19. Tristan

Tristan

Chapter 19

"Dammit, this isn't working," my mate muttered, cursing.

He was buck-ass naked on all fours on the bed I'd convinced him to keep. It was huge and took up most of the room, but it was so worth it. He'd been stubborn as hell, though, insisting we hand the larger cabin over to our Alpha and his family. He'd promised me he preferred the "smaller, cozier" space—his words. I figured he was just doing the couple a favor since Malachi was really cramping their sex lives, which made them grumpy assholes. And once their new baby was here—due any day—they would really need the extra space.

"What about if I do… this?" I asked, crooking my fingers inside him, and he gasped, writhing. Slick was dribbling down his thighs, so I had to be doing something right. I leaned closer, my face sandwiched between his cheeks, to lap some of it up on my tongue. By scissoring my fingers, I could insert my tongue between them.

He made a low, guttural sound, part moan, part groan, but it quickly cut off. "I… I can't," he whined, frustrated. "I promise, it's not you. It feels really good, but my hips are aching so badly, I can't concentrate on all the awesome things you're doing back there."

Dylan was massive—and I meant that in the nicest, please-don't-claw-my-eyes-out way. The summer had been long and hot, no doubt made hotter for him by being pregnant. I'd taken him down to the pond every day this week so he could soak in the cool water.

Hey, that's an idea. "We could go back to the pond, if you want. I could fuck you right there in the water, or maybe in the mud."

"That is… so not sexy," he said, shaking his head as he shot down my idea, but at least he was laughing.

"I can make anything sexy," I purred, sinking my teeth into his ass and leaving a little love bite, then I licked away the sting, making him groan.

"What about the shower? Is there water in the tank?" he asked, panting.

I chuckled against his flesh. "You drained it this morning, remember?"

He whined, dropping his head to the mattress. "Let's just try a different position."

"Anything my mate wants." He whimpered as I pulled my fingers out, then I shuffled around to his side and offered him my hand. Rolling over was a two-person job these days. "What would you like? Do you want to lie on your side? You could be the little spoon, while I take you from behind?"

He sounded so dejected as he said, "I guess we can try that."

"Orrrr I could just give you a blowjob so you can get some sleep?" I suggested, urging him onto his back. I knew he was exhausted, and while he would never suggest we do something that left me unfinished, I also knew he didn't have the energy to fight me on this. And frankly, I just wanted to make him feel good. He deserved a break.

"But, babe, I—"

"Don't worry about me," I whispered, already easing myself down the bed to settle between his legs. "Just let me take care of you."

As I slipped his hard length past my lips, adding a bit of suction, he let out a long moan. His salty precum was just an appetizer before the meal, and I wanted all of it.

"This would be so much hotter if I could see what you were doing," he panted, tilting his head up to see over his round stomach. "All I can see is the back of your head bobbing up and down."

"Think of it like a blindfold," I said with a throaty chuckle, slipping my fingers back inside his tight entrance. "It's all part of the tease."

He dropped his head back on the pillow and angled his hips to grind against me as best he could. There wasn't much he could do at this size, though. Moving at all was difficult, taking the two of us to get out of bed in the morning. He couldn't even shift into his panther anymore, sacrificing his every waking hour to growing our son, and we still had another few weeks left to this pregnancy. As much as he complained about the discomfort, I knew he loved it. I often found him talking or singing to our son, rubbing a hand over his belly lovingly. When I'd crouched down and spoken at his belly button, Dylan had run his fingers through my hair and said, "He's so excited to meet you." And as much as it was a just a cute thing to say, I'd believed him. His words had a ring of truth to them.

My forehead bumped against the underside of his belly, and I smiled around my mouthful of cock. He just kept getting better and better. Back when he was a fancy city panther, he'd kept himself all waxed and smooth, wearing his designer fashion, product in his hair, cream on his skin. But now that we were out in the boonies, he'd "let himself go," so to speak, and I was here for it. I loved when his hair got wavy in the humidity and curled across his forehead, how his newly callused hands rasped across my skin. And now that his giant belly kept getting in the way of his grooming, his dark, curly hair had regrown, and it was my not-so-secret delight. I brought his thick girth all the way in, nudging at the back of my throat, so I could nuzzle my nose into those curls.

