Page 20 of Claimed By the Rival Alpha

That was when the realization hit me. He's here to kill Troy, not to steal anything from him!

“Oh, Bryn,” Troy’s voice had raised several octaves in a sick, singsong tone. He was on the stairs. “Bryn, are you awake?”

I shivered and pushed away from the wall.

My heart was thumping at a galloping pace, threatening to beat its way right out of my chest. What could I do?

I looked at the window, and inspiration flared inside me.

The only way out, my only hope, was the window.

I wouldn’t have the strength to escape, but maybe Mom would see me.

Or maybe the fall would kill me.

“Bryn,” Troy said again, “I hope you’re excited about tonight. I’ve come up with even more activities for us to do after I’ve claimed my throne.”

I bit back a whimper as I forced myself to move closer to the window.

My body denied my urging to go faster. My knees threatened to buckle again.

But Troy was even closer now, likely right down the hall, and what’s worse—his words were slurred.

I needed to move. Who knew what he was capable of when he was drunk?

“I just had to see you squirm again, Bryn,” Troy said. He sounded hungry. “I want to imagine your fear when I become Alpha—”

Suddenly Night let out a growl. It was louder than the one he’d made when he and I were alone, and it was full of warning. I looked back at him so fast that I nearly lost my balance again. Was he angry on my behalf?

Troy’s singsong voice stopped immediately. I froze, my body tense. The silence that followed was icy and filled with apprehension.

And then Troy let out a vicious snarl. He knew there was a stranger in here with me.

It had probably only taken him so long to notice because he was intoxicated.

Troy sprinted to the door, kicking it in so hard that the wood ripped from the hinges and flipped end over end into the opposite wall.

The door shattered, chunks of wood flying across the room.

I would have screamed, but the sight of Troy’s face—red with rage, his lips pulling away from glistening fangs—caused my voice to die in my throat. I began to slowly move toward the window again, never taking my eyes off Troy.

Recognition flashed across those dark, terrible eyes as he saw Night. The rivalry between them was legendary—deep, bloody, and stretching back for years.

“Get the fuck away from her, Shepherd,” Troy spat, his voice deeper and slightly muffled for having to speak around those sharp teeth. “She’s my toy. No one else’s!”

I could no longer see Night’s face because I was behind him, but his expression caused Troy’s fingertips to slowly shift into claws, fur coating the backs of his hands. In response, Night’s claws shifted too.

“I’ll kill you where you stand for daring to cross into my territory, Shepherd,” Troy growled.

Night remained still, watchful. Compared to Troy, who was about ready to shift completely into a wolf, he appeared calm, collected, and controlled.

I didn’t want to wait to see what would happen between the two.

My hand found the windowpane. I’d made it.

Finally. I flattened my palm against the cold glass and pushed it upward.

I tried to be discrete, but the window squeaked.

Troy’s gaze flashed to me, and again, I froze, a rabbit in the path of a hungry, crazed wolf.

Troy let out a loud howl. His muscles tensed, straining beneath his clothes, and then he charged toward me. My hands clenched into fists. I was going to die. I was—

Night’s hand flashed out, lightning fast, and gripped the back of Troy’s collar.

The fabric of Troy's shirt tore like paper, no match for the strength of two Alphas, but Troy stumbled, his momentum interrupted by Night. As he began to lose his balance, Night’s claws clamped down on Troy’s wrist. He yanked him back and slammed his other fist into Troy’s gut.

The air whooshed out of Troy’s mouth, along with spittle and blood. He flew back onto his bed, clutching his midsection. Blood coated his lips from where his fangs had bitten into his tongue.

Night stalked toward the bed with a bloodthirsty purpose. Troy looked up at him, his eyes wide with an emotion I had never seen on him before—fear.

But then answering howls from outside brought Night up short. Reinforcements were on the way. We were out of time.

Night spun on his heel and sprinted toward me.

The front door of the cabin slammed open again as Night reached me.

I gasped as he wrapped his arm around my waist. He yanked the window the rest of the way open and shoved me outside.

I screamed as I fell…into a bush just below the window.

The branches scratched at my arms, but I hardly noticed over the chill of the night air.

I was still practically nude and immediately began to shiver from both cold and adrenaline.

A brisk breeze caused goosebumps to rise across my skin. I grunted, struggling to break free from the bush as Night slipped gracefully through the window after me. Footsteps reached Troy’s room, confused yells echoing down from the window as Troy’s entourage checked on their almost-Alpha.

“Let’s go,” Night said, scooping me into his arms. I felt the heat of his skin beneath his shirt, a warm comfort compared to the cold and confusion around us.