The Alphas' Daughter (Alpha Eyes: Book 2)

Chapter 11

I cocked my head to the side. "That seems a bit dramatic. What did I do to you?"

Some bushes gently rustled behind me. Great. There was more than one.

The hunter smirked as he unclipped his crossbow from the harness. "It's not about what you have done. It's about what you might do."

A metallic click echoed in my ears from the left. Shoot... was there three of them? Maybe going away from Lucas wasn't the best decision... No, I was stronger than I looked. I didn't need my mate to rescue me, just maybe help me.

"What I might do?" I echoed back, still gauging how many I was up against. "You're a fortune teller as well as a hunter? Oh my goodness, I've always wanted to have my fortune told by one of you!"

His gaze never left my face as he pulled a short arrow from a quiver on his back. "Stalling won't help you, wolf. We have you surrounded."

My wolf edged toward the surface, ready to spring into action the moment I needed her. He called me 'wolf,' which made me wonder if he was not as I'd originally thought. If he and the others were not werewolves, I had a much bigger problem.

"You must really be afraid of me," I drawled, "since you had to bring backup to take down one person. I'm thinking...six of you to one of me?" I'd overshot my actual guess, but his reaction would confirm or adjust the numbers.

"You've got a big ego for a little body," he sneered, taking a moment to look over my entire body. "I'm surprised you fit into those clothes."

So there were four of them, and he was a sexist jerk. Fabulous. I could play to that. Men had egos as well.

"At least I can own up to my size," I threw back. "You've got a pretty small set of weapons there. I'm assuming you think your 'big guns' are under those last-season clothes of yours?"

His jaw tightened and his face turned red, just as I'd hoped. In a flash, he'd nocked the arrow and raised the crossbow. I heard the click of the trigger at the same time as the crunch of the pine cone behind me. My wolf clawed to be freed as she smelled silver, one from the arrow flying at us and one from the knife hurtling toward my back.

I ducked at the last moment, flinching as the arrow struck the second hunter in the jugular. With a glance into the woods, I let my wolf loose. Bone cracked and joints shifted as she emerged. The other two hunters appeared halfway through the change, each with a loaded crossbow. With my half-human hands, I grabbed a knife from the fallen hunter's belt and threw it. I missed, but their distraction gave me the precious moment to finish the transition.

Now fully herself, my wolf launched into her attack. She moved faster, smoother than anything I'd seen her do before. An unusual heat pulsed through her muscles, fueling each movement with a bit more punch. I blinked, and she'd latched onto the nearest assailant. A sickening crunch echoed in my ears, and I nearly spat out the metallic flavor that flooded my mouth. Before I could ask her what she was doing, she launched at the next attacker who'd approached.

Two more snaps and a mouthful of phantom blood later, my wolf stood still amid the bodies. Although not in control, I shivered at the sight. She'd protected us, yes; but there was something more than just wolf instincts. I recognized the feelings but still didn't have answers.

As the heat fizzled out and the power surge died, my wolf started to retreat. The first bone cracked for the shift before I realized that she was giving control back. Everything followed in course so fast, and by the time I'd fully shifted, I had no energy left to stand. I crumbled and hit the ground.

#

He was running. As soon as his chest had started to burn, Lucas left the romantic spot where he'd been waiting for his mate and took off as fast as he could. His wolf crouched just under the surface, ready to take over if needed. Truthfully, he had no idea was he was about to face.

He smelled blood before anything else. When he reached the clearing from which the smell was coming, the sight pulled him to a stop. The mix of horror and awe left a knot in his stomach.

His mate lay in a crumpled heap in the middle of a circle of dead bodies. Her naked body suggested a surprise, quick shift. The men around her all wore outfits of forest green and brown. An assortment of close-range weapons also lay scattered about. Whatever happened, it ended quickly.

He jumped over one body and sidestepped another before reaching Karina. Her chest rose in a breath, and he sighed in relief. A familiar spark jumped through his body as he brushed some hair out of her face. Her eyes fluttered open.

"Lucas..." she whispered.

He smirked. "If your clothes were so offensive, I could have taken them off for you."

She glanced down at herself before looking around a little. "I shifted... They had me surrounded." She sat up and rubbed her forehead, almost as if she were recounting the event to herself.

"I thought they were werewolves."

Now it was his turn to look around. "Aren't they?"

"I don't think so. The first one called me 'wolf,' and he said it in such a way that made me think he isn't one." She leaned forward until her forehead rested on his shoulder. "What is happening, Lucas?"

He wrapped an arm around her and held tight. "I don't know, babe. I don't know."