His breathing sped up, those sweet, little sounds he made letting me know he was close. "My alpha…" he groaned. He dug his fingers deep into my hair, grabbing a fistful, and forced me lower until I nearly choked. I relaxed my throat and invited him deeper, my moans setting him off like a rocket.

Dylan cried out as he filled my mouth with his cum, and his tight ass clamped around my fingers. I did everything I could to keep my lips sealed around him. I didn't want to spill a drop. His distinct flavor on my tongue left my own cock throbbing. Once I had him settled, I would have to take care of that, or I would never get to sleep tonight.

With a sigh, Dylan sank into the mattress. "Thank you," he said on a blissed-out sigh, untangling his hand from my hair.

"Anything for you." I kissed his belly once, twice, three times. Vesta had always said three was a lucky number. I hoped that didn't mean we were about to have triplets. "I'll be right back with a cloth to clean you up, baby."

"M'kay," he mumbled, already half asleep.

Sure enough, by the time I got back with a warm, wet cloth from the kitchen, Dylan was fast asleep, still right where I'd left him on top of the covers. I knew he wouldn't sleep well in that position, so I planned to clean him up and then roll him over with his body pillow between his knees. I crouched down with the cloth, but even before I touched him, he sat bolt upright in bed. I hadn't seen him move that fast all summer.

I jolted in surprise. "Gods, Dylan, you scared the shit out of… me…" I frowned, an uneasy sensation slithering up my spine. "Dylan? Are you okay?"

His gaze was unfocused, aimed somewhere past me. "They're coming," he said, but his voice didn't sound like his. It was older, somehow, deeper, and it made me think of when Vesta had sent me to Fairhome to find my mate. Like he was connected to something beyond this world, beyond my understanding.

I crawled closer, unsure what to do. My heart was racing, my wolf pacing back and forth inside my mind. Dylan said someone was coming. If this was important, I needed to hear the message, but what if it was hurting him—or our son? I reached for him but hesitated. What if touching him made it worse? "Dylan? Baby? Who's coming?"

His lips moved with a whisper so quiet I had to lean closer to hear him. "They're coming, they're all coming. Coming… from the south… they're all coming." His breath was fast, a light sheen of sweat forming on his brow. "Coming… Hurry, you have to…" His eyes began to flutter closed.

I was so fucking terrified. I had no idea what to do! "Dylan, come back to me." I cupped his cheek, and he snatched my wrist in a bruising grip, his eyes flaring wide and wild, the pupils dilated so wide his irises looked black.

"Hyenas!" he shouted, before he sagged back, limp, eyes closing.

"Dylan!" I caught him up in my arms, checking him over, but beyond his heart thundering in his chest, he seemed unharmed. Now, if only he would wake up.

Setting him back against the pillow gently, I raced to the door and threw it open, shoving my head out into the muggy night. "Shan! Jude!" I didn't wait to see if they'd heard me before I returned to my mate.

Not even a minute later, Jude lunged into the cabin, his hair in total disarray, not a stitch of clothes on. Just as well, since I had a feeling we would need his wolf sooner than later, and clothes would just get in the way. "What is it, what's wrong? Is it the baby?"

I shook my head. "I don't think so."

Right behind him, Shan ran in. He'd taken the time to throw on some pants but nothing else. Brody was a jealous mate, so it was likely for his sake more than ours. His nostrils flared as he took in the scene, and I was suddenly aware that the room likely still smelled like sex. "What's going on?"

"Dylan had a… vision? I don't know, maybe it was just a dream, but I don't think so. It was exactly like when Vesta has visions. He said, ‘they're coming,' and told me we had to hurry. He said hyenas." My throat tightened as I took Dylan's hand. "And now he won't wake up."

"Hyenas…" Jude said ominously. "Like the ones from Fairhome?"

We shared a dark look. "That's what I was thinking too."

Shan was dragging a hand back and forth through his hair, agitated and confused. He hadn't seen Merlin Cant, and neither of them had witnessed his father swearing vengeance on Joseph Caruso. "What if Merlin's father decided the best revenge was to take a son's life, in exchange for the loss of his own…"

"How much time do you think we have?" Jude asked, already inching out the door.

