Deadly Seduction (Feral Protectors 3) (9 page)

Mazus gripped her shoulders and pulled her to her feet. The immediate need to escape overwhelmed her but her body reacted on its own accord. Kicking, screaming, fighting, she wouldn’t stop until she was free. But his grip tightened.

The world dropped away as she knew deep within her soul what he was about to do. The frantic attempt at escape was useless. She couldn’t defend herself now just like she couldn’t defend herself nine months ago. In an instant, she stopped fighting. A catatonic haze descended to wrap her in a state of disconnected peace. Whatever he did now, she wouldn’t feel it.

As he pushed her to the dirt, she turned her head to the side. She couldn’t watch. She refused to burn the image of his feral eyes into her mind. One set of terrifying eyes watched her in her nightmares, she didn’t need another.

Mazus dropped to his knees. He loomed over her. “You know what’s coming.”

“Just kill me,” she wailed.

She couldn’t go through it again. She wouldn’t survive another attack.

Mazus sneered. “Look at me.”

When she refused, he grabbed her face with one hand and squeezed. Her teeth bit into her cheeks. The pressure forced her lips into a distorted pucker.

He bent toward her. His hips hovered just inches from hers. “Be a good little slut and kiss me.”

A snarl rumbled behind him. As he turned away from her, he was yanked up and hurled away. She blinked back tears as Nosh’s face hovered over hers.

“Are you okay?”

A flash of movement caught her eye. “Look out.”

Nosh narrowly dodged Mazus’s fist. He instantly punched the other man in the chest. Mazus staggered back but didn’t fall.

Gwen scrambled to her feet and hid behind Nosh. “He was going to…”

“What the hell did you do?” Nosh snapped at Mazus.

“She was asking for it. You should have seen the way she’d been looking at me.”

“I never—”

Nosh snarled, “You’re done, Mazus. You’re lucky I don’t kill you right now.”

“Kill me? You can hardly walk. You’re like a fucking cat with nine lives. Why can’t you just die?” Mazus screamed as he lunged at Nosh.

Gwen jumped out of the way as Nosh slammed his shoulder into the other man. They circled each other, both kicking up dust. Mazus jabbed Nosh in the rib. Nosh stumbled back giving Mazus the opening he needed to rush the wounded wolf.

Gwen felt the crack of Mazus’s fist against Nosh’s face as if she’d been hit. She couldn’t just stand there and let Mazus kill Nosh. She frantically searched for anything she could use to hit Mazus. When she spotted a broken branch, she swept it up and raced toward him.

She swung with every ounce of strength left in her body. The branch shattered across his shoulders. She stepped back, stunned. Why would it shatter? She stared at the stump in her hands and watched as a sea of termites fled its hollow center.

She screamed and dropped the useless weapon. Mazus brushed wood fragments from his shoulders.

“You little bitch.”

She turned to run but he was faster. He pushed her to the ground and kicked her ribs. White-hot fire stabbed through every nerve ending. She gasped, unable to draw another breath.

She curled into a ball and waited for him to strike again. When he didn’t, she opened her eyes. Nosh and Mazus circled each other. Both men crouched in a fighting stance.

Mazus said, “You never deserved to be alpha. You’re too weak.”

“Stryde chose me. He knew you weren’t trustworthy.”

“Trustworthy? I’ve been at your side since you took over. I’ve been following your orders and doing your bidding for months. No one questions my loyalty. They all trust me. Once you’re dead, I’ll finally be able to take my rightful place.”

“That will never happen.”

“It should have happened already. You should have died when you fell off that cliff.”

Nosh’s muscles tensed. The twitch in his jaw worked overtime. “You threw me off the cliff when I was mourning my parents.”

“Obviously.”

Nosh sprang forward and tackled him. As they rolled closer to the stream, she couldn’t tell where one man began and the other ended. The flashing fists and kicking feet molded them into a ball of chaos. She picked up a large rock and prepared to throw it at Mazus. She couldn’t risk hitting Nosh so she moved closer.

Mazus rolled on top of Nosh and pinned him to the floor. His hands wrapped around the other wolf’s neck.

Now! She hurled the rock at the back of Mazus’s head. It hit with a resounding crack. But he didn’t fall. He simply turned and glared at her with absolute hatred. He rose up from Nosh and stalked toward her.

She shrieked and ran into the woods and slammed into Lucian.

The wolf grabbed her upper arms. “What’s going on? Why are you screaming? Where’s Nosh?”

Unable to speak, she pointed toward the stream.

Lucian hollered, “Over here.”

Several wolves crashed through the woods. As they raced past her, she collapsed against a tree. As she slid down the rough bark, the world dissolved around her.

Chapter 9

Nosh staggered to his feet just in time to spot Mazus crashing through the trees on the other side of the stream. He started after him but two steps later, he stopped. A sharp pain in his side brought him to his knees.

