Page 12 of Moonlight & Mayhem

Moon yelped, and Mayhem turned to look at her. The Capitol wolf had her pinned to the floor, and something inside him broke. It wasn’t his ribs or his stitches this time, but something deeper and much older. His wolf roared, and Mayhem shifted. Pain detonated through every part of his body. Bones cracked, muscles tore and rebuilt themselves as blackness edged his vision, but his wolf came through—large, dark, and furious.

He launched himself across the room. His shoulder hit the Capitol Wolf and sent it flying off Moon. Mayhem landed badly, and his wounded side nearly collapsed beneath him, but it didn’t matter. The enemy wolf recovered and charged at him, and Mayhem met him teeth-first. They tore into each other, and the other wolf caught his shoulder. Mayhem caught its throat and bit down hard. The wolf thrashed, but Mayhem didn’t release him—not until it stopped moving and the threat to his mate was gone.

He dropped the body, and his legs shook. Moon shifted back beside him. “Mayhem!”

He tried to turn toward her, and the room tilted. Shit. Moon caught him as he shifted involuntarily back into human form. His knees hit the floor first, then his hands, and blood poured from his side. It was a lot of fucking blood.

Moon pressed both hands against the wound. “You ripped everything open.”

Mayhem managed a weak smile. “Told you I could shift.”

“You unbelievable asshole.” Her voice cracked. Mayhem looked up to find Moon crying, and his chest tightened.

“Hey,” he whispered, reaching up to push a strand of her dark hair from her face.

“Shut up and let me work,” she ordered.

“Moon,” he breathed.

“I said shut up.” She pressed harder against his wounds, and he groaned.

“You’re trying to kill me,” he grumbled.

“No. I’m trying to keep you alive, which is apparently my full-time job now,” she hissed.

“Could think of worse jobs,” he teased.

“Mayhem.” He reached up and touched her face, and his blood smeared across her cheek. Her eyes closed as she leaned into his touch. His wolf was weak now—quiet, but satisfied. Safe. His wolf growled.

Moon opened her eyes again. “You shifted with silver still in your system.”

“Needed to,” he breathed.

“You could have died,” she said.

“You were in trouble,” he pointed out.

“I had it handled,” she lied.

“Sure.” She glared at him through tears, and he smiled.

Tempest appeared above them. Blood streaked one side of her face, but she was standing. “That the last one?” Mayhem asked, nodding over to the wolf that he had dropped.

“For now,” she said.

Moon looked at Tempest. “Help me get him back to the clinic.”

Mayhem groaned. “Not the table again.”

“Yes, the table again,” Moon said.

“I’m starting to think you just like me naked,” he teased. Tempest barked out a laugh, and Moon looked ready to murder him. That worked for him, because if she was pissed at him, then she wouldn’t cry.

Chrome and Howler entered through the ruined front entrance. Mayhem’s wolf stirred weakly when he saw his brothers. Howler took one look at him. “What the fuck happened to you?”

Mayhem pointed toward Moon. “She let me fight.”

Moon’s mouth dropped open. “You⁠—”