Sheriff Lynch watched from afar, unseen and undiscoverable. He was torn over what to do. It’d been years ago that he was sent to watch over one female. Liberty was to be protected at all costs, but now…his orders had changed.
He was to protect the pride as a whole.
Certain factors had fallen into place to put him in the path of the shifters. Of course, he didn’t know what the future held. That was not one of his many talents. Only the gods decided how fate played out in the human realm.
As the fight for dominance raged on in the backyard of the alpha’s home, his eyes were on the window to the living room. Inside, Liberty rested with the older Mrs. Shaw not far from her side. Talon’s mother was weak, her health failing as the days passed.
Garrett was saddened by his current task. It wasn’t right for a Watcher to ask why or to alter the future in anyway. He knew what had to be done, even if he didn’t agree with what the outcome would be in the end.
Talon dismissed the pride to run and hunt in the wild. He spoke to the Guardian Savage and made his way inside. When he saw the alpha pull Liberty into the protection of his arms, Garrett closed his eyes and disappeared into thin air.
“Come to my office with me,” Talon said, holding out his hand for his mate. His mother was asleep on the couch, a blanket pulled up over her shoulders. June was sitting in the high back chair, keeping vigil over the two women.
“What’s going on?” Liberty scowled as Talon closed and locked the door. He didn’t say anything else until he leaned against the edge of his desk.
“Sit down, Liberty,” he paused, “I need to ask you some things about the sheriff.”
“What’s going on with Garrett?” she asked. Talon gritted his teeth at her using the male’s first name.
“Tell me about how you know him,” he ordered, folding his arms over his chest.
“Well,” she paused to think for a moment, “he started school with me back when we were in high school. I think it was my freshman year and he was a junior.”
“How did you become friends?” he asked, waiting for some information he could use to tie all of the questions he had about the sheriff together.
“I fell out of the tree in our backyard and broke my arm.” She chuckled, obviously replaying the memory. “Garrett was in one of my classes and offered to carry my books for me. Since I was stuck in a cast for six weeks, we struck up a friendship and he seemed to become my protector after that. One night when I was out on a date, he showed up about the time my date started getting a little handsy. Garrett marched the guy out back and beat him up. He took me home that night and made sure that I was okay.”
“Did you ever date him?” Talon asked, his canines thickening in his mouth. His eyes glowed amber as he hissed out his question.
“No,” she laughed. “Oh, I think he always wanted to date me, but he just wasn’t my type.”
“Good.” Talon nodded, his panther relaxing.
“Why are you asking me this?” she questioned.
“I need to show you something,” he announced, reaching back to retrieve the tablet from his desk. He pressed the buttons on the screen and turned it around for Liberty to see. “I had Ranger check the camera from outside the healer’s home the day you saw the flash of light. The video has been slowed down to about a tenth of the speed so you can see exactly what we found.”
“Play the video,” she ordered, taking the tablet from Talon’s hands. He sat back and watched her face as the scene played out in front of her very own eyes. He knew the moment she saw what they’d seen. Liberty’s eyes widened and she looked up at him in fear. “He’s…he’s an angel?”
“You didn’t know?” Talon asked softly.
“No!” she snapped. “I…what? I’m so confused.”
“Be calm, my mate,” he cooed, pushing out his powers when she began to stand in agitation. “I will get to the bottom of this. I promise.”
“Is this why he’s been so concerned about me all these years?” she asked, looking at him like Talon had all the answers. All he wanted to do was hold his mate close and promise her that the sheriff wouldn’t harm her, but he couldn’t make those promises yet. “Is he my…god, I can’t believe I’m going to say this…Is he my guardian angel?”
“I will find out,” he vowed.
Evie ran with the warm summer air blowing in her face. She turned away from the other younger pride members and ran deeper into the woods behind the alpha’s home. She could feel Kye at her back, following her as she ran.
Freedom was so much sweeter now that she saw the world through different eyes. The beast that ruled her mind at the moment was happy…content. She was experiencing the thrill of the hunt, using her senses to find a tasty meal.
Kye huffed at her, increasing his speed to come alongside her. The two beasts slowed to a trot, neither one of them touching. Evie’s human mind sighed, knowing he was near. She may have been training to protect herself in the event she was kidnapped again, but that didn’t mean she wanted Kye to calm his protectiveness toward her. Of course, she’d never tell him that. As much as she wanted to be able to protect herself, knowing he was there just made her love him more.
“Shift with me,” Kye said from her side as soon as they reached a small meadow at the back of the property.
Evie pushed at her panther, demanding out. Kye’s increasing mating scent was driving her crazy with lust and all she wanted to do was nuzzle into his neck where she knew her mark would eventually be once they were officially mated.
“Hi.” She smiled, stepping into his open arms.
“I’m sorry,” he purred, cupping the side of her face. “God, I love you. Knowing that you were struck by a male sent me over the edge. My panther wasn’t much better.”
“It was my decision,” she reminded him. “Kye, I wish you could understand how much more confident I feel since Ranger started training me. I don’t have as many nightmares anymore, and I’m not afraid to walk alone, even at night.”
“What did the wolves do to you?” he pried, pulling her closer into the safety of his arms.
“I was hurt,” she said sadly, squinting her eyes. She tried to shake the images from her mind, but she couldn’t. “They were so mean, hateful.”
“Did they touch you?” he asked, tightening his embrace as if to give her support, but she didn’t need it.
“Not like you are thinking,” she said. “But they said things…threatened me.”
“They hurt you, too,” he reminded her, his eyes throwing amber sparks with his anger. “I saw the bruising.”
“They wouldn’t let me shift,” she whimpered, feeling tears pricking her eyes. “They kicked me repeatedly in my ribs…my back…my stomach.”
“I want to kill them all over again,” he growled, his eyes fully shifted to amber now. His panther was near, and she actually took comfort in knowing that both Kye and his beast cared for her.
“If I wasn’t drugged, they were beating me,” she admitted. “If I could’ve protected myself, Kye, I might have been able to get away.”
Kye tucked his face into her neck. She felt his shoulders shake slightly as he pressed his lips to the spot where he would mark her. Her male’s heart was shredding from the things that had been done to her. She’d been so concerned about herself that she hadn’t even taken the time to worry about how he was handling her abduction.
“I’m sorry, Kye,” she sniffled, praying she wouldn’t cry. She was so tired of crying.
“No,” he mumbled, pulling back so he could cup her face with both hands. His amber eyes were wet with unshed tears. “I understand now. I should’ve never gotten angry with you for wanting to learn to fight.”
“Really?” She grinned, feeling hope for the first time since he’d raised hell about her training.
“I want to help you train from now on,” he stated.
“Really?” she gasped.
“Yes, love,” he smiled at her, “I want to take over your training. That way, I know for sure you will be able to defend yourself if it is ever needed again.”
“I love you, Kye,” she breathed out, taking his lips before he could reply.