Pretty Baby [Wolf Creek Pack 7] (13 page)

Strange and disturbing thoughts began to race through Tommy’s mind. His head swirled with confusion as a cold sweat broke out over his skin. Tommy clenched his fists when he felt his claws trying to extend.

Something was seriously wrong and Tommy knew his mate was involved somehow. As they hadn’t completed the mating all of the way, Tommy didn’t know how he knew Elliot was in trouble, but he did.

Tommy pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and flipped it open, dialing Nate and Joe’s house. His heart pounded faster in his chest as he waited for someone, anyone, to pick up. He needed to know if Elliot was safe more than he needed his next breath.

If he wasn’t in the middle of town, he would have shifted and ran to Nate and Joe’s house as fast as he could. It just wasn’t possible. Most of the citizens of Wolf Creek knew of the pack, but there were some that did not. Secrecy was what kept them alive and safe.

“Nate?” Tommy asked the moment someone picked up and said hello.

“Tommy?”

“Is everything okay there?”

“Funny you should ask.” Nate laughed nervously.

“Elliot?”

“Yeah, um, here, you better talk to your brother.”

Tommy felt like his heart was going to jump right out of his chest as he waited for Joe to come on the line. Fear and anger at himself for leaving Elliot unprotected began to knot inside him. If something happened to Elliot while he was gone, Tommy would never forgive himself.

“Tommy?”

“Joe, what’s wrong? What happened to Elliot?”

“He’s gone, bro.”

“Gone?” Tommy gasped, realizing a shiver of panic. “What do you mean gone?”

“He’s not here. He was in the kitchen lying down and Nate went to the bathroom. When he came back, the backdoor was open and Elliot was gone.”

“Did someone take him?”

“Well, that’s always a possibility, but I don’t think so.”

Tommy frowned at the hesitation he could hear in Joe’s voice. “What aren’t you telling me?”

“The backdoor was smashed from the inside, Tommy. I think Elliot left on his own.”

In his heart, Tommy had always been afraid that Elliot would leave. Finding a mate that was so perfectly matched for him just seemed too good to be true. Just thinking of Elliot leaving nearly shattered something inside of Tommy.

“Okay, I’ll be back to the house as soon as I can.”

“Tommy, he could have just needed to go out for a run. Being a wolf seems to be kind of new for Elliot.”

Tommy swallowed with difficulty and found his voice. “Yeah, maybe. Look, I’ll be home in a few minutes and we can figure this out.”

“Tommy, don’t see this as more than it is. Elliot could have simply gone for a run or maybe he went searching for you. He doesn’t seem to want to be separated from you. It could be as simple as that.”

“That’s funny coming from you.” Tommy chuckled anxiously. “You haven’t wanted him here from the very beginning and now you’re telling me that I shouldn’t worry when he’s missing. That’s rich, Joe.”

“Look, Tommy, I may have been wrong about Elliot. I just—”

“May have been wrong?” Tommy snapped.

“Okay, I was wrong. Happy?”

“Not really. It would have been nice for you to accept my mate from the very beginning instead of treating him like the spawn of hell. Elliot has no control over who his father is, and he shouldn’t be judged by the things his father does. He should be judged by his own actions.”

“You’re right, Tommy.”

“Damn straight!”

Joe sighed deeply. “I promise to apologize to Elliot the moment we find him, but first we need to find him.”

“Yeah.” To Tommy’s dismay, his voice broke slightly when he spoke. He took a deep breath and tried to calm his raging emotions. “I’ll start looking this way as I head home. You start there and we can meet in the middle.”

“Sounds like a plan.”

“Okay.” Tommy flipped the phone closed and shoved it back into his pocket. A cold knot formed in his stomach as he thought of Elliot being out in the world all alone. It didn’t make sense because Elliot had been on his own for a number of years, but Tommy’s feelings for the man after two days didn’t make sense either.

