Stop, stop, I tell myself again, more urgently this time.
Remember Liam. Remember what happened before.
I stare at her, my whole body shaking, knowing this could end so badly.
But she’s not running. There’s fear there, but there’s also a connection. Like she knows why I did this. Like she sees what I am, and she’s ready to accept it.
“Thank you,” she whispers, then she winces.
There are sirens in the air.
What triggered them?
The car alarm? The roar? The gunshots?
Maybe the sirens aren’t coming here, but I can’t risk it. Police officers might shoot at me. Their guns will hit heavier if they’ve dispatched the armed response unit.
“Thank you,” she repeats as if unsure of what else to say.
I stalk even closer.
She freezes for a second. Then, after a moment, she raises her hand.
She raises it slowly like she thinks I’m going to bite it off.
I concentrate hard as she moves it toward me. With a deep groan, I tilt my head, rubbing my silver-haired jaws against her palm.
She shudders like she can’t believe it, like any second I’m going to snap.
Focus.
There’s too much noise in my ears, too much want in my body. Her scent is the most overwhelming of all.
But her touch, her small hand against my jaw, provokes me with nearly as much primal fire.
I can tell my human's terrified, not just in her scent but in her touch. She shakes as she touches me, but she doesn’t stop.
Our gazes lock. She stares into the eyes of the wolf, my eyes, the man. The beast who needs her, who owns her…
And who might kill her.
The sirens are getting louder.
Metal laces the air, bullets, and rubber smoking on concrete as they screech around the corner.
I spin away from Ruby, fighting every instinct, fighting the very heart of the wolf as I leap at the wall and dig in with my powerful claws.
My body tenses as I drag myself up, tearing massive passageways in the brickwork, vaulting before it has a chance to give out on me.
With a snarl, I duck my head and run, leaping over the roof and onto the next one, quickly turning right and away from the busier neighborhoods.
But it doesn’t matter. They already know I’m here.
A hunter.
Liam.
He’s the only one who can help. I want to turn back there, run as fast as I can, leap down and claim my Ruby for myself. I want to take her tenderly in my jaws, hold her so gently, then softly carry her away someplace.