Mating Brand(7)

“You’re not going to believe this if I tell you. Just get your ass into town.”

“Where?”

“Oh, you can’t miss it. Just hurry. I’m trying to hold them back but they are going to tear the damn car apart if they get past me.”

“What—”

“Just get here! This—” Howls drowned out anything else Jeff may have said before the connection died.

Brand hung up and ran to the dresser, cursing a blue streak as he tried to zip his jeans over his swollen cock. He grinned though. If he couldn’t fuck, fighting would work. Excitement hit him.





Chapter Two




Charma whimpered and climbed into the back of the car. She’d hoped having the windows up would mask her scent when she’d driven into town but she’d been wrong. The driver’s window hadn’t smashed in yet but it had spider-webbed enough to terrify her. That had motivated her to scramble over the seats.

The entire vehicle shook when someone jumped on the hood. A terrifying howl hurt her ears and a boot slammed into the windshield. The safety glass held but the window cracked in at least a two-foot diameter. Someone else grabbed the passenger door and jerked hard enough to make the car sway. The lock held but the male snarled, enraged that he could not get to her.

“Back off,” another male yelled. “That’s an order! Damn it, get off the car. Back away.”

Bodies nearly blocked out the streetlights as they converged and she knew she only had moments before they managed to tear through some part of the car to reach her. They weren’t going to allow her to talk. She’d hoped they’d just ask her why she’d trespassed into their territory. That had been the plan that had gone terribly awry as soon as she’d turned off the engine. In what seemed like mere seconds, men had rushed at her from all directions.

They rocked the car until it made her slip on the seat. She fell over onto her side, drew her knees up to her chest and huddled into a tight ball. Howls and snarls were nearly deafening. She covered her ears, squeezed her eyes shut, and her heart raced.

She knew death would come soon. Still, it had to be a better one than what her mate planned for her. He’d tried to destroy her soul a day at a time. Now he’d told the enforcers they could take her body if they wanted. She’d rather be killed by werewolves. They were brutal but swift death-bringers.

Glass shattered and rained down over her. She screamed when a hand fisted her hair and pulled. Her body slid closer to the destroyed window and pain stabbed her. The one who held her howled, so close it was deafening, and she screamed again. The hand released her hair though.

“Enough!” a horrifyingly deep voice roared. “Do you want to die?” The male who spoke wasn’t human. His voice was so affected she could barely understand the words. “That’s a female, damn it. Who said you could kill her?”

“It’s a damn cat,” another deep voice snarled. “She asked for it.”

Charma lifted her head and peeked up. She’d been pulled all the way to the door until her head actually touched the armrest. She stared at a broad-backed male wearing a gray sweater. He leaned against the opening, covering it with his body to prevent anyone from grabbing her again.

“We kill stinking cats where I come from,” a werewolf shouted.

The guy against the door emitted a vicious sound. “You’re in Harris Pack territory now. You’re a visitor and you will follow our laws. We don’t kill females, even she-cats. Leave if you don’t like it.”

The guy protecting the opening moved enough for Charma to see more of him. He’d kept his human form but some hair covered the backs of his hands. Fresh blood dripped from the spiky points of his extended claws. They appeared to be razor sharp and deadly.

She inhaled but there were so many angry wolves surrounding her car that she couldn’t smell anything other than overpowering werewolf scent. It nearly overwhelmed her and her heart raced faster. She almost screamed at the sheer horror of being surrounded by the enemy but another whimper escaped instead.

“Go into the woods,” the man leaning against the car demanded in a harsh growl. “Now. You’ll get worse than the ones on the ground if you stay. My cousins are on their way. If I could take down seven of you, think what they can do. They are stronger alpha-blooded than I am.”

Charma opened her mouth and panted. The smell of the many werewolves had become so dense she could taste it. Her gaze locked on the gray sweater of the male who had stopped the attack. She prayed he wasn’t sending the rest of his pack away to slaughter her himself. She just needed a chance to talk. She would warn them of the pride males who planned to declare war and hopefully they’d be grateful enough for the warning that they might spare her life.