CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

How much farther?” Derren impatiently asked Jesse, who was on the other end of the phone.

“She’s somewhere close,” he replied, monitoring Ally’s GPS location from their computer at the main lodge. “Call her now.”

Chest tight with a cluster of emotions tormenting him, Derren ended his call to Jesse and dialed Ally’s number.

She answered quickly. “I can hear the SUV. I’m coming right now.” She hung up before he could speak. Then she suddenly appeared out of the trees and jogged onto the road, waving her arms. Eli brought the vehicle to a screeching halt.

Derren jumped out and dragged her to him, locking his arms tight around her. “Fuck, baby, thank God you’re okay.” He was trembling with fear, rage, and relief. Fisting a hand in her hair, he kissed her hard, pouring into it everything he didn’t know how to say. His wolf took comfort in her touch, scent, and the feel of her skin under his hands. She was there with him. She was okay.

“I knew you’d come for me.” Her happiness at seeing him was so profound Ally might have fallen to her knees if he hadn’t been holding her up. Her wolf wanted to rub up against him to both comfort him and receive comfort.

When she went to pull back, Derren bit out, “Don’t. I just need to hold you for a minute.” He needed to reassure himself that she was fine. Safe. With him. He’d always prided himself on the fact that he didn’t need anyone. But he couldn’t breathe, couldn’t function, without Ally. He needed her, and he wasn’t even ashamed of that.

“Derren, let’s go!” shouted Eli.

Bracken hopped into the passenger seat, guessing that Derren would want to sit in the back with Ally. He’d guessed right. Without easing his hold on her, Derren picked her up and slid into the backseat, sitting her on his lap. The small cuts and abrasions on her skin made him growl; she patted his chest soothingly.

Eli immediately sped off, glancing at them briefly over his shoulder. “Ally, are you hurt? Did they hurt you?”

She shook her head against Derren’s chest, inhaling his scent and letting it calm her and her wolf. “I’m okay.”

“What the hell happened?” demanded Cain from beside her. He tried tugging her to him to embrace her, but Derren held tight—his stare daring Cain to try to take Ally from him. Cain bared his teeth but didn’t try again.

“I was drugged and dumped in a trunk by two fucking tigers.”

“They’re dead.” Derren’s voice was low and deadly. He’d find out who they were, and he’d kill them. “What did they look like? Have you seen them before?”

“They didn’t look or smell familiar. They’re both Chinese, medium height, and damn strong.”

“Tigers usually are pretty strong,” commented Cain. “Did you hear any names?” She shook her head.

“Here.” Twisting in his seat to face her, Bracken gently chucked his cell phone to her; Ally caught it easily. “It’s Shaya. I promised I’d call her when we found you. She’s a mess.”

As Ally put the phone to her ear, she heard Shaya’s voice sobbing, “Ally, if you’re not alive, I’m going to kick your ass.”

“I’m alive,” Ally assured her with a smile. “Is Bruce okay?”

“Yes, he’s fine. The drugs have worn off. Hurry home. I need to see you with my own eyes.”

“Not yet. I have somewhere to go first.”

“You’re going after Rachelle,” guessed Shaya.

“Yes, she was behind the kidnapping.”

“I want to be there!”

“No, you all need to keep an eye on Miranda and Kerrie. They need to be heavily guarded in case a few of Miranda’s pack—or previous pack, as the situation now stands—come to help her. Some of the guys were smitten with her. Besides, I’ve got some backup with me.”

“Make sure Rachelle feels some serious pain.”

“That won’t be a problem. This shit needs to be dealt with once and for all.” The bitch had had the chance to leave Ally be, but she hadn’t. Now Ally needed to be the one to end it. Ally handed the phone back to Bracken, whose smile was a little bloodthirsty. Apparently he was also eager to see Rachelle punished. Derren, on the other hand, didn’t seem at all pleased.

He kissed her hair. “Baby, I get that this is something you need to do—”

“Then back me up on this.”

“—but you were drugged not so long ago. You’ve got cuts and scrapes, which I’m guessing are thanks to your crazy idea to leap out of a trunk.”

