Page 18 of Grey (Little River Stallions #2)

Grey’s fury rose as he couldn’t seem to get close enough to overtake the van and force them to stop.

He didn’t want to risk Tatum’s safety, so he couldn’t ram the van from behind, even if he could get close enough.

His stallion screamed in fury in his head, and if he wasn’t driving, he’d be in his shift chasing them down.

The van hit a pothole and lurched to the side as it passed the broken fencing that surrounded the old mill.

Grey narrowly avoided hitting the same pothole.

The van turned sharply, rocking side to side as it screeched to a halt.

Grey slammed on the brakes and was out of the truck in a heartbeat as Silas and Levi exited the van.

“Give me back my mate!” Grey shouted, stalking toward them.

Levi shifted back and forth on his feet, looking nervous, but Silas was all swagger and confidence.

“You don’t get it, do you? Colton is taking over the farm and he’ll do whatever it takes to fracture your herd, including taking out the mates.” He snorted. “So upset over a human, honestly. It’s revolting. They’re so weak, she didn’t stand a chance fighting me.”

“You’ll regret coming after her to get to me,” he said.

“Well, it worked, didn’t it? I got you here, didn’t I?”

As if waiting for him to say those words, three males strode from the woods, climbing over the old, broken fence surrounding the clearing, Colton in the lead.

As the males drew close, an engine revved behind them and Crew and Avi drove into the clearing, the tires sliding on the dirt as the truck braked hard.

Crew and Avi got out of the truck and Crew shouted, “Let Tatum go. She’s innocent in all this. Your fight is with us, not our mates, Colton.”

“I’ll do whatever it takes to have a home for my herd. Our rightful home,” Colton said.

“It’s not yours to take,” Crew said. “The farm belongs to our herd and we’ll fight to the death to keep it and our people safe.”

“So be it,” Colton said.

Colton’s males rushed toward them, but their alpha stayed back.

Grey surged forward with his friends, desperate to put an end to the danger against them and get Tatum to safety.

He grabbed Silas by the collar, lifting him off the ground and throwing him against the van, making it rock on its tires. “This ends now!”

Someone pulled Grey off of Silas and he fell on his ass, rolling quickly to avoid a boot to the face. Leaping to his feet, he touched his stallion for strength and speed, and attacked, Crew, Avi, and Ford fighting alongside him.

There was a loud creak and the van’s back door opened. Tatum stumbled out and dropped to the ground, holding her head with a groan.

Grey lurched toward her, but Silas pulled him back. Anger roared inside him like a living thing as he struggled against Silas’s hold and watched Colton turn his gaze to Tatum, helpless on the ground.

Grey grabbed Silas’s hand and bent his fingers back until the male released his hold on him, and then he shifted his weight and threw him over his shoulder. Silas hit the ground with a groan and Grey leaped over him and raced toward Colton.

Colton’s fist flew at Grey too fast for him to track and he staggered back as his fist connected with his jaw, the force of the blow sending a shockwave through him.

He wiped the blood from his mouth and launched forward, knocking Colton off balance.

They hit the ground in a cloud of dust, fists flying.

Someone pulled Grey off Colton and the male scuttled off.

Grey roared in anger and threw his elbow back, connecting with someone’s gut. They grunted and let go of their grip on him, and he spun to retaliate. He couldn’t even see who he was battling through the haze of his anger; he only knew that he had to stop them and get to his mate.

He grabbed the male who was doubled over and swung him around, slamming him into the van. Then with a deep, feral howl of pure rage, he jerked him off his feet and threw him into the air.

As the male twisted in the air, arms flailing, Grey saw it was Silas. He shouted in fear as he soared toward the broken fencing, and landed on his back with a sickening cracking sound.

Grey moved to Tatum, who was trying to get to her feet, helping her up as he scanned the clearing for Colton but didn’t see him.

The van’s engine rumbled to life and the tires spun, kicking up gravel and dirt. Grey hustled Tatum away from the debris and ran with her to the truck. As the van left the clearing, he got a good look at Colton behind the wheel, the back door swinging wildly with the motion.

Levi, Weston, and Asher realized Colton had left them.

“Get your male and get the hell away from our people,” Crew shouted. “If you stay, we’ll take it as an act of aggression.”

Snapping into motion, Levi and Weston took Silas down from the fence and the trio carried his body into the woods.

Grey lifted Tatum into the passenger seat of the truck and she sagged against the seat with a groan. He cupped her face, emotion rising inside him like a tidal wave. Her eyes went out of focus and her brow furrowed.

“Baby? Are you okay?”

“I’m… I don’t know,” she said, her voice slurring. “Dizzy.”

He inhaled and picked up a chemical smell. “I think they used chloroform. The effects should go away soon, but we’ll call Doc Paula just to be sure. Are you hurt?”

