Treasured Find (Royal Pride Book 1) (28 page)

That was what this was about? He wanted to punish Nina for escaping?

Rafe, where are you? I don’t know how to stop Jon.
Her hands shook, and her eyes burned. She was going to fail her son.

“Trust your instincts.”
Nina’s words repeated in Jazz’s head.

Yes, she’d do that, but it wasn’t her gut feelings she was going to put her faith in. It was Rafe’s. He’d save them. She had to believe that. He just needed time to get here.

“You came looking for Nina, is that it?” Jazz asked to keep Jon talking.

“No. Seeing these little shits at the old human’s place was a damn unexpected find. Maybe the gods haven’t forsaken me. Now I can get my female back, along with the girl.”

She’d led Jon right to the kids. Put them in danger.
All because I ran from Rafe.

No! Stop it. This isn’t the time for regrets.

“What girl? Megan?”

He shook his head. “Molly.”

But he hadn’t known how to find her. That was why he didn’t go after Megan following the fire and why he’d strung Cindy along. Jon had wanted information. Jazz’s thoughts felt right. Why else play games with them?

“Why Molly?”

“She’s our only success. The doctors want to study her. Repeat their experiment with others.”

Jazz stepped forward at the same time as Xander, in his wolf form, crouched, readying for an attack. “She’s a child. You can’t—”

Jon looked over his shoulder at Xander. “You move, the kid dies. I’ll rip his head off.” Jon tightened his grip on Seth’s neck as if to prove his point. Blood dripped down Seth’s throat.

Xander froze.

Jon faced Jazz. “Enough games. Tell me where Nina is, and when I get to my car, I’ll let the boy go.”

“Don’t you want to know how to find Molly?”

“Nope. Cindy was nice enough to leave those pictures she sent you on her phone for me to forward on. Kid won’t do me any good anyway. I’m already mated. So tell me where to find Nina”—he held Seth up as if he were a prize—“and you can keep our boy.”

“Why should I tell you anything? I don’t believe you’ll let the child go. You’ll hurt him the minute you get to your car or try to run with him.”

Jon shrugged. “And? You’ll still have the other one. This one’s broken anyway.”

Her heart raced. “Broken? What are you talking about?”

He lifted Seth and stared into his face. “How many cats do you have, kid?”

Seth whimpered but didn’t answer. Jon bared his fangs, and Seth blurted, “Three.”

“Yeah? How many can you shift into?”

Seth shook his head, and more blood ran down his skin.

“Answer me!” Jon yelled.

“Two,” Seth sobbed.

Jon met Jazz’s gaze. “See? Kid’s broken.”

Two animals? Seth always talked about all three. He’d described them in detail and had even commented on their personality. But…but she’d only ever seen him shift into his tiger or his jaguar. Never his lion.

“Oh god.” She pressed a hand to her stomach. How had she missed that?

“Tell me where my mate is, and we’ll call this even. You took two of my kids. I killed two of your friends. We’ll both go on our merry way.”

Murdering Tony and Cindy most certainly did not make it even. Instead of saying that, she nodded. “Okay, but not until we get to your car.”

He held out his hand, and the growls coming from behind her increased. Kade obviously didn’t approve of her plan. What was she supposed to do? She needed to get Seth away from Jon. The man was clearly unstable or desperate to get his mate back. Both options left him unpredictable. Neither was acceptable, not while he held her son in his grasp.

Jazz laid her hand in Jon’s palm. He squeezed her fingers, tearing a scream from her as pain shot up her arm, then yanked her against him. Seth squeaked and fell to the ground.

She didn’t get the chance to see if he was okay. Jon dug claws into her stomach. She cried out, but he clamped his other hand over her mouth, stifling the scream. With the hand digging into her belly, he lifted her and tossed her over his shoulder. Her breath whooshed out. Agony whipped through her.

He hooked his arm over her thighs and ran. Each step he took radiated more piercing pain through her.

She heard Seth’s crying over the snarls of the cats. She lifted her head. Josh held him against his chest. Kade—in his lion form—stepped next to Seth.

A wave of relief swept through her. Seth was safe.

Kade chuffed. She met his eyes. He flicked his gaze to the left then back to her. It was her only warning.

A roar rang out. Something rammed into Jon. She fell. More agony ripped into her belly, but she turned her head, desperate to see what was going on.

The scene playing out before her tore a strangled gasp from her throat. She pressed against the sharp sting in her chest. Wetness met her fingers. Blood. A lot of blood. It drenched her hand. She was hurt. Badly. The thought came easily, then skittered away. Her concern focused on the man she loved, not on her injuries.

