Chapter Sixteen
Ranger’s panther twisted, feeling his flesh rip from the male’s lethal canines. Blood tickled his fur, but the panther was too focused on ending the male’s life to care. The panther limped as he circled Boris, raising his lip in a nasty snarl.
Pain was absent as he forced his back leg to pounce, taking the male to the ground. Boris’s panther yelped as Ranger got ahold of his shoulder, ripping at the flesh. They scuffled, rolling around on the floor. A lamp fell from a table, but that didn’t stop Ranger’s panther from going for the male’s throat.
“End this!” Thorne yelled.
Ranger’s panther clamped down and crushed the male’s windpipe, stepping back to watch him suffer as the animal bucked and scrambled for any footing he could find. When the air in his lungs dissipated, and his brain started shutting down from the lack of oxygen, Ranger shifted to his human form and grabbed the alpha by his throat, pulling the panther’s face to his own.
“I hope you suffer in hell,” Ranger snarled, his eyes glowing amber.
The panther’s body slumped to the ground and it was over…Boris Small was gone.
“Ranger?” Thorne gasped as he approached. “Your leg.”
The pain struck Ranger hard as he limped over toward a chair by the wall. He looked down at his bleeding leg and back up at his brothers. “I need a safe place to shift.”
“You need a healer,” Thorne urged, reaching for the house phone.
“This is an old injury,” he hissed. “I need to shift, but I want my brothers to check on my mate while I do.”
“Use the backyard.” Noah pointed toward a door. “It’s fenced and will be secure. I’ll stay out there with you.”
“Thank you,” Ranger huffed, pulling at his beast. The panther inside him was exhausted, but he continued to dig deep for his other nature.
“I will report to you anything I hear about Hope,” Noah promised.
Ranger shifted and limped toward the open door, relaxing when Noah followed him outside. Once outside, he found a thick patch of grass and pushed his panther away. The beast snarled, hating the back and forth, even though it knew this was the way he needed to heal.
Five minutes as a beast, ten as a human, fifteen as a beast, twenty as a human. The next three hours were going to be hell on his body, but he needed to heal.
As time progressed, Noah remained quiet, his trained gaze on the home and their surroundings. Ranger saw movement inside and knew that the bodies of the rogue alpha and his Guardians were being removed.
Their world wasn’t always hearts and flowers. Punishments sometimes meant death, especially if a mate was harmed in one way or the other. No matter how strong a female, the males were protective to a fault. It was how they were raised…it was how they lived.
On his fifth shift back to human, Noah’s eyes met his and Ranger knew something was wrong. He stood up from his spot, ignoring the blood staining the grass where he’d lain for the last hour and a half. The wound was healing but not quite back to what it was before they arrived in North Carolina.
“What’s wrong?”
“We need to return to the pride,” Noah said, looking at his phone. “Are you okay to travel?”
“Is it Hope?” Ranger snarled. His heart felt like it had stopped dead in his chest when the alpha’s brother nodded sadly. “Three males found her in your cabin after three other males were detained. The Community caused a commotion by picketing at our gates, and the males slipped in but not past our cameras, even though we were stretched thin.”
“What happened to Hope?” he yelled, limping onto the back porch.
“She…um, well, your mate killed one of Boris’s Guardians,” Noah replied, sounding perplexed.
“Wait…what?” Ranger froze, turning toward the male.
“She ripped his throat out after beating the shit out of a male almost twice her size.” Noah chuckled. “She’s a badass.”
“Fuck,” Ranger cursed as he whooshed out a heavy breath. “She’s in pain. We need to go.”
“Harold has given her a sedative until you can arrive,” Noah promised. “The truck is ready when you are.”
“Let’s go home.” Ranger didn’t waste time in marching through the home, stopping for a moment to shake Thorne’s hand.
The North Carolina pride was now his and they left knowing the male would rule as well as their own alpha back in Mississippi.
Now, he needed to be with his mate.
The sheriff’s deputies pushed the protestors back from the gate to allow the truck to enter the pride’s land. Noah cursed, “Damn, this is going to be bad.”
“Garrett says they’re working with the government to stop the Community’s protests, but I have a feeling they are using this as a disguise for deeper purposes,” Ranger said, tapping his foot on the floorboard of the truck. He needed to see his mate.
“I’m sure Talon will brief us on everything,” Noah said, giving a short wave to Savage as they passed the guard building.
Ranger didn’t reply as they made their way up the long drive, passing the alpha’s home. The healer’s home was surrounded by pride members, all of them turning to watch as Ranger exited the passenger side and limped up the walkway.
“Where is she?” he asked, looking around the room. Kraven was sitting on the edge of a chair with his head bowed as if he was praying. When the male looked up, he relaxed and released a breath.
