“You mean Taryn didn’t go to the gate, so you couldn’t snatch her and then leave all your friends to keep the rest of us occupied while you drove away with her in the van.”
“Yes, that is what I mean. But I’m an adaptable person. When it became clear I wouldn’t be able to get to your Alpha female, I decided I’d just have to grab another one of you to make her see reason. It was purely by chance that the wolf I managed to catch is you. It’s fitting, really.” He gave Tao a look of reprimand. “You really did let me down, Mr. Lukas. Things didn’t have to be this way.”
A bump in the road jarred the van, and Tao ground his teeth against the pain that jolted him.
“They know I’ve taken you,” Ramón went on. “One wolf saw us leave and tried to give chase. Probably would have caught up to us if their leg hadn’t been lame. I suppose we’re now about to find out just how valuable you are to your pack—or what’s left of it, anyway.” His smile was falsely sympathetic. “Oh, I really am sorry about your pretty raven.”
Tao didn’t correct him. It was better to let the guy think he didn’t need to be on his guard. But he did need to be, because Tao was sensing a lot of things from his mate at that moment—rage, pain, fear, but not panic. Riley knew where he was, he’d bet money on it. “You won’t live through this night.”
Ramón grinned. “Oh, I assure you I will. Sadly, I can’t say the same for you. You’re looking a little worse for wear. Maybe your Alpha will arrive in time to save you. I’m in a good mood, I’ll allow her to heal you before trading places with you.”
“Taryn can’t help your brother. She can’t heal diseases, it’s not—” A bullet sank into Tao’s side. His whole body jerked, and agony rippled through him, snatching the breath from his lungs. The world went dark for a few seconds.
“She can heal my brother and she will. Or both he and you die. That’s the—”
A loud thud shook the van. The tires screeched as the van swerved, jerked, and bounced to a halt—causing Ramón to fall back against the side of the van and grab on to the bench for purchase. The gun clattered to the floor, landing not far from Tao. Adrenaline spiked through him. He lunged for the gun. Missed. Stars burst behind his eyes and his stomach churned, but the adrenaline dimmed the pain. He heard a man scream, wondered if it was the driver.
Ramón dived, reaching out to grab the gun. Tao reared up and slammed his elbow into the bastard’s face, making him stumble back. Ramón’s ass hit the floor of the van with an awkward thump. He kicked at Tao’s face, but Tao seized his ankle and twisted it sharply. Bone snapped and Ramón cried out through his teeth, making Tao’s wolf bare his teeth in a feral grin.
Ramón tried to regain possession of his leg, but Tao kept a tight grip on it. The human pitched forward and made a grab for Tao’s hair, missing by mere inches. Tao bit into his hand, and Ramón snatched it back with a growl of outrage. The smell of the bastard’s blood was almost better than the look of pain on his face.
Cursing, Ramón swerved, kicking out with his good leg. His boot smacked Tao’s head hard.
“Motherfucker,” growled Tao. He tightened his grip on Ramón’s broken ankle until the human screamed. Ramón kicked out with his other leg again, but Tao was ready; he blocked the move with his arm and then slammed his fist into Ramón’s jaw.
The human grunted, snarling. He dove for the gun, knocking Tao on his back as he did so and causing more blinding pain to ripple through Tao. Ramón’s fingers brushed the butt of the gun—
Metal screeched as the doors flew open and light blasted into the van, causing Tao to double-blink. And there was his mate. Naked. A bloody mess. And in an absolute rage.
Ramón turned just as she sprung into the van. He tensed, prepared to launch himself at her, but she moved too fast—crashing into him and sending him sprawling flat on his back.
Seething, Riley wrapped one hand around the human’s throat. She wanted to snap his neck. Instead she held him in place—letting him struggle, letting him try to free himself. She might be female and she might be hurt, but she was still stronger than a human. She let him see that for himself. She could see the moment it sank into this arrogant fucker’s brain that he was being overpowered by a woman.
