"About a mile," Marc answered as he searched through his phone for a number. "Half a mile if we go through the woods."

"Do you know the way through the woods?" Christofer asked quietly, his hand stilling on her back as she registered an odd note to his tone.

"Why?" Marc asked, looking up from his phone the same time that she looked past Christofer towards the road, both of them spotting the large beast from her nightmares standing on its hind legs at the same time. Her heart skipped a beat as the beast turned its large, black head in their direction, its silver eyes narrowed on them as it bared its teeth.

"Because I think you're going to need to take that shortcut through the woods," Christofer said, keeping his eyes on the large black beast as he slowly moved forward, grabbed Marc by the back of his shirt and pulled him back just as the large beast released a howl that sent shivers down her spine.

"Run," Christofer ordered, keeping his eyes locked on the large beast as he shoved Marc towards her.

"I can't run," Cloe said, bending over and clutching her stomach as the sounds of snarling grew louder.

"You have to run, Cloe," Marc pleaded, throwing a frantic look over his shoulder as he grabbed her hand and tried to pull her to her feet, but the cramp tearing through her stomach had her pulling back and shaking her head.

"Go, Marc," she said, licking her lips as she struggled not to lose consciousness as another cramp tore through her stomach, followed by another one and another one. "Go home and get your father," she said, pulling her hand from his and blindly pushing him away as another cramp tore through her, dropping her to her knees with a muted cry.

"I can't leave you!" Marc hissed, dropping to his knees beside her and putting his small arm around her, the sounds of growls and snarling surrounding them.

"You have to," she said, forcing her eyes open, but the sharp pain shooting through her stomach had her quickly closing her eyes and trying to bite back a groan.

"I can't leave you here!" Marc urgently whispered, the small arm around her tightened as he tried to pull her to her feet, but she wasn't going anywhere, not with this pain ripping through her and certainly not with Christofer back at the road trying to stop that monster from finding them.

"We need help," she said, knowing that there was no other way to get Marc to leave her. She needed him to leave, to know that he was safe. The thought of that thing getting his hands on Marc and doing to him what had been done to her brothers terrified her more than the thought of that monster finding her.

"Help is already on its way," Marc whispered, dropping his arm from around her so that he could take her hand into his.

"How do you know?" she asked, giving his trembling hand a gentle squeeze.

"I sent the signal," was all he said before a man's bloodcurdling scream tore through the dense forest.

"Christofer!" she cried out as her eyes flew open.

"No!" Marc screamed, his hand tightening around hers as she tried to get to her feet. "Don't go!"

"I have to help Christofer," she said, ignoring the cramps playing tag in her stomach as she forced her legs to work. "He needs me."

"I need you!" Marc cried as she pulled her hand free and took a step towards the sound of another scream. "Please, Cloe! I need you!"

She stopped, her heart pounding in her chest as that scream tore through her. She needed to go to him, to make sure that he was okay, but she couldn't leave Marc, not when leaving him meant that she was abandoning him to the same fate that she'd endured.

She refused to make the same mistake that her mother had made.

"Let's go," she said, taking Marc's hand and stumbled forward, forcing her legs to move until she soon found herself running with Marc away from the screams, hating herself more than she'd ever thought possible.

"Let's go!" Chris yelled jumping into the back of the van behind Caine as Ephraim hit the gas.

"Where's the signal coming from?" Caine asked, as he double-checked his weapons.

"Baby, where's the signal coming from?" Chris asked, pressing the switch to the microphone attached to his collar.

"A hundred yards ahead and two hundred yards in the woods to the north. They're on the move and heading towards the mansion," Izzy answered, trying to stay calm, but he knew that she was terrified and for good reason.

Marc.

His little brother wasn't the type to call for help unless the s.h.i.t hit the fan. He'd been trained on how to protect himself, how to hide and how to get his a.s.s to safety and wouldn't use the Sentinel system unless it was really f.u.c.king necessary.

"I shouldn't have f.u.c.king let them go!" his father repeated for probably the hundredth time since the signal came in two minutes ago.

"He's fine," Chris said, forcing himself to remain calm, knowing that if he didn't, it could cost his brother his life.

"Christofer wouldn't let anything happen to him," Caine said and heaven help him, but he wanted to believe him.

