18. Shane

The bike"sengine stuttered to a stop as I pulled over to the side of the desolate road, flanked by dense woods on either side.

I kicked the stand to balance the bike and leaned forward, my eyes fixed on the glowing screen of my phone.

Liam"s icon on the GPS hadn"t moved for the past five minutes. While the tracking app had only provided a rough location, now that I was close enough to Liam, I could sense his presence.

Zooming in on the map, I moved my fingers across my phone screen, searching for any notable landmarks. A small clearing in the woods to the west caught my attention.

This could be it, I thought to myself.

As I maneuvered my bike to a nearby tree, a sudden jolt of fear pierced through me, freezing me in my tracks. It took me a moment to realize that the terror gripping me was not my own—it was Liam's. I had to act fast.

After one final look at my phone to confirm my bearings, I quickly shed my clothes, surrendering to the familiar sensations of shifting into my fox form.

The transformation was more painful than usual, fueled by agitation and urgency. Heat spread across my skin as my bones shifted and realigned, muscles contracting and elongating with each passing moment.

Barely finished with the transformation, I darted into the forest, allowing the mate bond between Liam and me to guide me.

I pushed the images of what could be happening to Liam to the back of my mind. Despite feeling the strain on my limbs, I pushed through the pain.

I eventually emerged into a clearing with a small cabin. My fox was telling me my mate was in there—scared but alive.

Panting heavily, I focused on steadying my breathing as I circled the perimeter of the property, trying to find a way in. The cabin, modest in size, had few windows, preventing me from seeing inside.

As I continued walking alongside the cabin, I spotted a backdoor. With cautious steps, I approached and gently nudged it open. Immediately, the familiar scent of parchment mixed with a faint citrus aroma filled my senses.

Following the trail of Liam's scent, I found my mate bound to a chair, his head slumped down.

He wasn"t alone. Beside him was an older man, unconscious. He looked familiar. I think I remember seeing his picture in the file Owen handed to me. Liam's grandfather? What was he doing here?

It didn"t matter. My focus was solely on Liam as I ran towards him. Standing on my hind legs, I placed my paws on his lap and started licking his face.

Liam blinked groggily. "Shane?"

After giving him one last lick to confirm my presence, I quickly moved behind him to attempt to chew through his ropes. Suddenly, a shot rang out, and I instinctively jumped back.

Pierce stood at the door, holding a gun steady. He fired another bullet, then another, aiming at my feet. Each shot forced me to retreat, driving me further away from Liam.

"Don't hurt him!" Liam shouted, his voice desperate and panicked.

I growled at Pierce, baring my teeth and taking a step closer. However, his words stopped me cold. "Stay back. These are silver bullets."

I could do nothing but growl as I extended my claws, digging into the wooden floor.

"This doesn"t concern you, fox. We"re only after the mages. Walk away now while you still can," Pierce warned.

As Pierce approached Liam from behind and tightened his bonds, the gun lowered slightly. Liam"s eyes met mine briefly before he pushed himself backward, causing the both of them to topple to the floor with a thud.

Seizing the opportunity, I lunged forward, sinking my teeth into Pierce's arm. A sharp cry of pain escaped Pierce"s lips as he released his grip on the gun.

I pounced on him, my claws digging into his chest, but he easily kicked me away with his knee.

For a moment, I was stunned. Not from the impact, but at Pierce's abnormal strength.

There was nothing supernatural about him—at least, nothing obvious. No distinctive features. He had no scent. Everything pointed to him being human.

Yet, he managed to throw me across the room without even breaking a sweat. What on earth was this guy? Did he take something to enhance his strength?

Before Pierce could recover, I attacked him again. Our fight became a chaotic exchange of blows, dodges, and counterattacks. Though I managed to land a few hits, I couldn"t avoid getting hurt.

After a desperate scramble, I managed to latch onto his inner thigh with a firm bite, caused Pierce to howl in pain.

However, in the next moment, I was suddenly crashing into a wall, slumping down with a throbbing pain on the side of my face. Pierce had thrown me off him with such force that I barely had time to react.

