Fierce Obsessions (The Phoenix Pack 6)

“He’s okay, Riley,” Max assured her, voice calming. “The bullet went straight through. It didn’t hit anything vital.”

“Max has got this, sweetheart,” Ethan said through his teeth, sweat beading on his upper lip.

Done cleaning Riley’s graze, Tao massaged her nape as he watched Max lay his hands over Ethan’s wound, concentration etched into every line of the raven’s face. “You’re a healer?”

“My skills are too weak for me to be classed as an actual healer,” replied Max. “But I can speed up the healing process by stopping blood flow and helping wounds scab over. That’s pretty much it, though. And only if the wound isn’t too bad.”

This wound was bad. Pacing, Riley shoved a hand through her hair. It seemed as if the air had gone from the room and she were smothering. Raw shock had sent her thoughts tumbling, leaving her mind scrambling to make sense of the situation. Everything had happened so fast she couldn’t properly process it. She felt panicked, out of control. “What . . . what the hell . . . who the fuck just shot Ethan? And why would someone do that?” Well, there was one way to find out.

Tao slid in front of her when she tried to barge outside. “Whoa, whoa, whoa!” He grabbed her shoulders, careful not to touch the graze on her upper arm. “We stay here.”

“They could still be out there!” she hissed. “I could shift and fly—”

“And get shot. Not happening.”

“Riley, stay with us, sweetheart,” Ethan urged, voice groggy.

She looked back at him, chest tightening. Max was now using a wet cloth to clean the excess blood from the closed wound. It still looked ugly and raw, and it made her throat thicken.

“I don’t think that bullet was intended for Ethan.”

At Tao’s words, she whipped her head back to face him. “What?”

“I think it was meant for you.”

She frowned. “No, I don’t—”

“It was meant for you,” Tao stated.

“You’re wrong, I—” But then she remembered how, just before the bullet was fired, she’d bent to grab the knife she’d accidentally knocked off the table. Could someone have been aiming for her? And why? Who would do that? Who would try to shoot her and . . . ? “Shirley,” she bit out.

“No,” said Tao.

Riley put her hands on her hips. “Well, it was her or Cynthia.”

“I don’t think it was either of them,” Tao told her. “That call I just received was from Ramón. He still won’t accept that Taryn can’t help his brother, and he’s pissed with me because he feels that I didn’t communicate to her just how serious he was.”

“That doesn’t mean—”

“And just as he asks me what I’d do if you were dying in front of me, you’re shot at. You think that’s a coincidence?”

Riley’s mouth dropped open. “That motherfucker.”

“Wait, who’s Ramón?” asked Ethan, just as Max growled, “Someone’s threatening you?”

Tao drew her against him as he explained to her uncles. “Ramón Veloz is a human and suspected drug lord who’s allegedly involved in all kinds of illegal shit. His brother’s dying of a brain tumor, and he wants my Alpha female to heal him.”

Max’s brow furrowed. “Even if she could, surely that would kill her.”

“Exactly,” said Tao. “Not that she’d heal someone who’s suspected of several murders. You could say he’s dug his own grave, in a roundabout way.” Needing to speak to Trey, Tao dug out his cell and dialed the Alpha’s number.

After just two rings, Trey answered. “Yep?”

“Did you call Ramón?”

Trey hesitated, as if surprised by the question. “Yeah. I explained that Taryn wouldn’t be able to help and wished him luck finding a healer who could. Not that he listened. He’s called several times since then. We ignored the calls and let them go to voice mail. Each message is an offer of yet more money. The last offer exceeded a quarter of a million.”

“Shit.” Tao scrubbed a hand down his face. “Well, he’s not fucking happy that you aren’t accepting his offers, and he’s pissed at me for not impressing upon you just how serious he is. The son of a bitch not only somehow got my number and called me; he had someone follow us here.”

“Follow you?”

“Yeah. And that someone just fucking shot at Riley.”

“What?”

“The bullet grazed her arm, but it hit her uncle’s shoulder. Luckily, he’s going to be fine.”

“What, what’s going on?” asked Taryn in the background.

“Don’t lose your shit, baby,” said Trey, “but Riley was shot at.”

“Are you kidding me?” Taryn fairly shrieked. Tao and Riley both winced.

“His uncle took the bullet, not her,” Trey told his mate. “Hang on, I’ll put Tao on speakerphone. Tao, tell us exactly what happened.”

Tao relayed his conversation with Ramón and then gave them a rundown of what had happened after the call.

Trey swore again. “You’re sure Ramón’s behind it?”

“It’s too much of a coincidence that the shooting happened right after the call.” The bastard would pay for it. His wolf, pacing angrily, growled his agreement. He wanted to taste Ramón’s blood, to rip him apart limb from fucking limb.

“I don’t think he meant for her to be killed, Tao. I think it was just a warning. The kind of guys who work for people like Ramón Veloz don’t miss.”

Fair point, but it didn’t make Tao feel any better. “We’ll be back tomorrow morning—”

“It might be best if you stay there a little longer. If any of his people are lurking around Exodus territory, they might make a grab for you as you leave. Then we really would be fucked, because the guy would no doubt threaten to kill both of you unless Taryn heals his brother—and that would likely kill her. None of us want to be put in that kind of position.”

Riley folded her arms and declared, “I’m not leaving until Ethan’s fully recovered, Tao.”

“His wound will be almost fully healed by tomorrow,” Tao told her.