Several more shots were fired in quick succession. One of them plowed into the ground beside her. She felt a sharp sting in her arm. Whether it was a rock from where she’d flung herself to the ground or a shard from the exploding tree trunk she didn’t know and she didn’t have time to check.
She saw a tiny movement in the trees just a few feet away. Saying a quick prayer, she fired. A man’s body jerked into sight and he swung his rifle toward her. She fired over and over, emptying her gun into his body. He toppled backward, his rifle dropping to the ground beside him.
There was no time to breathe as two wolves, both a dark brown, sauntered into view. “Shit!” She dug her feet into the ground and scuttled backward. They lowered their heads and growled menacingly.
She raised her weapon and pulled the trigger. The metallic click reminded her she was out of ammunition. Dropping the Glock, she grabbed her two boot knives out of their sheaths, flinging them in rapid succession. Both animals were quick, their reflexes astounding as they managed to sidestep the blades at the last possible second. She was well and truly screwed.
Keeping one eye on them as they stalked closer, she groped her hand out, trying to find a stray branch. A rock. Anything she could use to protect herself.
The larger of the two wolves growled menacingly as it slunk forward, saliva dripping from its powerful jaws. It gathered itself to jump. She could see the bunching of the muscles in its hind legs and braced herself for the attack.
The animal sprang, its powerful body practically flying as it launched itself into the air.
It never touched her.
Out of nowhere, a massive black wolf plunged into its side, sending the brown wolf hurtling back to the ground.
Alex sank to the ground. Joshua had finally arrived.
Chapter Seventeen
Joshua didn’t think as he launched himself into the air. He didn’t have to. Instinct had taken over. He was in the fight of his life. He could allow no one or nothing to harm Alex.
He plunged into his opponent’s side, taking him to the ground in a flurry of fur and snapping jaws. Sinking his teeth into the other beast’s neck, he held on.
Alex cried out and he swiveled his head toward her in time to see the other wolf lunge at her. He flung his opponent away and leapt at Alex, knocking her out of the way. Taking the full impact of the wolf on himself, he barely avoided being bitten before nimbly gaining his feet.
Positioning himself in front of Alex, he faced off against his two opponents. The first one was slowly staggering back to its feet, bloodlust in its eyes. The second was pacing to the side, trying to go around him. He backed up, all the while keeping his gaze on the other two wolves. He herded Alex back toward the base of a large oak tree. He’d left his clothing behind it when he’d shifted. If he could get her back there she would be able to find his hunting knife. He didn’t know how much ammunition was left in the handgun, but it wouldn’t be much help against werewolves. The silver-coated knife would be much more effective in slowing them down.
He bared his teeth, emitting a low, powerful growl as his opponents shifted closer. Both bounty hunters were dead. He’d killed one and Alex had shot the other. He’d smelled the other carcass and knew she’d also managed to kill a werewolf. Most women would be cowering or screaming. His woman looked pissed off as she continued to scout around for a weapon.
He’d killed two more werewolves in the woods, ones he hadn’t recognized. He’d also taken a few hits. These wolves, unlike the ones from the city, were seasoned warriors and no easy target. They’d gotten in their share of blows and he was bleeding from several different places along his sides. His shoulder was also bleeding again from the crossbow arrow. Because it had been silver-tipped, the wound would take longer to heal. Thankfully, the damage to the bone itself had fused and healed during his transformation to his wolf form.
The two wolves before him were gathering themselves to attack. He could sense the anticipation in the air, along with the stench of blood, fear and excitement. These wolves didn’t want to mate with Alex. They wanted to kill her. That’s why they had joined forces with the bounty hunters. These wolves were obviously part of the extreme packs who didn’t want to water down the blood of the species with half-breeds.
Well, too bad for them. They weren’t getting anywhere near Alex.
He’d managed to push her back to the base of the tree. Hopefully, she’d find his belongings. Not that it truly mattered. He planned on protecting her. But he knew she’d feel more secure if she had a weapon.
He could hear her deep breathing. Smell the stink of fear and blood that mingled with her sweat. He longed to coddle her, to take her away from all this death. He wanted to strip her naked and bathe away the stench that now coated them both. His body responded immediately to thoughts of her naked. His muscles flexed, rippling beneath his fur coat.
He was truly losing his focus if all he could think about was Alex being naked when he was faced with two vicious opponents. Shutting off his thoughts, he turned all his attention to the beasts in front of him.
Deciding the best defense was offense, he launched himself without warning. He landed on top of the larger of the two and sank his fangs deep, drawing blood, tearing flesh. He immediately leapt off the wolf’s back, kicking it backward in the process, as he jumped at the other one, bringing it down as it moved toward Alex.
In a blur of motion, he jumped from one opponent to the other, always inflicting some damage. He knew he couldn’t kill either of them like this. That wasn’t his goal. He planned to weaken them first and then move in for the final strike.
The smaller of the two brown wolves cut away suddenly, racing toward the safety of the woods. Joshua growled in fury. He knew he couldn’t allow the wolf to escape and bring back reinforcements, but he didn’t really have any choice. There was no way he could leave Alex unprotected.
Channeling his rage, he jumped at the remaining large wolf. They rolled to the ground, churning up the dirt as they growled and snapped and clawed at one another. Joshua knew his opponent was weak from the prolonged battle. He heaved himself on top of the wolf, clamping down hard on his neck.
This time he didn’t let go. Bones crunched beneath his powerful jaws.
A few minutes later, he dropped the deadweight, flinging it away in disgust. He stood there, lungs heaving, as blood dripped down his flanks.
Alex faced him bravely, hunting knife in hand. He’d known that she’d find it. Her face was stark white, but her hand was steady. As he trotted toward her, she began to tremble. “Oh, God,” she muttered as she sank to the ground, dropped the knife and buried her face in her hands.
Worried, he hurried up to her and licked the side of her face. They didn’t have time to waste. He had no way of knowing how close reinforcements were. There could be dozens more hunters and werewolves searching for them.
He wanted to change back into his human form, but he knew he couldn’t expend that much energy. Not until they were safe. He was more powerful in his animal form, his senses keener and sharper. And at the moment, that was more important than appearing human for her. Alex had to accept him for what he was.
Opening his muzzle, he carefully took one of her hands into his mouth and tugged gently. She raised her head, swiping at the sweat on her brow and the tears that clouded her eyes.
He tugged again.
“What?”
He backed up, pulling at her.
“All right. All right,” she groused. “Hold your horses.” She clambered to her feet and picked up his hunting knife.
He dropped her hand and padded to the side of the tree and pawed at his clothing.