Page 9

Chapter Six

M ina woke in a cold sweat, her hair plastered to her neck and face.

She reached blindly beside her, but Spark was missing.

Her nightgown lay three feet away over the back of a chair.

Mina snatched it up and drew it over her head, not knowing what to expect when she ventured out of her room.

It was silent. Too silent. The air was still and something smelled wrong. Sour.

Wrapping a robe around her, she slowly opened her bedroom door and peered into the darkened hall.

The lamp that always remained on had been switched off and she approached it cautiously.

Mina twisted the switch several times, but nothing happened.

Something told her this went far deeper than a burnt out bulb and she eased further down the hall, the hair on the back of her neck rising to attention.

Where were her brothers? Her father? What happened to Spark?

Each door she passed stood open and the eerie feeling wrapped tightly around her as she pressed on, moving deeper into the house.

She came to the wide staircase and used her wolf senses to check for danger.

Nothing stirred below. Every instinct she possessed screamed at her to return to her room and lock the door, but she couldn’t hide without knowing if Spark was okay.

The cool marble of the staircase seeped into the soles of her feet as she padded down the stairs.

At the bottom, the moonlight shone through the windows surrounding the front doors, casting everything into silver tones.

The door was cracked a quarter inch and her feeling of unease doubled.

No way would her family have left that door unlocked, not after having spotted Striker earlier.

The wolf had been seen prowling the edge of their property, as if seeking a way in, and now everyone was missing and the door was open.

Warning bells were ringing in her head, but Mina refused to listen to them.

She wanted her mate.

Continuing through the house, she nearly stumbled over a warm body.

Mina fell to her knees and rolled him over, gasping when she saw the bruise over Simon’s eye.

Whoever had taken him out must have not played fair.

Her older brother was bookish, but he also knew how to defend himself.

If Simon was down, were the others as well?

She tiptoed through the lower level of the house, stumbling upon her other two brothers and her father, all unconscious on the floor.

A sour feeling rolled through her stomach as she thought about Spark being at Striker’s mercy.

If the wolf thought for one moment that Spark and Mina had mated, he would lose what little sanity he had left.

Mina feared for her mate more than herself.

At least she knew what Striker wanted from her, but if he got his hands on Spark, it could get bloody fast.

As she crept through the kitchen, she paused long enough to ease a butcher knife from the block on the counter.

Gripping it tightly, she held it in front of her as she neared the back door.

It was wide open, a gentle breeze blowing in, bringing with it the stink of insane wolf and her mate.

Mina didn’t know what to expect when she entered the backyard, but her heart stuttered in her chest as she saw Spark lying on the ground, a knife wound to his side, his arms cut to hell, and a slice across one cheek.

His eyes were closed and she prayed that he still lived.

She watched intently, not daring to breathe until she saw his chest rise and fall, albeit in shallow breaths.

Mina looked around but didn’t see Striker anywhere.

She nearly ran to Spark and fell on her knees beside him.

The knife clattered to the ground as her hands fluttered over him, not sure where to touch him, yet wanting to assure herself he was all right.

“He’s alive. For now.” Striker stepped out of the shadows, not three feet from her.

Mina reached for her knife, but he was too quick and kicked it away.

Her nails bit into her palms as she closed her hands into tight fists and rose to her feet.

She knew that one on one, she was no match for the crazy wolf, but she wouldn’t back down and leave her mate to die.

No matter what Striker said, she knew he had no intention of leaving Spark alive.

“Why did you attack my family and my mate?”

“Mate,” he sneered. “You were supposed to be mine! My rightful place is beside your father, and you took that from me by mating with this…this…creature. He isn’t even a wolf, Mina!

How could you think to dilute the pack blood like that?

You’re the pack princess and you deserve a prince, not some commoner you picked up along the way.

He was your bodyguard. That alone should tell you his status isn’t anywhere near good enough to be with you. ”

“Whether you like it or not, he is my mate.” She lifted her chin. “And we’re having a baby. My father already knows and he’s thrilled about becoming a grandfather, despite the fact this child may not be a wolf. Do you think my father really cares about bloodlines?”

