Emmy looked up just in time to see Mary Lou leap at her. Her eyes widened in shock seconds before the heavy woman landed on top of her and then pushed her to the ground. A massive beast landed beside them with a mighty thud and sunk his teeth into her friend. Mary Lou screamed in agony. Jake—she knew it was him because he was the only one who would attack—began to claw at Mary Lou's side. The woman writhed, but still, she didn't stop protecting Emmy.
Mary Lou began, "I'm…so…sorry…Em…"
Before Mary Lou could finish saying her name, she stopped moving. Jake batted the woman aside, his green eyes aglow with rage, and snarled. His gaze darted toward Emmy's neck. He leaned forward and his hot, rancid breath filled her nostrils.
"Say good-bye." Jake's eyes glistened with malice.
She whimpered in terror.
"Good-bye," Sebastian said, his voice echoing in her head as well.
A massive werewolf tackled Jake from the right, knocking him to the ground. Jake screamed in pain before falling on his back. Still, Sebastian kept biting every inch of the other wolf he could reach. At first Jake continued to writhe, but then, after one last pained howl, he was silent upon the ground. At that moment, Emmy knew that Jake was dead.
Everything went still. Not even a bird sang its song. Sebastian turned toward her, his eyes sad. He didn't come nearer, but as she held his gaze, something incredible happened—in his large eyes, she saw him. This was the man who cared for her, the man who was the father of her child. She wouldn't pretend that she liked him as a beast, but the fear she felt disappeared.
At least, until she looked down and saw Mary Lou's bleeding form.
"Oh, my God, Mary Lou!" Emmy screamed.
In a matter of seconds, Sebastian's chestnut fur became golden skin and his green eyes went back to gray. Soon he stood naked in front of her.
"Oh, Emmy." Sebastian looked down at Mary Lou. For the first time ever, Emmy thought that the woman looked her age.
Emmy's teeth chattered as she met his eyes. He leaned down and checked her pulse.
"She's not dead." Sebastian shook his head. "But we have to get her to a hospital. Now."
Emmy nodded, frightened to the core.
Chapter Ten
Two hours later, Emmy and Sebastian stood in the ICU. She was shaking, but not from cold. No, she was shaking because she was terrified that she was going to lose her best friend.
"You said a dog attacked her?" Dr. Smithfield asked as he jotted down something on a chart.
Emmy exchanged looks with a fully dressed Sebastian and nodded.
"A big dog." Sebastian motioned with his arms.
"I see." Dr. Smithfield wrote something else.
"Will she be okay?" Oh God, please, please let her be all right.
"The lacerations on her side are deep, but with proper care, I think she'll be okay." Dr. Smithfield nodded.
"Thank God." Relieved, Emmy sank into a chair. She'd never been more grateful that the hospital waiting room had seats.
Groaning, Sebastian sank down into the chair beside her.
"The nurse will let you know when Ms. Parkinson gets out of surgery," Dr. Smithfield said. "It'll be a couple of hours until there's any news."
"Thank you."
The man left. In the silence of the waiting room, Emmy bowed her head and buried her face in her hands. All that had happened had begun to catch up with her. After all, tonight had been the worst night of her life. As she cried, Sebastian wrapped his arms around her.
"Are you in pain?" Sebastian rubbed her back. "Do I need to talk to the doctor again? He said that your head is all right and that the baby is okay, but it might be good to have him look at you again."
"It's not that." She buried her face in his chest. "I almost lost you and the baby. Oh, Sebastian, I just can't believe what happened. I just can't."
She pulled back, her bottom lip wobbling.
"I know, sweetheart." He ran his hand over her tear-drenched cheek.
"Do crazy people always come after you?" she whispered. "Because I can't take this."
"I've been in a pack my entire life, but I've never seen this happen before," Sebastian said. "Jake is just a psycho."
"A psycho who almost made mincemeat out of us." She could still imagine Jake sinking his teeth into her flesh. "I just wish this had never happened."
"It'll be okay." Sebastian squeezed her shoulder.
Emmy bit her bottom lip. "But what about Mary Lou? I know the doctor said that she'll probably be okay, but those bite wounds were so deep."
"That woman is made out of tough stuff." Sebastian stroked her hair. "Trust me, she'll make it."
"She is pretty tough." Emmy nodded. "I think she could survive an explosion."