“Who the fuck are you,” I snarled, my voice barely human, “and what are you doing in my mate’s house?”
The man jumped. Spun toward me. His eyes went wide when he saw me - naked, covered in dirt and leaves, eyes glowing red.
I did not give him a chance to respond.
I lunged. Grabbed him by the throat. Slammed him against the wall hard enough to crack the plaster. He tried to raise the metal thing but I knocked it from his hand. It clattered across the floor.
“Mal, wait-” Wen started.
I punched the man. Once. Twice. His nose broke with a satisfying crunch. Blood poured down his face.
“You dare,” I growled, my claws beginning to extend, “threaten my mate? Enter her home? Dare to frighten her?”
“Mal, stop!” Wen’s voice cut through the red haze.
I pulled back my clawed hand, ready to strike. Ready to tear this male apart for daring to frighten her.
“You can’t kill him!” Wen grabbed my arm.
I looked at her. “Why not? He threatened you. He deserves death.”
“Because we have laws! Authorities! You can’t just murder people!”
“I absolutely can. I am a king. I have executed many who have committed lesser crimes than this.”
“We’re not in your kingdom!” Her voice was high. Panicked. “If you kill him, they’ll arrest you. Put you in prison. Or worse. You don’t understand how this world works.”
I did not care about this world’s rules. I cared about protecting my mate.
But the fear in her eyes stopped me. Not fear of the intruder. Fear for me.
“What do you propose?” I asked through gritted teeth.
“I call the police - the authorities. They come and take him away. But you have to shift. Hide. They can’t see you like this.” She gestured at my naked, bloody form.
I hated this plan. Everything about it went against my instincts. But I forced my claws to retract. Forced myself to step back from the whimpering male.
“Are you hurt?” I grabbed her shoulders, my hands gentler than they had any right to be given the fury still coursing through me. “Did he touch you? Harm you in any way?”
“I’m fine. I’m okay. I heard him downstairs and grabbed the knife from the kitchen. I screamed when I saw him but I’m not hurt.”
I ran my hands over her arms. Her shoulders. Checking for injuries I could not see. Searching for any sign of harm.
She was trembling but whole and unharmed.
“Please,” she whispered. “Please just shift and hide. Let me handle this.”
Every instinct I possessed rebelled against the idea. But I nodded. Shifted. Padded into her bedroom as she pulled out her glowing brick - her phone, she called it - and spoke rapidly to someone.
This went against everything in me. Hiding while she dealt with the threat. Being unable to protect her properly the way a mate should.
Within minutes, there were voices downstairs. Heavy footsteps. Men in dark blue uniforms filled the apartment, weapons drawn until they saw the intruder on the floor.
I stayed in the bedroom, forcing myself to remain still. To not growl as they questioned my mate. As they looked at her with suspicion.
“You did this to him?” one of the uniformed men asked, staring at the thief’s broken face.
“He broke into my home,” Wen said, her voice steadier now. “I defended myself.”