"He wouldn't," his father agreed, sounding more like a prayer than anything.

The alarm on his phone went off, signaling another emergency call. He ripped his phone free and looked down at the screen.

"Mother f.u.c.ker!" Caine snarled, voicing the thought going through his head.

"Chris, Marc's phone just sent a second emergency call," Izzy said over the radio, her beautiful voice cracking with fear.

"Where are they?" he asked, taking a knee by the open van door as his father sped down the road.

"They've stopped about two hundred yards from where you are now."

"Send him a message that I'm on my way," he said, grabbing the side of the van door and jumped out, hitting the pavement at a dead run.

"Where's the b.i.t.c.h?"

"Don't call her that," Christofer growled, stumbling awkwardly as he kept his eyes on the man that not even a minute ago had been a raging beast trying to tear him apart.

He'd done a d.a.m.n good job of it, he had to admit as he reached up and absently wiped blood out of his eye as his other arm hung uselessly by his side, blood dripping down his fingers to join the blood pooling by his feet. His breaths were raspy, his head filled with hazy thoughts as he struggled to stay focused. He couldn't lose control, not now.

The man standing in front of him grinned as he looked past Christofer towards the woods. "Went for a little run in woods?" he asked, chuckling as Christofer watched with dread as all the wounds that he'd inflicted on the b.a.s.t.a.r.d quickly disappeared.

If he'd only stayed in his beast form he'd be dead by now, Christofer thought in a daze, stumbling back a step as his legs threatened to buckle. He'd had the beast howling in pain, battered and broken. He'd been damaged as well, but not as badly as the werewolf lying on the ground gurgling blood. He'd been moving in for the kill when the b.a.s.t.a.r.d started to change, startling him. Stupidly, he'd stood there trying to make sense out of what he was seeing and by the time he'd realized that the werewolf had shifted to heal, it was too late.

"An unturned Pyte?" the shifter demanded around a growl, scenting the air as all signs of amus.e.m.e.nt left his face and his eyes flashed silver.

Christofer held himself still as he waited for the shifter to mention the baby, but he never did. Instead, the shifter shook his head menacingly, his focus on the woods. "Not f.u.c.king happening," the shifter growled as he took a step towards the woods.

"What's not happening?" Christofer asked, moving to block him and wincing as his broken ribs rubbed against his lungs, threatening to slice them open.

"The Pyte won't be reaching his immortality," the shifter sneered. "My Pack won't allow it."

The meaning behind the shifter's words. .h.i.t him as he stumbled to the side, a breathless laugh leaving him as he felt the familiar stirring inside his head. He sent up a silent prayer for his mate and the boy, hoping like h.e.l.l that they were back at the mansion and out of his reach as he let go.

Chapter 56.

"Shhhhh, stay calm," Cloe whispered, keeping her eyes locked on the b.l.o.o.d.y back of the man crouched down in front of them.

"I'm trying," Marc whispered as she reached back and took his hand in hers as she pushed back, making d.a.m.n sure that he wasn't going to get another chance to push past her and put himself in front of her again. She swore that if he tried to do that again, that she'd put him over her knee and spank the s.h.i.t out of him.

"He's going to hurt you," Marc said, trying to step past her again, but a firm squeeze had him keeping his b.u.t.t where it belonged.

"No, he's not," she said as she debated telling Marc to keep running towards the mansion, but she wasn't sure if Christofer would chase after the boy or not.

Since he'd snarled at the boy when he'd stepped in front of her the last time, she couldn't be sure of anything at the moment. She knew that Christofer would rather die than hurt a child, but in this state....

She wasn't exactly sure what Christofer would do if Marc took off running and she didn't want to find out.

A vicious snarl drew her attention back to Christofer as he tensed, every blood coated muscle in his back bulging as he prepared himself to face whoever they heard running towards them. A few seconds later she nearly sagged with relief when she caught the sweet scent of Sentinel blood until she realized something very important, Christofer had also caught the scent. He growled viciously as he shifted his weight forward, preparing for an attack.

"Christofer," she said, licking her lips anxiously, praying that she could talk some sense into him before this turned into a bloodbath. "I think we're okay now."

"Mine!" he snarled, shifting as he searched for the new threat that was coming their way.

