Chapter 54

Joy’s terror hit Nik. His wolf held him, but her need cut through the primal instinct. She’d rejected him, but the bond was strong. Joy was his woman. His.

Nik pushed through the fog of animal thoughts until he was aware again. His body was still in the wolf, and the wolf paced in a cage. He smelled the barn and the rain. A crack of thunder resounded in the space.

Oh shit, I went feral. His last memories were of stalking Kort. The child? Did I hurt James? Remorse filled him.

Another spike of adrenaline hit him as the echo of Joy’s terror sent his heart racing. Nik forced his human form back, and the transformation was agony because he had to push his wolf away. A howl turned into a scream as Nik lay naked on the dirty concrete.

“Let me out!” He coughed because speaking hurt after not using his voice for so long. “Joy’s in trouble.”

The barn was still dark, and Nik realized he was alone. Rain pelted the barn and echoed off the roof. No one would hear him.

Keys hung to the side. “Time to get creative.” Nik looked around his prison for anything he could use. A shovel was propped against the wall across from him.

Nik picked up his water dish. He dumped the contents and turned his hand so he could fit the metal bowl between the bars. He aimed carefully and tossed the bowl like a Frisbee. The tin clattered next to the shovel but didn’t hit the shaft as he’d intended.

“Damn it!”

Then the bowl rolled and hit the side of the blade. The shovel fell forward.

Nik lay on the ground, stretching his arm through the bars and reaching for freedom. His fingertips brushed the tip of the handle. He pressed himself so tightly to the bar his shoulder ached, and his thumb and forefinger managed to grasp just enough of the wood to inch the tool closer. He let go of the breath he was holding and reached out again. This time, he managed to pull the handle close enough to pull the shovel into his cage.

Another jolt of pure terror made his blood run cold. “I’m coming, baby,” Nik muttered.

He turned the tool so that he could angle the blade out of the front of his cell and toward the wall. He scraped the edge up the limestone until it clinked with the metal of the keys. His arms shook with the awkward effort, but he pulled back slowly with the keys in a precarious position. His elbow locked and the slight jerk was enough to send the keys to the floor.

“Fuck!” Nik rested for a second, but Joy’s fear didn’t give him long.

He angled the shovel, and the tip of the cutting edge hit one key. Nik dragged them along the floor in an agonizingly slow progression. There was a chip in the concrete and one of the keys caught.

Nik twisted the shovel every way he could, but the keys wouldn’t move. “Shit!”

Law came running into the barn. “Thank God. I felt you, but I thought it was my imagination. I woke up feeling Bianca’s fear. We need to go. I think she’s in danger.”

Nik blinked up at his friend in surprise. “So is Joy.”

Law pulled the keys up out of the crack and unlocked the door of the cage. The snick of the lock was music to Nik’s ears as he pushed the door open and stepped out a free man.

Law shed his clothing. Lines of worry were tight around his face. “I’m glad you’re back,” Law said.

They rushed out into the cold rainfall. Nik needed his wolf. A quick flash of dread made him pause, but Joy’s stark terror hit him. I’m willing to risk my humanity for her. He hoped the wolf needed his mate too as his body reoccupied its most primal form.

* * * *

Joy watched her sister-in-law run through the rain. She put her hand on the door handle, ready to follow.

“Wait,” Randal ordered.

“Why should I listen to the man risking my friend’s life?”

His hazel eyes darkened. “Do you trust Bianca?”

Joy nodded. “Yes.”

“Then let her do this. Take my word for it—in the long run, this will be easier for everyone.”

Joy glared at him. “I don’t like the sound of that. What’s going on here?”

Bianca screamed. Without another word to Randal, Joy opened the door, jumped out of the vehicle, and ran through the downpour. There was no light in the barn, but even with the rain, Joy smelled the threat as she approached. A wolf. Born. Joy transformed as she ran. Oh Law, I’m sorry.

Her wolf was fast. She bound into the dilapidated barn, growling, and arrived just in time to put herself between Bianca and the wolf. The male didn’t seem to have a message for her brother. He just wanted to attack Bianca. Each time he moved, Joy’s wolf countered him, and he snarled with frustration as she blocked him from the left. She was a small wolf, too small to win if it came down to a life-and-death battle.

