“A couple of weeks,” he growled, his eyes sparking amber. The male shook his head as if he were trying to clear his mind. “You need to call for your alpha. They have drugged me and I know not what I am doing. I don’t want to hurt you.”
She looked around the male and saw that the man in the lab coat was busy typing something on the computer. Her panther pushed forward, demanding a shift, but she held back. Would they see her?
“Do it,” the male snarled, lunging for her. “I can only cover your face for a moment. Shift, damn it! Do it!”
The male grabbed the bars behind her head and covered her body, but he didn’t touch her again. His snarls echoed in the warehouse and it honestly scared her so bad, her panther circled in her mind. She had to focus.
“Come on,” she whispered, closing her eyes. The panther inside pushed to the surface, wanting out, but Mary Grace tightened her hold on the beast, only allowing it to bubble under her skin. She pulled in all of the magic she could muster and prayed what she was doing was going to work.
Talon!
Please help!
She didn’t have long to call for her alpha before the gate opened and the male was shot with a dart. She screamed as he slumped to the floor, his body landing on top of her legs. She scrambled backward and pushed him off when the burning fire of his touch became too much.
She felt Talon’s power swirl around her, demanding to know where she was. It was all she could do not to cry, hoping that he would understand her short messages.
Scientists…Building…Hurry.
“You’re coming with me,” the man in the lab coat ordered. “Don’t try anything stupid. I will kill you.”
She cried as he grasped her upper arm, pulling her toward the cage door. They didn’t go far before he opened a metal door, shoving her inside. There was a gurney and monitors against the wall. A tray was beside the gurney with several empty vials used to collect blood.
“What are you doing?” she asked, trying to move out of his hold.
“It’s time to see how you tick,” he laughed, pushing her to the mattress. She started to fight, but he reached behind his back and the click of the gun was all she heard before the barrel was pressed to her temple. “Get on the bed.”
Talon kissed a path across his mate’s jaw, ignoring the knock on his bedroom door. He didn’t care if the damn house was burning down around him, nothing could be as important as being nestled between his mate’s legs.
“You need to see who that is,” Liberty purred.
“No,” he mumbled, following a path down to her nipple. God, her breasts had grown so much over the past several months. His cub was growing inside its mother, and at that moment, nothing could bring him out of the euphoric high of his life.
Knock! Knock!
“Go the fuck away!” Talon barked, continuing his trek down his mate’s body. He press his lips to the bump on Liberty’s belly. He still hadn’t felt his cub kick yet, even though Liberty had been feeling small flutters for a few weeks already.
“Talon,” Winter called from the other side of the door.
“Fuck,” he said, jumping from the bed. Talon knew if his second in command was brave enough to bother the alpha in his room, something was wrong. “I’m sorry.”
“Go,” she urged, pulling the covers up over her body. The scent of her arousal almost had him climbing back in the bed, but Winter’s next words sent his feet moving.
“Cole just called,” he choked. “Mary Grace was kidnapped.”
Liberty cried out, throwing the covers aside. Talon quickly caught his mate as she rushed toward the door. He grabbed one of his shirts and pulled it over her body. She knelt down and grabbed a pair of shorts as he covered himself with his own clothes.
“Where’s Savage?” Talon demanded. He knew the man would go feral if his mate had been taken.
“We don’t know.” Winter cursed, running his hand through his short, cropped blond hair. “Has neither one of them called out for you?”
“No,” Talon said, taking Liberty’s hand and pulling her from the room. The three of them rushed down the stairs and were met with all of his Guardians. “Tell me what you know.”
“Cole called, saying that masked men came into the bar. They grabbed Mary Grace and bound her with rope as they held everyone at gunpoint. I called Savage and all I could get from him was that he knew that Mary Grace had been taken. He said that human males had hit him over the head and knocked him out cold as he was walking into The Deuce after doing a sweep of the parking lot.” Winter paced the floor as he talked. “Savage said that he was going to find her on his own. He didn’t want to call out for you because he was going after them alone.”