“They’re not bad, and they’re healing fast.”

“That’s not the point.”

“Then, pray tell, what is?”

“Baby, do you have any idea how fucking terrified I was for you?” The fear still hadn’t left him, still threatened to break his composure. If he hadn’t known through their mating bond that she was alive, he would have lost his fucking mind long before now. “Could you not give my heartbeat a chance to get back to normal? Do you really have to walk right back into more danger?”

Ally met his dark, tormented gaze. “I have to do this now, Derren. The tigers were supposed to take me to a spot a few miles from here. Rachelle’s intention was to join them later today. I need to get to Collingwood territory before she leaves.”

“If the tigers call and tell her you got away, she’ll probably flee, worried you heard them talking about their plans.”

Ally shook her head. “They spoke in Mandarin. She doesn’t know I speak the language. And cocky as she is, she won’t believe she’ll ever get caught.” Rachelle had gone too long without having to face any consequences for her actions against Ally. “I have to deal with this now.”

“She’s right.” Cain sighed. “I don’t like that she’s right, but there’s no escaping the fact that she is.”

“Eli, we’re making a pit stop at Collingwood territory,” she told him.

The Head Enforcer glanced at Derren in the rearview mirror. “I know you’re not totally okay with this, but you know she has to do it, right?”

After a long sigh, Derren nodded. “If I’m lucky, Zeke will do something stupid, and then I have an excuse to tear out his throat.” The thought lightened his mood a little.

When they finally crossed the boundary into Collingwood territory, Matt’s enforcers nervously let them pass while one of them called Matt on his cell phone. As soon as Eli pulled up in the parking lot, Matt came strolling toward them with Zeke at his side. Matt’s smile was genuine but shaky.

“You have to stay in the SUV, Cain. They won’t be able to see you through the shaded windows.” At his disapproving growl, Ally reminded him, “You can’t be seen. Your link to me can’t become common knowledge for both our sakes.”

He was silent for a short moment. “Kill her, Ally. Nothing else will stop her from coming after you.” Ally suspected he might be right about that. “But don’t do it quickly. Make her hurt, make her bleed, and make sure her pack mates see how well you can fight so they don’t dare even think about avenging her death. Got it?”

Nodding, Ally said, “Got it.” Only once the other males were out of the SUV, awkwardly greeting the Collingwood Alpha and Beta, did Ally hop out.

Zeke’s gaze skimmed over her, taking in the dirt and healing abrasions. “Shit, Ally, what happened?” He went to move toward her.

“Not too close,” warned Derren in a deceptively cool drawl. “I’m not in a tolerant mood right now.”

“Come inside the house,” invited Matt. “We’ll talk.”

“We’re not here to chat,” Ally told him. “Where’s—” She stopped as movement caught her eye: a blonde female was jogging toward them, shock flaring in her eyes at the sight of Ally. Rachelle. How grand.

“What are you doing here?” Rachelle sneered at her. “You and your friends told us to stay away from you. Yet here you are.”

“Yes, not where you expected me to be, I’ll bet.” Ally smiled inwardly when the Beta female’s eyes flickered nervously. “Coming after me was by far the dumbest thing you’ve ever done. Seriously, even for you—someone whose elevator doesn’t go to the top floor—it was stupid.”

Rachelle’s tired sigh was actually very convincing. “So you’ve come here to accuse me of something, I see.”

“Did you think that if you killed me, you’d get away with it?” Ally snickered. “You would have forever been looking over your shoulder at the wolves chasing your crazy ass. You should have just stayed away.”

“I did. But apparently you can’t stay away from me, can you? You just can’t let go of your grudge against me.”

“Maybe if you opened your mouth for more than talking bullshit or giving blow jobs, we wouldn’t have a problem.” Ally’s wolf released a satisfied growl at the angry flush on Rachelle’s cheeks. “I gotta say, those tigers weren’t very competent. I suppose I should pity you for your delusions of tactical brilliance.”

Zeke spoke then. “Tigers? What about tigers? You’re not making any sense.”

“Sure I am.” Ally turned back to Rachelle. “You didn’t expect me to link the incident to you, huh.”

