Chapter 9
NINE
Luke
I pulled onto the highway, a bag filled with all the money from the safe on the seat beside me. It wasn’t everything my father wanted, but the plan wasn’t for him to keep it.
My brothers had shifted and were already making their way to the location I’d been given. Mason’s military training had kicked in, and he’d laid out a plan.
Declan, Mason, and Gabriel would surround us, waiting for an opening to slip in and free Katie and Eli, while Austin and Ethan would prepare a diversion if needed.
The wicked grins they’d exchanged made me wonder if they were looking forward to enacting their part of the plan.
Knowing them, it could involve anything.
I checked the time. They should almost be in position. I sped up, anxious to get my mate and Eli to safety.
A flash of fur running toward me down the shoulder of the road had me squinting. “What the—”
I braked, skidding to a stop on the gravel, and threw open my door. “Eli?”
The wolf came straight at me, stopping a few feet away, sides heaving.
“Can you shift back?” I asked, getting ready to force his shift if necessary. But the wolf was already shifting into his human form.
It took several minutes before the teen crouched in front of me, trying to catch his breath. He could barely get any words out. “Katie… truck… down the road.”
“I know. My brothers are already on their way to surround the location.”
He shook his head, taking in a large gulp of air. “No. He moved. I followed him until he turned off the highway.”
I swore. So much for our plan. I had no way of contacting my brothers while they were in animal form. “Get in the truck. There are clothes in the back. They’ll be too big, but you can throw on a shirt.”
I helped him stand. His legs were shaky. He must have pushed his wolf to its limit. “Are you able to show me where he turned off?”
He nodded, grabbing a shirt from the backseat and slipping it over his head. “I didn’t want to leave her. She distracted him so I could get help.”
“Hey, you did good.” I squeezed his shoulder. “You even shifted on your own. If you hadn’t, you couldn’t have followed the truck.”
His cheeks flushed. “I knew I needed to, and it just happened.”
I pulled the truck back onto the highway. “I’m proud of you.”
We passed the turnoff for the original location and drove for another ten minutes. Eli grabbed my arm and pointed to a rutted road that led into a stand of trees. I pulled onto the shoulder and parked the truck.
“I need you to stay with the truck.” I grabbed the bag of money and tossed him my cell phone. “Call the ranch and tell them what happened and where you are. You know how to find the GPS coordinates of our location?”
“I want to help.” His chin jutted out.
“Katie would kill me if I put you back in danger.” I looked him in the eye. “And I’d never forgive myself if something happened to you.”
“I can help.” His eyes begged me. “I’ll stay in the trees. If I get a chance, I’ll untie Katie. He won’t expect me to be there.”
I wavered. I didn’t want Eli in danger, but while my father had Katie, he had the advantage.
I leveled my gaze at him, trying to channel my dad when he taught me about ranch safety as a teen.
“You will not take any unnecessary risks. Only go in if he’s away from Katie and distracted. Do you understand?”
He nodded eagerly.
I huffed out a breath. “I can’t believe I’m allowing this. But if anything goes wrong, anything at all, you run. Shift if you can and go to the last location. My brothers will be there.”
“I promise.”
“Okay. Let’s do this.”
Eli slipped through the trees. Scrubbing my hand over my face, I knew I would answer to Katie about this. I turned the key and drove slowly over the rutted road, hoping the sound of the truck would help cover any noises Eli made getting into place.
I parked the truck just inside the clearing and slowly got out, bag in hand. My father was leaning against the side of a truck, smoking a cigarette. He dropped it and put it out with his shoe before pushing away to meet me halfway, eyes narrowed.
“How’d you find me?” Suspicion coated his words.
I called on all the acting skills he’d taught me as a child; I could play the innocent part well. “I’m an excellent tracker. Your tires left mud on the highway.”
He stared at me, looking for any telltale signs that I was lying. I didn’t give him anything. Finally, he relaxed his gaze. “You got my money?”
I held up the bag. “Right here.”
“It better all be there. Toss it to me.”
I kept my posture relaxed as I threw the bag to him. While he was distracted with catching it, I rushed forward to tackle him. He slipped from my grasp at the last minute, dropping the bag and swinging at me.
His fist caught my chin, a glancing blow that didn’t slow me down. With five brothers, I’d taken a hit or two and had plenty of experience fighting. I swept my leg out to take him to the ground, and he stumbled backward but stayed upright.
“You’ll regret this,” he snarled, throwing another punch that got past my guard and left my ears ringing. He followed it with a hook and uppercut while I was open, and I staggered to the side. “Think you can take your old man?”
He stepped back and shifted, his wolf large and growling. He lunged at me, and I scrambled out of the way, putting space between us to give me time to shift. His wolf darted toward me just as I shifted, swiping with his paw and trying to latch on to my shoulder with his teeth.
My skin tore as I wrenched away. First point to my father. I needed to get myself together. Nothing was more important than this fight. Katie and Eli were depending on me. I couldn’t lose.
Katie
I heard a truck approach, followed by Luke’s voice. It was too far away to hear what they were saying, no matter how much I strained my ears. I hoped Luke had things under control, but in the meantime, I would do everything I could to free myself.
I continued trying to loosen the ropes around my wrists. I had a little space to work with, as I’d flexed them when he tied me up, a trick I remembered vaguely from some online video. But I must not have held them far enough apart. All I was doing was scraping my skin.
Still, I wouldn’t give up. If I got loose, it could only help Luke.
Sounds of a scuffle reached me. I hated being blind to what was happening. A low growl followed by snarls filled the air. I renewed my efforts with the rope.