Ramón reached back, curling his fingers around the butt of his gun. Riley sliced out her talons, letting them dig right through his throat—slashing skin, cutting muscle, and severing arteries. She didn’t look away, watched the life bleed from his eyes. Honestly, she was a little annoyed that it had to end so soon. She’d have enjoyed delivering some additional pain to the asshole.
Satisfied he was dead, Riley wiped her blood-soaked talons on his shirt and sheathed them. She then moved to Tao’s side, breaths sawing in and out of her chest. All the rage and bravado left her in a rush as she took in the bloody sight of him, leaving only soul-deep terror. “Oh God, you’re a mess.”
As Tao stared at his mate’s battered body, he forgot his own pain. “Jesus, baby, so are you.” She was covered in rake marks, bites, and puncture wounds—all were deep and bleeding badly. A clump of blood matted the hair at the side of her head, where he suspected there was a massive wound. What worried him more was the blood pouring out of her ear and nose.
“Tao . . .” Her voice shook. Never—not when her parents died, not when Ethan was shot, not even when Dexter was almost taken—had she felt such an incapacitating fear. It was a living, breathing thing inside her. His face was haggard and pale, his heartbeat was much too damn slow for her liking, and every breath wheezed out of him. There were so many wounds, so much blood, and she had no idea what to do. “Shit, shit, shit.”
“Don’t panic on me, okay, I’ll be all right. Fuck, baby, what did she do to you?” He could smell Shirley on her.
“When she was shot, the bitch dug her talons into my wing to drag me to the ground with her. Hit my head on a branch as we were falling.” It had hurt like a motherfucker. Still did.
Tao tried to sit up, and his own pain came flooding back. He clenched his teeth, waiting for his head to stop spinning. It was like there was a burning-hot balloon inside him that kept on inflating. He gripped her hand, as if she could beat back the darkness creeping around his vision.
“Tao, you have to hold on for me.”
Her fear pierced him worse than any pain. “I’m holding on. Don’t you worry about that. I’m not going anywhere.” He refused to acknowledge just how badly he was hurt, or that a numbness was creeping in; he would think of her—just her. She’d lost too many people; he wouldn’t let her lose another, just as he wouldn’t let death take her from him.
“It’s okay,” she said, voice still shaky, lying beside him. “Taryn will come. The others will be here any second now. They’ve been following me.” She’d only dropped out of the sky to grab the dead raccoon from the road and, in a moment of inspiration, thrown it at the van to spook the driver.
“What’s wrong with your eyes?” he asked. Not only was one of them bloodshot, but her pupils were unequally sized.
Riley blinked, looking at him through blurred vision. “Nothing. Don’t worry about me. I’m fine.”
“You’re lying.”
She was. Pain was blasting through her head, as if someone were taking a sledgehammer to it. If she had to guess, she’d say she had a fractured skull. Her stomach was heaving with nausea, her wounds burned like holy hell, and she was starting to feel a little dizzy. But he didn’t need to know any of that.
“Taryn will come.” Riley would just have to keep him alive until she did. Staring into his eyes, Riley pushed energy down the mating bond, strengthening it, strengthening him. Lights flashed behind her eyelids and wooziness racked her brain, but she sent him more. She couldn’t let him die, not if she could help it. He had to live. He was too damn important to her. Hell, he was everything to her.
Energy pulsed down the bond right back to her, sharp as a slap. She scowled. “Take it.”
“No. You’re as weak as I am. You’re trembling.” It was worry
ing the shit out of Tao.
“I’m fine. Take it.” She forced a strong pulse of energy down the bond—a pulse so strong he’d be too weak to reject it. A wave of nausea hit her hard. She was just so damn dizzy and disoriented . . . which was helped along by her head injury and just how exhausted she was.
He growled. “I don’t want you to die for me.” But that was what would happen. In trying to keep him alive, she was essentially giving her life for his.
“I get it now,” she whispered. “I get why my dad couldn’t hold on when she died. It wasn’t that I wasn’t enough—it wasn’t about me at all. He just couldn’t be without her. He couldn’t. It was really just that simple.” Her voice cracked. “I don’t want to be without you.”
