His breath came out in a cloud as he reached the clearing. It was cold, but his panther protected him by sitting just under his skin. Malaki was already there, leaning against a pole the Guardians had stuck in the ground a few years ago.
“I’m here,” Malaki snarled. “What do you want?”
“We need to find common ground when it comes to your sister,” Taze stated, keeping his eye on the male. Malaki was volatile whenever Calla was mentioned.
“There is no common ground,” the male barked as he pushed away from the pole to come closer. “Leave her alone. How hard is that for you to understand?”
“Have you found her?” Taze asked, changing the subject. “I know you’ve gone against the alpha’s orders to leave her alone.”
“That’s none of your fucking business,” Malaki spat.
“You know if he finds out, you’re going to be kicked out,” Taze reminded him.
“If I do, I’m taking her with me,” he warned, causing Taze’s panther to perk up and show himself by extending his canines.
“No, you’re not,” Taze defended. “She needs to be here.”
“You’re not turning her into a Protector,” Malaki began as he stepped up into Taze’s personal space. “She doesn’t want that. Let her go to school and do what she wants.”
“This has nothing to do with her schooling,” Taze replied, feeling his animal prowling again. “She’s run off because of our fighting. I don’t know what the hell is going on with her, but I’m going to find out, and I’m going to be there to help her heal from all the shit going on in her head. The fighting between us is just making it worse.”
“You are not going to help my sister do anything,” her brother warned. “Leave her alone, Taze. She’s not yours.”
Taze took a deep, calming breath when Malaki mentioned Calla not belonging to him. It was a lie Malaki told himself. They knew there was a mating brewing between him and Calla, but Taze had a feeling there was something deep down neither one of them was telling anyone.
“Oh, she is mine,” Taze replied as his face partially shifted. “There’s no mistaking the mating scent we both put off when we are close. It’s not a matter of if, but when we finally claim each other.”
“Don’t you dare touch her!” Malaki bellowed as he took the first swing, connecting with Taze’s jaw. “She isn’t ready for you!”
“Why?” Taze growled as he spit blood on the ground. He felt his beast push for release to protect his human side, but Taze wasn’t in danger. He wanted answers, and if exchanging blows got her brother to talk, he was going to push the male to talk. When Malaki tried to come at him again, Taze swung, connection with his cheek. “What happened to her that both of you are hiding?”
At his words, Malaki rushed him, trying to take Taze to the ground. The male didn’t have a chance to grab him before Taze used his speed to move out of the way.
“I don’t want to fight you,” Taze yelled. “I just want to know where she is, because I care for her, Malaki. I want what’s best for her, but your hatred of me is making things worse.”
“She’s my sister, and it’s my responsibility to care for her,” he snarled. “Not you!”
“Do you know where she is?” Taze asked, hoping Malaki had the answer. When the male’s eyes dropped to the ground, he had his answer. “Can’t you see what we’ve done to her? She didn’t even tell you, her brother, where she was going.”
“I don’t know where she is,” Malaki finally admitted after his eyes returned to their normal icy blue. “I’ve searched for days, and I haven’t slept.”
“Neither have I,” Taze admitted.
“I’m going to go out on my own if she’s not home by morning,” Malaki admitted, running his hands through his blond hair. “At this point, I’m willing to give up my Guardian status.”
“You can’t,” Taze blurted. “Malaki, the pride needs you.”
“My sister is everything to me,” he reminded him. “We’ve been through so much together, and I can’t let her down. She needs me.”
“Or do you need her?” Taze asked. “Calla is an independent female, and she has grown so much since you two came to the pride. Despite her trauma, she is self-sufficient and doesn’t need to be coddled.”
“You…you just won’t ever understand.” Malaki deflated and sunk to his knees as if the weight of his anger and worry dropped him where he stood. “I want her to have the world.”
“And I want to provide that for her.” Taze moved closer to the male and reached out his hand. “She’s dealing with a lot, and she needs us to be there for her. I’m not saying we should become best friends, but we need to stop this fighting so she can heal. Can you at least do that?”
Malaki stared at Taze’s outstretched hand for the longest time. Taze was certain the male would slap it away, and he was surprised when he didn’t.
“If you hurt her,” Malaki said as he gripped Taze’s hand.
“If I hurt her, I give you full approval to kick my ass,” Taze promised. “I don’t want to change her to be something she’s not. I do wish she would have stuck with the program, because even you can admit, she’s one hell of a tracker. She’s refused to train, and I’ve come to terms with that recently. If she wants to be a lawyer, then I’m going to support her.”
“Just…be easy with her,” Malaki replied as he relaxed his grip. “There are still things you don’t know. I’m going to let her tell you, but I want you to know, she’s going to have a hard time when she does.”
“I’ll be there for her,” he promised. “Now, where does that leave us?”
“I still don’t like you,” Malaki said as he narrowed his eyes. “But for Calla, I’ll keep my opinions about you to myself.”
“That’s a start,” Taze mumbled as the male turned and walked out of the clearing.
