A Moment in Time(12)

Grayson went for him. He felt certain that the man torturing Brandon would come after him when his buddy was in danger.

He was right.

Grayson felt a heavy weight land on his back as he shifted in the blink  of an eye and went after the first wolf, snarling and snapping his  teeth. He felt sharp claws dig into the flesh of his back but refused to  let it detour him from killing the wolf in front of him.

Grayson shrugged his massive shoulders, grabbing the wolf on his back by  the scruff of his neck, and tossed him over his shoulder. He heard a  sharp yelp as the wolf landed.

Grayson knew he was injured even as he snapped his teeth and sank them  into the wolf's hind quarters, ripping away muscle and crushing bone as  he pulled back. The bitter taste of blood filled his mouth, nauseating  him.

Grayson released the flesh in his mouth and spit out the blood before  going in for another strike, this one closer to the wolf's throat. He  dug his claws into the man as he snapped his powerful jaws around his  throat. Grayson didn't give him a chance to surrender.

The fight had moved way beyond that, even before it began.

The moment he heard the death gurgle of the wolf beneath him, Grayson  dropped him to the ground and stepped back, his head swinging around  until he found the other shifter. The man was lying unconscious on the  ground, nasty bump on his forehead.

Grayson hoped it hurt.

He shifted back to his human form and ran over to Brandon, flicking out a  claw and slicing through the rope tied around his wrists. He did the  same to the rope wrapped around the three adults tied to the tree.

"Is everyone okay?" Grayson asked as he glanced at everyone, counting  heads to make sure they were all there. He counted five small heads,  four larger ones. Grayson breathed a sigh of relief. Everyone was here.  "Come on, we need to go."

"What about him?" Brandon gestured to the unconscious man.

Grayson growled. "Tie him up. I don't want him following us."

Brandon stayed standing with the kids as the other adults tied the man  up, securing him to the same tree they had been tied to. Grayson nodded,  a small smile coming to his lips. Karma was a real bitch sometimes.

"Here."

Grayson turned, his smile growing bigger when he saw the denim shorts  Brandon was holding out to him. He took them gratefully and pulled them  up his legs. While wolf shifters were pretty easy going about nudity, he  still didn't want his dangly bits hanging out there for everyone to  see.

"All right, let's go." Grayson leaned down and picked Molly up, the  small human girl curling into him and starting to snore before he even  took a step. He took a moment to press his face into her long chestnut  curls and inhale, drawing in the unmistakable scent of his sister and  her mate. The two familiar scents twined together until they became  Molly's unique scent.







A small hand tugging on Grayson's shorts reminded him of the only other  living being on the planet that shared the scents of both his former  alpha and his sister.

His nephew, Carlos Sanchez, Jr.-or CJ as Grayson called him, because  Carlos Sanchez Jr. was way too big of a name for a five-year-old child  to carry around. Maybe one day he would grow into it.

"I'm hungry, Uncle."

"I know, honey, and we'll eat soon. But first, we need to go meet some nice people I met earlier. They are waiting for us."

"You talked to him?" Brandon stepped closer, hope giving color to his face. "Did he say we could come?"

"I haven't actually spoken directly with Alpha Khenti," Grayson replied.  He wasn't sure he was ready to share his time with Apollo just yet. "I  did speak to one of his elite warriors, though. I was assured that all  of us would be welcome with open arms."

Brandon rubbed his hands together, looking like someone on the verge of collapsing. "What if it's a trap?"

"It's not a trap, Brandon. I promise you." Grayson almost rolled his  eyes when Brandon started to bounce. The guy was working himself up.  "Brandon!"

Brandon blinked rapidly at his sharp tone.

"Do you honestly think I would take you, any of you, somewhere where you could be hurt again?"

Brandon instantly shook his head. Well, at least someone still had faith in him. Grayson's was starting to wear thin.

Grayson leaned closer to Brandon, whispering, "I'll let you in on a  little secret." He knew the others could hear him. "The man waiting for  us, that elite warrior I told you about … he's my mate."

