Even in this form I knew it.
Any respect I’d had for Xen Kelson died when he attacked Jake.
Xen snarled again, gaze flicking to me, but Elliot held firm. His position as Xen’s beta gave him a boost in strength, but not enough to defeat Xen. Not on his own. But he stayed put, continuing to shield me from Xen.
“Whatever they’ve done, this isn’t the way to solve it. They’re yourpack. Yourfamily.” He held his hands out wide. “The old laws have no place in our pack, Xen. We’re better than that.You’rebetter than that.”
I’d have to dispute that last sentence, but Elliot’s words seemed to be getting through to Xen because he backed off. The air around him shimmered for a split second, the taste of shifter magic filling the air as Xen let go of his wolf form.
Before Elliot could react, Xen stalked forward, and for one awful second, I thought he was going to kill Elliot instead, but he came to an abrupt stop in front of him, expression cold. “Clean up this fucking mess.” And then he was gone.
I sagged in relief, all the fight leaving my body as every one of my injuries began to make themselves known.
“Fucking hell,” Elliot whispered. He knelt in front of me, gentle hands checking me over, but holding on to consciousness was getting harder and harder. Black spots danced at the edge of my vision. I must’ve shifted back because the last thing I felt before the darkness took me was Jake’s hand in mine.
