“Shifter!” Seb warned.
As if triggered by the word, a chorus of howls broke out around them. Shifters from all directions revealed themselves, their forms shifting from human to wolf in a breathtaking display of power and magic. Their eyes burned with feral hunger, and they bared their teeth in savage snarls.
The chaos unfolded before Seb’s eyes in a blur of fur, claws, and teeth. The pack attacked with a relentless ferocity, moving with a supernatural grace that defied human capabilities. The team fought back valiantly, their training kicking in as they unleashed their own shifter abilities of speed and strength to aid them fight off the attack.
Seb’s bear surged to the surface instantly, its massive form towering over his enemies. Muscles rippled beneath his skin as he roared a primal challenge, unleashing a shockwave that sent their adversaries staggering backward. As they fought, Seb’s claws tore through flesh and bone like butter, driven by a need to defend his friends.
Logan shifted into his wolf form, his lithe body blending seamlessly into the chaos. He pounced on unsuspecting foes and took them down with a savagery that would make even the fiercest predator hesitate. His canines flashed with deadly intent as he fought for his life and the lives of his team.
Toby shifted into his coyote form, his body smaller but no less deadly. He moved with the grace of a dancer, his limbs a blur of motion as he dispatched his enemies with ruthless efficiency.
Seb kept track of them as he fought, dodging lunges and snapping teeth as he swiped out with huge paws through what felt like an unending army of shifters.
Amidst the chaos, Seb’s enhanced senses detected the faint sound of a struggle nearby. His ears perked up, and he veered towards the source, his eyes scanning the area in search of his friends. To his horror, he saw Toby collapsing under the weightof the two large wolf shifters, his coyote form shaking violently under their relentless assault. Panic seized Seb as he saw blood trickling down Toby’s muzzle, staining the earth beneath him.
With a bellow of fury, he charged towards the group of shifters, his massive bear form dwarfing the enemies. The ground shook beneath the impact of his charge, and the shifters recoiled at the sight of him, freeing Toby who sprang instantly to his feet and lunged at one of the wolves. Seb quickly took care of the other.
But despite their best efforts, they were too badly outnumbered, and they all knew it. Toby and Logan looked as tired as Seb felt. There were only supposed to be a handful of guards on duty and Seb and his team hadn’t been informed that the guards were shifters. Ortega had to have found out about their plan to infiltrate his warehouse and unleashed the full force of his manpower, but that would mean that someone on the inside had told him. Dread coiled in his stomach. He hated the idea that they had a traitor in their midst, but who could it be? He pushed the thought aside, keeping his mind on the fight. He could worry about traitorswhenthey got out of here. He refused to consider the alternative.
The battle intensified, and Seb’s bear was a force to be reckoned with. His massive paws pounded against the earth, sending shards of dirt flying through the air. Each swipe from his claws sliced through the shifters with lethal precision.
As the fight raged on, Seb realized that he had been separated from his team. A cold fear gripped him, and he glanced around, searching for any sign of his friends and praying they remained unharmed. The pounding of his heart sounded loud in his ears—so loud he very nearly missed a sneak attack from behind. He spun around at the last moment and roared out a warning, but it was too late—he was surrounded by three wolf shifters.
Two of them approached him, snapping and snarling, but the third crept around the side of him and attacked, his strong jaws clamping down on Seb’s leg. He let out a howl of pain and outrage, swiping his giant paw at the beast and making contact with the side of his body. He sent it flying across the forest to slam into a nearby tree before lifelessly falling to the ground. Seb fought the other two wolf shifters with every ounce of strength left in his body, but the wound on his leg throbbed and he didn't need to look at it to know that it was bleeding profusely. The scent of it hung heavy in the air.
One of the wolves lashed out with a meaty paw and his razor-sharp claws slashed across Seb’s stomach. He let out another howl of pain. Blood poured out of his body taking his energy with it. But then, before he could even think about his next steps, the wonderful scent he had caught a trace of earlier returned with a vengeance.
He tried to keep his focus on the battle with the two remaining wolf shifters, but his attention was diverted by the amazing, demanding,distractingsmell. His muscles strained under the exertion, and a grimace etched his face as he registered the sharp pain from his injuries. The forest around him was a blur of greens and browns, and the sounds of growling and snapping teeth echoed through the trees.