I shook my head. "He just said to hurry—and south! He said they were coming from the south," I shouted after him, remembering that detail just before he disappeared, shifting to his wolf before he was barely over the threshold. His dark fur flashed once in the square of light spilling out into the night, and then he was gone.

"I'll wake everyone else. You stay here and—" Shan began.

"Like hell!" I snapped, my teeth already growing sharp in my mouth. This asshole thought he could exact revenge on my mate? On my son?! Hell no. I protected what was mine.

Shan huffed, his lip pulling back to show his own lengthened canines. "Okay, carry him to my cabin and put him in with Brody. They can barricade the door, and Mary and Sasha can help keep them safe."

I nodded, satisfied, and as Shan ran out to get everyone awake and ready, I gently cradled my mate in my arms. He moaned gently, but his eyes remained closed. "It's okay, kitten. I got your message. Everyone will be just fine."

Brody met us at the door wearing a blanket wrapped around himself like a cape. "Come on, I've got him." He helped me get Dylan into bed. Behind me, a bleary-looking Mary joined us, and I heard Sasha outside talking urgently with Dawn.

I stood looking down on my family and felt a longing so strong, it threatened to tear me in two. I wished I could stay here with them, hold Dylan until he woke up, but the danger was out there in the woods—and as much as I trusted my Alpha to tend to the threat, my wolf wouldn't stand for it. He was baying for blood. "Take care of him for me," I told them. I pressed one last soft kiss on my mate's forehead, then turned toward the woods.

I'd barely stepped out of my clothes before my wolf burst forth mid lunge, already tearing across the camp and into the trees. Even with our superior eyesight, the night was dark, the inky blackness among the trees making me wary. I could scent Shan, along with Damon off to the right, Dawn trailing behind. My wolf paused, lifting our nose to the breeze, parsing through the woven scents of nature. Jude's trail led off to the left, his scent already beginning to fade since he was so far ahead. Tara and Stuart were smaller wolves, but they were fast and agile, and they'd headed off to join Jude.

Let's cut right through the center, I told my wolf, hoping to close up a gap in our line of defense, and he wholeheartedly agreed. It was a likely spot for their Alpha to be, surrounded by his cackle.

Hunt, he growled with bloodthirsty glee, like a living nightmare, taking off through the woods at a fast lope. It didn't matter that it was pitch-black because this was our home. We knew the lay of the land, the logs and rocks and wide, ancient trunks draped in ivy and moss. Our muscles warmed up and loosened, and it brought me a small bit of peace to be taking action.

This… this was what we were made for. The woods were our territory, and these intruders thought they could trespass on our land, could take something from us, from me. Hyenas weren't native to North America, or to forests at all, for that matter. They were no doubt fast when on the open savannah, and their teeth were sharp, but they would be like a fish out of water here. They would be clumsy among the uneven terrain, their senses unaccustomed to the sights and smells. We had every advantage—including advance warning.

I heard them first. There was a brief whoop, haunting and out of place, followed by a returning call. My wolf crouched down among the ferns, listening. Waiting…

I knew why they'd chosen to come at us from the south. The terrain was easier, and what little wind there was between the trees was blowing in their favor, hiding their sounds and smells. For a very brief second I was worried they'd caught scent of us from downwind. Please, Gaia, protect us, I thought, sending the message out into the ether. The element of surprise was important, since we were likely outnumbered, but then… as if the very forces of nature were working in our favor, I felt a change.

The temperature began to drop, the wind gusting, swirling, tugging at our fur, then changing direction to blow hard from the south. A shiver ran down our spine, the sudden shift like an electric charge. It felt like a storm was coming. A current zipped through us, sharp and tingling, and it had my wolf lowering further, belly down to the soil. My white fur acted like a beacon when the moon was out, but in the dark and hidden as I was, they wouldn't see me unless they tripped over me.

My rage urged me to run headlong into the fray, to maul and tear and rend muscle from bone. My wolf, however, pushed me back. Patience, he soothed. They're coming.

He was right. There was a muted snap of a green branch being broken. It was nearly impossible to hear them the way the branches overhead creaked and rustled in the wind, but they moved with the clumsiness I expected. A bird was startled from their roost with a cacophony of alarm. My attention was not on the bird, however, because from between the shadows, I saw movement.