Brandon's big chocolate eyes rounded. "Really?"

"Would I lie to you?"

"No."

"Well, see, there you go." Grayson grabbed CJ's hand then nodded back  the way he came. "We need to get going, people. It's getting colder, and  I'm sure everyone could use a hot meal. I'm sure Apollo will have  something wonderful prepared."

He prayed that Apollo would think of food for everyone. If not, Grayson  would go out and catch something and cook it over a spit or something.  His pack needed to eat, and then they needed to sleep-for a week.

Grayson kept CJ's hand tightly gripped in his own, Molly tucked into his  other arm, as he led his ragtag group of shifters and humans back  through the trees, past the dilapidated house they had shared for a  brief few days to the road that would lead them to Aberdeen Valley.  Hoping all the while that he hadn't just made the biggest mistake of his  life in believing in a man he had only met.





Chapter 7




Apollo waited until Grayson turned and walked away before he shifted,  grabbed the map out of his now shredded jeans with his teeth, and  hightailed it toward the alpha house. He needed to get help and he  needed to do it now. Grayson was in trouble.

He couldn't explain the relief he felt when he saw Hercules and Ares  standing on the patio with their mates when the house came into view. He  would need his brothers now more than he ever had in the past.

Ares must have seen him coming, known the desperation he felt. The man  rushed his mate inside along with Hercules's mate, and met him on the  steps of the front porch. His stance was stoic, poised for danger. His  eyes scanned the land behind Apollo.

"What is it?" he asked the moment Apollo reached him and shifted.

"My mate." Apollo bent over and rested his hands on his thighs. Even  running in wolf form, it had taken him a good few minutes to reach the  alpha house. His place was halfway around the lake, nearly a mile away  through the woods. "He needs help."

"You found him?" Hercules asked.

"He came to the house." Apollo stood straight. "He's in trouble. He needs our help."

"He has it." Ares nodded. "Just tell us what he needs."

The instant acceptance and willingness to help was one of the things he  loved about his brothers. There was never any question that they would  help. One of them was in need. The other two would do whatever it took  to assist.

"I need to see Iben," Apollo said as he straightened and started toward  the front door of the alpha house. "He needs to hear this as well."

Apollo could hear his brothers following him as he walked into the house  and searched the great room for his alpha. The house was divided into  three sections. Staircases were situated on each side of the main door,  each leading up to different wings of the house the great room in the  middle.

One staircase led to the master suite, which took up the entire second  floor on that side of the house. It came complete with a large master  bedroom and a huge-ass bathroom. There was also a sitting room off to  one side of the bedroom and a balcony that went the length of the side  of the house.







The first floor consisted of a great room that went up two stories. The  entrance was on one side of the room and the huge stone fireplace. The  railings of the second floors could be seen on either side of the room.

The kitchen, laundry room, a guest bathroom, and dining room were under  the wing with the guest bedrooms. An office, another bathroom, and a  large recreation room were on the other side of the grand room under the  master bedroom wing of the house.

And everything looked like it was hand built, from the river rocks on  the fireplace to the knotty pine hardwood floors and trim around the  entire place.

"I believe he's in his office," Ares said. "A call came in from his father."

Apollo headed straight for Iben's office door, raising his hand to  knock. When he received no answer, he knocked again, a little harder  this time.

"Come," someone yelled after a moment. The voice sounded like Iben, and he did not sound like a happy camper.

Apollo pushed the door open and walked in, stopping so fast that Ares  plowed into his back. The reason for Iben's disgruntled tone was clearly  obvious as Zack, Iben's mate and the pack omega, tucked his shirt back  into his pants, zipping them up.

"I apologize for the interruption, Iben, but this is a matter of life or death."

"Very well." Iben huffed as he sent his mate a sad little look. "What's up?"

"My mate came back a couple of hours ago. He's in trouble and he needs our help."