Elemental (17 page)

His
instincts kicked in and he latched onto one of the branches, hanging as he
narrowed his silver eyes on her. “You lied,” he snarled.

“I
can assure you that I am definitely human, but I have a talent for telekinesis.
Now stop trying to mark me, I’m not your mate.” Mandy could feel her anger
rising, blotting out her fear and even masking some of her pain. This mangy
wolf was trying to take away the only good thing that had ever come into her
life and force her to remain with him instead.

Not.
Gonna.
Happen.

While
watching him in the trees, she used her peripheral vision to scope out anything
that she might be able to use and spotted a branch, high on the trunk of a tree
close to them that had broken off leaving a long, sharp stick protruding from
the trunk.

When
he dropped back down, she prepared to launch him up and skewer him on that
stick, but another form suddenly emerged from the woods.

Garrett!

“Get
away from her, Wolf. She doesn’t belong to you,” Garrett had eyes only for the
wolf, and Mandy realized that by staring him in the eye and not breaking
contact, Garrett was challenging Liam…for her.

Liam
shifted into the same massive black wolf from the castle and roared his
challenge, shaking the trees and causing a large amount of snow to fall onto
Mandy.

She
cried out as a heavy clump landed on her injured leg, and Liam’s attention was
fractured enough to allow Garrett his opening. She watched as his shape morphed
into that of a giant snow leopard.

He
was stunningly beautiful with his thick white fur and black spots, but it was
his enormous paws that gave him the advantage, keeping him from sinking too
deep into the snow. He sprang forth and was on Liam’s back in the blink of an
eye, and the fight was on.

Liam
howled and spun, trying to dislodge Garrett who had sunk his teeth into the
back of Liam’s neck, his paws clinging to his sides as the giant wolf bucked
like a bronco. The sight would have been amusing if the circumstances hadn’t
been so grim.

With
a roar, Liam slammed them both into a tree, sending more clumps of snow to the
ground, but thankfully not on her, and managed to throw Garrett from his back
and into the snow.

Garrett
landed on his feet, in true feline fashion, and darted up a tree before leaping
to the ground behind the wolf. He was unable to attack again, because Liam had
turned and was now circling the giant cat with murder in his eyes.

It
occurred to her that Liam and Garrett were both fighting for her. She didn’t
think Liam would harm her, since he obviously thought her to be his mate, but
he would have no problem killing Garrett if it meant he got to keep her.

The
fight continued about fifty feet from her and Mandy tried to remain focused on
the brawl, lest she end up accidentally trampled by the fighters, and noticed
something that caused her heart to skip a beat.

In
between the growls and snarls, Mandy could have sworn she heard the purr of an
engine. She strained her ears and, yes, there was some sort of vehicle coming
their way. Now she just needed to make sure that both she and Garrett held out
until help could arrive, because if Garrett was here, then she was sure Nicolas
and Jonathan were the ones en route.

She
looked back to the fight in time to see the wolf launch himself onto the cat,
jaws open and ready to strike, but she struck first. Mandy sent the canine
hurtling through the air and right at the branch that she’d seen earlier, only
she wasn’t able to throw him high enough and his body crashed into the tree,
his left shoulder impaled on the branch.

The
sound that erupted from the wolf was one of fury and pain. Unfortunately, the
fury was now aimed solely at her, and when the wolf landed, he began slowly
limping her way on three paws.

Overhead,
the clouds above began to darken and roll ominously, thunder booming. This was
all she needed to confirm that Nicolas was on his way, and she pushed at the
wolf again.

He
was at her right side now and she watched in horror as he leapt before she
could gather her strength enough to deflect him, but Garrett flew over her head
and sent them into the trunk of the tree that she was under, causing snow to
rain down once again.

This
time, when the snow-laden branches shook and groaned above her, Mandy knew that
she was in trouble. She had only enough time to see two snowmobiles come into
view before snow, broken limbs and ice came raining down upon her, the weight
sending pain rocketing through her leg. Spots swam before her eyes as her
vision grew dark, blotting out her view of everything around her.

Chapter Fourteen

Nicolas
couldn’t believe his eyes. Garrett had shifted into a gigantic snow leopard and
was wrestling with the werewolf.
A cat fighting a dog, of all
things, but where was Mandy?

Unable
to see her anywhere, Nicolas called out to Garrett, needing them to separate so
that he didn’t harm the man who was like a father to him. He gathered his power
around him, the clouds roiling overhead and the air coming alive with the
energy crackling in wait.

Finally,
he got his chance when Garrett landed a solid bite to the wolf’s injured leg
and took him to the ground before leaping out of the way. Immediately, Nicolas
sent a lightning bolt to connect with the crazed beast.

The
smell of burnt hair and flesh filled the air and the wolf collapsed, his limbs
twitching from the electricity still coursing through his body.

Nicolas
was starting toward the prone figure when Garrett shot past him and began
digging in the snow.

Mandy!
Her skin was pale, her lips blue, and her breathing was terrifyingly shallow.
She was bundled in many layers, but somehow she’d been buried beneath a pile of
snow and had not been able to get herself free.

Reaching
down, Nicolas clasped Mandy under her arms and prepared to lift her out when a
hand on his arm stopped him. He looked back to see a very naked Garrett
shivering beside him. The fact that clothes never survived the shift had to
suck right about now.

“Her
leg is broken,” he explained through chattering teeth. “It happened during her
escape, but not by the wolf. He was actually trying to help her until he tried
to mark her and she launched him into a tree.”

“Thank
you, Garrett. Now shift back before you freeze.” Nicolas turned his attention
back to Mandy and began to dig the rest of her out.

Her
stillness alarmed him, but he strove to keep his voice calm and even as he
spoke to her. “Mandy, I’ve got you sweetheart, just hold on. We’ll have you
warm and toasty in just a minute,” he promised. “Talk to me now, let me know
you’re okay.”

