Fated to Be Family(40)

“We’re fine. Rebecca, Ashby, and Nic just went to sleep. I’m here with Connor, Gavin, Benedict, and Finn. So far all is quiet. Did you seal the perimeter?” he asked.

“We’re about to. Stay alert. We should be back soon,” Kate said.

“Will do,” Aleks replied.

She hung up the phone and tossed it back to Kaden. She was getting better at being naked in front of men, though, she wished she had the little pink bag that Cecelia had given her.

“Get them to the clinic so Doc can look them over and then hole up with Aleks until we get there,” Kate said.

“Meet you there,” Kaden said and both he and Beau climbed into the truck and left.

Kate turned around to face Elias Wade. The man looked at them and started giggling.

“You think you’ve won, but you haven’t. They will kill you, all of you and then the hyenas will take Arkadia.” He giggled and pointed at each of the Alphas.

“They’ll kill you and you and you,” he said.

“Like they did Gina?” Kate said harshly.

Elias’s face twisted and Kate saw a glimpse of the monster this man had kept hidden.

“She was a whore like her mother. They both deserved to die,” he said, spittle flying out of his mouth.

Bran’s jaw clenched. “You killed your mate, the mother of your children, and a member of my pack?” he demanded.

Elias nodded absently, slipping back into his giggling self.

“She had to die, you see. She wanted to leave and she couldn’t leave,” he said in a singsong manner.

Kate turned her head. This was worse than if he had been fighting. Caleb stepped forward.

“You gave your daughter to those animals,” Caleb choked out. To a wolf, betraying your children and mate was the worst possible sin.

“She was going to ruin everything. She was going to tell. She had to die,” Elias said.

Bran straightened, pulling his body to its full height. “Elias Wade, for crimes against your family, your pack, and Arkadia, I sentence you to death. Do you have any last words?”

“I hope they fuck your mate in front of you before they drain her dry,” he shrieked blood vessels bursting in his eyes.

Caleb simply reached forward and snapped his neck.

“Fuck!” Bran yelled, frustrated, turning away from the body of the man who had caused so much pain.

“Alpha, this is not your fault. You cannot be held responsible for every member of your pack,” Riley said.

Caleb looked at Bran and simply placed a hand on his shoulder.

“As Alpha, you are responsible for every member of your pack, Bran,” Caleb began.

Kate gasped. “Caleb!” she started and he held up his hand.

“And, as Alpha, you have taken measures to ensure that this monster won’t hurt another innocent soul. Learn what you can from this and become stronger,” he said, removing his hand when Bran turned to face him.

“You’re right. Thank you, Caleb.”

Bran opened his arms and Kate stepped into the warmth of his embrace. Without clothing, they were going to have to shift soon.

“Robert, can you and a few men take care of the body?” Bran asked.

The wolf to his right nodded and two other men stepped forward with him to lift the older man’s body and carry it to the woods.

Kate smiled up at Bran before she grabbed her stomach. Wave upon wave of desperation and fear hit her, making it nearly impossible to stay standing.

“Rebecca! They are at the clinic!” she cried out.

Bran shifted then Caleb. Kate stood there, shaking, her emotions ricocheting all over the place. She couldn’t focus enough to shift. Caleb stepped forward, got on his hind feet, and licked her face. She shook her head and pushed him down. Reaching into her core, she let her wolf free. Dropping down as her wolf, she took off west toward town.

When they got close enough, she could hear the sounds of bear roars and the cackles of the hyena clan. Bursting out of the woods, she headed straight to the clinic. Gavin and Benedict were shifted and doing their best to block the front entrance. From the other side of the building, Kate watched as a hyena body was thrown into the street by a four-hundred-and-fifty-pound tiger, who followed the body and started to bat it around like a cat toy.

That would be Dr. Claybourne defending his patients, she thought.

Two male lions roared. One was perched in the bed of the truck guarding the back window and the other stood in front of the truck swiping deadly claws at any hyena stupid enough to get close. She barked and four wolves ran past her to assist Beau and Kaden.

She, Bran, and Caleb ran between Gavin and Benedict to get inside the clinic. When they got inside, she skidded to a halt. Connor and Finn stood on their back haunches, fighting off six hyenas who were taking turns darting in and biting the two bears. Kate immediately jumped on the back of one of the hyenas and bit the back of his neck. She shook her head from side to side and heard a dull crack. She dropped that body and moved to the next. Caleb and Bran had also taken out at least one hyena each. Darting past Finn, she looked up to see him stab the hyena in the throat with his six-inch bear claws. He shook his great paw as if flinging water off his fingers. The hyena went flying.