Bianca stood in the corner. She had a piece of broken wood and swung each time the male lunged. The male lurched with unexpected accuracy, and Joy didn’t have the chance to stop him as he got between her and Bianca. The wolf snapped, and Bianca backed up until she bumped into the wall.

“Joy!” Bianca screamed. When the wolf snapped again, Bianca pulled her arm back, shrieking. She had moved just in time. Lightning illuminated the space for a second.

Joy slipped in a puddle from the leaking roof but managed to pounce on the rogue wolf’s back. He snarled and yipped as she bit the back of his neck. He jerked and threw her off. Joy yelped as she hit the floor. Pain radiated through her body.

Thunder rolled outside. Bianca swung her makeshift club as the snarling rogue tried to bite her again. He yelped and whined as her weapon hit his skull with a thud.

Dizzy, Joy stood. Her wolf was small but strong. Seizing the opportunity, she lunged, taking a chunk out of his shoulder. The rogue recovered, and in the tussle, Joy found herself under him, looking up into his malicious yellow eyes. I’m going to die.

The weight of the rogue vanished. Joy’s whole body hurt, even in her wolf, as she tried to stand. Panic sent her gaze to the last place she’d seen Bianca, and relief flooded her when she saw Law’s wolf guarding the human. His appearance stole some of the adrenaline that had kept Joy going.

A dark blur moved into her line of sight. Nik. She sensed something different about his wolf. The man was there too. Her heart jolted with a painful skip brought on by equal measures of love and fear. I’m his. I should never have rejected him.

Nik’s strong jaws clamped onto the rogue’s neck. The terror in the interloper’s yellow eyes made his defeat clear as Nik’s teeth shredded his opponent’s throat. Bianca screamed. Joy turned and saw her brother in his human form holding his woman tight. Bianca pressed her face to Law’s chest.

A yelp snapped Joy’s attention back to Nik. Shock kept her in her wolf, and she contemplated at the carnage. Blood dripped from Nik’s jowls. He stood panting as he surveyed the dead wolf. The body changed, and the human form wasn’t anyone Joy recognized. Her wolf receded.

“Come back to me, Nik,” Joy said. The wolf looked at her. “I shouldn’t have rejected you. I’m yours.”

Humanity returned to Nik, and he transformed into a man again then gazed up at her. Pain clouded his eyes, and his brow furrowed.

Joy went to him. She collapsed to her knees and wiped the blood off his face with her hands. “Don’t ever leave me again.”

Nik held her face between his hands. “Do you mean it? If I give you my protection, you’ll accept me?”

“Yes, Nik. Yes.” Tears obscured her vision. Thunder rumbled outside so loudly the barn shook.

“When I felt your fear, it didn’t matter that you didn’t want me. I can’t live without you.” Nik pulled her into his arms. “Let’s go clean up.”

Joy didn’t resist as Nik picked her up and carried her out into the rain. The force of the deluge pounded against her nakedness. Nik looked up, his eyes closed, and he let the water pour over his face. Joy rubbed her hands together. The red ran pink until all traces of death was gone.

Headlights flashed. Randal was still there. Nik opened his eyes and looked too. He put her down and stepped in front of her, protectively.

“He’s the one who brought us here,” Joy said.

Randal got out of the car. He put his hands up as he sloshed through the mud toward them.

“What the hell was this about?” Nik screamed over the storm’s fury.

“Is she bitten?”

Joy glared at Randal. Nik growled.

Randal stopped a few feet in front of them. “Is she bitten?”

“Why do you want her dead?” Joy fought her primal urge to eliminate the threat.

“Kane,” Randal shouted. “Bitten, not dead.”

That figures. Joy and Nik exchanged a look. Nik motioned for Randal to follow them.

When they entered the barn, Law wore Bianca’s sweatshirt tied around his waist. He held the stranger’s feet in his hands as he dragged the body toward the door. Bianca sat on a musty old hay bale, shell-shocked, staring at the puddle of blood.

Joy stayed between the humans, making sure Randal couldn’t try anything. He took off his wet coat and handed it to Joy. He was much bigger than she was, so the coat came down to her knees. She zipped it up and rolled the sleeves back, freeing her hands.