Two lions fought in a brutal, fast fight she could barely follow. She kept her gaze locked on the black-maned one she knew was Rafe. He rose on his hind legs to meet the other cat’s snapping lunge. Rafe was taller. In this case, the extra height left him open for Jon’s attack, but Rafe countered it before she could scream a warning. He bared huge fangs and bit Jon’s shoulder. Jon rammed his head into Rafe’s chest, and they rolled before Rafe knocked Jon off.

Rafe was no longer the comforting male she’d snuggled with the night before. He was vicious—an enraged predator protecting his family.

He snarled and lunged at Jon but missed when the smaller lion rolled toward her. Fur brushed her leg, and the tuft of hair on his tail smacked against her arm. He snarled at her, but never got the chance to bite. Rafe dug his claws into Jon’s flank and yanked him away from her. Jon didn’t stay down, though. He hopped to his feet and swayed.

He was hurt but wasn’t giving up. There was a crazed look in his eyes. He reminded her of how some druggies fought. Pain never registered in their brains the way it did for other people. They thought they were stronger. Invincible.

Until they crashed.

Rafe planted his body between where she was sprawled on the ground and Jon. Another cat, a white tiger with blue-gray stripes, came up on her left and a Mira—in her jaguar form—approached on Jazz’s right.

Jon flicked his gaze between her protectors. He lowered the front of his body and leapt at the same time Rafe did. Their bodies smacked. Their claws tore at each other’s flanks, but Rafe was obviously the stronger lion. He pushed Jon back, then clamped his mouth over Jon’s neck. She closed her eyes and tried to block out the horrible sounds.

Finally, silence descended. She pried opened her eyelids. The branches above her head gave her a dappled view of the gray sky. After a moment, a black-maned lion came into view. The lion faded and the face of the man she loved stared down at her. His image wavered. She blinked. It didn’t help. Fuzziness distorted his sharp cheekbones.

“Rafe, you’re alive,” she mumbled. Or at least she thought she spoke. She couldn’t seem to get in enough air.

His lips moved, but she didn’t hear what he said. She opened her mouth to ask him to repeat himself, but blackness swept over her vision and took him away.

Chapter Thirty-Seven

Rafe stared at the blood running in rivulets from the slashes marring Jasmine’s stomach. More blood dripped from the four punctures at the base of her rib cage.

On a Royal, the wounds would’ve closed within seconds. Even on a single shifter, the flow of blood would’ve slowed. But on Jasmine, neither had happened. Blood soaked the ground beneath her.

He let revenge come before her just as she’d accused him of doing.

He allowed the guilt to consume him for a heartbeat before pushing it away. Jasmine needed him. He wouldn’t fail her. Never would he put his wants before her, no matter how he rationalized it. If she questioned him, he’d listen and hear her. Not tell her how things would play out. That was if he had a future with his mate.

The others gathered around. He ignored them and turned his attention to Jasmine, where it should’ve been in the first place. An erratic heartbeat and shallow breathing reached him, not what he wanted to hear, but it meant she still lived. He had time to save her.

Using a sharpened nail, he tore her shirt and lowered his head to her stomach, licking the wounds to slow the staunch of blood. It didn’t seal them—that would take more than a couple of swipes of his tongue—but it helped.

As he tended the gashes, he heard Seth screaming for his mother. His voice faded, someone likely taking him back to house. But the child’s plea cut at his heart. If he didn’t get through to Jasmine, not only would Rafe lose the woman he loved, Seth and Levi would lose their mother.

Rafe knelt over her prone body. “Jasmine.”

She didn’t stir. His animal spirits whined, their anxiety adding to his. He smacked her cheek in an effort to rouse her.

“Wake up, beautiful,” he yelled.

No response. True terror gripped him. His heart pounded hard. He couldn’t lose her. She was his everything—his mate, his love, his life.

He tore open his wrist and pressed it to her lips. She didn’t drink his healing blood. It dribbled over her chin.

Rafe pressed kisses to her face. “Jasmine, don’t you dare die on me. Wake up!”

She didn’t stir but her brows creased.

“That’s right. Come on, love. Open those gorgeous eyes. Let me see you. Know you’re still with me. I need you.”

The movement behind her eyes quickened, the lids fluttering before lifting. Pain hazed the gray, making her orbs unfocused, but he’d never been happier to see anyone’s eyes.

He leaned close and captured her gaze. She had to be aware. To know what was happening before he walked through her soul.

“I’m going to mate you, Jasmine. Do you understand? Tie our souls—you, me and our cats. We can’t wait.”

“Why?”