“What incident?” Matt asked. By that point, they had drawn a bit of a crowd, including Clint and Greg—both of whom were scowling at Ally.

“I was drugged and kidnapped by two tiger shifters a little while ago,” Ally told Matt. Surprise and dubiousness wafted from the Collingwood bystanders.

The Alpha gaped. “What?”

“You heard her,” growled Derren.

Matt slid his gaze briefly to his Beta female. “And you all think Rachelle had something to do with this?”

“We know she did.” Derren clenched his fists, barely resisting the urge to plant one in Matt’s face for being so evasive.

Rachelle folded her arms across her chest, regarding Ally like she was ridiculous. “Kidnapped? Yeah, right. Oh, and they just let you go, I suppose?”

“No. I jumped out of the trunk while they were still driving.” Ally rolled back one shoulder. “Hurt like a motherfucker.”

“You persist in seeing me as the enemy.” Rachelle dragged a hand through her hair. “You see conspiracies everywhere. I wouldn’t be surprised if you faked the kidnapping.” Derren’s snarl made her snap her gaze to him. She sneered at him, “Or maybe it was someone trying to get at you through your girlfriend.”

“I speak Mandarin, Rachelle. I understood every word.” Ally smiled faintly as Rachelle stilled. “You hired them. You were supposed to join us in a few hours at a location you gave them. You undoubtedly meant to kill me. And I’m not down with that. So there’s only one thing left for me to do.” Ally straightened her shoulders. “Rachelle Lavin, I challenge you to a duel.”

Zeke took one step forward, his tone desperate. “Ally, don’t do this.”

“Don’t speak to her,” Derren snapped at him. “She’s no one to you.”

Zeke curled back his upper lip. “Yeah? Well, you’re just someone she’s screwing.”

Derren smiled. “If you were close enough to scent us, you’d know that couldn’t be further from the truth.”

Zeke’s chest expanded as he inhaled deeply, straining to pick up their scents. His eyes widened, a hint of dejection in them. “You’re mated.” It was a guttural statement.

Ignoring Zeke, Ally focused on Rachelle. “Let’s get this over with.” Everyone stilled as they heard the sound of another vehicle nearing. Rachelle smirked, undoubtedly thinking exactly the same thing as Ally: if more Collingwood wolves were on their way, the four Mercury wolves could find themselves boxed in. “Worried you can’t take me, Rachelle?”

The Beta female snorted. “I simply refuse to be baited into dueling with someone who isn’t worth my time.” The Mercury males snickered derisively at the idiotic excuse.

As the approaching vehicle entered the parking lot, Derren glanced over his shoulder. And smiled. It was a very familiar Chevrolet Tahoe. Within moments, six Phoenix wolves exited the vehicle—Taryn, Trey, Jaime, Dante, Dominic, and Ryan.

Taryn’s smile had a feral edge to it as she sidled up to Ally. “Shaya called me and told me what happened. I figured having some allies might discourage this pack from leaping to their Beta female’s defense.” She arched a brow at Matt. “We can’t have that, can we?”

“Otherwise things would get extremely ugly,” warned Trey.

“No one will interfere,” Matt assured the Phoenix Alphas, giving them a respectful nod of the head that they didn’t return.

Rachelle whirled on her own Alpha. “You’re sanctioning the challenge? You believe her accusations?” He didn’t speak, so she turned to her mate. “You’re okay with this?”

“No, I’m not.” Zeke raked a hand over his face. “I know Ally’s a good fighter, and I don’t want you hurt. But I can’t interfere.”

“You’re siding with her?”

“You came home smelling of tigers, Rachelle.” His voice was low, devastated. “You’re my mate, and I love you, but you’re—”

“Indisputably neurotic?” supplied Ally.

“A total fucking nutcase?” offered Taryn.

Rachelle whipped her hateful gaze to Ally. “You think you’re so smart? You think you’ve won?”

Ally seriously didn’t understand this female. “What is there to win? This isn’t a game. It never was.”

“You have to die!” Apparently Rachelle had given up on acting like the falsely accused victim.

