Colby froze mid-stride. One instant, he’d been laughing with his whole body. The next, he was motionless. His head was up, his ears were pricked, and he was rigid.
Tristan pulled up short, confused. Colby spun around and came straight at him, his body low and aggressive, teeth bared in a warning snarl.
Tristan backed away, heart thudding, startled, but not afraid of Colby, just of whatever made Colby look like that. It took precious seconds for his brain to make the connection. They weren’t even near the perimeter, and the possibility hadn’t so much as crossed his mind. But ice froze in his gut as he realized—Nico.
Colby surged into him, shouldering him hard. Not to hurt him but to get him to move.
Tristan ran. Once, he glanced back, and Colby snapped at his flank, sharp and swift. They burst from the woods into the yard, and even then, Colby didn’t stop chasing him. He snarled again and didn’t stop until Tristan scrambled underneath the porch.
Colby followed him, wild-eyed and trembling, and Tristan realized—he wasn’t angry. He wasterrified.
Tristan pressed up beside him, their bodies curled together in the dirt and shadows, his heart hammering in time with Colby’s. He licked Colby’s muzzle once, a gentle reassurance. Colby flinched like he’d been struck.
He stayed close as Colby shivered, hoping his warmth would anchor him. Surely, in this dark, cramped place, literally sheltered by the pack, they were safe.
And then he realized, hehadto warn the others. He didn’t want to leave Colby, not like this, but Matt needed to know. He nuzzled against Colby one last time before squirming past him and crawling out into the yard.
Shifting, he bent down. “I’ll be right back, but I need to let Matt know,” he said into the darkness where Colby lay hidden.
He was only gone two minutes because Matt was in the kitchen, but by the time he came back, Colby was out from under the porch. He’d shifted and was changing back into the clothes they’d left there earlier, with hands that shook.
Tristan reached for him, gently gripping his shoulders. “Colby?” he asked softly.
Colby’s head stayed down. “Sorry,” he said hoarsely.
“For what?”
“For what I am.” His voice cracked on the words.
Tristan’s stomach twisted. “Hey. No. Don’t—” He touched Colby’s face, coaxing him to look up. “Was it Nico?”
Colby swallowed hard. “I scented him. He was there.”
Tristan’s wolf twisted inside him with a primal need to tear Nico apart.
“Thatfucker.” Tristan’s voice was harsh. His words bore the weight of his hatred for Nico, for what he’d done to Colby. They sounded strange in his mouth—like they belonged to someone else—and earned him a startled glance from Colby.
Tristan reached for him and pulled him close. Held him, because he didn’t know how else to fix it, and because some things didn’t need fixing—they just neededholding.
“You’re safe,” he whispered. “You’re safe now. I swear.”
And when Colby leaned into him, shuddering, Tristan held tighter.
COLBY
Even escaping the pack hadn’t felt like that. His wolf had taken over, wild and reactive, driven by fear deeper than thought. All he’d known was the desperate need to get Tristan to safety.
Tristan had dismantled every wall he’d put up to survive Nico, and he was left with no protection. He’d let himself feel safe, and he’dforgotten, damn it. He’d been shaking with the shock of it as he chased Tristan toward shelter.
And now, he had to live with the shame of what he’d done. See Tristan realize the truth of who he was—a coward, who’d never had the guts to get away from Nico. One who’d rather run than fight.
But Tristan folded him into his arms and simply held him, like he didn’t care about any of that. Like it didn’t even matter to him. Colby pressed his face into Tristan’s shoulder, his eyes closed against the mix of fear and shame, and clutched Tristan close.
He half expected Tristan to pull away and tell him he couldn’t do this anymore. That he deserved someone stronger, someone braver.
But Tristan just held him, his fingers rubbing small circles between Colby’s shoulder blades, his voice low and calm.
“You kept us safe,” Tristan murmured.
