MATED TO SERIES COLLECTION

30. VALERIA: ATTACKED AND TROUBLES

I could hear my heart beating in my chest. Sometimes I could hear Devon moving around in the bedroom. Sometimes David would move to glance down at me over his shoulder. It was dead silent. The calm before the storm, like my father always said. It felt like an eternity, but it was all probably only a few minutes. I tried to ignore the heat spreading through my body. My mind kept trailing off to what we did last night. It was hell but I also kept my mind from creating horrifying scenarios. What if one of them got killed?

"How are you doing, doll?" David called out softly for the fifth time.

I swallowed. "Fine." I wasn't going to tell him how scared I felt.

A loud growl from the bedroom had me falling silent. I gripped the knife tighter to my chest when I heard a soft thud. The silence lasted for only two seconds before a loud bang broke it. The cabin shook and for a moment I feared that the roof would collapse onto us. David cursed loudly.

"Take cover!" he suddenly yelled.

I gasped when he suddenly climbed into the tub with me. He tugged my head against his chest and wrapped his arms around my back. I felt more weight coming down on top of us. Soft fur brushed against my exposed skin. My body jerked when I felt the cold wet nose against my cheek. The weight shifted and then it came down fully over us. It felt like he was crushing me. I wanted to push at him and demanded that he get off, but they had to be in here with me for a reason right? As soon as the thought left my mind, I heard the explosion. The whole cabin shook harder than it had before.

The wolf growled against my ear. David's arms tugged me closer against his chest. And then the only thing I could hear was the sharp ringing in my ears. I opened my eyes and wished I hadn't. Thick clouds of smoke were slowly swirling around us. I fought the cough that wanted to escape. The body on top of us suddenly jerked. David sucked in a sharp breath.

"Can you carry her?"

A growl answered him.

"You're faster on four legs that she'd be on two. Take her on your back and run. I'll distract them."

I reached out to clutch his shirt. There were a lot of things wrong with his plan, but before I could voice my concerns, we were moving. The weight on top of us disappeared. David grabbed my arms and tugged me up. I was lifted and then placed onto Devon's back. I gripped the fur tightly when he moved. Turning my head, I watched through teary eyes and thick smoke as David moved out of the bathroom. In an instant gunshots filled the cabin. The sharp sound pierced straight through my heart.

"RUN!"

Devon didn't hesitate. He instantly took off. I gripped him tighter with my legs and arms. Turning my head, I buried my face against his fur and tried to breathe through the sudden panic that gripped me. We couldn't leave without David. We couldn't leave him behind and run away.

Suddenly cool air assaulted my skin. The sounds of guns firing faded until I could hear nothing but the sound of Devon's paws hitting the ground and his harsh breathing. I pressed my face tighter against his chest as a sob fell from my lips. It wasn't right. We needed to go back and help him.

Devon slowed to a stop. He threw his head back and let out a loud howl. It was answered mere seconds later by another, and another. I raised my head and glanced around. I didn't have to search for long. Wolves ran out of the trees and towards us. Devon growled making them freeze. He made a strange gesture with his paw and growled again. I didn't understand what he was doing but his pack did. They took off running in the direction we came from.

I clutched him tighter when clawed hands suddenly gripped my hips from behind.

"Let him go."

I recognized that voice. I glanced over my shoulder at Wrin. He tugged on my hips. He was helping me down. But the moment I was off Devon's back, he turned and ran backs towards the cabin. I trashed in Wrin's arms but he held on tightly. His low irritated growls did nothing to ease my struggling.