Nothing,
well, nothing but a growl coming from behind them.

Nicolas
turned in time to see the wolf staggering to its feet, and his brother and Anna
arriving on the scene. Garrett made a wide circle around the wolf, attempting
to draw its attention away, but the wolf was focused on Mandy.

The
look in the beast’s eyes was full of…sorrow? Was he really sorry for what had
happened to her?

In
the next moment, Nicolas had his answer. The beast thought that she was dead.
His eyes went from sorrowful, to resigned, to infuriated before he attacked.

Before
Nicolas could do anything, Jonathan hit the furry bastard with a fireball. The
resulting howl would haunt Nicolas’ nightmares for some time as the werewolf
went up in flames.

As
fast as he could, Nicolas dug Mandy free and pulled her into his arms, cradling
her as he quickly moved her away from the burning canine and called to his fire
element to increase his temperature in an effort to warm her. He had his head
on her chest, listening to her erratic pulse and willing her heart to continue,
when Anna came to his side.

She
said nothing, but placed her hands on Mandy’s chest. Whatever she was doing was
working as the beat beneath his ear evened out and became stronger and
stronger. He lifted his head and noted that her color was getting better as
well, but she still hadn’t stirred.

“What’s
wrong with her?” he asked. “How bad is she hurt?” He’d never been more aware of
her humanity as he was in that moment.

Anna
looked up at him, her face held carefully blank. “We need to get her back to
the castle so that I can work on her leg.
 
It would be best if she stayed unconscious until then since the ride
won’t exactly be smooth.” Her eyes traveled down Mandy’s leg and she winced at
the sight of her injury. “I want her to be as comfortable as possible because
it will hurt when I work to heal her
leg,
there is no
way around that.”

Nicolas
nodded and rose with Mandy in his arms. He was making his way over to his
snowmobile and trying to figure out how he was going to manage to hold Mandy
while driving, when Jonathan called out to him.

Looking
at his brother, Nicolas saw that the werewolf had shifted back to his human
form…or what was left of it. His skin was charred black and sloughing off to
reveal the muscles and tendons beneath, riddled with blisters. His breaths were
sawing in and out with a distinctive rattle sounding with every shallow
inhalation. There was no hair left on his body, and the werewolf appeared
rather pitiful.

“He
is requesting to see her one last time,” Jonathan explained. “It’s his last
request. He knows that he’s dying, his body isn’t healing fast enough.”

“Why
should I allow that?” Nicolas sneered. “It’s his fault that she’s in this condition.”

“He
cares for her, Nicolas. He was trying to take her back to the cabin. He wanted
her to be his mate, so despite the fact that he’s started to lose his sanity,
he had retained enough to maintain his emotions and his empathy,” Garrett
explained his observations in that quiet way he had which always seemed to calm
the brothers and ensure that they listened. “It won’t hurt to offer him a
little peace by letting him
know
that she is alive and
will be taken care of.” He shifted back once he’d said his piece, but Nicolas
understood Garrett’s point, even though his instincts were screaming for him to
deny the last request.

Wrestling
with his conscience and his primitive urge to flee with his woman, Nicolas
finally took pity on his dying adversary and carried Mandy over so the man
could see her one last time. “She’s hurt, but I will make sure that she heals
and is happy,” he told the dying man, uncaring if his voice came out cold. “I
will always see to her happiness.”

“Tell
her that I am sorry,” he rasped in a voice as raw as his body. “Tell her, Liam
is sorry.” With his eyes locked onto Mandy’s still form, the werewolf took one
last shuddering breath before finally succumbing to death.

The
thing that finally reached Nicolas was the depth of emotion he saw in those
silver eyes as they settled on Mandy one last time. Crazy or not, the man
within the beast truly had believed that he was looking at his mate, and had
needed to hear that she would be taken care of before he could let go.

“He
needs to be buried,” Nicolas declared. He shouldn’t have bothered to say
anything though, because Garrett was already off to the side, digging a hole
for the grave using his large paws. “We need to get her back quickly, Jonathan,
but I’m not sure that I can hold her and drive the snowmobile too.”

“Anna
knows how to drive, and she’s smaller, so it would make it easier for the three
of you to fit if she drove the two of you. I on the other hand am going to have
to figure out how to get Garrett’s furry ass on mine,” Jonathan frowned. “He’s
going to have a devil of a time holding on, and I’ll skin him down for a rug if
he uses his claws.”

Nicolas
chuckled, “Good luck with that. Let’s head out, Anna.”

Leaving
Jonathan and Garrett to handle the burial, Nicolas and Anna traveled as fast as
they dared back to the castle with Mandy. Regardless of the fact that her color
had improved, Nicolas still couldn’t shake the feeling that Anna was keeping
something important from him regarding her condition.

They
took her inside and to the tower where they stripped her out of her wet clothes
and placed her on the bed. “What do you need me to do?” he asked Anna.

“Bring
me some warm blankets and place them over her middle so that we can raise her
core temperature. I will begin working on her leg, but I will put her in a
deeper sleep before I do that. I don’t want to cause her any additional pain or
stress her system any more than necessary,” she explained.

“I’ll
be back in a few minutes with the blankets, but I’ll start a fire before I go.”
Nicolas turned and tossed a ball of flames into the fireplace, making sure that
the blaze was sufficient before leaving to retrieve the blankets.

Once
he was outside the room, Nicolas sank to his knees in the hall. He hung his
head and thanked the Fates that Mandy was alive and promised to stand by her
side no matter what the outcome. He was terrified that her injury could be
serious or even that she could have suffered some sort of internal trauma Anna
wasn’t telling him about, but he trusted the Fey princess to do whatever she
could to save Mandy.