They were spread out in a line, far enough apart that they could cover a good distance, ambling with an awkward gait, though their dark, mottled fur blended well. The wind picked up with a howl, and the clouds above shifted, letting a sliver of moonlight shine through the boughs like a spotlight. The lead hyena turned his head up, and I knew.

Avi. It had to be him. He was the largest of the beasts by far, and his eyes were like pools of oil, greasy and stained with something I was afraid to name.

He lost his son, just as I lost my mothers, my sister, and most of my pack. I understood better than most how a violent death left a hollow, unquenchable grief inside. It ate at you, whispered lies to you late at night. It changed who you were and who you thought you would always be. And I didn't even blame him for looking for vengeance.

Too bad he was looking for it in the wrong place, though.

We waited, breath held, not moving an inch, long past what I had the patience for, but my wolf kept saying, Wait… just wait… I wondered what he was waiting for. Avi was right fucking there! But the second it happened, I knew.

Off to the right, I heard a rustle, a wet snap, then quiet, and the other hyenas froze as the air sang with the scent of copper and rust. Avi's lips pulled back in a snarl. Before he could command his cackle, though, there was another struggle, this time to the left. Heads whipped back and forth as they realized they were no longer alone in these woods.

And they were surrounded…

There was a younger hyena, barely out of his teens, who started to back away, letting a nervous chatter escape as he broke from formation. Avi snapped his powerful jaws at the youngling, trying to get him back into line. He was distracted, though I wasn't sure he was all there to start with. He had to have known he wouldn't walk away from such a bold and reckless attack. Maybe that was his plan all along…

Running headlong at a hyena was… not my brightest moment. He had a good 50 pounds on us, and even unprepared, he barely staggered from the hit. My wolf, on the other hand, bounced off him and kept going, which was probably the only thing that saved us from his jaws when he swung back around and snapped at us. We ended up behind him and bit into his hindquarters. He flinched away but did not make a sound, not even as his blood painted my tongue.

I could sense the other hyenas closing in to defend their Alpha, so it was a good thing we weren't here alone. We grinned as the night was split with the sound of battle as our packmates brought chaos into our woods. We were fighting not just to protect Dylan but our land, our family, and our right to peace.

It was a cause worth dying for.

Avi didn't seem surprised, and likewise, he didn't seem at all concerned that his friends and family were dying. He simply gave an eerie laugh, head dipped low, his muzzle stretched in a mad grin. The two of us circled each other, weighing each other up. Then, when he decided he'd taken enough of my measure, he attacked, and he did. Not. Stop.

He was fast, faster than the others I'd fought in the ring for Dylan, and he knew what he was doing. There was no bluff or bluster to his actions. Each move was planned strategically, three steps ahead. I felt like it was as much a game of logic as it was a match of strength. With every lunge, every snap of his teeth, he was moving us into position, and there was nothing we could do to stop it from happening.

The sky above opened with a bolt of lightning, leaving us momentarily blinded, the afterimage of Avi burned into our retinas. Not even a full second later, thunder boomed right on top of it. Freezing rain pelted down through breaks in the overstory, like tiny icicles hurtling down from the heavens. I was grateful for our thick fur. The hyena seemed less equipped for the weather, ducking his face to protect his eyes.

I had to hope the advantage it gave me would be enough.

My wolf lunged, but Avi evaded easily. It was like he was toying with us! He was inching us backward, into a hollow between trees, with tightly woven branches. It was a kill box. If we went in, we wouldn't come out. It would be our grave.

Every move, every feint, it was like he already knew what we were going to do. I thought back to how we'd beaten the kangaroos, and I knew the only way to win was to do the unexpected, to act contrary to every single instinct screaming at me to stay alive. And so, when Avi snapped his teeth on the left, expecting us to move out of the way, we stayed right where we were.

We were close enough to see the surprise register in those dark eyes, right before his teeth sank into our forelimb, the crack of the bone loud enough to be mistaken for thunder. I registered the pain, catalogued it, then set it aside to be dealt with later—there was no time now. We had one chance to act, and we needed to take it.

Avi's face was right there, just inches away from our muzzle, still locked on our leg. Now! I shouted inside my wolf's mind, urging him to move fast. Without hesitation, we snapped down over the hyena's face, his eye surprisingly soft, giving only a gentle pop as our fang punctured it.