Suddenly, amidst the chaos of the fight, the scent grew stronger still. It was wild, intoxicating, but if he wasn’t mistaken, it was the scent of another wolf shifter. His heart leaped up into his throat at the revelation and his brain tried to make sense of this new information. Was that smell coming from the enemy? But how? The scent was feminine, he was certain of it.
Then, the source of the scent—thescent—appeared – a wolf whose midnight fur seemed to blur at the edges, her piercing blue eyes holding the cold clarity of mountain lakes. Seb turned to stare at her, ensnared.
Mate!his bear exclaimed with a roar, and somehow, Seb was in complete agreement with his shifter side, knowing the fact to be true in the same way that he was sure of his own name. She stared back at him, momentarily frozen and it was as if time itself had stood still. The female shook herself then padded over, moving with a grace and power that was mesmerizing. She leapt into the fray with fierce determination and a snarl that sent shivers rolling down Seb’s spine. Her presence was both a distraction and a revelation. He had never felt anything like the pull he felt towards her, and it occurred to him in a blinding moment of clarity and relief that she was not the enemy. She couldn’t have been because she wasn’t fighting alongside the other wolf shifters, she was fighting against them, fighting with Seb—fighting to protect him.
As they fought, Seb’s initial distraction and weariness gave way to a newfound strength. His bear, recognizing its mate, surged with a desire to impress her.
Fight! We must show mate how strong we are! Don’t let them get near her. Protect! Protect!
The innate desire to protect her made Seb’s bear fight with even more ferocity, and if Seb hadn’t known better, he would have thought his bear was showing off, demonstrating his strength and resilience. His movements became more precise, his strikes more powerful. Together, they were a whirlwind of claws and teeth, an unstoppable force against their enemies.
The wolf shifters soon found themselves overwhelmed and subdued under their combined assault. They didn’t stop until the wolves took their last breaths. As the fight came to an end, Seb and his mysterious savior stood panting, their gazes locking in a moment of unspoken understanding.
In that moment, Seb realized the profound impact of this encounter. He had not only found a fierce warrior to stand by his side in battle but also a connection that resonated deepwithin his soul. The scent of her lingered in the air, a promise of something wonderful and unexplored. His bear roared, not in aggression, but in recognition of something far greater than a mere fight – the scent of his destined mate and a future filled with contentment.
They waited another few moments to ensure no other wolf shifters showed up, but the nearby sounds of fighting had subsided. The forest was still once more. Seb’s mate started to walk away from the clearing in the opposite direction of the warehouse. She looked over her shoulder to check that Seb was following her, but she needn’t have bothered. Now that he’d found her, Seb would have followed her to the ends of the earth.
They were walking in the opposite direction from the way that Seb had arrived with his team and the human half of him wanted to check on his friends to ensure they had survived the fight, but his bear would not be deterred. Mission aborted, Seb’s single focus was on his mate and ensuring he could be there to protect her should she encounter any more wolves. Seb consoled himself with the fact that his friends were highly trained and highly skilled operatives who knew how to take care of themselves. Besides, they all knew the drill—if they became separated from either themselves, or the other team that were waiting in the vehicles, they were to rendezvous back at the safe house.
Seb and his mate walked for about ten minutes before the trees in the dense forest started to become sparser. Eventually, they stepped out onto a grass verge that led down to a road. Parked on the opposite side and about twenty yards down was a silver SUV.
Seb waited to see what his mate would do and when the air around her started to shimmer signaling the onset of a change back into her human form, Seb followed suit. After a few moments they stood opposite one another, naked in the humid night air, silently waiting for the other to speak. Neitherseemed to know what to say, but Seb wasn’t sure he was capable of speech anymore, anyway. All he could do was stare at this woman who fate had decided was his perfect match, and damn but he had to agree. She was breathtaking.
Obsidian hair fell in long waves over her shoulders, and she had a long lean body with curves in all the right places. A fierce pride and courage shone from her eyes. But Seb couldn’t fail to notice the scrapes and smears of blood on her beautiful olive toned skin.
“Are you hurt?” he asked.
She shook her head. “Just a few scratches, nothing major. How are you? Those cuts look deep.”
