Never Cry Wolf (Night Watch #4)(31)
Author: Cynthia Eden

Hayden, you’re dead.

Sarah brushed against him. She caught Jordan’s chin in her hand and forced him to look at her. “You saved my life.”

Jordan’s eyes seemed to dim a bit.

“Shift.” She ordered him, the fear and fury in her voice again.

A ripple shook Jordan’s body. Fur rose along his arms. But he couldn’t change, not all the way.

“Let the wolf out,” Sarah whispered. “I just need the wolf, for a minute . . .”

His teeth lengthened. His claws bit into Lucas’s hand.

“More,” Sarah whispered, her stare locking on Jordan’s.

His eyes began to glow.

“Shift.”

Bones snapped. He shuddered, convulsing. Sarah stumbled back as the beast took shape before them.

Lucas took a breath. Fuck, yes.

The shift didn’t last long, but when Jordan’s human form appeared again, his brother wasn’t chalky-white. Some of the deeper wounds had healed.

He’d live.

Which was more than he could say for the others.

He grabbed Sarah’s hand, tugging her close. “You okay?”

Pale, trembling, with blood on her cheeks, she nodded.

“Where’s Hayden? Where did the bastard go?”

“I-I don’t know. They went through the window and—”

“I’m the one you want . . .” Lucas’s stare drifted back to his brother as Jordan’s lips twisted.

His gaze slammed right back to Sarah. She swallowed. “I was . . . a bit busy . . .”

Trying to fight three coyotes? When one slash of their claws could kill her?

“I’m stronger than I look,” she whispered.

So he was learning.

“This coyote doesn’t have much time, Lucas!” Piers called out. “Jordan blasted one real fine hole in his chest. He lost his beast, and he’s bleeding out fast.”

He didn’t look at Piers. Right then, he couldn’t look away from Sarah. Such deep, green eyes.

Jordan groaned.

“Get Jordan out of here, Caleb.” Lucas’s head cocked as he studied Sarah. “You need to go, too.”

Her eyes darted back to the coyote shifter. “What are you going to do?”

Whatever I have to do. “You need to go.” Caleb had already started hauling Jordan out of the room.

Sarah’s eyes held his a moment longer, then she nodded and turned away, her shoulders hunched. She walked to the door, but glanced back. “I never meant for Jordan to get hurt. Everything happened so fast, I didn’t mean—”

“Go.” Because he could hear the ragged tear of the coyote shifter’s breath. Not much longer.

She went.

He turned back to Piers and the dying shifter. Three steps and he had the bastard’s neck in his hand. Wild brown eyes met his. “How much do you want to suffer before you die?” Lucas asked.

The man smiled. “That . . . bitch . . . gonna beg . . .”

Lucas’s claws dug into skin. “Where’s Hayden?”

“Can’t . . . won’t . . .” Blood flew from the shifter’s lips.

Time to skip the preliminaries. “No time to play,” Lucas muttered and drove his claws in deep.

The coyote’s screams filled the air. One minute later, he started talking—and two minutes later, he died.

Sarah stood outside the doorway, her heart slamming into her chest. She wanted to cover her ears. Wanted to run as fast and as far as she could.

Running hadn’t worked out so well for her, though, so she forced herself to stay. She heard the coyote shifter’s confession. Heard the location of their leader. She knew Hayden would be heading back to lick his wounds. She also knew he’d be meeting up with Rafe.

After all, Hayden was Rafe’s guard dog. The leash didn’t stretch too far.

Rafe had sent Hayden after her. Bastard. Rafe would have known that she couldn’t fight the coyotes. He’d wanted her to suffer.

The shifter’s screams echoed in her ears.

But she hadn’t been hurt. Jordan had. Though that, too, must have been part of Rafe’s plan.

The dead coyotes wouldn’t matter to Rafe. He’d always thought coyotes were expendable. Weaker physically and intellectually than the wolves, he’d said they hadn’t showed much promise.

Other than as freaking attack dogs.

She glanced down at the blood on her fingers. Those coyotes had come too close. If Lucas hadn’t been there . . .

She would have been the one screaming, then dying.

Just like the coyote shifter.

“I told you to go.” Lucas’s low, gravelly voice.

Sarah straightened fast. “Is he—” Lucas’s gaze held hers. Right. Stupid question. Coyotes didn’t have a healing capacity anywhere close to a wolf’s. Different shifters could heal at different rates. Wolves were some of the strongest, and because of that, they could survive almost anything.

“You heard it all?”

She managed a nod.

He turned away from her. “Jess and his coyote pack were dead when we got there.”

I killed all the bastards in my way. She tried to speak, couldn’t. Guess who’s the king coyote now? “H-Hayden killed them.” Because he wanted more power, more territory, just like Rafe did.

No wonder the two had aligned, but did Hayden know that he was as disposable as the others?

Lucas glanced back at her.

“Hayden told me.” She just hadn’t understood.

His hands were fisted. “What else did he tell you?”

I did my part.

“H-he’s working with Rafe.” And if Hayden was there, “Rafe’s close.”

Lucas grabbed her hand and hauled her away from the wall, and he pulled her down the long, twisting corridor and finally, outside, into the clear air where she could breathe and not smell death.

He didn’t let her go when they made it outside. Just held her hand tighter. She saw the flare of his nostrils. “I’m going after Hayden,” he said, voice grim. “I know where his coyote pack has been hiding.”

Because Lucas had made the coyote shifter reveal their location before he died. “Hayden’s not going to be alone. Didn’t you hear me? Rafe’s close. You can’t just walk in—”

“Piers will have my back. The others will stay here with you.” His eyes glittered down at her. “I won’t leave you and Jordan undefended again.”

“You can’t go.” Her hand twisted so that she clung tightly to him.