Head Hunter (City Shifters the Pack #3) - Layla Nash Page 0,83

pushed aside the thought. She was fine. They would find her.

A man screamed, though it cut off quickly, and Silas growled. Men shouted, boots pounded the ground, and rifles cocked. Dodge charged into the melee that Silas instigated, and collided with the fat prick who smelled faintly of Persephone’s blood. There were drops of it on his pants and shirt. He’d hurt her.

Everything blurred in a red rage. There were only teeth and throats and blood. All their blood.

It didn’t take long before bodies littered the yard outside the buildings, occasionally twitching but never going to rise again. He shook his head and scented the air, searching for Persephone. She had to be close.

Sounds from the tiger’s cage drew his attention immediately. The tiger grumbled and gave soft roars or growls. Either way, the wolf knew it meant hunger and hunting. Reacting to the blood, maybe, or to something in its cage. Silas started moving the second after Dodge did, charging toward the enclosure.

The tiger prowled through the grass, its attention on something that lay in a heap on the far side of the enclosure. Dodge lowered his head and sniffed the grass, his chest constricting with dread. Persephone was inside the enclosure, covered in blood. Too weak to move.

All sense left him. His thoughts splintered as sheer terror almost overwhelmed him and the wolf at the same time. His mate. His mate was in there.

Silas bolted to the other side of the cage as Dodge fixated on Persephone and the tiger that paced closer, one silent paw at a time.

Chapter 36

Percy

I tried to talk, even though my lips cracked and pain ignited in my cheeks. The tiger kept moving around the enclosure. I heard him circling closer, chuffing and making other curious tiger noises. I wished I’d spent more time with him, talking to him, feeding him treats. Not that that would have saved me if he was really hungry and I looked like a pile of raw hamburger.

My voice cracked as I whispered, “It’s just me, handsome boy. Just your friend Percy. You don’t want to eat me, do you?”

I would have laughed, it was so ridiculous.

We both paused and looked over as a ruckus kicked up somewhere near the buildings. Men screamed and shouted, and growling cut through the night.

The tiger trotted over to the fence to investigate, his head lifting to scent the air, and I pushed myself into a sitting position. I wouldn’t have much time to make it to the door to the enclosure, but I wasn’t moving very fast. Trying to run or crawl would no doubt catch the tiger’s attention. The screams faded into nothingness, and a new, eerie silence rocked the sanctuary. The tiger remained frozen in a half-crouch in the middle of the open space, scanning the fence for danger or temptation.

I didn’t dare close my eyes, in case I woke up and it had all been a hallucination. Maybe I hadn’t bullshitted Geordie as much as I’d thought, and Dodge’s pack actually came to find me. Hoping hurt too much, but I wasn’t about to look a gift wolf in the mouth. While the tiger was distracted, I started the long, inching trek to the doors. If I could just get behind the gate, I could eventually get to a phone and call for help. All my attention went to the gate. I could make it. I was strong enough to do it, and I wasn’t going to let Dodge down. He’d died trying to help me, so it was time for me to help myself. Tears burned my eyes but I ignored them, along with the pain in my hands and knees as I dragged myself along.

I would make it. I would survive.

Chapter 37

Dodge

Dodge didn’t break stride as he raced toward the massive fence that surrounded the tiger enclosure. Silas growled and charged at the other side of the enclosure, drawing the tiger’s attention, as Dodge launched himself up and then over the fence, clawing desperately to get over the top. The barbed wire along the top pulled at his fur but he ignored the tickle of pain as he landed hard on the ground and absorbed the shock into his already sore chest and shoulders.

He wasn’t healing fast enough; the gunshots had taken their toll. He’d need a week of rest and a shitload of protein to recover fully. He wouldn’t have that luxury until he knew that Persephone was safe. Dodge kept his eyes locked on