Storm Cooper and his brother, Lucky, sat on the front porch of his cabin and drank a much-needed beer. They were off rotation for the night, and Storm was glad he had some normal time with his baby brother.
“Let’s not talk about work tonight,” Lucky groaned and leaned forward in his chair.
“Agreed,” Storm noted as his eyes searched the road that passed by his home. Evie’s family was outside grilling and offered to bring them some food, but both of the men promised they’d be okay.
“You’ve been awfully quiet lately,” Lucky observed, and Storm’s mind was so far away, he didn’t really pay much attention to his statement. “A lot more than usual.”
He’d seen a woman at Noah’s place the other morning, and ever since then, he couldn’t get her scent out of his head. She was obviously human, but there was something else about her that had his panther sitting up and taking notice.
Of course, she was stunningly beautiful, but she was reserved…almost too reserved. The nurse at Landon’s office had the most stunning green eyes he swore he’d ever seen, and her dark brown hair flowed effortlessly around her petite face.
“Have you ever been to Landon’s office?” Storm blurted. Lucky, being used to his brother’s usual quiet nature, looked at him with a bit of shock and confusion.
“Yeah, once,” Lucky said with a nod after he’d drained the rest of his beer. “I had to drop something off to the new doc there for Landon.”
“Did you see the nurse?” he asked, still staring off into space.
“Which one? I saw two that day.” Lucky frowned. “Why? What’s going on?”
Storm shook his head, silently telling his brother to give it a rest, and when Lucky began to speak about it again, the elder Guardian shut him down. “It’s nothing, really.”
“Oh, shit!” Lucky gasped, then began to laugh. “She’s your mate!”
“No,” Storm scowled. “She’s not.”
“Bullshit,” Lucky replied. “You wouldn’t be asking about a female…a human at that, if your beast didn’t sense it when you saw her.”
“I only saw her once,” Storm grumbled. “Hell, I didn’t even talk t
o the female.”
“Holy smokes, my big brother found his mate.” Lucky leaned his head back and laughed again. Storm wanted to belt the little bastard, but he didn’t want him to cry.
“Let it rest, little brother,” Storm replied, taking a long drink from his beer bottle. “I’ll probably never see her again.”
The glare he gave his little brother was enough to get the male off his case. He should’ve never brought up the female, but he couldn’t stop thinking about her and the scent she carried.
Calla awoke to the sun setting on the day. She tossed the covers aside as the sweat pebbled on her skin. Luna was across the room, sitting in a chair by a small fireplace. She set her book on her lap and smiled. “How are you feeling?”
“Same,” Calla moaned when the wave of need hit her core.
She’d dreamed about Taze again, but this time, he’d walked away from her when she returned to the pride.
“I can give you another sedative now, but I’d like for you to eat something first.”
Calla nodded and sat up in the bed. Luna had been so helpful over the past five days. She didn’t know how she was going to repay the female. “Thank you for helping me.”
“Oh, sweetheart, I wouldn’t be anywhere else,” she cooed as she returned with a Tupperware dish containing half a chicken and some mashed potatoes. “You need protein, but I also know the medicine can make you a little nauseous.”
Calla ate as much of the chicken as she could before the hot flashes became too much. The ache in her belly wasn’t from food. It was her nature wanting a male’s seed. Without it, she would suffer for another few days.
“God, this is painful,” she cried out as the pain and heat in her body flared.
“It’s almost over,” Luna reminded her as she uncapped the syringe. “Just a few more days.”
The pinch of pain from the needle was welcomed. She’d had enough food to satisfy the healer’s mate, and the medicine would take ten to fifteen minutes to work. She rolled over to her side and curled up in the fetal position while Luna discarded the rest of her meal.
“I don’t want anyone knowing about this,” she moaned as the pain continued.
“This is your time, Calla,” Luna said, then sighed and came over to sit on the edge of the bed. Calla closed her eyes as the white wolf stroked the side of her face. “You do not have to tell anyone about this, and it’s your right as a woman to keep your mating heat private.”
“My brother,” she yawned, feeling the first seconds of relief from the medicine. “He’s going to hound me until I tell him.”
“When are you going to realize that you are not your brother’s concern?” Luna scolded. “What you are going through right now is a private awakening of your womanly body. The only person who controls how this heat goes is you, and if you had a mate, you two would make this decision together. You don’t owe Malaki any explanations.”
“What about Taze?” she asked as tears built in her eyes.
“Is he your mate?” Luna asked. Calla appreciated her cautiousness with the information, but everyone knew the two of them were mates after that meeting in Talon’s office. She was sure word had spread throughout the pride within a day or two.
“My panther says so,” she sniffled. “I just…I don’t know if I can…because…”
Luna’s eyes searched her face, and the healer’s mate sighed heavily as tears built in her own eyes. “You talk about it when you’re ready.”
Calla felt the darkness coming. The medicine was reaching its peak, and she closed her eyes for several minutes, blinking rapidly as she awoke. Luna was across the room already, and she was packing away her supplies. When the female noticed her eyes were open, she returned quickly with a cool rag to lay across Calla’s forehead.
