I continue moving around the room, unable to get out since the door is closed and in my animal form, I’ve got paws instead of hands. Each time one of the men draws close, I strike out and soon, the room is bloody. I’m weakening, however; the lack of sufficient food has taken a toll on me and I stumble, enabling Ortiz to grab me. Between the two of them, they haul me onto the table and strap me down.
402
Knox
“We need to get in there, Pres,” Pidge yells. “They’ve got a leopard on the table right now.”
Mate. My leopard’s growl is menacing and I feel my heart rate increase.
Hold on, my mate, I’m coming. I know we don’t have an actual bond yet, but my hope is that with us being in close proximity, she’ll sense that I’m here. Out loud, I yell, “Now!” and watch as my brothers swarm the cabin. The earlier distraction with Wooly and Mammoth netted us two of the men, including one shifter, which means three are still inside. I’m in the lead, my gun drawn and my left arm partially shifted so that I can utilize my claws if necessary.
Once inside, I smell her and I use my senses to find the room she’s currently in, breaking the door down. When I see her strapped to the table, unconscious, I feel my canines elongate as I emit a growl that has Pidge’s eyes widening from his perch on the windowsill. “Get the fuck away from her,” I warn, stalking toward the man with the skinning knife raised over her head. When he doesn’t move quick enough, I roar and leap over the table, shifting in midair so that when I land, I’m standing protectively over her prone body.
“Ah hell no, I didn’t sign up for this shit,” the other man yells before attempting to flee the room. Thankfully, Gray is standing there and he quickly zip ties his arms before tossing him into the hallway.
“Got the others downstairs getting the other women free,” he says to me. “The other shifter has been contained as well.” I nod, unable to talk in my leopard form, but years of working together and being brothers lets him know that I understood him perfectly.
With one of the men out of the way, I focus on the immediate threat to my mate, letting out another growl that causes him to piss himself. Pussy. I shake my head and Gray moves forward, his gun out and aimed at the fucker’s forehead. “Best you put that knife down, boy, because I’m not gonna be able to hold my brother back too much longer. You fucked up, taking his mate.” I watch the asshole’s eyes grow wide at Gray’s words and snarl my assent.
“They ain’t paying me enough to deal with mates,” the man mumbles, tossing the knife aside. “But I gotta tell ya, before you kill me, that if you don’t get the main guy, they’ll just keep doing this,” he continues, waving his arm around the room. “There’s a market for this shit and he’s the head fucker in charge.”
“Gonna need a name,” Gray states, moving close and quickly tying the dead man standing.
“He’ll kill me.”
“We’re here now and my brother wants to kill you. Thinking we’re the bigger threat right now,” Gray says. While I’m keeping watch, most of my attention is with my unmoving mate. Thankfully, he hadn’t started cutting on her, but I can see areas on her where the fur is thinner so I know that they likely beat her and with her being unable to shift, she couldn’t heal. Doesn’t matter; she’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen. White leopards are somewhat rare; she still has the leopard markings, but they’re faint, nearly invisible, against the snowy white of her fur. I idly wonder what color her eyes are and hope that she wakes up soon.
“Dean Roberts. He’s a shifter, though.”
“Yeah, that’s not an issue for us,” Gray retorts. “Where’s he at?”
“He...he was planning to come by tonight to check over the inventory.” My fur bristles hearing him call my mate ‘inventory’ and I snarl. “Sorry, man.” He looks at Gray and asks, “What’s gonna happen to me?”
“Think you’ll be meeting Satan at some point today once we’ve confirmed the information you’re about to give us.”
“But I told you what you wanted to know! That should be worth something, right?”
“Yeah, it means that we won’t prolong your death,” Gray states, shrugging. “Do you honestly think that my brother here would let you live after he caught you about to skin his mate?”
I watch dispassionately as the man starts crying and stammering. He had to know what the end result would be if he was ever caught, so I don’t feel the least bit sorry that we’re going to end his sorry-ass life.
Gray moves forward and manages to get the fucker subdued and ziptied before he turns and says, “Gonna grab you some clothes so you can shift back and check on her.” I nod, uncaring that my clothes are in shreds on the floor. She’s more important than denim and cotton.
Jayda
I moan softly as I start to come back from the darkness those two assholes plunged me into. “Shh, you’re okay,” a deep baritone says. “You’re safe now and there’s nothing and no one who will get you again.”
“W-where am I?” I ask. My voice is raspy from disuse but the last thing I remember is being tossed onto the table. I don’t know if the man with the knife was successful in skinning me, or not, and I’m too afraid to open my eyes and look.
“You’re at my clubhouse,” the voice replies. Clubhouse? What the hell? Did