She was breaking his fucking heart here. “You’re wrong about your dad. It wasn’t that simple. Yes, he didn’t want to be without her. He still should have fought. He didn’t, because he was selfish. I’m not him. I’m not leaving. Listen to me. You don’t have to hold me here. I’m holding me here.”
“No, I have to keep you here.”
“And I have to keep you here, so let’s do that.”
With a nod she shoved energy up the bond, sending a brief surge of strength through his system. He sent a spurt of energy to her, giving her body that same boost. They each did it again and again, as if they were breathing for each other. It was working; it was also weakening her fast because the effects of her head injury were hazing her thoughts and leaving her feeling hollowed out. What’s more, her natural urge to sleep while injured was trying to take over.
“Keep fighting.” Tao could sense darkness pulling at her, threatening to take her from him, and it was freaking him the fuck out.
His wolf’s ears pricked up at the sound of footsteps shuffling along the road. The van shook, as if something or someone was bracing their weight against it. Moments later Mathers stumbled into their vision, bloody and scratched to hell.
Riley hissed at the human. “You should be dead.”
He sneered. “So should you.” He lifted his gun, aimed it at them.
For Tao everything went quiet. Slow. Just as it had the last time death came calling for him. He wanted to push Riley out of harm’s way, attack and maul the son of a bitch before shooting him with his own damn gun. But his energy level was simply too low.
“This is for Ramón.” Mathers’s grip tightened on the gun and—
A large gray wolf smashed into Mathers’s side, sending him flying out of their sight. Tao knew that wolf. Dante.
Relief washed through Tao. “Just hold on for me, baby. Taryn’s here.” But it wasn’t Taryn who climbed into the van. It was Ally, the Mercury Pack’s Beta female. She also happened to be a Seer and had the gift of healing.
The brunette paled as her eyes danced from Tao to Riley. “Oh God, shit!”
Riley slurred, “Heal him first.”
“No, heal her first,” Tao ground out.
Riley shook her head. “He’s been shot at least three times and he’s lost a lot of blood; he needs you more.”
“No, heal—” But Ally laid her hands over Tao, ignoring his protests. He felt Ally’s healing energy buzz through him, tried to push it down the mating bond, but it wouldn’t work. The energy wasn’t his to direct; it was Ally’s.
Riley rolled onto her back, releasing a pained hiss. “I’m gonna sleep now.”
He squeezed her hand. “Not yet. I know it’s hard, but you have to stay awake for me.”
“Okay.” But even as Riley said that, she could feel herself beginning to pass out. She felt as if she could just drift away . . . and that scared her. She didn’t want to drift away; she wanted to be with Tao.
“Open your eyes, Riley.”
She forced them open. “Sorry.” It just felt like weights were hanging from her eyelids.
“Ally, go to her! You’ve healed me enough, now help her! Fucking now, Ally!”
Soft hands touched her head, but Riley was too tired to even flinch. A strange energy flowed through her like warm honey. It both soothed and healed, calming her raven. When Ally sat back, Riley slurred, “Thanks. Now I really have to sleep.”
Feeling heavy and uncoordinated, Tao sat upright and gathered her to him. “That’s okay, baby.” He kissed her temple. “You can sleep now.”
“Awesome,” she breathed. Then it all went black.
“I can hear her breathing,” Savannah whispered, standing beside the bed on which Riley was sprawled, hair fanned out all over the pillow.
Crouched beside Savannah and Dexter, Tao nodded. “See, she’s just sleeping.” But he understood why that didn’t chase away their terror. He needed to look into her eyes, hear her voice, to truly believe she was fine. “We can’t wake her, though. She needs the rest. The more sleep she has, the faster she’ll get better.”
Biting her lip, Savannah asked, “Can we come see her when she wakes up?”
“Of course you can. You two will be the first people she wants to see. What she needs most now, though, is for you to take care of each other while she sleeps. Can you do that?” At their nods, he smiled. “Good.” Tao gently touched Dexter’s hair. “How’s your head, little man?”
“Better,” said the toddler, sucking on his thumb.