“It’s okay, Calla, you can sleep now,” she whispered.
Calla closed her eyes, accepting the darkness, but her mind brought up a picture of Taze when he was chopping wood this past fall. He’d been shirtless. Something about that day brought out a desire she’d kept hidden for so long. The animal inside her prowled with need, but her human mind locked down on the thought of any type of sexual need.
But it was Taze…the male who’d taken care of her when she had wanted to learn to fight…the male who’d been so patient with her after he’d finally let go of the old world thinking of the males in the pride.
It was Taze.
The male who was her true mate.
Tears poured out of her eyes, but she didn’t make a sound. He’d backed off when she gave up, but he wasn’t happy about it. His support in the training facility ended that day, but he never wavered. She’d pushed him away more times than not whenever he would actually stop to check on her. Her past kept her from seeing what was right in front of her, and her hidden fear would destroy her future if she didn’t get control over it.
“Only my brother knows what really happened to me,” she mumbled as she fell fast asleep.
What she didn’t see was Luna dropping to her knees and silently weeping.
Chapter Nine
Taze parked his truck at the usual spot downtown, locking the doors once Evie and Noah were out. He didn’t want to fucking be there, and his mood was getting more sour by the hour since Calla wasn’t back at the pride.
“Agent Tabor sent over surveillance showing some activity close to Fourth and Vance behind an abandoned gas station,” Noah read from the group text he’d received. Taze didn’t even care to look at his phone. He was more focused on taking down as many rogues as he could.
They needed to get to the bottom of this Khat problem and find Holden Manzelli. The leads had run dry on the Amburo family when the brother was reported boarding a flight back to Somalia, and Agent Murdock was heading up bogus stakeouts with Storm and Lucky. Taze had to give the males credit. He didn’t think he could fake it long enough to catch the crooked agent in the act. He’d have just beat the crap out of him until he confessed.
Evie froze as the sounds of a woman screaming filled the night. The female pulled her bandana up over her face and began to run toward the woman. They were two blocks away from the location, and when they arrived, there was movement in a small wooded area behind the building.
“Evie, wait,” Taze called out, feeling a shiver roll down his spine. “Something’s not right.”
“Yeah, wait,” Noah barked, holding his hand out for everyone to slow down.
There was the scent of deceit on the air so thick it was like sticking your nose in a bucket of vinegar. Taze crinkled his nose as he shifted his eyes. Inside the tree line, there was nothing but the sound of the woman’s voice closer than it should be.
“Watch out!” Noah yelled as six males darted from behind the building. The female’s voice was getting closer. She was begging for help, screaming uncontrollably.
Evie cursed as a male wrapped his arms around her body. Taze made a move to assist her, but one of them stepped in his way. He dodged the fist aimed at his face. He took pleasure in returning the favor, knocking him out cold.
When Taze looked up, Evie had flipped the male over her shoulder and slapped a collar around his throat. She was just starting to restrain him with the handcuffs when another male came at him. He tried to keep his eye on the female, but there was no time. There were four males coming at them.
Taze and Noah went back-to-back as they advanced. Noah was the first one to make a move to knock the tall, dark-haired one on his ass. The next guy ran at Taze, breaking him away from his fellow Guardian. Holy fuck, they were strong. The Khat gave them a boost in their already supernatural abilities, but it made them sloppy fighters.
As Noah and Taze dropped them, Evie was there to restrain them. By the time they were on the ground, the screaming female had come crawling out of the woods, blood covering her mouth.
“Please, god, help me,” she cried.
“Call for the van,” Evie yelled. “I’ve got her.”
The female fell into Evie’s arms and sc
reamed as her body convulsed. Their Protector reached into her vest and retrieved the syringe Harold had provided them for when they found females in the midst of their transitions.
“I promise this will help,” Evie cooed as she stuck the woman in the back of the arm. Taze shook his head as the woman didn’t even flinch. The pain of the shot was nothing compared to what her body was going through. “We are going to get you help.”
“Where’s that van?” Taze hollered over his shoulder. Seeing a woman in distress caused a slight panic. It wasn’t as strong as the panic he felt every time he thought of Calla being held by those wolves. If his panic was bad, he had a damned good idea how Calla felt when the memories would come back to haunt her.
“They’re three minutes out,” he replied. “Let’s see what we can find on these males.”
They spent the next few minutes digging through their pockets, and Taze growled low in his throat as he found more and more baggies of Khat. It disgusted him that the alpha was willingly pumping those poor wolves full of the drug against their will. It was cruel.
Kraven Alexander, Hope’s big brother, arrived exactly as he’d said. The woman was wrapped in a blanket and taken to the only cot in the back. The males were cuffed to their seats on the other side of the transport van.
He’d take the female to Harold and the pride after delivering the males to the airport, which was only minutes from their location. The female would stay at the pride until her three days were over. After that, she would be moved to Colorado and given the blood of the alpha there, ensuring Holden Manzelli wouldn’t mind control her either.
Taze (Rise of the Pride, Book 11) Page 8
