Page 37 of Savage Mates (Ruthless Instinct #2)

Titus

Hours had gone by.

Hours of waiting.

And I wasn’t a patient lion.

As a human, I was even less so.

We’d remained close to the military compound to ensure our little mate wasn’t injured or worse, leaving only when we saw her with another lion.

The injured female. One of the humans had captured her.

Our little mate had been intent on caring for her.

All the while we were waiting, all I’d been able to do was to think about her. Her beauty. Her smile. Her laugh.

The way she flipped her hair back.

The glow of her skin.

Need.

Desire.

It was tearing me apart.

Yes, Thor and Zeus were also the little human’s mates, but that didn’t mean I had to like it or enjoying watching them rub their hands all over her skin.

Or kiss her soft lips.

Let alone fucking her while I watched.

No. Maybe as a human I wasn’t into sharing.

“She belongs to all of us,” Thor said as he ran beside me.

I threw my head in his direction, issuing a deep growl. “I didn’t need to love the arrangement.”

“He’s just jealous she likes us more than she does him.” Up to this point, Zeus hadn’t acted possessive, but the more time he’d spent with her, the more his personality had changed. She’d gotten into our bloodstream, tainting every molecule.

As if she truly had always been meant for the three of us.

Even now, her sweet scent lingered in my fur, and I could almost feel her fingers running through my mane.

“She’s not safe. I feel it,” I barked out. In the hours since we’d walked away, all I could think about was the level of danger she’d purposely placed herself in. And it fucked with my mind.

“She’s resilient. We’ll know if she’s in danger.” Thor’s insistence didn’t make me feel any better.

“What if you’re wrong?”

He didn’t answer my question. The entire pride was under duress.

In our absence, Alexander was in charge of the camp, his orders to move everyone to the caves if he believed the campsite was about to be attacked.

Or if the storm intensified before our return.

If only our numbers were greater. That would allow me some small comfort.

We trotted along the dark terrain, moving stealthily through the jungle heading toward the marauders’ camp. When we were close, we caught movement.

We slowed, moving toward a group of trees that allowed for an excellent vantage point.

“The humans are preparing for something,” Thor snarled.

“And the lions are restless. And angry,” Zeus quipped. “They sense a change.”

Low growls permeated the air, snarls and some charging sounds.

“We need to fucking kill these lions,” one of the humans yelled.

Two or three laughed while we bristled, growing enraged. As our little mate had reminded us, they were victims, still suffering from experiments that hadn’t been completed.

“We can’t do that. Blackwell’s orders.” The man’s dark voice permeated the jungle.

“He doesn’t rule us,” the first human retorted.

“He can while he’s paying us a salary.” A series of loud thumps sounded off in another location. Metal against metal. “You forget how much we’re getting paid to keep these fucking vermin in line.” When a lion charged the cage, he threw himself at the cage, issuing a human roar.

As if that would terrify the lions.

It only further enraged them. And us as well.

Two more marauders came into view. “We’ve been paid shit, Sarge. When the hell are we getting the rest of the money? We’re stuck on this fucking island. It was supposed to be a couple weeks. Not this fucking long.”

Sarge. He was the man who’d just roared. That meant the men on the island weren’t mercenaries or common criminals like we’d believed, but American military men.

“They’re prepared a military-style action.” My statement was met with low-slung growls from the other two. I knew I was right. I’d learned several aspects of military-style operations in talking with Alexander.

“Just listen,” Thor snapped as if he was the pride’s only alpha.

“Why the fuck do you think we’re packing up, soldier?

” the sergeant threw back as he walked away from the cages.

The lions were momentarily quiet. While we couldn’t read their thoughts, their actions indicated a planned attack of their own.

Where I’d once thought of them as less intelligent given what they’d been through, I was beginning to think otherwise. They were cunning.

“Does that mean the damn project has come to a conclusion? I need a goddamn cheeseburger and a cold beer, for fuck’s sake.” Three more of the marauders came into view.

Zeus shifted, his entire body stiffening. “They’re in uniform.”

“The mission is just being changed. Evidently there are other fucking mutants like these bastards. I guess the cat is out of the bag.” The sergeant laughed. “Too much collateral damage. Plus, we need to get the fuck off this island before the storm rolls in.”

Turning my head, I studied Thor. The electricity surged from his body to mine. Collateral damage. “They’re going to capture the pride.” I wasn’t just experiencing anger any longer. There was sadness, not only for everything I’d lost, but for the small pride formed from discarded beasts.

The lions reacted again, ramming the cages, almost muffling another noise.

More metal hitting metal.

More growls.

More men appearing in the darkness, all armed.

“How the hell are we getting off this shithole? We saw it crash land.” Yet another soldier’s voice.

