As I threw my arms up, he did exactly as he’d promised me earlier: moved my half-shifted beast out of the way and placed himself between me and danger. When the magic hit his face, his entire body shuddered and collapsed.
With a howl, I lost control of my wolf and lunged straight for the witch outside the door.
CHAPTER 10
EMME
There’d been no thoughts when I lunged, just an overwhelming need to destroy the threat to my pack. My wolf had complete control, and even as I screamed and cried in the back of my mind for Kellan, her focus remained on the target. Fangs sank into skin, and blood filled my mouth. I must have taken the witch by surprise to land a direct hit to her shoulder, and I took advantage of that by tearing into her flesh, with its hint of death and decay.
Witch tasted disgusting, but I didn’t stop as a frenzy took over.
I growled and shook my prey, tearing through muscle and cracking bone. There was a rumbling roar from nearby, and I smelled Slade a heartbeat before his huge form appeared behind the witch. He hadn’t shifted to his dragon, but he didn’t need to as he gripped the witch’s head with both hands, their span completely covering her skull.
“Release,” he commanded me in a guttural rasp, his blazing gaze locked on mine.
Obeying, because Slade had my beast in a metaphorical hold, I relaxed my jaw and fell to the ground, my paws catching on the shattered glass from the blown-out car windows. Sensing Sladewanted more space, I backed up until my tail hit the side of the car, the sulfuric release of magic choking all fresh air around us. But it didn’t appear to bother Slade.
When a magical avalanche of energy exploded from the witch, he simply tensed his forearms and crushed her skull in his bare hands.
In. His. Bare. Hands.
It took a single breath of time for him to kill her.
My beast stilled, staring up at her alpha, and she had no sense at all to fear him. Nope, she wanted to rub against his leg and mark him with her scent.Down, girl.Not the freaking time.
“Omega!”
The snap of Finley’s voice had my gaze jerking from Slade and past Hunter, who stood behind the dragon, ready to back him in whatever way needed. Finley was beside me, near the back of the vehicle, and there was no sign of Kellan except one leg flung from the open door.
A mournful howl rocked through my chest and poured from my jaws.No! Nooooooo! Please, goddess, no.He couldn’t be dead.
I refused to believe it.
The witch had just knocked him out because that blast was meant for me, and the Rogers pack didn’t want me dead. There was no way she’d use a killing blast.
Right?Right!?
Pushing forward, I got the top half of my wolf into the car, sniffing along Kellan’s unconscious form. When I picked up the steady thrum of his heartbeat, my entire body shuddered. He was still alive, thank mercy, but his scent… it was tainted with the sulfuric magic.What did that bitch do to him?
“Jewels,” Hunter bellowed, and I peered from the car to find the blond witch and Warrick racing toward us, their SUV awkwardly parked with both doors open.
Jewels ground to a halt beside the dead witch on the ground. “Matilda,” she gulped, her expression morphing from shock to horror to fury in a span of five seconds. “Oh, I’m glad you killed her, even if her coven is going to shit a brick.”
Slade didn’t even lift an eyebrow; I’d never seen a less worried shifter in my life. “Check on Kellan,” he ordered her, voice harder than the witch’s expression. “He was hit with magic when she attacked, and he hasn’t regained consciousness. His scent is tainted with sulfur.”
She obeyed Slade like he had a hold over her too, moving toward the open door. My beast reacted defensively, rumbles and growls ripping from my chest as I bared my teeth at her. I’d already chowed down on one witchy bitch today and had no issue making it two.
Even if they did taste dried up and gross.
Jewels eyed me closely, and I was aware that half my white fur was speckled in the blood of the other witch, but she didn’t flinch. “Stand down, Omega,” she said as a tingle of her magic reached me, “I’m the only one who has a chance of helping him through a magical attack.”
That wasn’t completely true. I’d seen Mom help her pack recover from a magical attack, but as I wasn’t bonded to Kellan and couldn’t use my strength to bolster his, I had to step aside.
I backed up, keeping my piercing gaze firmly locked on her. Hunter clearly trusted her enough to bring her along, which was the only reason I wasn’t attacking now. But if she made one move to doanythingother than assess or help Kellan, I’d fucking end her.
She kept her dark eyes locked on me for at least thirty seconds, and I swore there was a white glow behind her irises. Freaky bitch.
When she finally turned her attention to Kellan, she ran her hands over the top of his chest, slowing over his sternum, beforemoving forward again. The scent of her magic was subtle, and I had no idea if it was due to her being stronger or older than the other witch.