“Why? Because you believe I’m jealous of you?”

“Because there’s no other way he’ll let you go!” Rachelle’s words had the crowd gasping. She raised a brow at Ally. “You think I don’t know? You think I’m so stupid I can’t see why my mating bond isn’t complete? It’s your fault.”

“Don’t be so fucking dramatic. Zeke wants you, not me.”

“That’s true. He doesn’t want you, and he doesn’t regret our mating, but a part of him still cares for you.”

“Don’t pin the blame on Zeke, don’t act like you don’t get a kick out of stirring shit for people. You’re too much of an accomplished liar for me to think any differently.” Ally’s expression dared her to deny the truth. “You want me dead because you want me to suffer.”

“Oh, I do want you to suffer. I tried everything. I tried turning him against you, but it never worked. Everyone else fell in line, but not Zeke. No. He doubted every story I told him. He didn’t for one moment believe you would try to kill me. No. It didn’t even make any difference that you left the pack. He just wouldn’t forget you—he kept texting you, calling you—he wanted you back in the pack. He wanted you where he could see you and be near you, even though he would never have touched you.” Rachelle shrugged one shoulder. “I will admit it was fun to watch as you lost everything—your friends, your status, the trust of your pack mates.”

Matt groaned, covering his face with his hands, no doubt feeling dumb at how easily he’d been fooled. Zeke looked distraught but not particularly surprised, and it made Ally wonder just how long he’d suspected his mate was a lying, crazy heifer.

“Thankfully,” began Ally, “your lies have been discovered. Your pack knows the truth. Your reign of bullshit is over. And now you have lost your status and the trust of your pack.” Their disgust in Rachelle beat at Ally’s head. “No more stalling. I challenged you, and no one’s going to dispute my right to do so.”

“Submit now, Rachelle,” Zeke urged. “If you submit now, there’ll be no challenge. We’ll step down from our role as Betas; we’ll switch to another pack and start over.”

Her upper lip curled back, Rachelle looked down her nose at him. “Flee, you mean?”

“It’s not fleeing when you’re banished.” Matt’s tone was harsh, nonnegotiable.

“You’re banishing me?” Rachelle actually seemed shocked—even more support to the theory that she was insane.

“You expected anything different after all that you’ve done?” asked Matt. “I almost banished an innocent wolf because of your lies! How can you expect me to overlook that, to trust you?” He shook his head. “You no longer have a place here.”

Rachelle didn’t speak; she just gawked at her Alpha. But Ally could feel her rage and resentment rising, burning Ally’s skin until she thought it would blister.

Ally tilted her head. “Sucks, doesn’t it? Being banished and isolated, I mean.”

Rounding on her, Rachelle cracked her neck. “You want to duel? Fine. We’ll duel.”

“Rachelle . . .” Zeke tried to pull her away, but his mate shrugged him off.

“Don’t. You don’t care whether I’m hurt,” Rachelle accused him. “You know you might survive my death, since we’re not fully mated, so you don’t even care if I die!”

“That’s not true,” he maintained. “I’m trying to protect you!”

“I don’t want your help.”

“Step aside, Zeke,” ordered Matt, pulling Zeke with him as he backed away. The other Collingwood wolves followed their Alpha’s lead, giving the females plenty of space to duel. “This is between Ally and Rachelle now.”

Derren cupped Ally’s nape as he kissed her temple. “You can take her, baby. Finish this so we can go home.”

Feeling that both he and his wolf were in turmoil despite their confidence in her, Ally gave a reassuring smile. “Gladly.”

“I love you,” he whispered low enough for only her to hear. He backed away before she could respond, signaling for Eli, Bracken, and the Phoenix wolves to do the same.

“Don’t hesitate,” Taryn told her. “Do what you have to do.” Ally understood what she meant: if Rachelle refused to submit, kill her.

Jaime nodded. “Smack the bitch down, Ally.”

Focusing her attention on her opponent, Ally kicked off her shoes and took on a strong, stable stance: feet shoulder-width apart, knees slightly bent, claws unsheathed. She also kept her expression totally neutral, her gaze locked on Rachelle with lethal intent.

