His chest constricted. Xavier. One of Shadow Moon’s finest enforcers.
“Help! I need Saint now!”
Jaxx shut his eyes, swallowing hard. His muscles tensed, and the grip on the knife tightened at Xavier’s command. Besides the animalistic tone to his voice, Jaxx could smell Xavier’s scent warping to a pungent tang, overwhelming the male’s usual odor.
Slowly, he placed the knife on the counter, abandoning the steak to sizzle on low heat. Not even the mouthwatering aroma of the pack’s lunch could drown out the smell radiating from the male. Opening his eyes, Jaxx looked out the window at the large forest that was the Shadow Moon territory, wondering why this happened to their kind. His own glyph itched, reminding him, he could be next. Unless he could find the one woman strong enough to keep his wolf at bay, it would eventually be him, submitting to the monster lurking beneath the surface.
Xavier growled, and Jaxx spun to face him. Naked as the day he was born, hunched over the counter. His chest heaved with exaggerated breaths, and the tips of his human fingers had morphed into wolf claws, digging into the dark marble bench top. Like all shifters, the left side of his body was covered in the glyph of his wolf. Almost lifelike with the amount of intricate detail, it looked as fierce and deadly as Jaxx knew the animal to be. Tribal swirls and accents started from the outer edge of his foot, up his leg, into his torso, straight up his neck into his hairline, framing the creature. Each brushstroke represented a measure of humanity lost.
Jaxx drew in a sharp breath. Damn it to hell! Xavier’s glyph was seconds from completing, the moment all shifters dreaded. All of their kind prayed to be mated before the last stroke formed on their ever-developing markings. No one wanted to turn into a wild, savage beast, killing without conviction or attacking the people they cherished most prior to their rogue transformation. A fate Jaxx had witnessed many times in his two hundred years.
Claws scratching along the marble top jerked his attention back to Xavier. The male’s ginger hair stood on end, as if he had dragged his hands through the strands repeatedly. Jaxx’s gut twisted. It had only been last week that they had both been out for a drink at Prowlers, planning tactics for their next mate hunt—something Xavier would never get the opportunity to do now. This was the end for his friend, and it cut Jaxx to his core.
How could the possibilities have seemed endless yesterday, and now, hopeless? All the men in the Shadow Moon pack were worthy of happiness, but lately they were losing more of the males to their animal within.
“Xavier… I’m sorry.” Xavier would never know the loving touch of his mate. The only measure of peace Jaxx could offer would be deliverance of mercy, allowing Xavier’s honor and integrity to remain intact. He had upheld pack law and sought out their alpha before succumbing to his rogue urges.
Jaxx gritted his teeth, knowing their alpha, Saint, was in an alpha council meeting. It was days like this when his position as beta sucked ass. He resigned himself to the fact Xavier would die by his hands. Jaxx took a step closer, but Xavier’s growl held him in place.
“Can you fight it?”
Xavier laughed. “Fight it?” Sweat trickled from his temple. When he continued, it was through clenched teeth. “I’ve been fighting it since the get-go.”
At puberty their bodies made the first shift and the first sign of their markings appeared, a unique glyph that sizzled across their skin for no rhyme or reason. Sometimes a shifter got lucky and worked out triggers, delaying the inevitable, but sometimes they didn’t. From that day forward, their fate was sealed, tethered to finding a true mate.
Xavier’s eyes took on a reddish glow around the edges. “Save it… I need… Saint.” He paused, panting some breaths before shouting, “Now!”
Shit! Jaxx wasn’t a stranger to death or killing; however, releasing a warrior never got easier. He kept his muscles relaxed and craned his neck to each side. Xavier watched him, his eyes narrowed. “Saint’s not here. I accept the responsibility. The pack will know your honor was intact.”
For a brief moment, relief flashed across Xavier’s features before he grunted and doubled over. Within seconds, the last of the ink connected. Xavier’s head shot up and glared at Jaxx. The amber color of his eyes receded, morphing into