“The plane will be ready tomorrow. Just get everything loaded up.”

“What about the mutants?”

The sergeant chuckled. “We’ll kill them before we leave. They’ve served their purpose, which was worthless if you ask me.” He prodded the lions again and one of the largest of them threw himself at the bars, jamming his paw through, his claws catching the man on the face.

“Motherfucker!” The sergeant jerked back, immediately reaching for his weapon and pointing it at the beast.

Every cage began to rattle, almost tipping over from the force.

“We need to get the fuck away from them. You’re right. Let’s go. The storm has picked speed and intensity.” Whoever the other soldier was stopped his actions.

“Fuck.” The sergeant jerked down his weapon, immediately touching his face. “Move out. Now.”

They’d planned on using the plane the entire time.

“We can’t let them get off this island,” I told them.

“And we won’t. Our little mate’s benefactor is a piece of shit.” Thor’s statement was tame in comparison to what he was thinking.

Or what he hungered to accomplish.

I crept a few feet closer. “What is that sound?” It was a deep rumble unlike anything we’d heard before. At least on the island. It sounded like a truck’s engine.

“Where the fuck did they get a vehicle?” There was no mistaking what I was seeing.

A Humvee. Somehow, they’d hidden it from view.

Maybe inside one of the dilapidated buildings.

A group of marauders had already been here when we’d arrived, more coming only days before Lauren and the others.

At least we knew they were all well-trained soldiers.

That meant the odds were against us given the number of weapons we’d just seen.

“Not just a vehicle. Look at the large cargo truck.” Zeus was ready to strike.

“Don’t do it,” I snapped. “We need to find out exactly what they are doing.”

Now things were beginning to make sense.

“They’re coming after every lion.” Thor’s body was rigid.

“And they’re going to take the military compound.” Zeus pawed the ground.

“They’re taking us off the island. If that happens, we’ll never see our mate again.” There was no doubt about that in my mind.

Zeus moved on one side of me, Thor on the other. “We need to let Alexander know to move the others.”

“I’ll issue the call as soon as they leave.”

We stood silently, watching them as they loaded weapons into the first vehicle. And in the second?

Capture cages.

“Warn the others,” Zeus directed. “They need to get to the cave.”

“And we need to get Lauren to safety.” Once again, I swung my head toward them. We didn’t need to communicate to be in agreement.

Thor listed his head, his features contorted. “She’s calling us. Can you feel her? My chest is tight.”

“She’s not yet in trouble. Let her finish. We need to distract the fuckers.” Zeus was adamant and while her discovery of what was happening on the small island was important, our little mate losing her life wasn’t going to happen.

“No,” Thor bristled. “We kill them now.”

“We don’t have the manpower. Not yet. We need time to warn her.” We’d need to decide quickly. The soldiers were getting ready to head out. The lions in the cages were still charging the bars.

It was only a matter of time before they’d escape, but by then it would be too late.

“A fire. We set a fire.”

My suggestion brought surprise, but quickly they agreed. And the only way we could do it was by shifting.

With the only indication of our transformation being the ground vibrating beneath our feet, the humans were none the wiser that we would disrupt their plans.

We rushed through the trees, taking our time to creep up on the groups of already mostly burned-out buildings. This encampment had seen its share of warfare.

These humans were arrogant, thinking themselves superior given they only had a limited understanding of our agility and our power. What they didn’t know would eventually get them killed.

With strength, speed, and endurance heightened and our high level of intelligence tossed into the mix, we were close to being invincible.

Yet we could die by bullets, which is why we remained in the shadows, moving at lightning speed.

The urgency was increasing, the need to protect our mate the only thing on my mind.

First, set a fire. Then warn the others while we took her to safety.

It was easy enough to do, finding the resources for their fuel. While they were busy taunting the lions, we were dousing areas of the camp with gasoline. Given they always had a fire going in a firepit even though it was hot as Hades on the island, finding a source for the flame was also easy.

“Extra fuel.” I still used our mental tethering, avoiding making any noise. The tank was large enough to suit our purposes.

“That’s perfect.” Thor chuckled, watching me with fascination as I torched the fabric.

“Get ready to shift and run.”

As soon as I tossed the piece of clothing I’d found, the whoosh of flame reached the top of the canopy of the surrounding trees. Vibrations now came from everywhere and not just from us shifting once again to our lion form.

Boom!

“What the fuck!” a human called.

The fire roared, following the trail of gasoline and liquor used as an accelerant. The lions were left to fend for themselves.

They were still murderous predators.

Screams permeated the night sky, the heat searing my fur as we raced through the jungle.

Gunshots.

Lion roars.

We wasted no time.

Now we would save our mate.