Ally planned to fight as hard and dirty as she’d been trained to do, well aware that since Rachelle was equally dominant they were well matched. Ally had seen her fight, knew the bitch had some good moves and didn’t mind cheating. As such, she didn’t intend to give Rachelle any openings, especially since her craziness could give her an edge.

The tension had Ally’s wolf still, coiled, and raring to strike. Right then, the animal was infuriated, vengeful, and restless with the need to end this shit. For the wolf, it was all very simple. Rachelle was a threat. And any threat to Ally was a threat to Derren. Ally and her wolf would eradicate every single one, would do whatever it took to keep him safe.

Ally had never really liked dueling, but sometimes it was the only language shifters understood. Although she detested Rachelle, Ally hadn’t wanted it to come to this. Not because she had any mercy for the heifer, but because she had the distinct feeling that Cain was right: Ally would have to kill her.

Taking a life wasn’t something Ally had ever done before. As a Seer, she was used to trying tosaveher pack from danger and death, not fight to the death. But she was also Beta female now, and that meant being strong for her pack and doing whatever she had to do.

Standing there, so many emotions flowed over her: the worry, aggravation, and support of her allies; Rachelle’s fury, bitterness, and nervousness; the shame, guilt, and anxiety belonging to both Matt and Zeke; the contrary emotions that flitted through the crowd.

The Collingwood bystanders had turned silent. Their anticipation, anger, and confusion almost made her itch. Although they couldn’t deny to themselves that Rachelle was guilty, there was still an element of uncertainty there. They hadn’t yet accepted what they had heard, didn’t want to admit to the fact that they had been so easily fooled and had wrongfully isolated and targeted Ally.

Rachelle balled her hands up into fists. “Last chance to go home.”

Go home? “You really are a nut job.” Ally struck. No warning. No holding back. She rammed her elbow into Rachelle’s throat at the same time as she stabbed her claws under the bitch’s breastbone.

Stumbling backward, Rachelle doubled over, expelling a whoosh of air. To her credit, she didn’t take a moment to recover, didn’t move her eyes from Ally. Instead, the blonde straightened up, eyes shimmering with rage. She raked her claws, narrowly missing Ally’s face. Apparently, Rachelle was out for blood.

Ally had long ago learned not to telegraph her moves, to give nothing away. Rachelle, on the other hand, didn’t appear to have been taught any such lesson. So when the heifer dipped her chin and cocked back her arm, Ally easily ducked and slipped out of range. Again and again, Ally sidestepped her punches and kicks, allowing her opponent to tire and weaken from blood loss.

That was when Ally went at her full force. She used her claws like knives and delivered one dirty disabling shot after another, making every pitiless strike and slice count. Her anger was raw but controlled, giving her the fuel she needed.

This was for all the lies, all the insults, for turning her pack against her, for causing Ally to lose her status, and for plotting to kill her. If Ally hadn’t gotten away from the tigers and had died today, Derren would most likely have died right along with her. That wasn’t acceptable to Ally. Not one little bit.

Ally brought up her arm, ready to deliver a palm strike. Rachelle shoved her claws right into Ally’s palm. Motherfucker. Snatching back her bleeding hand, Ally sliced at the tendon on her opponent’s forearm, making Rachelle cry out. Good.

Rachelle drove her foot at Ally’s knee, hitting it hard with her heel, the bitch. The impact made Ally stumble and bend slightly. That was when Rachelle wrapped Ally’s ponytail around her fist and dragged Ally to her. She snapped her teeth at Ally’s claiming mark, trying to mar it—pissing Derren the hell off. Not a fucking chance.

She dug her claws just above Rachelle’s pubic bone, and the bitch instantly released her hair and backed away slightly. Feeling Derren’s anger so intensely, tasting it in her mouth, it was hard for Ally not to let it feed her own ire and make her lose her shit. She fought to keep her head clear, knowing that dueling in anger would make her sloppy and careless.