“Damn it! We have to find them,” Talon ordered. When he reached the living room, his pride had already gathered and his Guardians were poised and ready.
Just then, Talon gasped as a force pushed at his mind. Mary Grace was in pain…a lot of pain. The alpha crumbled to one knee as the newest member of his pride called out to him.
Talon!
Help!
Talon pushed his power out, hoping to calm Savage’s mate. Even the panthers in the room felt it when Talon closed his eyes and let the magic inside him free. The effects rolled through the pride, like a fog of invisible calm. He needed the strength of his pride and they were there as a unit to help him.
Where are you?
No answer came back to him and he was worried they’d sedated her. He pushed at her mind again, demanding information. He could feel her trying to reach out, but it was weak.
Scientists…Building…Hurry
“Rycon has her,” Talon snarled, his vision changing with his anger.
Screams echoed through his head as Mary Grace continued to call for help over and over again. Talon squeezed his eyes closed and fought the pain he was feeling from Savage’s mate. They were touching her skin and the pain was so fierce, Talon knew more than one of those sick bastards was causing her pain.
Talon barked orders as he ran from the house. Liberty stood in the threshold, crying for all she was worth. Nova, who’d just arrived with her mate, rushed around the side of the house, taking her sister into her arms. Kye flew down the stairs, pulling a shirt over his head.
“I’ve got it, Talon,” Kye promised, standing tall. Talon was sure his baby brother would protect his mate and sister-in-law with his life.
He didn’t even have time to kiss his mate and console her as he left the pride’s land, putting his phone to his ear as it rang through to the sheriff.
“I need inside Rycon,” Talon barked, pressing on the accelerator as he sped toward the warehouse. “They have Mary Grace, and Savage has gone missing.”
“I’m at the bar, but will meet you there,” Sheriff Lynch promised, but continued with a warning. “Don’t you dare go in there without me, Talon Shaw.”
“If you are not there by the time I arrive, all bets are off,” Talon replied. “Garrett, they’re hurting her.”
The sheriff belted out his own string of curses. He quieted for a moment, and what he said next surprised even the alpha.
“No law,” he snarled. “I’ll be there, but this is yours.”
“Are you sure?” Talon asked, wanting conformation. “You do realize you are breaking your own laws by allowing me to deal out justice for my pride?”
“I know nothing,” he answered. The line went silent and Talon tossed his phone onto the seat beside him. Several trucks followed as he raced to the north side of town.
Chapter Seventeen
Savage watched as the scientist slid into his car at the abandoned home next door to the bar. He wore his lab coat and a pair of wire rimmed glasses. His sandy blond hair was disheveled as if he’d been running his hands through it nervously. From his position, Savage could already see the fear in the man’s brown eyes.
Savage kept to the shadows, tracking the man as his vehicle turned out of the driveway. He crept along the road for a few seconds before speedi
ng up to make his way toward town. Savage ripped at his clothes, knowing he could run faster in his panther form. He didn’t even fight the shift as his beast took over.
The car came to a stop at the next intersection less than a mile up the road, and Savage made his move, pushing away his panther so he could kill this man with his human hands. His brute strength ripped the door from its hinges and the man inside screamed in fear. Savage’s chest rumbled when his panther tasted the scent of fear on the air. This was what a predator lived for…the hunt. The terror in its prey’s eyes. All of it was welcomed as Savage wrapped a hand around the man’s throat.
“Where is she?” he growled low, his vision taking on an amber hue. “Where is my mate?”
“I…I don’t know what you’re talking about,” the scientist stuttered.
“She is mine and you have taken her from me,” he snarled, his canines growing thicker. He felt the panther just on the edge of another shift but sent it back, telling his beast to be patient. This human’s time would end soon enough. “This means that you answer to me.”
“Let me go,” the man ordered.
