Alphas of Red Moon Ranch(48)

“I do this for you!” Jacob barked. “For our clan! I wear the crown of Alpha so none of you have to live like this! You wanna tell me again how I’m not doing enough for the clan? You need me to wipe your ass too?”

“Boys, boys,” Miranda cooed. “Don’t kill each other. Let us.”

With that, Miranda let her dress drop to the ground, rustling the dried leaves below. A fluid change fluttered over her form and her bones cracked as she fell to her hands and knees. Her head bowed and, when she lifted it, all her human features had vanished, replaced by a snarling cougar.





Chapter 38


Holly felt a sharp pain run down the side of her neck, as though she had been stung. She stopped on her way out of her office and just managed to keep her books from falling as she gripped the side of her throat and winced. The burning pain radiated. As she cupped her mark, she felt it throb under her fingertips.

What—?

She dug her compact out of her purse and flicked it open. Holly peeled her scarf to the side so she could get a better look at the scar. It felt like it had reopened, but it looked fine. Clean, even, no reason it should be hurting like it did.

And then a thought, out of nowhere: Jacob is in trouble.

“Dr. Westmore, I—”

“I’m sorry,” Holly said quickly, cutting off the student who had rushed up to her, hands filled with papers. “I have to go. I’ll be in my office first thing tomorrow morning.”

“But—”

Holly rushed to her Buggy and slammed the door. There, she took a deep breath and tried to quell her hammering heartbeat. Her fingers slipped to the side of her throat and, when they hit her mark, they drew back sharply as though burned.

Don’t worry, Jacob. I’m coming.

Holly shoved her gearshift into drive and sped off, towards Red Moon Ranch.





Chapter 39


Miranda’s cougar snarled with a full set of sharp fangs.

Wonderful. Jacob knew what she was doing. She was trying to get him to change. She was poking the bear in its cage and trying to prod the Beast out of him. Two humans against two cougars didn’t stand a chance, but two bears—

Or one bear. “Brent?” When Jacob glanced back, Brent was gone. Instead, he heard the truck rev up and peel away, throwing up rocks and dirt in its wake.

Sonofabitch. Jacob suddenly didn’t like his odds. Well. He didn’t fancy a staring match with two mountain lions. He turned in his spot and took off, quickly running through the woods. Even as a human, he was a strong runner, but not as quick as the big cats. His mind went a mile a minute; he knew these woods like the back of his hand. He needed somewhere, a safe place, somewhere he could hole up without having to transform—

But even as his brain ran a scan of the area (houses? Not for miles. Stores? Back in town. The road? Good luck making it there in time), he could feel his Beast stirring inside of him. Preparing. Jacob felt branches snap against his legs and cut across his face as he barreled through, throwing all of his effort into reaching the road. If he could get out of the woods, then maybe, maybe…

A sharp pain rang through his body and he doubled over with a shout, grabbing a hold on a thick tree trunk for stability. His Beast was clattering inside him, threatening to spill out.

(What are you doing? it hissed.)

(We don’t run. Don’t run. Turn around. Turn around!)

TURN AROUND!

Jacob whipped around suddenly and roared, a low, deep, animal bellow. He planted his heavy paws on the ground and reared up, a towering, growling black bear now. He could hear better. Smell them better. And fight better.

One of the cougars—the smaller one, Cayden—had been charging full speed, recklessly, and now he was doing his best to bring himself to a stop before he collided head-on with the bear. The large cat let out a yowl as he tripped over his own paws and tumbled flat on the ground in front of the bear.

Jacob’s Beast launched on the cougar immediately, pinning him down and sinking his teeth into the cougar’s soft belly. The cat screeched and swiped its claws uselessly against Jacob’s thick, protective fur, twisting and turning in the large bear’s jaws. Jacob bit down harder, snarling. They got what they wanted. They got the Beast. Now they would reap the consequences.

Mama cougar wasn’t far behind. Miranda leapt on his back and sank her claws into Jacob, hissing. She bit into his shoulder and he barked with pain, releasing Cayden. The younger cat slunk away, whimpering, limping.

Miranda held on with her claws as Jacob thrashed around and rose to two feet, slamming his back into a tree, trapping her between bear and bark. The cougar released her grip, which gave Jacob a chance to twist around and fight her head-on. But the second he did, she was gone. He could smell the bitch and he growled, frustrated, and whipped around, hunting for her.