"I-I think that's my brother," Marc said, squeezing her hand as he shifted behind her and she knew, just knew, that if she gave him a chance that he'd try to make a run for it to stop Chris from coming too close, but she wasn't giving him that chance.

"Don't move, Marc," she whispered, moving back to make sure that Marc wasn't going anywhere. "Chris can take care of himself. He'll be fine."

"No! Please, just let me go to my brother!" Marc said, frantically trying to pull his hand free.

"Marc, he'll be-"

"You stay where you are, Marc," Chris suddenly said as he came into sight, about twenty feet away to their right. He immediately stilled when he caught sight of Christofer.

"Don't move," Ephraim said softly, coming into sight fifteen feet away and to their left.

"s.h.i.t," Caine said, stopping right beside Ephraim as he took in the scene before him. "What the h.e.l.l happened?"

"Shifter.....attacked.....," Christofer answered, taking everyone by surprise. "Scented my mate, my child and the boy," he answered in a low growl that sent chills down her spine.

"A shifter attacked you?" Chris asked, looking as surprised as the other two men. "How the h.e.l.l did he get in town?"

"It was black," Marc told them, once again trying to move past her, but she wasn't having that.

"Where?" Ephraim demanded, his eyes shifting red.

"It was waiting for us on the road," she said, swallowing nervously as she watched Caine's eyes shift as well and wondered if she was about to have two more Pytes going into bloodl.u.s.t.

"Caine, can you hunt the shifter down and-"

"Dead," Christofer bit out in a guttural tone as he slowly stood up and faced the three men.

"Were there any others?" Chris asked, looking past Christofer to make sure that they were okay.

"Two men....armed......smelled like the beast," Christofer answered.

"An Alpha and two shifters," Caine surmised, looking thoughtful as he leaned back against the tree.

"I take it they're dead as well?" Chris asked, and after a slight pause, started walking in their direction.

When Christofer growled in warning, Chris continued towards them, "No worries, big guy, I just want to make sure that my brother is okay," and to her utter surprise, Christofer let him by.

"Are you okay, little man?" Ephraim asked his son, stepping past Christofer with a nod.

"I'm fine," Marc said firmly as she released his hand, but he refused to let hers go. "But Cloe is sick."

Before the last word was out of his mouth, Christofer was standing in front of her, cupping her face gently in his hands as he looked her over. His red eyes searched every inch of her, looking for an injury that wasn't there. When he dropped one of his hands away from her face and pressed it against her stomach, she fell a little more in love with him even as she struggled to not flinch away from him.

"The baby's fine," she said, her breath catching as it finally started to hit her.

She was pregnant.

"Oh my G.o.d," she whispered, her lips curling into a watery smile as her eyes teared up. "Oh my G.o.d!"

"Cloe?" Ephraim said, sounding worried as he moved to her side, but all she could say was, "Oh my G.o.d," as she placed her hand over Christofer's where a baby was growing, their baby, a baby that she was told would never be possible.

"Cloe, are you sure that you're okay?" Chris asked, sounding worried.

She opened her mouth to tell him that everything was fine, when she suddenly found herself racing for the nearest bush and cursing Christofer to h.e.l.l and back for not stopping her from having that second burger.

"Where are you going?" Cloe asked sleepily as she tried to force her eyes open, but after the day that she'd had she was too exhausted to do much more than to give him a sleepy smile as he leaned down and kissed her softly.

"Go back to sleep, mein Schatz. I'll be back in a few minutes," he lied to her, indulging himself in one last kiss before he forced himself to step back when all he wanted to do was pull his clothes off, climb in bed beside her and make love to her one last time.

"Hurry back," Cloe said with that same smile that she'd been wearing since she'd realized that they were really having a baby, the same one that felt like a kick to his gut every time he saw it.

They were having a baby and he wasn't ready.

His father might not have expected him to have a family of his own one day, but he'd taught him what it meant to be a man nevertheless. His father had taught him that the first thing a man needed to do was to keep his family safe and that's exactly what he was about to do.

He'd planned on staying here, getting trained and learning as much as he could about the piece of s.h.i.t hunting his mate, but now he didn't have time, not with a baby on the way and not after what happened this afternoon.

Not after they'd found her.