“See? Told you it was stupid for you guys to come instead of letting me,” Ember drawled.
Lionel shrugged and smirked. “But it wasn’t up to us. Connor told me to back up my beta. And I can’t defy the big bad.”
Ember raised a sardonic brow. “Really? You defy him all the time. In fact, I’m surprised you’re still breathing. I mean, ‘the big bad?’ Where the fuck did that come from? And what does that make me? Red fucking riding hood? I mean, really, Lionel?”
He grinned widely. “Well, if the cape fits….”
“I’m not fucking leaving her,” I growled loud enough that their bickering stopped immediately. “Get out. Now.” It didn’tmatter that this was the Queen of Shifters I spoke to. Shannon needed rest, and they were disturbing her. My wolf snarled and snapped in my head, making it hard to think. He needed that unmated male away from our mate.
Lionel raised his brows, but I couldn’t care less. I was fucking exhausted, yet my wolf wouldn’t let me leave Shannon anymore than I could force myself to. She wasours.Oursto keep safe. I’d fucked up before; leaving her vulnerable would never ever happen again. And that meant no one else should be in this room until she was awake enough to tell me herself to fuck off or to let me mark her.
Mine.
My breath sawed in and out of my lungs, power gathering around my fists as a purple haze settled across my vision.
“Get out!!”
The walls shook, and my magic slammed forward. They needed to leave. Right. Fucking. Now. The rational part of my brain knew this behaviour was unacceptable, that this was my family, but I couldn’t stop. Shannon wasn’t safe until she woke up enough for us to mate. Breaths were coming fast and furious, blood roaring in my ears, and my wolf was howling madly underneath it all.
“Whoa!” yelled Lionel, leaping away from my magical onslaught right before Ember threw up a shield of flame.
I howled and yanked up more magic, throwing it at the unmated male.
“Get Connor, now!” she ordered that fucker without dropping my gaze.
Owen took a slow step to the side, blocking my access to the door. My wolf tried to surface, yet I still fought him, a tiny, rational part of my brain fighting my feral instincts to destroy any threats and mark what was mine. We wanted to get rid of every soul in the vicinity of our mate, force them from the roomand seal the door with magic. Sweat rolled down my forehead. No, she was injured, mating would hurt her… Gods, I was so tired, I couldn’t think straight, my body shaking with the effort of holding my wolf back. Another wave of power hit the room, but it wasn’t from me.
“No need, my love. I thought this might happen. He’s fucking exhausted, he’s not eaten, not slept, and his wolf is in a mating rage. He won’t settle until he’s claimed Shannon. Every unmated male who comes near will set him off. In fact, he’s hit the point he’s ready to destroy everyone in this room.”
Ember rolled her eyes and huffed. “Then why’d you send Lionel with Owen?”
Connor shrugged, holding my furious gaze. “To prove a point. He needs to be forced to move, or he’s going to end up killing the next person who walks through that door and possibly hurting Shannon in the process.”
Ember raised her brows and eyed me incredulously. “Are you having a laugh, Con? We can’t force Stone out of this room. He’ll fight too hard, and we’ll all end up damaged. Besides, he needs to be near her. He’s fucking breaking. Baby, he thought she was going to die. How would you feel if this was me?”
Connor’s brows dipped, his nostrils flaring. He didn’t like that question, so he ignored it. “Yeah, but this will get worse the more exhausted he gets. And when she’s awake, he’ll take her without any thought. His beast has almost taken over, and he could hurt her even more. How do you think that will make him feel afterwards?”
“Shit.”
“Yeah, shit indeed. We have to do this, Firecracker, for both their sakes. When she’s strong enough, we’ll take her to him. Until then Ventry can help us keep him contained.”*
My wolf pushed forward as Connor continued to hold my gaze. Normally, I’d dip my head, if not my gaze, for myAlpha, but his continued stare only incensed me more; it didn’t intimidate me. I didn’t care if he was mated; he needed to leave Shannon’s room. For now, this was her safe space, a place I needed to keep her from harm. I’d failed before, but not this time. I’d kill anyone who got too close while she was vulnerable. When we were bound, mated like the Mother Wolf wanted, I’d be willing to leave her side, but until then, no one should be near her except me.
My wolf and I were in agreement. My king needed to leave the room.
“Leave!” Once again, the deep animalistic bellow of my demand rattled the chandelier.
Connor snarled, his beast flashing in his eyes. “Do not try and shift, brother.” His power slammed into me, preventing the movement in my cells. I snarled, my wolf growling and snapping as I launched across the room. Connor stormed forward, shifting into the beast from Hell, the Shifter King who housed the spirit of the first Hell Hound to escape Lucifer’s control. I tightened my fists, punching his jaw. The impact ricocheted up my arm and into my shoulder, my knuckles screaming in pain. Fuck, it was like hitting a concrete wall. He didn’t even falter, just snarled and rammed his fist into my gut, stealing my breath before he grabbed my neck and slammed me into the wall. The heavy stone cracked.
“Stop. You cannot stay here, brother. You’ll hurt her. You know you will. I am doing this to keep both of you safe.”
I snarled, dredging my magic up from the depleted well inside my soul, determined to get this male off me and away from my mate. I thrashed as another threat entered the room. Fae. His scent riled me more. Another unmated male and a Fae. He could take Shannon away, compel her like my father had. Desperate to stop that from happening, my fists made contactwith bones. They didn’t break, but Connor grunted. Out of the corner of my eye, I watched Owen skirt the room.
“Need any help?” Owen’s attention never left me, though his words weren’t aimed at me.
Connor tightened his hold on my throat, and my breath rasped as I fought to change. “No. And stay away from Shannon. All of you. Or he’ll rip himself apart against me trying to protect her.”
He was right. I would. A rational part of my brain knew this was wrong. I knew this beast. He was someone I trusted, but my mind was foggy, my wolf concentrating only on my mate and keeping everyone who was a potential threat away from her. No one would take her from me. No one would force themselves on her ever again. Enough! She’d been through enough!