“No,” Savage spat. The man struggled as Savage began dragging him off into a wooded area. He left the car sitting there, idling at the four way stop. It was the middle of the night and on the outskirts of town. It would be quite some time before the car was noticed.
Savage snarled when the man began to struggle, clipping him in the thigh. The man whimpered when Savage stopped walking and glared into the scientist’s eyes. With one heavy handed punch to the man’s temple, Savage knocked him out cold for the walk back to the pride’s property.
Naked and uncaring, Savage crossed over several country roads, skirted around two farmers’ fields, and crossed over the Coldwater River, all while dragging his prey back to his pride. Once he arrived, he found his way down a slightly worn path after stopping at the shed to gather his supplies.
Savage lived up to his name when he took a piece of rope and wrapped it around the scientist’s wrists. The man was still unconscious from when he’d been knocked out by Savage’s brutal punch. Taking the other end of the rope, Savage tossed it over a thick branch that was about ten feet off the ground. With a grunt, he pulled on the rope, hoisting the man up into the air and letting his feet dangle without touching the ground.
“Wake up, you son of a bitch,” Savage snarled. His panther screamed inside his head, wanting out…wanting blood.
The man gasped, his eyes opening wide. Savage saw the moment he recognized who had him strung up and vulnerable to the beast.
“Where is she?” Savage moved forward, tying off the rope to another branch, ensuring the man wouldn’t get down on his own. As it was, his arms were stretched by his body’s weight and it had to be starting to burn.
“I cannot tell you,” the scientist replied. “I’m already a dead man. They will kill me anyway.”
“Bet I can make you talk,” Savage said menacingly. “Let’s try this again. Where. Is. My. Mate?”
The man looked up at the rope that held him immobile and then back at Savage. He never spoke, just closed his eyes and waited for Savage to end his life.
“Tell me!” Savage roared, feeling the tingle of his panther’s fur coming through his human skin. The shift was upon him, but he would fight as long as he could before his beast ruled. Razor sharp claws punched through his human fingers so quickly, his own blood seeped through his skin.
“Never,” the man said. “You’ll never find her in time.”
Savage lashed out, his claws ripping into the belly of the human male. His screams only lasted for a few moments until the sound was cut off by the gurgling of blood that flowed out of his mouth. Two heartbeats later, the scientist was dead.
“Savage!” Booth yelled.
“I have to find my mate,” Savage snarled, turning around to see his fellow Guardian standing there wide-eyed.
“She’s at Rycon,” he replied. “Talon is on his way there now.”
Savage shifted, letting his panther take over. He was faster in his animal’s skin and he needed to get to the warehouse to save his mate. Whoever had taken her would succumb to the same fate that the scientist had for daring to touch Mary Grace.
Booth slid into the driver’s seat of his truck and whistled loud enough to get Savage’s attention. The panther leapt into the back of the truck as the Guardian rushed off the pride’s land. Savage fell to his belly and lowered his head, waiting until the moment they arrived.
The truck slowed as it approached the side road not far from the gate that surrounded Rycon Industries. When Savage’s panther looked over the side of the truck, he saw his alpha and the rest of his brothers. The sheriff was there, but he was standing back from the group of men who were watching his every move.
His padded feet didn’t make a sound as he jumped out of the truck. The panther prowled toward the group, snarling its agitation. In this state, the panther was in control. Savage’s human mind was almost nonexistent.
Talon’s calming magic was no match for the beast as he took a running leap over the barbwire fencing. All of the Guardians cursed when Savage took off at a dead run for the side of the building. He felt them at his back just a moment later when he shifted to his human form.
As a beast determined to find his mate, Savage felt his panther surge under his skin, wanting to be released again. His canines punched through his gums. Blood from the scientist had dried on his face and arms, but at the moment, he didn’t care. When he approached the facility Mary Grace was being held in, Savage didn’t think twice about marching forward as if he were nothing but a knight there to rescue the princess, willing to give his life to save hers.
