“Sandy and a little shaken, but yeah,” I admitted. My heart was still a furiously beating lump in my throat but I didn’t mention that part.
Back in human form, Colton let out an indignant huff as he brushed sand off his arms. His icy eyes were daggers. “There was no reason for you to do that.”
“Wasn’t there?” Eric shot back. “I just proved a point. Let this be a lesson to both of you.”
Ramsay stormed up to Eric and grabbed the front of his shirt, spitting with anger. “What lesson, asshole?”
Eric slapped Ramsay’s hand away like he was an annoying fly. “That you and the North Pack wolf are lackluster guardians.”
“What?” Ramsay snarled.
“You heard me.”
“Guys,” I said, quickly getting in between them so they didn’t start a brawl. “Can we calm down a little?”
“Fine.” Ramsay’s jaw was tight with fury, but he stalked away from Eric, at least far away enough that I didn’t think he was going to try and fight him physically again.
Colton didn’t look pleased, either. He stood next to Ramsay with his hands curled into fists. For the first time I actually saw his mother’s ice-cold expression in him, and it was a little scary, even when not directed at me.
“Care to explain yourself?” Colton asked.
Eric brushed himself off, like Ramsay had dirted him by touching him. “Like I said, you two were doing a poor job of protecting Matheson. I just did you a favor by proving it. After all, it could’ve been someone whose intent was truly bad. What if that had happened?”
Ramsay frowned. “Well, it didn’t.”
“It’s still a possibility!” Eric snapped. “Look how easy it was for me to pin him down. Any alpha wolf could do that. And how much easier would it be for a gryphon?”
“Just because those thingscouldhappen doesn’t mean they will,” Ramsay argued.
Eric shook his head with a snort of frustration. “Matheson would have been gone in an instant, and the two of you did nothing. By the time you reached me, he could’ve already been dead--or worse.”
My temper flared. “Can you stop talking about me like I’m not here? Look, I get your point, but you’re the one who came at me, all piss and vinegar.”
Eric frowned. “Matheson, you’re in constant danger. They’re supposed to be your protectors. All of us are. But if they’re not pulling their weight, you could get hurt.”
“They pull their weight just fine,” I replied with a huff. “Colton and Ramsay have been nothing but good to me. Plus,theydidn’t ambush me in a sneak attack and scare the living shit out of me.”
Eric looked almost hurt. He quickly replaced that expression with one of annoyance as he stared down at the sand. “I was only trying to help. Do you at least see that you should be taking this more seriously?”
“We are,” I said firmly.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Colton and Ramsay exchange glances.
“Well, maybe we should’ve been more prepared for danger,” Ramsay mumbled.
Colton sighed. “We let Matheson down.”
“No, you guys, you didn’t,” I reassured them. I took both their hands in mine. “None of us were expecting that attack, even if it was fake.”
“Eric’s right. That is a problem,” Colton murmured. “It’s our responsibility to take care of you, and we failed.”
I looked back at Eric, expecting to see a smug look on his face, but there wasn’t one. Just a frown of concern.
“I told you,” Eric said softly. “I only wanted the rest of you to understand how serious this is. It’s not a game. You can have fun, sure, but in the end, this is a matter of life or death for Matheson.” He growled. “And I’d rather die than let him fall into the talons of those disgusting gryphons.”
Ramsay kicked a rock. “Ugh. Don’t wanna say it, but you’re right.”
This time Eric did seem alittlesmug, but he didn’t push it.
