Page 26 of Feral Mates (Ruthless Instinct #1)

R oman

Protect.

The word filtered through my mind even before Savannah rushed into the room with a look of horror on her face.

I jumped up, immediately snarling, already starting to remove my clothes.

“What is it?” Apollo growled, but at that moment, the three of us felt a distinct series of vibrations. Something that humans couldn’t feel.

We knew exactly when humans were close. The vibrations were first.

Their stench second.

Even the well-built structure couldn’t mask their odor. Where Savannah’s was sweet and a touch spicy, the repulsive odor seeping in through the vents and cracks was disgusting.

I also sensed her presence as she neared, her determination evident by the expression on her beautiful face. I’d heard what she’d said to Kai. Perhaps we’d underestimated her.

The woman was a warrior through and through.

“The deer from before was right outside the window. I know this sounds crazy, but she warned me. Someone is coming and they mean harm. We need to protect ourselves,” Savannah said. Instead of sensing fear as I’d felt within her before, she was completely calm.

And she was angry.

Her scent clung to me. I could taste the sinfully sweet fragrance on my lips. Her hunger. Her rage. Her full arousal.

Our bond was becoming stronger, the desire uncontrollable.

There was no denying what we all felt.

We were fated mates.

But our fate was teetering on a sharp precipice.

The humans who’d arrived were here for one purpose.

Capture.

When she took off heading toward the kitchen, Kai snapped his hand around her arm, stopping her cold. “Where do you think you’re going?”

“To get a weapon. I don’t have any doubt whoever is out there is armed.” Her conviction shocked me, but I could sense whatever she’d found in the documentation she’d brought with her had opened her eyes.

We’d wanted to keep her safe from the atrocities we’d endured at the refuge, but she’d gathered from our reaction that we’d obviously suffered. Still, we could not allow her to risk her life. She was a scientist, not a warrior.

“Like hell you are. This is our fight,” I told her.

She whipped her head in my direction. “No, it is not. I helped create this mess and I’m going to help stop it.

We cannot allow whoever is outside these walls to take you by force.

You don’t know what lengths they will go to keep the information I found from reaching the public.

My guess is the display of testosterone witnessed at the ATM was seen on camera and along with the capture of my license plate, it’s only a matter of time.

Blackwell will use it to his advantage if possible.

All anyone seeing the video needed to do was to put two and two together, including where I work.

Whatever happened at Blackwell Industries will make the news.

If there’s any evidence of foul play, fingers will be pointed.

” Her defiance was noted and under ordinary circumstances, I would appreciate her attitude.

Not today.

“No,” I growled, already standing completely naked.

“You don’t understand me, Roman. I won’t allow this to happen without a fight.”

“The time has come,” Kai said from behind me, already preparing to shift. “Us against them.”

Savannah didn’t wait to listen to any ill-formed reason why she should avoid the fight. She moved quickly into another room. I glanced at Apollo, his facial expression exactly what Kai and I felt inside.

Rage.

No one was going to dare lay a hand on our mate. I took a deep breath, allowing the shift to begin. As always, the sound of my bones breaking echoed in my ears only a split second before a snout crushed through my skull, my sharp canines exposed almost instantly.

My body began to shake, skin retracting, fur replacing every inch. I dropped onto all fours, gritting my jaw as I bore the brunt of the transformation.

It had taken less than ten seconds, at least five of which Savannah had caught.

There was no fear.

There was no admonishment.

There was only delighted fascination along with her determination we would not be caught.

A sound grabbed my attention and I rushed for the back door. She managed to beat me there a split second before I was prepared to crash through the glass.

One after the other, we escaped into the night with her following.

The stench was raw and vapid, our nostrils filled with human testosterone.

We rushed into the darkness, heading to the edge of the woods as boots crunched down on twigs and fallen limbs.

She pressed her back against a tree, taking several short breaths. I could feel everything she was feeling. Her emotions. Her passion. Her anger.