“No, but he does care about power, and that pathetic excuse of a man at your feet doesn’t have any.”

Mina scoffed. “As if you do. The only thing you have is a few screws loose. No one would ever want you as a mate, much less me. You think you’re worthy of me? You aren’t fit to lick my feet.”

Striker growled and backhanded her across the face, knocking her to the ground.

Mina knew it was a gamble, that there was a chance she could lose the baby, but if she didn’t protect Spark and save her own life, the baby would be dead anyway.

Lucky for her, Striker didn’t realize he’d knocked her close to the knife he’d kicked away.

Her hand wrapped around the handle and she hid it with her body.

Striker wasn’t done with her though and gripped a handful of her hair, dragging her to her feet. When he wasn’t paying attention, she slammed the knife back and into his thigh, giving it a twist after she buried it to the hilt, and then she jerked it free.

He screamed and tossed her aside. “Bitch!”

“I’ll never willingly go with you, Striker. My place is by my mate’s side.”

“Have it your way, princess. You want to be by your mate?” He brandished a knife. “Then let’s put you beside him…in a grave. When Shadow comes to, he’ll have two graves to dig. Assuming he even bothers burying that stupid maned wolf. I’d just let him rot in the sun.”

He lunged at her and Mina watched, waiting until the last moment to dance away.

She twisted her body and slammed her knife into Striker’s back, then pulled it free so she could attack again.

He spun toward her and charged again, waving his knife like a madman.

Mina ducked under his slashing arm and shoved her knife upward between his ribs.

Striker stumbled back and she attacked again, slamming the knife into him over and over, until he fell to the ground, blood bubbling from his lips.

“I’m not some weak wolf you can impose your will on,” Mina panted. “I’m the princess of this motherfucking pack and you’d best not forget it, asshole.”

As Striker slumped, his eyes staring up at the moon, glassy and vacant, Mina gave a cry and ran to Spark.

She cradled his head in her lap and wished she had a phone to call for an ambulance.

Howls could be heard on the front side of the property and moments later she was surrounded by her father’s most trusted men.

She fought as they tried to take Spark from her, but eventually they pulled her away and tended to his wounds.

The wail of a siren pierced the night air and Mina gave a sob, covering her face with her hands.

She gasped for breath, suddenly unable to take in enough oxygen, and then the world began to fade.

Someone slapped her across the cheek, jolting her and bringing her back to reality.

She scrambled across the patio to Spark and cradled his body in her arms, not letting go until the paramedics arrived.

She started to climb into the ambulance with her mate, but her father held her back.

“Give them some time to work on him,” Shadow said. “You’ll only be in the way. Besides, you need to get cleaned up before he sees you. I doubt that Spark wants to see his pregnant mate covered in another wolf’s blood.”

She looked down at her blood splattered robe and rubbed her fingers together. The slickness she’d felt on her hands finally registered and she winced. Perhaps a shower was in order. She didn’t want Spark to worry when he woke, and seeing her looking like a mass murderer might do it.

Mina allowed her father to lead her through the house and up to her room.

As she shampooed her hair, she realized there was a slight tremor running through her body.

Now that the adrenaline was leaving, the fact she’d killed someone was finally sinking in.

Mina knew it had been a matter of Striker or them, but it didn’t lessen the queasy feeling.

She’d never taken a life before unless you counted the deer she hunted as a wolf.

Even knowing that Striker was going to kill her didn’t make it any easier.

She finished washing, dried off, and pulled on the first outfit she grabbed.

When she went downstairs, wet hair trailing down her back, she found her father sitting at the kitchen table.

The look on his face said it was business as usual, but she noticed a tenseness to his shoulders that wasn’t normally there.

“Did the hospital call?” she asked, suddenly worried that something had happened to Spark.

