Hunter's Heart

“What do you mean, most of the blood was his?”

His strength spent, Ryon slumped to the ground. Daria rolled him to his back, and he grimaced in pain, closing his eyes. His head listed to the side and his body went slack. He’d passed out.

Daria brushed his sunlit hair out of his face, and love welled in her heart. Ryon had placed himself on the line for her again, and this time, his bravery had nearly killed him. The truth she had already accepted and voiced to Ryon seeped to every corner of her soul; she loved this man and would not accept life without him.

She dressed quickly, then began a thorough inspection, making certain all of his limbs were intact. Then she spotted the holes in his fatigues, high on his right thigh. Dread consumed her, and she bent close. Blood darkened this area of his wet pants, and wicked bite marks were visible through the tears in the fabric.

She scooted to kneel by his shoulders, and shook him gently. “Honey, wake up. Come on, big guy.” After several more tries, his lashes fluttered open, much to her profound relief. Which was short-lived.

“What . . . happened?” His eyes were dazed.

Daria’s fear escalated. She prayed that his wolf could fight off the creature’s venom and that he wasn’t going into shock, because she’d never tended to anyone severely injured. “You duked it out with Ben’s creature. Remember?” She took one of his large hands and rubbed it between hers.

“Yeah. God, that shit burns.” He gazed at her through half-closed lids. She let a thread of steel creep into her tone.

“I know it does, but you cannot check out on me. It’s going to be dark in a few hours, and we need to finish what we came here to do so we can get the hell out of here and head home.” She pulled at his arm. “Get your ass up! I need to get you somewhere so I can see about that leg.”

To her amazement, he rose, pushed to his feet. “My pack. And the rifle.” His voice was breathless, heavy with exertion.

Her mate’s wolf must have the strength of ten men. And the heart of a lion. Her admiration grew exponentially as she retrieved both, and assisted him in shrugging the pack onto his back. “I’ll get the rifle,” she offered. He surrendered the weapon without a fuss, and her concern mounted.

They set out, but Ryon managed only a few miles before coming to a halt. He stood swaying, then braced an arm against a tree for support. With a wave of his hand, he indicated a temporary place to stop.

“Over there.”

Daria led him to the spot, hidden well off the trail. He looked dangerously close to passing out again, but gritted his teeth and carried on. She spread the blanket on the ground, then ordered him to take off his pants.

Under normal circumstances, the Ryon she’d come to know would’ve given her a disarming grin and made good use of their privacy. But he merely complied, his face gray. That scared her more than anything.

Leaning against her for support, he eased the fatigues past his hips, and off. Daria sucked in a sharp breath. “Lie down.”

Ryon settled down on his back, eyes fixed on the trees. He hadn’t looked at the wound and Daria didn’t blame him. Lord have mercy, how was he going to be able to walk? At best, they had a day left to travel before their job was complete and they reached the team.

“How bad is it?”

She touched his shoulder, dreading what she had to say. “Let’s put it this way. Your part in this op is over. Starting now.”

* * *

Ryon propped himself up on his elbow and squinted at the wound. A vicious oath sprang to his lips, but he suppressed it. Two rows of bloody punctures marched horizontally across his right thigh. The creature had attacked from the side, clamped down on the leg, and pulled him to the bottom of the lagoon. Their struggle had been brief, but vicious.

Daria’s brows furrowed, her eyes soft with worry. “Bend your knee. I want to see underneath.” He did, hissing between his teeth. “Easy. Oh, boy. You have a matching set on the back of your thigh.”

“Terrific,” he muttered, lying on his back again. “A human pincushion.”

“Hey, you’re darned lucky he didn’t crush the bone, or worse, hit an artery. As it is, keeping your leg from getting infected before we can reach your team will take a miracle.”

Ryon shrugged. “We’re only losing a couple of days total by doubling back to get the evidence on August. I’ll keep.” In truth, the acidic poison from the creature’s bite was a slow burn in his tissue, seeping toward the bone, making him sweat.

She gaped at him. “Didn’t you hear what I said? You’re done. I’m taking you to meet the guys, and you’re going to let them get you to a hospital.”

“I’m the one who knows where August’s computer room is located. Without me, you’re done, too.”

Daria frowned. “What do you mean? What computer room? Is there another— Oh, no. I’m not going to like this, am I?”

“I got a message from Nick a few minutes ago that he received some intel on August’s estate. The office and the computer you were trying to hack is supposedly a decoy. August keeps the real computer setup in a secret room underneath the house. It’s made of solid concrete walls, and the entry door has a keypad. You have to know the code to gain access.”

“Please tell me Nick was able to get the code.”

“He passed along what he thinks might be the code,” he muttered. “Let’s hope it works.”

“Plan B if it doesn’t?” She knew the answer before he said it.

“There is no Plan B. If it fails, we’re going to die together.”

“I won’t accept that. I’ll take one of the Pack with me to finish the job.”

Another man. One of his friends, taking care of his mate while she went into danger. Stupid as it was, a hot spurt of jealousy stabbed his gut. “No.”

“Be reasonable. That wound is going to get infected, and with you sick out here, the op is endangered. I’m the one who knows my uncle’s estate best, secret room or not.”

The leg could damned well fall off before he’d allow her to come back into this hellhole without him. The very thought of having to wait days for word of her safety was enough to make him sick. And if August caught her, she’d die horribly. Disappear without a trace.

“We finish this together or not at all,” he emphasized. His tone left no room for further argument. “End of discussion. Now, patch me up and stop harping at me.”

“Harping?” Daria fisted her hands on her hips and glared at him. “Stubborn, hardheaded idiot!”

She looked like an angry goddess with her shiny raven hair falling around her shoulders. He couldn’t help but manage a tired smile.

“And you are my angel. I’d wrestle all the beasties in the universe for you.”

“Oh, Ryon,” she said on a sigh. The irritation on her lovely face vanished. “You’re impossible.”

“Kiss me,” he said in a hoarse whisper.

“I think I can handle that.”

Cupping his cheek, she bent and covered his lips in a slow, tender kiss. So good, so right. A warm, fuzzy haze descended over him and he became weightless. Daria’s touch had a way of banishing the ache in his body, his heart.

As he watched her clean and dress his wounds, he prayed that they would survive this and go home.

Where they both belonged.

* * *

Afternoon light penetrated Daria’s eyelids and she stifled a groan as she awoke from the brief, unplanned nap. Much more pleasant was the weight of warm, solid male draped across her. Too warm. Obviously, he’d needed the rest.

“What am I going to do with you?” she whispered, combing his hair out of his face; then she touched his forehead and uttered a curse. He had a fever. Carefully, she wiggled out of his hold.

Ryon’s lashes fluttered open. For a couple of seconds he seemed confused. Then it passed and he pushed up to a sitting position and gave her a boyish grin.