Mating Brand
Page 9

“Enough!” a horrifyingly deep voice roared. “Do you want to die?” The male who spoke wasn’t human. His voice was so affected she could barely understand the words. “That’s a female, damn it. Who said you could kill her?”
“It’s a damn cat,” another deep voice snarled. “She asked for it.”
Charma lifted her head and peeked up. She’d been pulled all the way to the door until her head actually touched the armrest. She stared at a broad-backed male wearing a gray sweater. He leaned against the opening, covering it with his body to prevent anyone from grabbing her again.
“We kill stinking cats where I come from,” a werewolf shouted.
The guy against the door emitted a vicious sound. “You’re in Harris Pack territory now. You’re a visitor and you will follow our laws. We don’t kill females, even she-cats. Leave if you don’t like it.”
The guy protecting the opening moved enough for Charma to see more of him. He’d kept his human form but some hair covered the backs of his hands. Fresh blood dripped from the spiky points of his extended claws. They appeared to be razor sharp and deadly.
She inhaled but there were so many angry wolves surrounding her car that she couldn’t smell anything other than overpowering werewolf scent. It nearly overwhelmed her and her heart raced faster. She almost screamed at the sheer horror of being surrounded by the enemy but another whimper escaped instead.
“Go into the woods,” the man leaning against the car demanded in a harsh growl. “Now. You’ll get worse than the ones on the ground if you stay. My cousins are on their way. If I could take down seven of you, think what they can do. They are stronger alpha-blooded than I am.”
Charma opened her mouth and panted. The smell of the many werewolves had become so dense she could taste it. Her gaze locked on the gray sweater of the male who had stopped the attack. She prayed he wasn’t sending the rest of his pack away to slaughter her himself. She just needed a chance to talk. She would warn them of the pride males who planned to declare war and hopefully they’d be grateful enough for the warning that they might spare her life.
Part of her longed to use Brand’s name but she didn’t want his pack to turn on him. She’d rather they not know they’d ever met. She’d come to save him, not put him in danger from his own kind. She’d let him down once but she wanted to make it right, owing him that and so much more.
She wondered if he’d mated. Of course he has. The image of his handsome face still haunted her. Women would have chased him in droves. Or in a pack, she corrected. It still hurt to imagine some woman curled against his side every night. Kissing him. Running her hands through his silky hair and— Stop! Don’t go there.
“I’m sorry,” a new voice panted. “I tried to hold them back but there were too many. Thanks for coming so fast, man. Is she alive?”
The male against the door shook his hands, blood flying off them, and his claws slowly retracted. “Yeah.” His voice still came out as a snarl. “I hear her breathing. I need to calm down for a minute.”
“No shit. Wow. I thought only Rave could fight like that. It was impressive.”
“Who do you think he learned to fight with growing up, Jeff?” The voice lowered a little, changing from snarly to gruff. “We are damn close and trained with each other as if we were brothers.”
Jeff cleared his throat. “Do you think that’s Shannon’s mom? I figured that’s who’d come here when I smelled she-cat. She probably wants to meet her son-by-mate. I tried to call Anton but he didn’t pick up.”
“Shannon’s mother is human. It was her father who was half shifter. He’s dead and she’s estranged from his family.” The voice toned down more. “How is my face? Still hairy? I don’t want to scare her.”
“You’re good. I doubt after what just happened that anything is going to calm her.”
“Drag the injured away before any humans happen along. It’s after nine. Most of the townspeople stay in after dark at this time of the year but it would be our luck if someone happened to run out of milk or something. I also heard we have some tourists parked outside of town. They tried to stay at the hotel but Marcy told them it was booked.”
“Got it. Two of our enforcers just showed. We’ll clean up this mess and tend to the wounded. They are lucky you allowed them to live.”
A loud sigh sounded. “Are my cousins on the way or did I just lie?”
“Rave is coming. Von didn’t pick up but he’s patrolling the woods. I figured he didn’t get cell service. Grady didn’t pick up so I’m sure he’s having sex. Both he and Anton turn their phones off while they’re bonding with their mates. I didn’t bother calling Braden. At his age, he’s probably out of his head with the heat and I know he’s staying with you. I thought you’d bring him, though, if you needed help.”
“It sounded urgent. I didn’t waste time to grab him. Go on. I’ll deal with this.”
A rumbling sound fractured the evening and Charma swallowed hard. The distinctive noise grew louder until the motorcycle engine cut off. “Shit. Looks as though I missed some good times. Is any of that blood on the ground yours?”
“Nope,” the guy in the sweater muttered.
“I smell blood, lust, anger, and is that a she-cat? That’s not Shannon. I’ll never forget the scent of her in heat for as long as I live.” The new guy chuckled. “I doubt any of us ever will. Damn. I envy my big bro.”
“Rave, not cool. He’d be seriously angry if he heard you say that.”
“I don’t see him here, do you? Is she okay? Do you want to move and allow me to check on her? I’m cool with kittens.”
“Go for it. I’m still trying to calm down.”
“I can see and hear. Your voice is all screwed up. Snarl much lately to scare off the weaker?”
“Shut the hell up and deal with her before more of them sniff her out. She probably took a wrong turn.”
The car swayed when the guy pushed off it to walk away. Charma sat up on the seat to gaze out the busted window. Shattered glass slid to the floor when she moved. A big, leather-jacketed werewolf strode forward but paused a few feet away. He crouched down to peer back at her. His shaggy black hair brushed his jacket collar and a pair of dark-brown eyes met hers.