The metal door was no match for his strength as he pulled it open, the lock destroyed from the force. A man in a lab coat was startled when Savage snarled in his face, “Where is she?” When the man didn’t answer, Savage delivered a blow to the man’s temple, knocking him out cold.
He stopped in the hallway and inhaled deep. It took only a second for her scent to reach him and when it did, Savage’s panther pushed so hard against his human skin, the black fur of his panther seeped out of his skin, his fingers returned to razor sharp claws, and his face half shifted to that of his panther. His canines were as thick as when he was in his panther form and his nose had recessed in his face. With the partial shift, Savage could scent his mate’s tears…and that was when all hell broke loose.
The door at the end of the hallway opened and a man in black combat gear rushed toward Savage, his gun raised high. “Freeze!”
“Fuck you!” Savage jumped for the man’s throat, but fell to his knees when the gun went off and the bullet hit him in the leg. “You are going to die for that.”
The man’s eyes widened as Savage slowly raised to his feet, wrapping his hand around the barrel of the rifle and ripping it from the man’s hands. The beast lunged, his thick canines latching onto the guard’s throat. With one crushing bite, Savage tore the human’s throat out, spitting it to the floor.
The door the man had come through hadn’t closed all the way, so Savage pulled it open. He followed the stairs down into a basement, opening the door at the bottom. There were cages lined up down the middle of the room. Desks were lined up in front of each one, computers with cameras sat in the centers.
The roar from Savage’s chest exploded through the air. He marched forward, his arms shifting, elongating. Razor sharp claws extended from his human fingertips as his mate came into view. She was cowering in a corner, a male hovering over her body.
“Savage!” she cried, shaking as she tried to stand. When the male in the cage made a move to assist her, Savage growled low in his throat. When his strength wasn’t enough to pull the door open to the cage, his beast went wild when he couldn’t get to his mate.
Guardians rushed into the room, all of them cursing when they saw Mary Grace in the cage with a male that wasn’t her mate. Blood spotted the hospital gown she was wearing. The i
nside of her elbows were bandaged and the exposed skin all over her body was either bruised or red from contact by an unmated male.
“Get her out!” Savage panicked, pulling on the cage door again, but it still didn’t budge.
“Keys!” Talon ordered, reaching for the handle as well. Both men pulled and the lock still didn’t budge.
“Found them!” Winter hollered, rushing over from the unconscious body of a man in a lab coat. Savage took the keys from his brother and stuck each one into the lock until it popped free.
The moment he was inside, the male moved to the opposite corner and hung his head. Savage snarled, wanting the male’s blood, but his only concern was for his mate. Mary Grace shivered when his arms wrapped around her, carefully picking her up from the floor. The scent of chemicals and medicines tickled his nose as he tucked her face into his neck.
“Don’t kill the male,” she mumbled, tightening her hold.
“He touched you,” Savage snarled. “He’s a dead man.”
“No!” she yelled, coming alive. “No, Savage! He protected me!”
“I need to care for you,” he choked out, seeing the marks on the inside of her arms. They were almost healed, which told him that it hadn’t been long since they’d taken her blood…or shot her up with something.
“I’m okay,” she said, trying to be strong.
Jesus! She should be terrified.
“No, you’re not,” Savage snarled, marching toward the stairs, and then stopped to look over his shoulder. His brothers were detaining the male who was in the cage with her; all of them circling him. “Don’t touch him until I return.”
On their nod, he continued up the stairs, only stopping when he reached Dane’s truck. The sheriff was there with four of the guards. Someone had removed the man in the lab coat and dropped him next to the men in all black.
“Let me see you,” Savage said, his voice unnaturally calm as he placed her in the passenger seat.
Mary Grace sighed in relief when Savage wrapped his arms around her body, trying to touch every inch of her skin. When he pushed back, she made a sound of protest, but otherwise stayed quiet.
Savage Page 15