She blinked a few times. “No.”

“Good.” He rested his head gently against hers and shuddered. “Shit, Tatum, I thought I lost you.”

“Is Mrs. Fielder okay?”

“We didn’t check. We can stop at the library and make sure.”

“What if she called the police?”

“We’ll deal with it, don’t worry,” Grey said.

But he was suddenly very fucking worried. The last thing they needed was human police involvement.

Crew came over. “How are you, Tatum?”

She hummed.

“She’s coming out from the drugging. We need to check on Mrs. Fielder at the library.”

“Let’s head there now,” Crew said. “If she called the police, we’ll come up with a reasonable explanation for things and keep them from trying to do any investigations.”

Grey nodded, trusting his alpha to come up with whatever story would work for them.

They split up into the two vehicles, Ford riding in the back seat with Grey and Tatum. “I’m glad you’re okay, Tatum,” Ford said.

“Thank you for fighting with Grey,” she said, sounding more like herself.

“That’s what the herd does.”

Grey nodded, squeezing the steering wheel until his knuckles turned white. He was so pissed that Tatum had been taken, but he was damn thankful to get her back safely.

“That guy is dead? The one who took me?” she asked with a quiet voice.

“Yeah. He was Colton’s right-hand male,” Grey said. He didn’t feel guilty for taking his life. Stallions would do whatever was necessary to keep their soulmates safe, and Grey would kill him all over again if he had the chance.

“Why won’t Colton leave the herd alone?”

“I don’t know,” Grey said. “Hopefully, losing his second-in-command is enough for him to realize he needs to stay the hell away from us.”

“That’s the hope,” Ford said, “but Colton seems to be a full-blown asshole so there’s no telling what he’s capable of.”

Grey took Tatum’s hand and squeezed it.

When they reached the library parking lot, Ford got out of the truck and Grey undid his and Tatum’s seatbelts and pulled her close.

She broke down, sobbing in his arms as the fear over what could have happened seemed to hit home for her.

Grey’s eyes stung with tears because he knew just how close he’d come to losing her.

Colton was unhinged and his males were clearly as delusional as him, thinking nothing of abducting and drugging a stallion’s mate for some damn territory.

He held her close until she stopped crying, then brushed the tears from her cheeks. “I love you, sweetheart. I would move heaven and earth to keep you safe, and I’m so sorry that you were taken and hurt.”

She kissed him. “I love you too. I knew you were going to come for me, but I was still scared as hell.”

He kissed her again, and then said, “I’ll always come for you.”

She rested against him for a few quiet moments, and then they got out of the truck and headed inside.

The library was empty save for Mrs. Fielder, who had a bruise on her cheek and was talking to Crew.

“Oh, Tatum! Are you okay? I was so scared for you.”

“I’m okay,” she said. “I still have a bit of a headache because they drugged me, but they didn’t hurt me. Are you okay?”

“They broke the phone and they gave me a good smack. I called the police from my cell phone, but they still haven’t shown up yet. Your friends told me you were safe, and I’m so glad to see you.”

“We can call the police and tell them that I’m safe now,” Tatum said.

Crew nodded. “Yes, would you please, Mrs. Fielder? Tatum’s ex tried to cause trouble by sending people to abduct her, but we were able to stop them and get her to safety.”

“Shouldn’t we still let the police know? So they can go after them?” Mrs. Fielder asked with a frown.

“We dealt with it,” Grey said. “They won’t come back for her. But we should put up some security measures to keep the library safer.” And Tatum should definitely, always have her phone on her.

“Oh, okay,” Mrs. Fielder said. “I’ll call right now.” She told the police that Tatum was safe, and Tatum spoke to them herself to let them know that all was well.

Grey and Tatum went into the break room so she could get her purse. At the sink, she rinsed her face and dried it with a paper towel and then got a bottle of water from the refrigerator. Her hands were shaking, so he opened the bottle for her.

“You’re probably still a little in shock from everything that happened. When we get to the farm, you can have something with sugar in it,” he said.

She nodded.

Tatum gave Mrs. Fielder a hug. “I’m glad you’re okay.”

“I’m glad that you are too. And you’re sure you’re safe?”

“I am,” Tatum said with a smile. “If it’s okay with you, I’m going to go home and rest. It’s been a stressful day.”

“Of course, I’ll handle the rest of the day.”

Grey took Tatum’s hand and they left with the herd. On the way, he had Tatum call Doc Paula at the park, who told them that if it was chloroform that was used, it would leave her system pretty quickly once she wasn’t being exposed to it and that there wouldn’t be lingering effects.

“You feel okay?” he asked.

“A little shaky still, but yeah,” she said. She leaned against him with a sigh.

He didn’t like thinking how close he came to nearly losing her, and he thanked his lucky stars that he’d been able to get her back in his arms.