The single word was no more than a breath of sound, but the confusion in it was obvious. He swallowed hard. “You’re dying. This is the only way to save you.”

Her eyes widened. “Jon?”

“Yes. He hurt you, but he’s dead. Seth is safe. He’s with Josh.” He leaned closer so she’d have an easier time bringing his face into focus. “I need you to trust me. We’re running out of time.”

Jazz looked into Rafe’s familiar eyes. His voice came to her in a garbled echo, but she heard his words. They chilled her. She was dying. It was too soon. It wasn’t supposed to happen until he mated her. She’d lose him. She couldn’t. She loved him.

“Answer me. Tell me you understand. That you’ll trust me to save us.” Rafe pressed his lips to her ear. “Did you hear that? I said
us
. If you die, I’m following you.”

No! He couldn’t die.

If he wanted her trust, she’d give it to him. She nodded, hoping to show her agreement. Words were beyond her. Her body felt leaden. She wasn’t sure she pulled it off but must’ve managed a small dip of her chin. Relief washed over Rafe’s face, easing the pinch to his eyes.

He disappeared from view. Her body was turned. Another jolt of pain shot through her. She squeezed her eyes shut against it and focused on the warmth of Rafe’s body pressing along her back.

Strands of his hair brushed against her cheek as he kissed his way down her throat. He pressed his mouth to the spot where shoulder met neck. The warmth of his breath was her only warning. He bit, and sharp teeth gnawed on her bone.

Agony. The feeling was so intense she was sure her heart stopped. Pain whipped through her, adding to the throbbing of her wounds before centering in her chest. Her fingers and toes burned, and everything in between jerked with a wrenching tug. She screamed—maybe out loud, maybe in her head—but the cry echoed within her soul.

As quickly as the pain came, it ended. For a moment, she floated, bodiless and free, and in the next, she crashed back into herself, but she wasn’t alone. She felt Rafe hovering as a shadow within her.

Rafe licked her shoulder and eased the last of the sting. He pulled her into his lap, cradling her close. The world swayed, and black dots spread over her eyes. Rafe’s face was still blurry, but she could pick out the details she loved—the slope of his nose, his full lips, his intense eyes.

He pressed his wrist to her mouth. “I love you, Jasmine. Drink and let my blood heal you. Be my mate in this world and the next.”

Realization dawned. She had to take his blood, borrow his strength. Anything. She’d do anything to stay with him. She parted her lips and flicked her tongue. Sweet and rich. His blood tasted of chocolate. Suddenly hungry, she latched on and sucked.

“That’s it. Take more, and when you feel me inside you, grab on and don’t let go. You need to lock us to you. If you don’t, we’ll slip through your fingers. You’ll lose us.”

Rafe clamped his mouth over her shoulder while she closed her eyes and drank, but she didn’t feel anything, only the warm liquid sliding down her throat and the sharp pinch of his teeth. She swallowed another mouthful. Something brushed along her skin.
Fur.
It tickled. She squirmed, but Rafe held her firmly to his chest, his wrist to her mouth.

“Reach for them, baby. You need to accept them as they’ve accepted you.”

Trusting in Rafe, she closed her eyes and focused on the sensation. It felt as if Rafe’s cats were rubbing against her, except it wasn’t just her legs getting the gentle strokes. Their caresses touched every inch of her body.
They
were inside her. Not Rafe. She tensed and shoved away from them.

“No, don’t you dare freak out on me. My cats love you as much I do. You have to allow them to join with you. They’ll protect you. Comfort you.”

Join them how? Rafe had said he would do that. He never mentioned what she’d need to do other than trust him.

The nudging in her chest increased. Demanding her to look at them. Rafe’s cats wanted her to pet them. With her eyes shut, she called to them, coaxing them closer. A tiger slammed into her. A vortex spun around her, sucking her down. She fell into the abyss. Lights danced across her vision. Green, brown, blue, gold. The colors swirled until Rafe’s eyes became her world.

She sighed and let the last of her fears fade. When the next two thumps came, she dug her fingers into thick fur and tugged them close.

Heat surrounded her—the warmth of three feline bodies curled around her. She snuggled into the cocoon they made.

Through them, she saw the goodness that existed in Rafe. He truly was her knight in shining armor. His love, strength, devotion. It was all exposed to her. She knew without being told he saw the same in her soul too. Together. They were literally two halves of a whole, joined by the three big predators who shared them.

“I love you, Jasmine.”

“Love you too, Rafe.”

Another wave of misery swept through her, but she didn’t fear it. She wasn’t alone. She had Rafe and their cats.

“Remember, my mate. Don’t let go.”

“Never, Rafe. Never. You’re mine.”