Tao had expected to be dealing with a traumatized child, given that Shirley had burst into their bedroom and slung him at a fucking wall, but either Dexter was good at blocking out stressful events or he’d simply become extremely resilient after surviving alone on the streets. Then again, all cheetahs were physically and mentally tough like that.
“The bad lady’s gone now,” said Savannah. “Riley made her go away.”
“She did,” Tao confirmed. He looked up as Makenna poked her head through the partially open door.
“There you both are,” she said. “Grace wants to know if you want to bake cookies with Kye and Lilah.”
Both children looked at Riley, loath to leave her. Tao put his hands on their shoulders. “I’ll come for you when she wakes up,” he promised them. “Okay?”
“Okay,” said Savannah. Taking Dexter’s hand, she tugged him toward the door.
As they reluctantly left the room, Makenna walked in and peeked at Riley. “She’s been asleep for quite a while now.”
At least twelve hours, Tao estimated. He’d have panicked, but . . . “It’s a healing sleep.”
Makenna’s brow creased. “A what?”
“When ravens are injured, they go into a deep sleep to help them recover. Max confirmed that she’ll be fine.” The uncles had gotten a scare when she hadn’t called them back last night, so they’d both rushed to Phoenix Pack territory. The first thing they’d done was check on Riley. The second thing they’d done was yell at Tao, blaming him for her injuries. Then they’d apologized profusely for yelling at him and congratulated him on the mating.
“Her wounds have faded,” Makenna noted. “So have yours. That’s good.”
“Yeah, that’s very good.” Ally hadn’t fully healed Riley or Tao, needing to save energy for the rest of the injured, so they had both been left with some superficial cuts and bruises.
“So many were injured, Tao. Almost everyone was at the very least skimmed by a bullet. I honestly thought we were going to lose Trick. Taryn barely managed to heal him in time.”
Tao had already heard the story from Taryn, who was swamped with guilt for being too weak from healing Trick to go to him and Riley. She’d actually been in tears, apologizing for not being able to get to them. It had taken a good half hour to convince her that she had nothing to apologize for and that he wasn’t angry with her. She’d sent Ally to them, which had saved them. “Thank God for Ally.”
“Hell yeah,” agreed Makenna. “She healed me not so long ago. I would have died if it weren’t for her. She’s saved a lot of lives, including Shaya’s.” Makenna hugged herself. “You know something? It didn’t occur to me that Ramón would try to invade our territory. I knew he was a danger, but I truly didn’t c
redit him with that much power.”
“We think of humans as weaker than us—physically, they are. That means we can sometimes forget that they can be much more dangerous.”
She nodded. “Do you think Ramón expected to get out of that alive?”
“Yes. He was proud and arrogant, and he’d probably thought of himself as not only untouchable but invincible.” It had been his downfall in the end.
“I would have liked to be the one to kill him, so you can tell Riley I’m totally jealous that she was the one who did.”
After Makenna left, Tao slid under the covers and gently tugged Riley into his arms. She didn’t even slightly stir, which would have been worrying if he hadn’t known for sure that it was normal for ravens.
He lay there for what could have been hours, watching her sleep and reassuring himself that she was fine. It was hard, though, because he kept seeing flashes of her in the van, hurt, bleeding, and weak. Kept remembering how often their mating bond had flickered as the darkness pulled at her. As fear clogged his throat, his arms flexed around her. Her eyelids fluttered halfway open, and two pools of violet locked on him.
“Hey, baby.” He kissed her, needing her taste, needed that affirmation that she was well and with him. He rested his forehead on hers. “What a fucking night, huh?”
“You’re okay,” she said, relieved. Then she scowled. “You weren’t supposed to almost die again.”
He rubbed his nose against hers. “I’m too stubborn to die before I’m ready.”
She took stock of herself. No aches or pains, and . . . “You showered me.”
“I showered us both. We were covered in dried blood.”
Her eyes snapped fully open as a memory came to her. “Dexter—”
“He’s fine,” Tao reassured her. “He had a bad wound on his head, but Ally healed him. He’s not traumatized or anything, though I think the whole thing definitely shook up Savannah. She’s good at hiding it, though.”