She heard Derren, Taryn, and Jaime shouting their encouragement—and making many disparaging remarks about Rachelle. One insult in particular made Ally chuckle . . . which was when the crazy heifer swung her claws toward the juncture of Ally’s thighs.Fuck.Ally barely intercepted the strike, retaliating with a punch to Rachelle’s temple that made her take a lurching step back.

“Rachelle, submit!”bellowed Zeke.

If Ally hadn’t been so focused on Rachelle, she would have told him that there was no point. Ally wouldn’t be content with her submitting right then. She wouldn’t buy it as a truthful surrender.

“Rachelle!” He took a step toward the fighting females but halted abruptly at Derren’s warning growl.

“Stay the fuck out of it,” Derren cautioned him in a tone that promised retribution. “Your mate deserves this. You can’t save her from it. If you try to interfere again at any point, I’ll be on you before you can blink. We clear?”

“She’s my mate!”

“And Ally’s my mate.”

A part of Ally—small though it was—felt a little sorry for Zeke. It had to be hard watching your mate losing a fight. But that wasn’t going to stop Ally from dueling the bitch. In a quick explosion of brutal hits, she almost had Rachelle on the ground. But Rachelle quickly righted herself and slammed her foot into Ally’s ribs. Son of a bitch! Pain pulsed through her abdomen, almost making her heave with nausea.

The scents of blood, sweat, rage, and apprehension tainted the air, swirling around them and inciting Ally’s wolf. The animal, despite being so eager to play a part, hadn’t battled Ally for supremacy; she knew Ally wouldn’t keep the wolf out of the fight. So she’d lain in wait, ready to lunge at the first opportunity. Now Ally was ready for her wolf to join in.

In a split second, she shifted into her wolf form just long enough to leap up and bite a chunk out of Rachelle’s upper arm. Then Ally was back in human form so fast her clothes barely suffered from the change. Gasps and exclamations of shock rang throughout the crowd. Rachelle appeared just as shocked, and Ally—wearing a grin that could only be called evil and clearly freaked Rachelle out—took clear advantage of it. She briefly shifted back and forth again and again as she mercilessly attacked.

Executing a pitiless punch to her opponent’s throat, Ally winced. Her knuckles were chafed and swelling. Her ribs were aching, making it hurt to breathe. Her palm, chest, arm, and cheek were bleeding. She could taste Rachelle’s blood in her mouth, thanks to her wolf biting the bitch repeatedly. And she was sweating and beginning to tire, but she felt Derren feeding her strength through their bond.

Rachelle wasn’t in a much better state. Her jaw and nose were swollen, her face was badly bruised, one of her arms was almost limp, sweat and blood matted her hair, she was panting heavily, and her clothes were stained with blood from the many places she’d been bit, sliced, raked, and stabbed.

Flinching as she received another deep wolf bite to her side, Rachelle ground out, “Fuck this.” Then, ripping her clothes, she shifted into a red wolf. Ally followed suit, giving her wolf complete control—and, as such, totally destroying her clothes.

The white wolf flattened her ears and peeled back her lips as she growled at her opponent. Hackles raised, the red wolf bared her teeth as a bold growl trickled out of her. They lunged at each other, their bodies crashing hard. Clawing deep into fur and flesh, they growled and snarled as they both viciously battled for dominance.

Yelping from a harsh bite to her flank, the red wolf sprang away. Chest heaving, she released a fierce growl, daring the white wolf to attack again. But the white wolf wasn’t in the mood to toy with her prey. Didn’t want a duel. Her human side had punished their opponent, and now the white wolf wanted to end it, to force their opponent—who by killing her would have killed her mate—to submit or die. There could be no middle ground.

She didn’t leap at the red wolf. She barreled into her, causing her opponent to fall onto her side. The red wolf brutally swiped at the white wolf’s muzzle before righting herself. In retaliation, the white wolf sunk her teeth deep into her opponent’s shoulder, tearing through fur, flesh, and muscle until they grazed bone.

Bucking and clawing, the red wolf managed to get free. But she didn’t manage to move far away. The white wolf slammed her body into hers hard enough to send the red wolf sprawling onto her back. The white wolf wasted no time in taking advantage of it. She straddled her opponent and pressed her forepaws onto the red wolf’s shoulders to pin her flat. Then the white wolf clamped her jaws around her opponent’s throat, causing the red wolf to freeze.