The truck dipped, and I glanced over my shoulder. Eli was climbing into the truck bed. He stayed low and crawled to me. He removed the gag and started working on freeing my hands.
“What are you doing here?” I whispered, my mouth dry from the rag.
“Helping Luke.” He undid the rope around my wrists, and I sucked in air as he brushed against the scraped skin. “Sorry.”
The two of us worked on my feet, freeing them quickly. I crawled to the end of the truck bed. “I’m going out first. Stay on the far side of me and run for the trees.”
“I want to help.” He gave me a determined look.
“You have, but I need you to do this. If you get caught, that’s one more person he can hold over Luke’s head.”
“You’re Luke’s mate. You should hide too.”
I wanted to help Luke. Everything in me cried out to go to him. But Eli was right. I would only be a distraction. I nodded reluctantly. “Okay. But you go first. And if anything goes wrong, you run and don’t look back.”
“I will. I promised Luke.”
“Good.” I lowered myself to the ground, crouching behind the truck. I peered around the edge just as one wolf clamped its jaws around the other’s back leg. It was too quick to tell them apart, and I’d only seen Luke’s wolf once.
Eli came up behind me. “I’m ready.”
I nodded. “On the count of three.”
I counted, and we both ran for the cover provided by the trees. We hid behind a bush, and I couldn’t resist checking on Luke again. One wolf was limping, while the other circled it slowly. They looked very similar, and I couldn’t tell them apart.
Eli peered over my shoulder. “Luke’s hurt!”
My stomach dropped, and panic clawed at my throat. “Are you sure that’s Luke?”
“Yes, he’s got a white patch on his chest.”
Luke lunged at his father, and they went down in a flurry of fur and legs. One of them yelped, and they broke apart, both panting as they faced off.
I searched the ground for something to use as a weapon. I darted over to hide behind a patch of trees, where I found a stick that resembled a baseball bat. A grin almost burst out. I’d been on my high school softball team. Champions three years in a row.
I motioned for Eli to stay where he was and crept forward, doing my best to stay out of sight.
The wolves were circling each other and trading off quick lunges with flashing teeth, but Luke was limping, favoring his back leg.
He clamped down on his father’s leg, tearing the skin when his father twisted out of his hold.
I waited for them to circle around so Luke’s father had his back to me.
I rushed out of the trees and swung my stick, aiming for the leg Luke had just bitten. A crack sounded, followed by a pained yelp. The wolf stumbled to the side, leg crumpling beneath him.
I prepared to swing again, aiming for his head, but he ducked and turned on me, snarling. I waved the bat in front of me, keeping him at a distance. He continued to advance toward me, forgetting about Luke, who used the distraction to pounce on him from behind.
They rolled around on the ground, teeth showing as they each tried to get hold of the other, trading dominance. Several minutes later, one wolf lay pinned to the dirt, the jaw of the other firmly around its throat.
I looked frantically, trying to see the patch of white that would identify Luke, but both their chests remained blocked.
The wolf on top bit down harder until the wolf beneath him turned his face away in submission.
The hold loosened enough for the pinned wolf to shift back, revealing Luke’s father.
Luke stood over him, growling. Guarding him.
“I’ll get some rope.” I ran to the truck, picking up the ropes that had held me earlier. I kneeled beside the man. “I would suggest not moving. Luke looks like he’s ready to take a piece out of you.”
Luke’s father glared at me as I tied his wrists, making sure they were tight enough that he wouldn’t get loose. Then I tied his ankles, just to be safe. He moaned in pain as I jostled one of his legs. Guess the break carried over from his wolf form.
Luke shifted, and Eli burst out of the trees. “That was awesome!” He grinned at us. “I’ll get Luke clothes.”
He ran over to Luke’s truck and dug around in the back seat. He returned holding a pair of sweatpants in his right hand and a cell phone in his left. “Want me to call the ranch?”
Luke gingerly slid the pants on, hissing as he moved his battered body. “That would be great, Eli.”
I tried to hold myself back, not wanting to hurt him further, but I couldn’t help myself. I threw my arms around his waist and rested my cheek against his chest. “I’m so glad you’re all right.”
His arms came around me, holding me close. “I can say the same thing about you.”
He pressed a kiss against my head, and I leaned back enough to brush my lips against his. He followed, kissing me deeper, almost as if he wasn’t sure he’d ever get the chance again.
Eli made a sound of disgust. “Ew. Kissing.”
“Give it a year, kid.” Luke spoke the words against my lips, seeming loath to part with them.
“Whatever.” He scoffed. Then the call must have connected, as Eli spoke in a rush, telling whoever answered everything that had happened. He ended the call by reciting our coordinates.
“Good job, Eli.” Luke tucked me under his chin, still embracing me, both unwilling to let the other go. “I’m proud of you.”
The teen ducked his head, but I saw his grin in my peripheral vision. I slipped from Luke’s arms and gave Eli a hug. “Me too. You were very brave.”
He traced circles in the dirt with the toe of his shoe, cheeks flushed from the praise. Then he tilted his head and gave me a grin, eyes sparkling. Words burst out of him, “I shifted on my own!”
I smiled down at him. “That’s great, Eli.”
He told me all about it while Luke secured his father to the truck. Then Luke joined us, taking my hand in his. We shared a smile before turning back to Eli, who was more animated than I’d ever seen him.
Exhaustion settled over me as my adrenaline waned. I leaned my head against Luke’s shoulder. He slipped his arm around my waist, providing more support.
He leaned down and pressed his lips to my forehead, whispering so only I heard. “I love you, Katie.”