No Remorse (13 page)

Amber could feel Blake's anxiety and fear, but most of all it was his anger that almost overwhelmed her senses. Her wolf surged in annoyance, wanting to protect her mate. She fought to keep her wolf under control, soothing her as she skidded on the grass to keep from running into Blake when he stopped dead in his tracks. The boy was a few steps ahead of them and stopped as well.

Amber immediately sensed the stillness in the trees. The sun was shining brightly, but she felt that something was off, just not right. It was too still, too quiet. Something was hiding in the shadows of the leaves and bushes. The thickness of the forest provided perfect cover where it surrounded the house. Whatever, or whoever it was, lurked
there, just out of sight. She sniffed the air and in an instant instinct drove her to protect her mate. Amber stepped in front
of Blake the moment the boy dropped to the ground with a painful cry.

Her skin rippled as a gunshot quickly rang for the second time and landed with a thud in one of the trees next to the house, just feet from where they had just been standing. She felt Blake pulling her to the side, driving them both to the ground. Naturally, she tucked and rolled with the fall. Blake rolled with her and they both came up in the same crouching position, with him beside her. The move was smooth and looked like they had practiced together for years. They shifted in unison, ripping through their clothes as they changed.

They were already moving when the third shot rang out from the trees, again missing his intended target as the two wolves sprang apart. Their sensitive ears heard the muffled curses as the rifle jammed on the attempt to shoot a fourth shot. They heard the leaves rustling wildly as the shooter scrambled from his hiding position and began running through the thick bushes, running for his life.

Blake and Amber ran faster. They ran silently, making a wide circle and came at the gunman from opposite sides. They watched the man struggling to get through the thick brush, not making it very far. The leaves covering the hidden roots and the thickets hindered his escaped. The roots, as well as the tree limbs, appeared to reach out and
tear at him when
he tried to run away,
causing him to stumble with each step he took
.

Amber pushed her senses out into the forest, seeking other wolves in the area. Other than the ones who ran into the yard to help the boy, she and Blake were the only ones in this part of the forest. Amber’s mind sought Blake’s.

He’s alone,
Amber informed him while they stalked the man from opposite sides.

Don't kill him, we need him alive,
Blake told her when he saw her bare her large canines. She stalked towards the terrified man and gave a low guttural growl.
 
 
 
 

The man held the useless gun in front of him like he thought it would keep him safe, “Oh, man, oh, man, oh, man.” He stammered frantically looking from side to side when he saw th
e large growling wolves advancing
menacingly towards him. He backed up, tripping over more of those blasted branches, barely catching his balance before he fell.

Amber feigned a run at the man and he swung the butt of the rifle at her. She veered out of the way before it impacted with her side. Blake's wolf seeing that the man was trying to hurt his mate lunged.

The wild swing took him off balance. In his haste he had miscalculated and felt himself tip. He watched as if in slow motion as the largest wolf he had ever seen came straight for him. The black and gray muscular wolf landed squarely on his chest, causing him to lose the grip on the gun when he landed hard on the ground.

The man felt the massive weight of the wolf slamming him to the ground, forcing the breath from his lungs. The gunman fought to breathe while staring in horror at the wolf’s teeth that were bared in a snarl, spittle dripping from its snout onto his face.

We need him alive, remember?
Amber reminded him, laughingly. Her adrenaline was pumping and she could hear the man’s heart as it beat an erratic pattern in his chest. She could hear him struggle to breathe as Blake's solid frame pinned the man to the ground. It would be easy to step forward and rip the man’s throat out.

Sensing her train of thought, Blake swiftly shifted and sat with his knees on the man’s chest. Shifting back to his human form had distracted Amber long enough to interrupt her thoughts of tearing the man’s throat out. He heard Amber’s laughter once again in his head
, following
where her eyes were looking. Glancing down at himself, he realized that he was sitting on top of the man in all his glory.

Blake shot an amused look at Amber and would have laughed himself if the situation were not as severe as it was. His wolf still raged at him to kill the man who had shot at them, who had endangered the woman he loved. He sent a calming push to his wolf to assure it that his mate was safe.

“Can I trust you not to eat him?”
Blake asked her out loud, for the benefit of the man on the ground more than anything. When Amber growled her response, Blake chuckled and quickly jumped to his feet.

The man was frozen in terror, not daring to move as the black wolf came closer. He stared wide-eyed as it curled its lip and bared its teeth at him and continued emitting a low menacing growl.

What are you doing?
Amber asked when Blake ran off through the trees.

I keep clothes hidden, so when I’m out running, I’ll have them when needed.
He returned a couple minutes later wearing a pair of faded jeans, old tattered sneakers and a t-shirt.

Amber's wolf had not moved and continued guarding the man as he lay stiffly, but quiet, on the ground. She backed away with an incline of her head. Blake pulled the frightened gunman from the ground with one arm, his other hand once again wrapped firmly around the man’s throat, lifting him with little effort.

Grabbing the man by his shoulders, twisting him around, Blake shoved him in the direction of the house. He wanted to interrogate him right then and there, but he needed to know that Ben and Adam were both all right. Sure, the mental connection with his pack told him they were, but he wanted to see for himself. So he would know how severely he should punish the man for harming his pack members and putting his mate in danger.

Amber remained in her wolf form since she didn’t want to change and be naked in front of the stranger and the pack members she would soon be meeting. She spotted the discarded gun and padded over to it. Wrapping her mouth around the butt of the rifle, she picked it up with ease and loped to Blake’s side.

