Dimitri’s line of vision.

The snow upon the ground barely moved an inch when Lorcan darted out of sight. Dimitri released a low breath, turning his attention back to the two wolves finally coming into sight.

“Did you catch her?” Rutley asked, grunting as he shoved Tim ahead of himself. The blood was drying around his mouth and chin, and Dimitri fought the urge to find something to wipe his handsome face with. His nose had already healed…he didn’t need Dimitri making a big deal out of it.

“No, but Lorcan’s going to.” Dimitri replied as his eyes landed on Tim. He hardened his gaze and felt the fangs threatening to elongate once more. He
really
didn’t like Tim.

“So what are we going to do with him?”

A rather evil grin slid over Dimitri’s lips as he crossed his arms over his chest, “I have an idea.”

——————————-

W
hen his village was attacked, Beau had never felt so helpless in his life. Listening to the screams of his people, his parents, and the little ones who did not deserve the agony they were currently experiencing; all he wanted to do was save them, but he wasn’t able to.

“You must run,” his grandfather instructed as he nodded towards the river. “Take Louisa and the others, Beau and run.”

“I cannot do that, Grandfather,” Beau argued as he tried to keep his body from trembling. “It is my duty to stay and fight. We can take them!”

“No, we cannot,” his grandfather gazed at him sadly. The sounds of a woman’s scream filled the night air and Beau knew his grandfather was correct. “It is your duty to take your cousin and lead the survivors to a new place; a safer place. I trust you will not fail me, Beau.”

“I won’t.” Beau struggled to reply as he felt Louisa’s hand tightening around his own. He gazed at her, watching a tear slide down her bloody cheek. The fear in her eyes riled his inner bear. He needed to protect her above all others.

“Go now,” their grandfather said firmly. “Go!”

“Grandfather!” Louisa wailed as Beau pulled her out of the small house and led her towards the lake. “Grandfather, come with us!”

He could hear the furious roar that caused the earth to tremble beneath his feet. He turned his head briefly to see the massive panda bursting through the side of the house and trampling straight towards a pack of hungry wolves. He quickly pulled Louisa closer to himself, covering her eyes with his hand as he picked up the pace.

“Come on, Louisa,” he whispered quietly. “We must find the others and leave. I will keep you safe.”