Rebecca wasn’t going to sit in the forest until nightfall. Everything was changing, and she had to be proactive. She crept back through the shacks and tents, listening and hiding. Her heart raced like a freight train, fear of being caught terrifying her. As she got closer to her original prison, she heard a yelp. The sound traveled straight through her, feeling like a punch to her gut. She peered through some knots in the boards of a ramshackle fence and saw red across the white wolf’s fur. Rebecca gasped, covering her face and nose with her hands.
The black wolf was there, too, an iron collar around its neck. It thrashed and growled, despite being prodded with some kind of electric rod.
“How cute. They send their females to do their bidding now,” said Payne. He turned and shouted into the forest. “How low will you go, Liam? I suggest you show yourself before nightfall or I’ll be breeding your female.” He laughed, the other men following his lead. When they found out she wasn’t in her cell, it wasn’t going to go over well. Their wolves would hunt her down easily, especially since she couldn’t hide her fear.
“What do you want us to do with these?” One of the men pointed to the she-wolves.
Payne paced back and forth. “Lock them up for now.” The white wolf managed to knock down one of her captors, even with her injuries. The she-wolves were truly impressive and fearless. “If Liam doesn’t show up by tonight, kill them. His mate is the most important.”
Rebecca shook her head. No, this couldn’t be happening.
An arm wrapped around her waist from behind, and a hand came over her mouth just before she could scream. She kicked and struggled for all she was worth. Until she heard his voice.
“It’s me, baby.”
Rebecca whirled around, patting Liam down to ensure what she saw wasn’t a figment of her imagination. His body was solid, heavily packed with muscle, and beyond human. “You came.”
“Of course I came. Protecting you is my thing, remember? Trouble seems to follow you everywhere you go.”
She wrapped her arms around his neck, savoring his heat, his strength, his presence. God, she loved him. “Please don’t leave me. I’m so scared.”
He tilted her chin up, kissing her on the lips, deeply, urgently. She closed her eyes and fell under his spell. “We have a plan. Ben let them catch him. It threw them off.”
“The she-wolves are here. They’re hurt.”
Liam’s chest rumbled. “They were supposed to stay behind. Jake and Eli will be sure to get them to safety.”
“And me?”
He pulled her tight to his body, his big, rough hand grabbing her bare ass cheek. “When this is all done, I’m going to claim this ass. Every part of you will be mine.”
Her pussy clenched. The deep, possessive tone of his voice made her clit ache for him. “Yes,” she said. He kissed her neck where his mark was, then growled when he saw the damage caused by Payne.
“What else has that bastard done to you?”
She looked down at her thigh. Liam squatted in front of her, examining the cuts. He kissed them, his lips moving higher until he licked her pussy folds. She grabbed handfuls of his hair, but he shoved his tongue in her cunt while holding her ass. “Liam…”
****
Liam reluctantly pulled away from his woman. He’d been so worried, and all he could think about was loving her, mating her. When he saw her injuries, his anger for Payne only grew tenfold. That fucker was going to pay. Liam was going to ensure he suffered for harming his woman, his dog, and his packmates. Enough was enough.
“Stay here. Don’t move. I’ll be coming right back for you,” he said.
She grabbed his arm. “Don’t leave me. Please.”
He cupped her cheek and kissed her once on the lips. Her big green eyes shimmered with unshed tears. “I’m here now. Nothing bad will happen to you.”
“What if something happens to you?”
He chuckled. “That’s not going to happen.” Liam loved how she cared about him, but there was no need to worry. He knew damn well that even on his worst day he could defeat Payne. Today he was fueled with revenge, his alpha wolf raring to go. His only concern was controlling his wolf once he let it loose.
Would he be able to settle his alpha beast after unleashing it against his enemies? Jake told him their wolves would never harm their mates, but Rebecca was human, so no one knew for sure.
“Stay quiet. If anything happens, call for me and I’ll be here.” He disappeared into the forest before shifting. Liam wasn’t ready to introduce her to his wolf, and not sure if he ever would be. He knew his identity had been exposed. She knew he was a werewolf, yet she still appeared to want him. Or was it just the protection she craved?
He dashed through the underbrush, barely disturbing a leaf. His packmates’ thoughts were in his head. Eli had just released Ben. Jake was going for the she-wolves.
Liam insisted on handling Payne.