Tommy clenched his hands as another wave of panic rolled through him. His skin prickled, a sure warning that someone was watching him and Tommy didn’t think it was Elliot. He didn’t get a good vibe like he did when Elliot looked at him. This felt cold, creepy.

Tommy slowed his walking and tried to shut out everything around him. He honed in on the feeling he got, sniffing the air until he found the scent he was looking for. It smelled like rotten flesh, a sure sign of something bad, usually someone evil.

Tommy immediately thought of Carl. He knew he had a natural hatred of the man because of the way he treated Elliot but there was something more to Carl than just that. Carl seemed to have an unnatural fascination with Elliot that caused Tommy to be very concerned.

The second Tommy figured out where the scent of rotting flesh was coming from, he changed directions, heading toward it. It was a foolish move, Tommy knew that, but he wasn’t going to let anyone harm his mate.

Tommy followed the nauseous scent to an alley between a general store and a café. He tried to look casual as he pulled out his cell phone and flipped it open. He didn’t dial, just held the phone to his ear and paused in the entrance of the alleyway.

Tommy started talking as if there really were someone on the phone then nonchalantly glanced around him. His enhanced senses gave him better eyesight, better hearing, and a better sense of smell.

He was grateful for every one of his senses when he spotted Carl hiding behind a dumpster half way down the alley, and he wasn’t alone. Tommy could sense two more men with him. He figured the odds were pretty much even.

Tommy snapped his phone closed and shoved it back into his pocket. He took a deep breath then turned and walked into the alley. Someone was going to walk out of this alley alive and someone wasn’t. Tommy was betting it wasn’t going to be Carl.

“Hello, Carl. I hear you may have been looking for me.”

Chapter 9

The white wolf’s mind was working overtime as he ran through the streets of Wolf Creek, dodging cars driving down the streets and people walking down the sidewalks. The fear gripping him was almost debilitating, and if his need to get to his mate wasn’t so strong, the wolf would have collapsed right there in the middle of the street.

The need to reach his mate started out as a small trickle, almost a whisper across his mind. It grew stronger with each passing moment that the man was gone until the wolf couldn’t ignore it anymore and he had to find his mate and protect him.

The wolf didn’t know what was happening to his mate but he knew it wasn’t good. The feelings flowing through him made his hackles stand up. They made him want to growl and howl and rip something apart with his bare teeth.

His paws flew across the pavement as he ran all out as fast as he could. He breathed in shallow, quick gasps as he ran. The need to reach his mate pounded in his head becoming stronger and stronger until he was almost mindless with panic.

He flew around the corner of a red brick building just in time to see a man hit his mate in the face. The wolf bellowed out his outrage as he watched his mate drop to one knee. Pure, blinding rage filled him until he saw nothing but the overwhelming need to kill.

The wolf charged the man hitting his mate, biting him in the arm. The momentum of his lunge tore the man away from his mate and took him to the ground. The wolf growled and ripped at the arm with his teeth, yanking and pulling. The bitter taste of coppery blood filled his mouth just as the man’s agonizing screams filled his ears.

Something close to elation flowed over the wolf at the man’s pain. The man attacked that which was most important in the world to the wolf, his mate. The man deserved to die as far as he was concerned.

The wolf wanted to keep on tearing at the man until he stopped breathing. Only by the thinnest of threads did he stop before the man died. Still, he bared his teeth until the man scooted back to lean against the brick wall, his injured arm held limply against his stomach. He didn’t look like he would be going anywhere.

Knowing that one threat had been eliminated, the wolf turned to face the others. He spotted a familiar smelling man slinking off down the alley and thought about going after him for about two seconds. The sight of the other man slamming a fist into his mate’s face seemed more important. He could get nasty smelling man later.

The wolf raced over to where his mate was fighting with the unknown man and sank his teeth into the man’s leg. The man jerked his leg, trying to dislodge the wolf, but he refused to let go, just sinking his teeth in further.