Joy went over to Bianca and rubbed her back. “You okay?”

Shaking her head, Bianca glanced up at Randal. Her expressionless face changed to anger. “Where’s Kloe? Was she ever here?”

Randal didn’t look Bianca in the eyes. “No. She doesn’t know anything about werewolves or where I am. I—I did this for her.”

“Does she want me dead?” Bianca’s hurt expression tugged at Joy’s heart.

Randal shook his head. “Never. My family owed Tobias a blood debt, but when he died, Kane inherited our damn obligation. He promised I’d be free if I brought you out here so you could be bitten.” Randal sighed. “I wanted to give Kloe a child.”

Bianca’s mouth fell open. “Are you unable to have children on purpose?”

“Yes. I had a vasectomy, but once I’m free I’ll have it reversed.”

Joy listened to his heartbeat. He was telling the truth. Her eyes narrowed. “You’re already free. The old ways say that debt should go to a child, and Bianca would never hurt her friend—unlike you.”

Randal frowned. “Kane told me the DNA test proved Tobias wasn’t her father.”

Bianca’s eyes widened. “Who is? What did the test say?”

Shrugging, Randal looked down at the floor. “I don’t know who he is, but Kane made a good point about a bite. You’ll be safer if you let a wolf change you. What if your werewolf dad has enemies?”

Law came over and growled at Randal. “I should kill you.”

“You should bite her—not me.”

Joy stepped between the human and her brother. “Stop it! Bianca will decide if she’s bitten. Why did Kane want it done so badly?”

Randal’s heart raced, Joy could hear the change, and it made her suspicious. He shifted his weight and took a step back. “You know how Kane is.”

“Tell me,” Joy insisted.

Randal frowned. “He’s an asshole who thinks everyone in this town should do what he wants.”

Law’s face elongated. Hair sprouted from his cheeks and forehead, and his fingers curled in a transition between human digits and animal claws. “If you ever endanger my wife again—” His voice rumbled deeply with the change. “I. Will. Kill. You. Get out of your debt another way.”

Nik came back into the barn, water dripping from him. “Body’s in the truck.” He was the only one who was still naked. Randal took off his shirt and handed it to Nik, who quickly tied it around his waist.

The human shivered. “I’m sorry, Bianca. I won’t hurt you again. Please don’t tell Kloe about werewolves. The secret is too dangerous.”

“That’s why I’ve been keeping my distance,” Bianca said. “I’d never hurt Kloe. I want you two to have a baby, but not at the cost of my humanity. It’s too much to ask.”

Disappointment crossed Randal’s face. “I understand. I’ll give you and Law a ride back. There’s not enough room for four of you in that truck.”

“Thanks,” Bianca said, but tension lingered in the casual response. “I miss her.”

“She misses you too,” Randal mumbled.

Law and his mate followed the human out of the barn. Joy watched her family leave and that sense of panic that always inhabited the surface of her emotions rose up. I’m okay. I’m not being abandoned. I’m going home. She did her best to calm down, but fear made goose bumps rise on her arms and the back of her neck. Thunder rumbled, and rain beat a steady rhythm on the decaying roof, but the storm seemed to be dying down. I’m not alone. I have Nik.

Gazing up into Nik’s handsome face, her breath caught. “What now?” she whispered.

“I give you my protection. The rest of my life is for loving you. I know it won’t be easy, but I’m going to do my damnedest to ease your pain.”

“I feel you with me, sharing it, loving me. There’s just so much fear inside me. I don’t know if I can ever let the memories die, yet when you’re near there’s enough reprieve that I can breathe. I can’t explain it, but you’re a miracle.”

“Our bond is the miracle. I’m just the lucky son-of-a-bitch who gets to share a soul with you.”

That’s the most romantic thing I’ve ever heard. Joy’s throat tightened. “I love you.”

Nik grinned. “I live for you. I’m going to love you hard enough to chase the shadows away.” He pulled her close, kissing her. Nothing mattered but his mouth. He pulled back and looked into her eyes. “You’re mine.”

Joy closed her eyes as he kissed her again. Yes, I am. Always.