Blake took the gun with one hand while his other remained on the man’s shoulders, where he could still feel him shaking in fear any time the black wolf came close, or even looked at him. When he started to say something, Blake slapped him on the back of the head. “Keep moving and keep your fucking mouth shut!” The man hung his head in defeat and did as he was told.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

C
ontrary to popular belief, wolves are not color blind, Amber thought as she sauntered alongside Blake. In fact, colors appeared more brilliantly. Walking quietly, Amber’s wolf looked through the forest towards the house, noting the colors of the forest, how vibrant they were. She paused slightly when they exited the wooded area. The colors she had noticed were nowhere near as stunning as the woman’s hair who was attending the boy on the ground.

Her hair matched the bright red of the boy that she bent over, murmuring urgent words of prayer. Amber quickly assumed that the woman had to be the boy’s mother. As they approached, Ben's mother pulled him to a sitting position from where he had fallen onto the soft grass of the front yard. When Amber saw the boy’s tear-streaked face, her wolf responded with a growl, snapping at the man’s hand in renewed anger that he could have hurt a young child like this.

Her bite took off the tip of the forefinger of the man before he could pull his hand out of the way. The man jerked his hand to his chest and grabbed it with the other, screaming in pain. He stared in fear at the wolf, afraid of it biting him again. He watched her spit the finger out of her mouth like the taste of it disgusted her. She stared intently at the man for a long moment before turning away. In the process, she stepped on the severed finger and calmly walked away from where he stood trembling.

Under the passenger seat, I have a stash of clothes.
Amber looked at Blake for confirmation that he had heard her, since she was still not used to being able to connect telepathically. It was her first time trying to communicate with his human form while she was her wolf. It worked beautifully.

Blake pushed the man to his knees on the ground. “Stay there!” he commanded and headed to the jeep. Rummaging under the seat, his hand felt the canvas bag and pulled it out. He held up the dark green back pack he remembered giving Amber the night she left him. He felt silly, but his heart sang. She had kept his pack and had apparently used it a lot. It was tattered from years of constant use. His happiness was broadcast loud and clear, Amber’s wolf lowered her head to allow Blake to slip the pack around her neck.

The man on the ground watched the large black wolf closely while she rubbed her side against Blake’s hip. Taking the backpack, she turned towards him. The yellow eyes stared at him intently when she walked slowly towards where he sat on the ground, her head low and menacing. The pack around her neck left her mouth f
ree to bare her teeth at him
and he swore it looked as if the wolf was smiling sadistically at him.

Stalking towards him, Amber allowed a low intimidating growl to escape. She stopped within inches of his face. The man sat there with his eyes squeezed tightly closed, rocking from side to side, clutching his hand with the half missing digit under his chin.

Amber looked over her shoulder at Blake. With an incline of her head, she side stepped and walked past the man, close enough that she whacked him in the face with her tail, hard enough that he whimpered in pain.

Amber felt the laughing approval from her mate, and
heard
laughter from the men in the yard who had gathered while they were out in the woods. The wolf swished her back end from side to side while walking away. With the backpack secure around her neck, she pushed off with her hind legs and propelled her body forward into a run. She disappeared quickly, running deeper into the thick of the trees to shift and dress in privacy.

Out of sight in the woods she could feel Blake’s emotions change from happiness to anger when he began dealing with the gunman. His wolf’s frustrated anger beat at them both while he directed his men to watch over the man so he could check on Adam.

Amber quickly dressed, picking the pack up from the ground, slipping her arms through the straps, adjusting them to fit snug against her back. The backpack had retained a trace of Blake's scent over the years. Smiling, Amber started back towards the house.

When she arrived, a large crowd of angry men had gathered and stood intimidatingly around the man on the ground. Blake was not among them.

Her senses allowed her to find him almost instantly. He was on the front porch, hovering over Adam. At Amber's approach, the men turned and stared. The women who had gathered around the boy stared in her direction, too. Amber was a stranger and most packs didn’t welcome stray wolves too easily. The only reason she was allowed to approach was because she carried Blake's scent.

Amber knew she had to make a decision now, before she got any closer to the crowd that warily watched her every move. If she truly belonged with Bla
ke, the
n how she approached the pack would make the difference between being accepted or not. She wondered quickly if she wanted to be accepted and her wolf nudged her mind. Her wolf wanted its mate, and the more she was around Blake, Amber realized the more she wanted the man.

From where he knelt on the porch beside Adam, Blake watched Amber make her way to him. Her skin was a golden brown, her chocolate eyes shimmering with specks of yellow while her long black hair floated in the breeze behind her. She walked with grace and confidence, her mouth set in a determined line. She never broke stride, walking with a purpose towards the pack that stood between them.

The men parted when she stepped closer. Head held high, her eyes never broke contact with Blake’s while he tracked her progress. Watching her walk towards him, his heart filled with love and sent warmth flooding into her mind. A smile softened her lips while her determined steps drew her closer to him.

Amber quickly assessed the situation on the porch without shifting her eyes from Blake.

Adam was pretty beat up, a small puddle of blood had pooled around him from wher
e he now sat on the bench. His
face was
a
swollen mess, bruising was already apparent on his handsome face. He watched Amber make her way towards him.

Halfway up the steps, Adam gave her a halfhearted smile, trying to lift his hand in a salute, but he quickly dropped it when he was struck with a spasm of pain.

A pixie-like woman quickly scrambled to h
er feet, backing away at her
approach, slipping into the corner, like she was hiding in the shadows. Amber wondered if the woman knew the darkness of the porch did nothing to conceal her,
it only provided cover. Her
wolf senses allowed her to see far better than humans. She could clearly see that the delicate features of the woman’s face were etched with lines of worry, her hands clenched tightly in front of her. Amber wondered if the woman was afraid of her.