He winced when he felt a blinding pain between his shoulder blades. The grip he had on the man’s leg loosened just enough for the man to shake his teeth free. The wolf whimpered when another blinding flash of pain rocked through his side as the man kicked him in the ribs. He felt something snap as he fell to the ground.

He tried to raise his head to see where his mate was, the man’s safety more important than the agony filling every nerve in his body. His mate was still fighting for everything he was worth. The wolf tried to regain his feet to help his mate, but the moment he did, his head began to swim and his vision went blurry.

The wolf snarled, not liking the feeling of being out of control. Rage still burned through him, but it was quickly being overcome by the pain racking his body. He could feel a cold, wet substance trickling down his sides from the aching pain between his shoulders and breathing took effort. Each breath was unbearable.

The wolf tried to push the pain to the back of his mind. He had more important things to worry about, like protecting his mate. He shook his head to get rid of the blurred vision then lunged and charged at the guy going after his mate. He wanted blood.

“Elliot! Stop, that’s enough!”

He heard the words, but they sounded far away, almost like someone shouted at him through water. The wolf sent his mate a hostile glare when the man pulled at his fur. He didn’t understand why his mate was trying to pull him away from the one bent on harming them.

“Elliot, stop, he’s done. He’s not going to hurt us anymore.”

The wolf stopped and stared down at the man on the ground. Blood covered most of his features. Deep gashes marred his arms and chest where he had been bitten. He wasn’t moving. He dropped the arm in his mouth and backed away, hunching down to see if the man was going to move again.

“Damn, Elliot, you’re bleeding all over the place.”

Despite the pain that was rocking back into his body, the wolf felt an overwhelming joy when his mate’s hands brushed over his fur. He rolled onto his side and started panting when simple breathing became too much. He wanted to feel more of his mate’s touch.

“Elliot? Baby?”

He could hear the current of panic creeping into his mate’s voice, but the pain in his body was starting to override even his need to protect his mate. It was starting to make his vision blur again and his stomach roll.

He whimpered and licked at the hand that moved along his muzzle, pushing into the gentle touch. He needed to tell his mate that he was okay, that he just needed to rest for awhile and then he’d be back on his feet again. He just needed to close his eyes for a few minutes…that was all…just a few…

* * * *

Tommy swallowed past the lump of fear that lodged in his throat when Elliot’s dark blue eyes slowly fell closed. He rubbed his hand over Elliot’s muzzle again. “Elliot? Come on, pretty baby, open your eyes. Come on, look at me, please, Elliot.”

He could feel tears gathering in the corner of his eyes when Elliot didn’t respond to his words. The wolf’s chest rose and fell, so Tommy knew he was still alive, but his breathing seemed labored. Tommy remembered one of their attackers kicking Elliot in the side. Maybe more damage had been done than Tommy thought.

Tommy’s heart sank when he spotted the knife sticking out from between Elliot’s shoulder blades. His hand trembled as he reached over and pulled the knife out. Tommy dropped it on the ground then quickly pulled his shirt over his head and pressed against the bleeding wound, trying to stop the flow of blood.

With one hand holding his shirt on the wound, Tommy pulled the cell phone out of his pocket and dialed Joe. He needed help, and in a big way. Not only did he need to get Elliot somewhere safe where he could receive medical attention, there were two very injured men in the alley with them.

“Joe?” Tommy said the moment his brother answered the phone. “I’m in the alley two blocks from the bar, the one between Coffee Time Café and the bookstore. I need help. I was attacked and Elliot came and saved me, but now he’s injured and there are two guys here that are also injured and—”

“Whoa, whoa, slow down, brother, and take a deep breath. I’m on my way.”

Tommy’s grip on the cell phone tightened as he drew in a large breath of air. His nose wrinkled when all he could smell was the coppery scent of blood. Still, it did make him feel better, calmer.

“Okay, I saw Carl and two guys hanging around in the alley. I went to talk to them and they attacked me.”