“It’s just my mother,” she reassured me and I growled. I didn’t give a shit who it was, if they hit my mate I was going to tear them limb from limb. I spun around, seeing Payne’s surprised expression right before I shifted into wolf form and ran to the motel.
By the time I got there, Jess was outside the motel, clearly amused. She glimpsed my shape in the shadows and sent me, “I’m fine.”
“You’re happy,” I replied in confusion, still feeling the sting of the slap she’d been given.
“My dad, the hero,” she called out, her Dad frowning as he glanced over his shoulder, and Jess replayed her Dad escorting her mother out of the motel. She was fine, her cheek not bothering her, and I went back to the Pack House, admonishing her to stay inside.
***
“Their plan is to attack us on neutral ground,” I explained. “It makes sense. They’d never succeed if they attacked us on our land. It’s the same reason we’ve never attempted to attack them on their own territory.”
“But where is neutral territory?” Anna’s father asked and I frowned.
“The motel,” Anna answered, correctly interpreting my expression. “It’s really the only place that makes sense.”
“The question is when.” I pressed my lips together, knowing our time was short. “They can’t wait any longer, which means we need to anticipate an attack at any time.”
“Sage,” Trent’s single word over the link sent a chill through me, but it was Jess’s sudden overwhelming fear that drove me out the Pack House.
“It’s now,” I shouted as I responded to Jess over our link, “Get a gun. Barricade the door.” I cursed myself for coming back to the Pack House. I’d known an attack was imminent and every second it took to reach Jess felt like a lifetime.
“Protect her,” I roared over the link to Trent and he obeyed instantly. I jumped into the Jeep, Anna and Caleb with me as they shifted into their wolf forms. I drove faster than I ever had, ignoring Payne’s presence beside me. He’d grabbed onto the side of the Jeep as I’d torn out of the village and I didn’t have time to babysit him.
My Dad and the Alpha followed along, every shifter in our Pack converging on the motel. Trent stood guard in front of the motel apartment, his distinctive coloring making him stand out in the parking lot.
Over two dozen Hanley wolves waited for us and a dozen more Hanley men. A flicker of unease went through me, knowing the odds weren’t in our favor.
“No matter what happens, stay inside,” I commanded Jess over the link. She didn’t immediately answer me and I sent her a mental nudge.
“I can’t promise that,” she answered, her heart racing as thoughts of me being injured played through her thoughts. I growled, the sound echoing through her mind, and causing her to flinch.
“I promise to stay alive,” she answered. “Can you do the same?”
“For you, yes,” I promised instantly and felt her take a breath.
“Stay safe,” she whispered, and I intentionally shut down our link, needing to focus on the fight ahead. A Hanley darted forward and my attention narrowed to protecting my Pack. Trent came to my flank as I surged forward, tearing into any threat. I snapped at soft underbellies as Anna went for their legs, her smaller form giving her an advantage. Caleb followed after us, easily finishing off the weakened wolves as my dad and the Alpha fought their way to the Hanley Alpha.
I lost Anna in the turmoil of the fight until she gave a short howl, alerting me that Jess was outside.
“Turn around,” I growled, already knowing it was pointless.
“I won’t let her get hurt,” she answered me determinedly.
I snarled in rage and started toward her, but another wolf got in my way. I slammed my body into him, my teeth sinking into his throat with ease as his whimper turned to a gurgle. Pain distracted me and another wolf lunged. I twisted and Trent knocked him away. I fought my way toward Jess, but it was slow going. A moment later, a gunshot rang out and everything stopped. Hanleys ran, scattering like rats, as a pounding started in my head, there was a weight in my chest that rivaled of an anvil.
“No,” I whispered, the silence inside my head deafening. Another shot rang out and I saw the sheriff fall. Jess stood up, cradling her arm but otherwise safe. The silence continued to grow, spreading over the parking lot as we gathered closer.
“They’re running away,” I informed Jess, my words echoing flatly over our link.
“Dominic,” she whispered, fear forming a knot. “Please.”
Caleb howled, breaking the silence that had fallen and a chorus of others followed, my own among them. We formed a ring around our Alpha, paying our respects. Grief rocked through us, the nature of his death wrong. I sat next to Caleb as Payne stood on his other side, his hand buried in the scruff of Caleb’s neck.