He wasn't quiet this time. Avi's jaw clamped tighter for a second, stars bursting behind my vision as the pain demanded my attention, then he released with jerk, yelping and swatting at his face with a paw. He backed up but couldn't see his way out.

Back when I'd been inside the ring, I'd shown mercy. I'd spared the twins, Oliver and Noah. I'd gone so far as to save Andreas's life, but that was all because they were good men. As my wolf stood over the Alpha hyena, our teeth bared, saliva dripping, I felt nothing but contempt for this monster.

My wolf and I had spent years disagreeing on how I chose to live my life, but since I first caught Dylan's delicate floral scent in that packed club, my path had been certain. And in this, my wolf and I were one and the same. There was no man versus beast. There was only an alpha doing what needed to be done to protect his mate.

He needs to die, I said, and in reply, my wolf opened his jaws and snapped them shut on the hyena's throat. He balked and thrashed, but we held firm. We could feel his pulse on our tongue, deep beneath his coarse fur, his warm flesh and muscle. And when we tore his carotid artery clean through, his heart released his blood from his body in fast, pulsing spurts.

Avi kicked a few times before his legs gave out, his head lolling. My wolf sat right there by his side, and we watched as the arcs of blood slowed, the pulsing stopped, the trickle reduced to a sluggish drip. We did not look away until we were sure he was dead. The wind died down, and the freezing rain changed to a light snow, the white flakes turning red in a stunning corona around the Alpha's body.

I snorted without humor. He wasn't an Alpha anymore.

I was distantly aware of the nervous cackles as the remaining hyenas retreated. Not all of them had made it through this night alive. The night air was ripe with the stink of their blood, gamey and unwelcome. I could hear that some had yielded, and we would have to figure out what to do with them tomorrow. For those of the cowards who ran… I had no doubt, as soon as Dylan's father heard about what happened, no corner of the world, no matter how distant and remote, would be safe.

Our progress back to camp was slow as we held our injured leg off the ground, limping as best we could, but the pain didn't matter. Only Dylan. The others had run ahead back to camp, but Shan stayed back, his fur bloody but only from a few minor injuries. He sniffed at my wound, whining, and gave it a few licks. Then he propped me up on one side, offering his support. It might've been faster to shift back and walk, but my wolf form would speed healing.

By the time we reached the camp, the bone in my foreleg had begun to knit back together, the skin sealed. Taking my skin stung like a bitch, and I collapsed onto my knees on the grass, my arm cradled against my chest. "Oh shit, that hurt," I grunted, breaking out into a sweat.

Shan shifted back and knelt beside me, wrapping an arm around my waist to help me up. "I've got you."

"Oh, come on, it's not that bad. Suck it up," Jude taunted from the door to our Alpha's cabin, where he was leaning casually, arms crossed over his chest. He couldn't fool me, though; there was genuine concern in his green eyes.

"Dylan?" I panted, feeling no shame in accepting Shan's help as I pushed up to my feet.

Jude nodded. "He's awake."

I could've run to his side if Shan had let me, but as it was, he held me back. "Go easy. I'm gonna need my Beta tomorrow, so try not to hurt yourself any worse than you already have."

Any sarcastic retort would have to wait, because I caught sight of my mate propped up in bed. His skin was far too pale, his golden eyes dull, but he was smiling gently. "Tristan." He reached for me, and I staggered over and collapsed against him, nuzzling my face into the crook of his neck, breathing in his scent. I only drew back to check on the baby, shoving back the sheet to kiss his stomach. "You saved us…" he whispered.

I sat up and stroked his cheek. "No, Dylan. You're the one who saved us."

He frowned and shook his head. "How? I've been in bed. I slept through the whole thing. I didn't even know something had happened until Jude came barging in like a herd of elephants, regaling us with stories of his heroism."

"Don't you remember the…? Never mind. We'll talk about it later." It was the middle of the night, after all. Hardly the time to discuss visions.

Brody made a sound behind me, like a gasping grunt. I turned to look at him, and he gave a little chagrined wave. "Um… I really respect everything you guys are going through right now, and I don't want to make this about me or anything, but… uh, I'm in labor. And I think I kinda need my bed back."

As if this day couldn't get any more exciting.