Savannah.
Protect her.
I sprang up and cursed as I raced in her direction. I shouldn’t have left her alone.
A concussive force knocked me off my feet, and a jolt of agony raced up my spine as a bullet tore through my side. I rolled across the dirt as more bullets lodged in the ground next to me, then I slipped behind some rocks for cover.
Gritting my teeth against the searing pain that spread through my side, I reached my fingers into the wound and wrenched out the silver bullet. There was a lot of blood. The wound would take time to heal since it was caused by silver, and I was in human form.
My vision homed in on my attacker, and I launched myself through the air. My claws ripped into his jacket, and I pinned him to the ground. His claws tore into my side, but I ignored the pain. Savoring the wild euphoria of battle, I gripped his head with my hands. One twist, and his neck snapped.
I paused, listening to the sounds of the forest as the bloodlust filled me.
Footsteps. A shifter moving north on our right. A woman.
I stalked forward, my hunter instinct in command. The woman paused, seemingly sensing me. I burst out from the bushes as she blindly opened fire. Something tore into my chest as I collided with her. Her hands had erupted into claws, and she ripped into my face. I growled with rage as I pinned her with one hand, and then tore her throat out with my claws. The metallic scent of blood filled the air.
Sam’s scream ripped through my chest.
She’s in pain, but alive.
Sam was my right hand, and I fought the urge to charge toward her. Savannah first. I locked onto Savannah’s familiar tangerine scent and sprinted through the trees. I found the spot I’d left her, but she was gone.
A growl of rage erupted from my throat. I’d told her to stay put, but she never obeyed.
I’ll teach her to obey.
Frustration clouded my vision as I followed her scent toward the cabin. Shit. Was she going after Billy alone?
What was she thinking?
Savannah
I coughed and tried to make out the shapes in the darkness. I swore I saw Jaxson moving through the forest, but it was so dark and foggy, it was hard to tell.
I’d retreated from the range lights and gunfire and circled around to the other side of the cabin. I had no idea where anyone was, and I couldn’t distinguish our wolves from theirs. My plan was to shoot anything that even looked like it was thinking about charging me.
Movement drew my attention toward the cabin. The door closed, and a man slunk down the steps, making his way around back.
Holy shit. Billy.
I’d recognize the bastard from a mile away, even with the fog. His aura of fucking evil was unmistakable.
I sneaked around the tree line bordering the cabin and followed him. Two run-down trucks and a Honda were parked out back, and the brake lights of one of the trucks illuminated.
The bastard was running. Coward.
I couldn’t let him get away. This was my only chance to identify the sorcerer.
I raced toward the truck as it lurched down a second gravel road. I tried the door of the adjacent Honda, but it was locked.
No, no, no.
I wrenched open the door of the second truck and spotted a set of keys in the cupholder—it was primed for an easy getaway, I guessed. I slipped onto the tattered leather seat, pressed the clutch, and shoved the keys into the ignition. The truck rumbled to life, and I fishtailed out of the driveway after Billy.
The gears were sticky and ground a bit, but I shifted her into second and then third as I floored it down the dirt road, silently praying that none of Jaxson’s wolves crossed my path.
I’d already run over two wolves. Luckily, they were rogue psychopaths, or else I’m pretty sure the pack would have ended me for that alone.