“In here,” Kraven said, pointing toward the back room. “She’s kind of loopy right now.”
Ranger entered the exam room. The lights were dimmed, only a small lamp was on in the corner, casting a soft, yellow light over the room. The healer was sitting in a chair, reading a newspaper. Hope was on her side, curled up in the fetal position, and her eyes were closed.
“She’s okay,” Harold whispered as he looked up. Folding the paper neatly, he stood from his seat and stretched lazily. “I gave her a sedative about an hour ago and she’s been sleeping ever since.”
“Did they hurt her?”
“No.” Harold smiled proudly. “From what I’ve been told, your mate held her own with those males.”
“She has been taught well,” Ranger replied, silently reminding himself to thank her brother, Kraven, for having the foresight to teach his mate how to protect herself.
“It goes against our nature to have a female fight,” Harold reminded him, “but I can attest to the fact that it may be time we change our way of thinking.”
“Evie taught me that over the past year,” Ranger replied. “Hope’s abilities just sealed my way of thinking.”
“Our world is changing in so many ways, Guardian,” Harold said, cupping his hand over Ranger’s shoulder. “You have done the right thing with the young female.”
“She’s not the only one,” Ranger sighed, nodding toward his mate. “Hope has been teaching Calla how to defend herself as well.”
“Talk to Talon about this,” Harold warned. “It is not my call, but I believe that the females are going to rise, and when they do, our kind are going to be stronger than we ever imagined.”
“Ranger?” Hope moaned as she started to rouse.
“I’ll leave you two alone.” Harold excused himself and walked out of the room, pausing at the door. “You need to shift some more to take care of that limp.”
“I will as soon as I make sure my mate is okay,” he promised.
Hope moaned as her eyes flickered open. When her eyes cleared, the icy blue of her human side looked at him with relief. “You’re here.”
“I’m here,” he said, slipping into the bed. He took her into his arms and held her tight against his chest. She slipped her hands up between them so she could reach his face. They didn’t speak for the longest time as he made sure to keep the connection to relieve the pain of touching another male.
“I killed a male,” she whispered, shivering from whatever thought she had in her mind. “Well, my beast did.”
“Yes, you did,” he replied, not wanting to sugarcoat anything. “I am so proud of you for taking your safety into your own hands.”
“I was mad and scared,” she blurted, nuzzling her nose against the spot where she marked him when they had mated. He felt his body respond, his cock hardening with the need to mount his mate.
“I want to take you to our home,” he said, capturing her lips for a soft kiss.
“I never told you that I loved you before you left,” she slurred, blinking rapidly.
“You don’t have to tell me, angel,” he whispered. “I already knew.”
“I’m tired, and I want to go back to our home,” she yawned.
“My beast needs to check you over in our space. Then, I want to bathe you and take you to bed.”
“I think that would be a great idea,” she mumbled. “I’m still a little groggy from the pain medicine the healer gave me.”
Ranger slid carefully from the bed, trying to hide his wince. He really needed to shift a few more times. His healing shifts had been cut short when they rushed home from North Carolina.
“Ranger,” she gasped, blinking rapidly. “Are you hurt?”
“No,” he said through gritted teeth. “I just need to shift soon.”
“Let me see,” she begged. “And don’t lie to me.”
“I sustained an injury, but I’m not hurt,” he promised. “Now, let’s get you home.”
“Who hurt you?” His mate’s words were said through her canines. She was angry, and that just excited him.
“He’s dead,” Ranger said, his eyes roaming her body. “You really make me want to fuck you when you get protective.”
“Does me being a badass turn you on?” she taunted, her eyes heating as they roamed his body. Damn, his mate really needed to chill on that look or he’d mount her at the healer’s home.
“We should go home,” he growled. “Now.”
Hope refused to let him carry her the short distance, but she did lean heavily on his side as they slowly made their way back to the cabin. Ranger kicked the door closed, not caring to lock it, because if anyone dared cross his threshold, he’d kill them with no remorse.
Hope smiled as he placed her on the counter while he filled the huge tub in the master bathroom. He dropped her favorite honeysuckle bath salt into the water before testing its temperature.
“Come, mate,” he purred, reaching for her shirt.
Hope hopped down off the counter and pushed her shorts to the floor. “Want to join me?”
“Yes,” he grunted, removing his own clothing in a rush. His cock hardened as she stepped into his arms, wrapping her arms around his waist.
Hope sighed heavily, “I’m glad you’re okay.”
“Your safety is more important than mine,” he growled, moving toward the bath.
Once inside, he leaned back and let her rest against his chest. Ranger spent the next half hour running a soapy cloth over his mate’s skin. She never complained about his touch or the need to clean the enemies scent from her skin. He wanted her natural scent and that of their mating back, and he spent the rest of the night marking her to ensure that everyone knew Hope was his.