In a daze, I noticed that he was holding a knuckle duster engraved with some sort of symbols or runes glowing faintly before fading away.

Pierce stood up. Despite his shaky stance, he scrambled toward the gun. I tried to get up, but the impact on my head left me feeling sluggish, making me move slower than usual.

Pierce reached the gun first and dragged Liam toward him, using him as a shield. Though his grip trembled slightly, his aim remained steady.

A chill ran down my spine as he pressed the gun hard on Liam's temple. I growled in warning.

"Choose, fox," Pierce demanded, his voice hoarse. "Let us go, or I kill the mage right now."

My heart hammered in my chest. The temptation to finish it here and now was strong.

Every instinct screamed for me to rip out his throat and be done with it. But then I glanced at my mate.

I could feel Liam's fear, but there was something else too—it was trust. It was as if he were silently urging me to hold back, telling me that everything would be alright.

And he was right.

Pierce was weakened, his breaths coming in ragged gasps, his stance faltering under the weight of his injuries. Blood seeped from the claw marks on his chest and where I had sunk my teeth into his flesh.

If I allowed them to go now, I could easily catch up to them. Maybe I could even call for some reinforcements.

Reluctantly, I lowered my head, abandoning my aggressive stance and taking a step back.

Pierce aimed the gun at me, but before he could pull the trigger, I heard Liam"s desperate shout: ‘No!"

Suddenly, a bright light burst from Liam, flooding the cabin with its glow. An unseen surge of energy followed throwing Pierce against the wall with great force.

Yet, Pierce remained conscious. I wasted no time, darting towards him as he tried to regain his footing.

We crashed to the floor in a tangled mess of limbs. He landed several punches in rapid succession, but I didn"t back down.

With one last burst of strength, I clawed at Pierce's throat, tearing through flesh and sinew. When he finally laid motionless, the adrenaline that fueled me through the fight suddenly gone, leaving me feeling light-headed and exhausted.

The last thing I saw was Liam cradling me in his arms.

Owen settled into his seat behind the desk, where the items I had collected from the cabin a few days ago were meticulously laid out.

"The McGowans agreed to let us look through Pierce's things first," Owen said.

The amused expression on Owen's face didn"t escape my notice. It was probably because Liam's grandfather had found himself in trouble and been kidnapped twice, and both times, shifters were involved in the rescue.

Maybe this was their way of expressing their gratitude. But, of course, they would never openly acknowledge it.

"Each item serves a specific purpose," Owen explained. "These pills, for instance," he said, holding up a small bottle, "are meant to mask one"s scent and enhance his strength. And this syringe," he continued, "temporarily disables one's magic."

I simply nodded, not really in the mood to speak, still feeling drained from the recent events.

"And this," Owen said, pointing to the knuckle duster. Absentmindedly, I touched the side of my cheek where Pierce had hit me with it, wincing at the memory.

"It"s made of a special alloy mixed with silver. The runic enchantments seem to absorb strength from the target and transfer it to the wearer."

No wonder I felt weakened. The damn thing was laced with silver. The healers at the pack clinic couldn"t even figure out what was wrong with me since I didn"t seem to be regaining my strength fast enough.

Pierce might be only human, but with his magical tools and pills, he was clearly a professional

"Pierce was contracted by the Kingstons to handle both Liam and his grandfather." Owen paused, a furrow forming on his brow. "We"ve searched extensively, but information on Pierce is scarce. It"s almost as if he didn"t exist. If mages knew anything about him or who he worked for, they're not saying anything."

I couldn't help but chuckle at that. I suppose this whole facade of shifters and mages being all friendly with each other was over now that the threat was gone.

It wouldn't surprise me if things went back to how it was before, with both groups ignoring or avoiding each other.

Owen leaned back in his chair. "What are your plans now?"

"Honestly, I"m thinking of taking it easy for a while. Maybe lay low, enjoy some downtime," I answered, pushing myself up from the chair. "And about this whole bodyguard gig? I quit."

As I made my way to the door, Owen"s laughter echoed loudly behind me.