“No, honey. No one called. I’m sure Spark arrived and is being taken care of. I thought we’d head that way in just a moment. But first, I’d like to talk to you. Come have a seat.” He used his booted foot to shove a chair out for her.

Mina sat and faced her father. She didn’t know what he wanted to discuss, but she didn’t like the fact they weren’t rushing off to the hospital. Spark needed her! What if he woke and she wasn’t there?

“You know I wasn’t too happy about the idea of you taking a mate without permission,” Shadow said.

“But I think I need to tell you what happened tonight before you ventured out of bed. The only mistakes Spark made were underestimating Striker and not locking you in your bedroom. Then again, if he’d locked you in, who would have saved our asses? ”

She smiled.

“Your Spark was the one who figured out there was something wrong. His sneaking down the hall woke everyone and we fanned out to check the house. Unfortunately, Striker was already inside by then and he managed to take us out one at a time. If Spark hadn’t mouthed off about protecting his mate, then Striker probably would have just knocked him out like he did the rest of us. ”

“But he wanted Spark dead, so I wouldn’t have a mate any longer.”

Shadow nodded.

“Once he knew I was pregnant, surely he understood there was no way for him to win,” Mina said.

“Unless he got rid of the baby. I’m just sorry I didn’t realize sooner how power hungry he’d become. If I had known months ago that Striker was sick and twisted, then I could have saved us all some pain. Instead of banning him from the club, I should have taken him out completely.”

“You did what you thought was best, Daddy. Don’t beat yourself up over it. What’s done is done, and Striker won’t be hurting any of us anymore. Now…can we please go see my mate?”

Shadow smiled. “Now we can go see your mate. You might want to grab him a change of clothes, even though they may keep him overnight. Something tells me he isn’t one to stay down for long, regardless of what the doctors say.”

They took the SUV so there would be plenty of room for Spark.

It didn’t take long to reach the hospital and Mina dashed inside.

She could hear Spark yelling so barreled past the stunned nurse at the front desk and went in search of her mate.

Mina found him standing beside an ER hospital bed with a fresh set of stitches in his side.

“I’m not putting on that ridiculous gown because I’m not staying,” Spark shouted. “Move the hell out of my way!”

Mina couldn’t stop the smile that spread across her lips.

If he was feeling well enough to stand up and argue with the doctor and nurses, then he was going to be just fine.

Maybe his wound had looked worse than it really was.

She approached and knew the moment he’d spotted her.

He gave her that slow, sexy smile of his that made her knees weak and she reached for his hand, too fearful of hugging him in case she caused him pain.

“You aren’t supposed to argue with the medical staff,” Mina said. “They only want to help you.”

“I want to go home, where I can sleep with you in my arms. They can’t force me to stay here.”

Mina held up the bag of his clothes. “You might want to change then. You look like you escaped a horror movie. You might want a waterproof bandage too, so you can shower when we get home. I doubt you want to go to bed like that.”

He looked down at the smeared blood on his body and winced. “You’re right.”

A nurse took a hesitant step forward. “I can put a waterproof bandage on it. If you’ll let me.”

“Make it quick,” Spark growled. “I want to go home.”

Mina wondered if he even realized he was calling her father’s residence his home.

Or maybe he just figured wherever Mina would be sleeping was considered home.

She wouldn’t argue, either way. As long as she had Spark sleeping beside her tonight, she would be happy.

They could figure out their future later.

She watched as he was freshly bandaged, then waited for him to change his clothes.

When he was ready, she led him out to the waiting room where her father was sitting, and then they went home.

The police had never been called, but the pack security had finally cleared out.

She assumed the she-wolves had taken her brothers under their wings, nursing them back to health for the night, which meant it was just Shadow, Spark, and her in the house for the night.

Mina led Spark upstairs, ushering him into her room, and then fetched his clothing from the spare room while he showered.

No way was she going to let him sleep in another room, not after everything they’d been through tonight.

Never again would they ever sleep apart from one another, not if she had anything to say about it.