They were all fused together, mixed with ours and even more than any of us had experienced before, we were as one.

One entity.

One being.

The connection was strong. Electrified.

When the humans moved to within a few hundred feet, we lunged forward. Our howls penetrated the night air, but other creatures fled in fear of their lives. For the men who approached, there was utter darkness, the moon driven out by the thick canopy of trees.

But for wolves, this was a glorious moment, the shadows hiding our approach while our eyes could see the clear definition of everything in front of us.

I could read their thoughts. I knew their plan.

Some were intent on killing us, bringing back our lifeless bodies as trophies. They longed to defy orders. But the group had been paid well to bring us back to the master for further testing.

I didn’t have time to determine who that was. It simply didn’t matter.

They would not take us today, nor would they touch our mate.

We moved in formation, working together as a pristine army when the three of us were completely different in tactics. The lifeform pulsing inside allowed for a closer union. One force. One effort.

One cause.

Eliminating the enemy.

There were eight of them, men carrying guns.

When they were close, we moved at blinding speed, fast enough our little mate couldn’t quite keep up. Yet she did a damn good job.

Within seconds, we were close enough I felt her tense. Swinging my head, I was rewarded with a pinprick of a light shining from a flashlight she’d brought, the beam capturing her enemy.

Just before she fired an arrow from the crossbow.

Hitting her target.

The beam of light was extinguished, our beautiful mate once again using the shadows to hide her location.

“Fuck! One down,” a man called. “In front of us. One hundred feet.”

Did they not think we could understand? Were they so stupid they didn’t realize that we knew exactly where they were? Every. Single. Man.

I chose my first prey, rushing forward and lunging through the air.

The hard thud as I took him to the ground was followed by his scream, the high-pitched sound irritating. I dug my canines into the man’s neck, instantly ripping out his throat. There was no time to celebrate the kill.

I shot off again, moving closer to Savannah.

Apollo and Kai were close by.

Her breathing was ragged, but she was enjoying the rush, racing as fast as she could beside me.

The wind whistled in the trees, helping to mask our approach.

Apollo and Kai moved in different directions, splitting off.

Seconds later, another scream followed by a single gunshot.

Men yelled, finally realizing they were surrounded by bloodthirsty beasts.

The next sharp yell was Savannah’s. One of the bastards had grabbed her by the hair. She kicked the man in the stomach, sending him reeling, and managed to swing her head around.

“I’ve got this.”

This time, she stood over the man, aiming her crossbow. “You won’t take us alive.”

When she fired the shot, the sound sent a spiral of birds squawking as they fled the danger zone.

Another shot rang out, the force pummeling me backwards until my body slammed against a tree. Pain blasted through me, ripping air from my lungs.

Another shot and Kai howled in agony.

“I got one of the bastards!”

I shook off the anguish, checking on Savannah before racing toward the man shouting. I caught him in the back, sending us both flying into the air. His head was slammed against a tree, killing him on contact.

Yet that wasn’t enough. I ripped at his limbs, clawing his body from the rage continuing to build inside.

With blood in my mouth, I stumbled backward, my growl filling the night sky.

“Roman. Oh, Roman.” She pitched herself to my side, her body shaking like a leaf. “You’re hurt. Oh, my God. The bastards. The fucking bastards. I’m going to kill them.”

Savannah… I said with my mind. Protect yourself.

She threw me a look, shocked she could understand me. “I’m going to protect you. I heard you. Oh, God.”

The little human was feisty. Ordinarily, I would enjoy listening to her banter, watching the way she stuck up for herself. Not tonight. The world around us was imploding, danger reaching a pinnacle.

Another shot.

Another shriek from a human.

A sudden silence that roared through the forest.

Savannah took off running. No. No! I threw myself back into motion, racing after her. I could smell one of the men was close. When she approached, she didn’t see him.

This time he turned the tables, flashing a powerful beam in her face.

A split second before he fired off a single shot.

“No!”

