“I claim you for my mate. You will learn to enjoy my touch.”
“You sic—”
The door burst open and hit the wall hard. Lauren twisted her head enough to see the source of the vicious snarl that sent chills down her spine. Shadow and Wrath entered the room and both of them looked furious.
“Help me,” she panted, her gaze locking with Wrath’s.
“I claim her as mine,” Vengeance bellowed. “Get out and leave us to form a bond.”
Brass rushed inside the room, shouldered Shadow aside, and revealed sharp teeth as he snarled. “No. You can’t force mate her. What is wrong with you, Vengeance? Release her now.”
“I claim her as my mate and she will do as I tell her,” Vengeance snarled viciously. “I will show her my dominance until she obeys me.”
Wrath’s nose flared as his fingers curved into claws and he lunged at Vengeance. All Lauren could do was tense from the knowledge that another body was about to slam her into the floor. Instead Vengeance’s body rolled from hers and crashed into the wall.
Hands grabbed her upper arms and dragged her toward the door. She looked up to see it was Shadow who did it. Brass moved, grabbed Lauren’s other arm, and both men lifted her upright to her feet. They shoved her backward, closer to the door and put their bodies in front of her.
“Should we break it up?” Shadow rumbled, anger in his tone.
“No,” Brass growled back. “Ven has gone too far. So be it if Wrath kills him. He went after a female. He’s unstable.”
Lauren was shaking badly as she leaned against the doorframe. Their words sank in and so did their meaning. She inched over enough to peer around them and the sight shocked her. Vengeance and Wrath were attacking each other but it wasn’t like any fight she’d ever seen. They were kickboxing, exchanging punches and wrestling at times as she watched. The men collided at one point and rolled on the floor. Sharp teeth slashed and they clawed each other until they broke apart. Both men sprang to their feet.
Vengeance kicked out suddenly, trying to nail his opponent in the stomach. Wrath dodged the heel and threw a roundhouse kick that hit Vengeance in the face. The man was thrown backward into a wall. He hit it hard, grunted, and spun. He snarled as he flashed deadly looking teeth and tried to tackle Wrath around the waist to take him down. Wrath snarled back, showing his own scary teeth, and twisted out of the way to avoid Vengeance’s outstretched arms. His clawed hands slashed at Vengeance and both men slammed into the floor again. They rolled, exchanging slashes and fists. Blood smeared their bodies.
Lauren pleaded, horrified at the show of pure violence. “Stop them.”
Shadow reached back to grip her arm gently. “They fight over you. Wrath has to do this and Vengeance needs to learn he can’t harm females.”
The two men sprang apart again, snarling at each other. Vengeance suddenly howled and lunged. It was apparent that he was going for Wrath’s throat but Wrath threw his arm up, shoving Vengeance’s clawed hands to the side. His elbow slammed hard into Vengeance’s neck. The man made a choking sound and hit the floor. Wrath dropped down on top of his back and his arm hooked around Vengeance’s throat, squeezing tightly.
“You touched her again,” Wrath snarled. “You took her from my bed. You are out of control.”
Vengeance tried to lift his body enough to roll but he couldn’t do it. He collapsed back to the floor.
“I should kill you. I should snap your neck. If you ever even look at her, go within scenting distance of her again, you will die,” Wrath snarled, enraged.
Wrath’s arm muscles bulged while Vengeance choked and gasped. His body jerked and his fingers clawed the concrete as his face turned a sickly color from lack of oxygen. Vengeance’s eyes rolled up into his head and he went limp. Long seconds ticked by before Wrath softly cursed. He released the man’s neck and climbed to his feet.
Blood was smeared around Wrath’s mouth and down his chest. More of it was on both arms and ran down his torso to the waist of his boxers. Even one thigh and one knee were bloodied. He glared at Brass.
“He is not fit for this mission or to be around others. I will kill him the next time I see him if you don’t send him to the Wild Zone of Reservation. He should be with the other untamed males. He is lucky to live.”
Brass nodded. “I will guard him and call for them to pick him up. He will not leave the Wild Zone.”
Wrath growled. “He’s dead if he’s here in the morning. He’s dead if he steps foot from the Wild Zone.” His furious gaze turned to Lauren. His voice came out unusually deep but he stopped growling. “Let’s go to my room.”
Lauren’s legs wouldn’t move, shock holding her still. She wanted to do whatever he said but her body didn’t respond. Wrath slowly stalked toward her but paused a few feet away. He took a deep breath.
“Until he is gone you are going to my room. Turn around, Lauren. I don’t want to touch you with blood on me. Please go now.”
She managed to get her body under control and turned around. Wrath stayed close behind her until they entered his bedroom. The door slammed behind them. Lauren jumped, spun, and stared wide-eyed at Wrath. He still appeared furious, his eyes black from his rage. She tried to remember it wasn’t directed at her.
“I’m going to shower to wash off the blood. Sit on the bed and don’t move.” He drew in a deep breath. “I won’t let you out of my sight until Vengeance is gone.” He took another deep breath. “Go to sleep and know this won’t happen again. He’s dead if he comes after you again.”
She nodded mutely, not sure what to say. She was badly shaken. Her legs were so wobbly she barely made it to the bed where she collapsed. She lay on her side, facing away from Wrath, and stared at the wall. Tears filled her eyes and she trembled.
Wrath’s heart raced and he needed to put space between himself and Lauren. Adrenaline from the battle surged through his body until his skin itched. The urge to run, to howl, or to keep fighting had him on edge. He could have killed Vengeance, nearly had, but he’d regained control in time to prevent it. That should have counted, calmed him some, but he didn’t trust himself to be near her.
His rage over Lauren being attacked in his room by a male who was intent on taking her body and claiming her had boiled over into violence. The scent of her fear had flipped a switch inside him, one that had sent him into pure