Footsteps pounded through the dirt.

Lucian raced up to him. “What happened? What’s going on?”

“Mazus attacked us.”

“What?”

“He went that way.” He pointed.

Lucian yelled. “Fadian, Edon, Mazus attacked Nosh and Gwen. Get him and bring him back to the den.”

Fadian and Edon shifted into their wolf forms and bounded into the woods. Lucian turned to Nosh. “Tell me what happened.”

“I don’t know. I heard Gwen screaming and I found Mazus on top of her.”

“Shit. Did he…”

“I don’t think so. Where’s Gwen?”

“In the woods.”

“I need to go to her.” Nosh fought the nausea roiling in his belly. Whatever discomfort he was feeling would have to wait. He had to make sure Gwen was okay.

He called out to her. “Gwen, where are you?”

When she didn’t answer, the hairs on the back on his neck stood on end. What if Mazus had circled back to kill her?

Nosh dashed through the woods screaming her name. As he rounded a thicket of blackberries, he spotted her sitting at the base of a tree. She looked up with a glassy gaze, as if she was looking through him, not at him.

“It’s me. It’s me,” he whispered over and over.

As he reached for her, she cowered. Her eyes went wide and she pummeled him with her small fists.

Nosh held her thrashing body at arm’s length. “Honey, stop.”

She blinked rapidly before dropping her arms to her side. She collapsed against him. “Oh, God.”

He pulled her close and held her while she sobbed. “Shh…”

“He was going to kill me.”

“I know, sweetie. I got you. You’re safe now.”

She pulled away. “Where is he? He’s coming. He’ll find me.”

“No. Lucian sent the hunting party after Mazus. He won’t get far. We’ll catch him.”

“Then what? Are you going to kill him?”

“No. But we’ll find a way to punish him.”

She looked at him with wild eyes. “He almost… he was going to…”

Nosh’s heart lurched. To think that she’d almost suffered another attack. How did he miss the signs? How did he not see that Mazus was dangerous? What kind of alpha was he if he couldn’t protect her from someone who was right under his nose?

A cold wind blew in from the north. Tree branches swayed and rattled a warning. Black clouds loomed overhead. The sky opened to unleash a deluge. Lightening flashed and thunder cracked as if hell-bent on ripping the air apart.

“We need to get back to the den,” he said.

“I won’t be safe there. I’ll never be safe again.”

He coaxed her to stand. “Come on, sweetie. We need to get out of the storm.”

“It’s not safe,” she whispered.

The glazed look in her eye wasn’t normal. She wasn’t doing well. He bent to try to scoop her up into his arms, but the pain in his ribs made it impossible.

“You have to walk. I can’t carry you.”

“Walk.” She nodded but didn’t move. She was probably in shock.

A bolt of lightning lit up the sky. He couldn’t risk staying out in the storm a minute longer, so he grabbed her ice-cold hand and pulled her along the path. She stumbled but managed to keep up.

By the time they’d reached the gate, rain pounded the earth. One of the wolves swung the gate open then closed it behind them. The relentless force of the wind propelled them into the den. Nosh stopped just inside the entrance. He leaned a hand against the wall and willed his stomach to stop clenching. If he’d had anything in his belly, he would have thrown up. With each passing second, the pain in his side spread deeper into his ribcage.

He glanced at Gwen who stood by his side with the same dazed look on her face. He ran his palm down her arm. Goosebumps pricked up from her shivering flesh. He needed to bundle her up and get her warm.

After leading her to his room, he sat her on the bed. He wrapped all of the blankets he could find around her before turning to stoke the fire. He didn’t stop adding logs to the pile until he’d created an inferno. Sweat beaded up along his forehead, partially from the heat and partially from the pain. He crawled onto the bed beside Gwen. She still hadn’t spoken a word.

“Sweetie, lay down next to me. My body heat will help you get warm.”

“I let him do it.”

“What?”

“Mazus… I let him do it.”

He bolted upright. “I thought you said he didn’t…”

When she shook her head “no”, he released a pent-up breath.

“But I didn’t stop him,” she whispered.

“You couldn’t stop him,” he corrected. “That’s not the same as letting him hurt you.”

She hung her head. “There will always be men like him out there and I can’t defend myself from them. I’m too weak.”

“Physically, maybe. But mentally, you’re one of the strongest women I know.”

“I cracked. As soon as he got on top of me, it was like I couldn’t move.”

“You were terrified.”

“I was weak.”

He slowly wrapped his arms around her shoulders and pulled her closer. If she’d given him any resistance, he would have let go immediately. His heart ached for her.

She rolled away from him. “What do I do to make them want to hurt me? I wish I knew. I’d stop doing it.”

“Oh, honey. It’s not you. It’s not anything you do.”