Freeze, but not submit.

The white wolf heard voices shouting. She didn’t understand the words, nor did she care. Her attention was on the female beneath her, who attempted to struggle free. The white wolf warningly tightened the grip of her jaws slightly, feeling a little of the red wolf’s blood seep into her mouth.

Again, the female froze. But again, she didn’t submit.

Giving one final warning, the white wolf growled as she shook her opponent. There was more shouting from the crowd, and then the scent of the red wolf’s mate as he rushed at them. The white wolf didn’t panic, sensing that her own mate was holding him back, that he would protect her.

The red wolf suddenly bucked, snapping her teeth. There would be no submission, the white wolf then knew. Despite knowing that part of her human side would be sad to take a life, the white wolf didn’t hesitate to act. Using her back paw, she sliced open her opponent’s midsection as she twisted her neck, tearing out the red wolf’s throat.

It was over.

The wolf backed away from the dead body, turning at her mate’s voice. He knelt beside her, wrapping one arm around her neck and stroking her head with his free hand as he spoke words the wolf didn’t understand. As Ally pushed for supremacy, the wolf rubbed her body once against his before pulling back to give her human side full control.

Breathing hard, Ally sank into Derren’s arms. A hiss of pain escaped her as her injuries rubbed against his jacket. “I’m getting blood on you.”

“I don’t care.” He kissed her forehead, disappointed that he couldn’t kiss her mouth but not wanting to taste Rachelle’s blood. Watching his mate battle, even though she’d been the dominant fighter throughout, had been agonizing. He’d winced at every cut, every strike, every kick, and every bite. Feeling her pain and fatigue had only made it worse.

Jaime handed Ally a bottle of water. “Here, sweetie.”

Hand shaking slightly, Ally gratefully took it and practically inhaled a long swig. She allowed Derren to help her stand, surprised when her knees didn’t buckle. Removing his coat, he wrapped it around her; it fell to midthigh on Ally. The pressure of the material made her scratches sting, but she gritted her teeth against the pain.

Hearing a gut-wrenching sob followed by a soul-deep cry, she looked at Zeke. He had his arm wrapped around his stomach, clearly in agony as he crouched beside the red wolf. Ally didn’t know what it was like to feel a mating bond break, only knew that the more developed the bond was, the more painful it would be to break.

“I’m sorry that you’ve lost your mate,” she told him. “I gave her the chance to submit. My wolf gave her the chance.”

Standing behind him, Matt gave her a nod. “Zeke knows the rules of our culture. When Rachelle didn’t submit, you had no choice but to end it the way you did.” He rubbed at his nape, sighing heavily. “Ally, I’m sorry I doubted you, that I let you down so badly.”

Zeke’s gaze snapped to him as he exploded, “She just killed my mate and you’re apologizing to her?”

Not liking that tone whatsoever, Derren interjected, “Don’t blame Ally for this. You’re hurt that you lost your mate—I get that.” Derren wouldn’t be able to function without Ally. “But part of the blame lies with you.”

To Ally’s total surprise, all the tension left Zeke’s body as he mumbled, “I know. It took me a while to see the truth. It wasn’t until we visited your territory that I finally realized that I didn’t know my mate as well as I thought. That day, I felt how angry she was with Ally. I felt how badly she wanted to hurt her. I should have kept a closer eye on Rachelle, made sure she didn’t go after Ally again. This is on me.”

“It’s on Rachelle,” Matt adamantly stated, taking the words from Ally’s mouth. Zeke shook his head in denial, the image of absolute devastation as he stroked his mate’s flank.

Feeling like she was trespassing on what should be an extremely private moment, Ally turned to Derren. “Let’s go home.” She was exhausted, disheartened, and quickly heading for an adrenaline crash.

He kissed her forehead again. “Gladly,” he replied, echoing her earlier sentiment.

As he went to guide her to the SUV, Taryn appeared in front of her, looking impressed. “I don’t know how the fuck you switch forms like that, but you gotta teach me.”