Her shriek pounded in my ears.

A snarl erupted from my snout. The human stood over her, half laughing. His life was over. I threw myself into the air, pitching him down and rolling him several times. I was lucky enough to see the terror on his face and hear his cry of terror just before I ripped out his throat.

Another shout.

Another howl.

This time coming from Apollo.

A shadow appeared to my right, a rifle only inches away. Kai reached him before I could react, his low growl of satisfaction filling the air as I crawled toward Savannah. She was injured, but alive.

The mental tether was strong. There were two soldiers left. They had to be exterminated. In a blinding rush, the three of us hunted, one human daring to try to run away. It all happened quickly. Both humans were down, their cries fading into the forest as their lifeforms expired.

Then there was utter silence throughout the forest, the stench of fresh blood like a sweet fog surrounding the area.

Savannah…

I limped closer to where she lay. Her eyes were closed, her lips pursed. She appeared as if a sleeping princess.

Apollo appeared from the trees. Seeing him covered in blood, I sensed his injuries were several. Kai lumbered closer, taking gasping breaths. I sensed the bullet had gone clean through his upper torso, the healing properties already starting to work.

“We need to shift. She’s hurt,” I told both, sensing she needed medical attention. That was too dangerous. What the fuck were we supposed to do?

Apollo took several ragged, deep breaths, nodding. “We can heal her.”

“How?” Kai asked.

“She’s connected to us,” I answered, sensing exactly what Apollo was getting at.

If we truly were mates, there was a good chance our healing properties could be transferred.

Would it alter our ability to fully heal?

Maybe, but all three of us knew without intervention, there was a chance she could die.

And that wasn’t going to happen.

I nuzzled her face with my snout, dragging my tongue across her face, hoping she knew we were here and we’d keep her safe.

Even if we’d failed in preventing her any harm.

The fuckers responsible would die.

She stirred, her slight murmur pulsing in my ears. “Mmm…” Her eyelids fluttered open. “Ro-man.” Reaching out, she touched my face, offering a slight smile. She was so weak, her body failing her. When she coughed, the sound ragged and harsh, I threw my head back and howled.

Apollo stood over her, staring at the location of the wound. “Thankfully, the bullet went through. Now, we heal her.”

He dragged his tongue across the wound, licking the blood away.

Kai approached cautiously, still growling as a warning to any other predators. They would die if they tried to take her from us.

The ache from my injury was severe and I sensed I needed the healing power I possessed to expedite the process, but if giving her a chance meant suffering, that’s what we’d do.

One after the other, we licked the injury until there was no blood left. Very slowly, evidence of the wound began to fade.

She stirred again, her eyes popping wide open. “What is… happening?”

“Shush, little mate. Just rest.”

I wasn’t certain if she understood at first, but when she nodded, I noticed the glisten of tears in her eyes. Our beautiful human mate would recover.

When we were certain of her recovery, we moved away. Our eyes never left her even as we shifted into human form.

The time, the agony from doing so was almost unbearable. But the pain was worth being able to save her.

Once powerful wolves, now we were men. Enraged humans determined to protect what belonged to them.

I stumbled forward, crouching down beside her. She stared up at me, tears trickling down her face. She reached out as she’d done before, lightly brushing the tips of her fingers down my face.

“Thank you.” As soon as she spoke, birds flew overhead drawing her attention. “We’re safe.”

Safe.

I knew in my gut we were far from it. The nightmare would continue. Many would die.

Including the three of us if necessary. But we would find a way to keep her safe.

“We need time to fully recover,” Kai said as I gathered her into my arms, cradling her close to my body. “She’s not fully healed.”

“She will be.” I pressed my lips against her forehead. She was so warm, her body molding perfectly against mine.

“Yes, she will,” Apollo added. “But time we might not have.”

They would come after us again and again.

But we’d be ready.

As we walked from the forest, I was surprised that for a few seconds I felt hope.

Because we’d found our true mate.