“So I’m just unlucky?” she asked bitterly.

“No.” He fumbled for what to say. “Mazus and Zane are terrible men. You didn’t do anything to provoke them. Men like that, they have no conscience. They take whatever they want, when they want.”

“I’ll never be free from them. They will always find me.”

He wasn’t sure if she was talking about Mazus and Zane specifically or not. Zane was dead, so maybe she meant men in general. Living in fear wasn’t a way to live. He had to find a way to help her. She’d mentioned she felt weak. He could teach her to fight. It wasn’t much, but it was the only way he knew how to help her.

He didn’t want to broach the subject right now. She needed comfort, not self-defense tips. As he eased an arm around her waist, she tensed then relaxed. At least she wasn’t afraid of him.

After a few minutes, he scooted closer. When she didn’t pull away, he spooned his body around hers and held her. She laced her fingers through his. The trembling in her body slowed. After a few minutes, it finally stopped.

She spoke in a voice so soft he could hardly hear it. “You saved me.”

“I’d do anything for you.”

She slowly rolled toward him until she faced him. “You’re so strong and powerful. I wish I was more like you.”

He brushed a lock of hair from her eyes. “We can make you stronger.”

“How?”

“I can teach you how to defend yourself.”

She shook her head. “I don’t know…”

He brushed her cheek with the side of his hand. “Do you trust me?”

“Yes,” she said without hesitation.

“Then let me teach you how to defend yourself.”

“But you’re hurt.”

“I don’t mean right this second,” he said with a smile.

Her face fell. “Oh, of course. You’re hurt… again… because of me.”

“No. This wasn’t your fault. It was Mazus’s. You have to stop taking responsibility for things that aren’t your fault.”

She sighed. “I know.”

“The only thing I’m going to hold you responsible for is following my training regimen.”

“Oh?”

“And your first lesson is that you need to get enough sleep. You need to be alert enough to recognize danger and take immediate action.”

Her eyebrows knitted together. “We’re starting already?”

“The sooner we start, the sooner you’ll be strong enough physically to defend yourself.”

“Are you sure you can teach me? I’m not as tall or big as those guys were. How could I possibly fight them?”

“It’s not always about brute force. You can use your attacker’s weight against him. But don’t worry about any of that right now. Right now, I want you to get some sleep.”

She lowered her head to the pillow and snuggled closer to him. “Why do I feel so safe with you?”

“Because, I would never hurt you.”

She sighed against his chest. “I wish I could just lay like this forever.”

As he rested his chin on the top of her head, he had the same wish. Within minutes, her chest rose and fell in the rhythm of deep sleep. He wanted to hold her all night, but first he needed to check on the status of Mazus’s capture.

He slid his arm out from under her neck. She whimpered and wrapped her arms around the pillow. The features on her face softened to make her appear years younger. A fierce need to protect straightened his spine. He could rest later. Right now, he needed an update.

***

Nosh found Lucian huddled with a group of wolves just outside the entrance to the den. Based on their furrowed brows and glum faces, it didn’t look good.

“What’s going on? Did you guys catch him?” Nosh asked.

“Everyone but Edon has reported in. The rain killed the scent trail.”

Through the gloom, Nosh spotted Edon trotting up to the gate. “Let him in.”

The wolf cantered up to the group before shifting into his human form. “I made it as far as the Silver Creek River then I lost him. I think he swam down river. I checked along the banks, but I couldn’t pick up the trail.”

Nosh said, “That’s okay. We’ll regroup and send a larger party out in the morning. Until then, I want double the guards on gate watch.”

Lucian stepped forward. “I’ll take the first shift along with Tate. We already have two guys on right now.”

Fadian said, “I’ll take second shift with Edon. I’ll round up a few more guys before we take over.”

Nosh said, “Good. If anyone sees Mazus approach, take him down.”

“Got it.”

As the wolves dispersed to their posts or into the den, Lucian remained behind. “How’s Gwen?”

“Shaken up. Being attacked by Mazus really shook her up.”

“She must have been terrified.”

“She thinks it was her fault.”

Lucian’s lips formed a thin line. “I hope you told her that’s complete horseshit.”

“I did. But…”

“What?”

“Zane really messed her up. She has trouble sleeping and when she does manage to relax, she has terrible nightmares. If Zane was still alive, I’d kill him myself.”

“Men like him don’t deserve to live. I’m glad he’s dead.”

“I’m worried about her.”

“You seem to care for her a lot.”

“She helped bring me back from the brink of death.”

Lucian smiled. “It’s more than that and you know it.”

“Maybe.”

“Maybe my ass. Is she your mate?”

Nosh cocked his head to one side. “I don’t know.”

“If she was, you’d know it.”

“Maybe.” Or maybe he just wasn’t ready to admit how much he cared about her. He fidgeted, suddenly wanting to hold her in his arms.