Knox and Lowe telling them to back off.
And realised her kin had come for her again and were determined to steal her away from Saint.
It was more like someone unbolted the cage on a feral, primal part of her she had never known existed, freeing it and launching her into action.
She was powerless to resist that fierce part of her that roared at her to protect Saint, to stop the cougars from trying to hurt him again, and to drive them away and stop them from trying to take her from him.
Before she knew what she was doing, she was at the bottom of the stairs, blood thundering in her ears, skin tight with a need to shift and growl, to snap fangs at those who wanted to harm Saint.
“Holly,” Rath said as she stopped in the doorway, as her gaze zipped from him to Cobalt where he stood to his left, and then to Flint and Storm where they flanked the two males, and finally Ember where she lingered behind them. “You’re safe. We’ll get you out of there soon.”
Holly frowned at him. Get her out of there?
It struck her that they thought Saint had kidnapped her again.
Maybe she should have at least spared a few minutes to scrawl a note explaining where she was. She grimaced at that. It was too late for that sort of thinking now. She had to defuse the situation and make them see that they were wrong.
“Return Holly, and maybe I won’t kill you.” Storm stepped up beside Cobalt, his bright grey-gold eyes fixed on Knox. Storm wanted a fight—it was right there in his eyes as he narrowed them on Lowe, sizing him up.
Lowe looked off to his right.
“Cameo, go back inside,” Lowe hollered and then unleashed a vicious growl when Holly looked in that direction too and spotted a female standing on the deck of his cabin. “Take your eyes off her, cougar.”
At first, she thought he was talking to her, but as she turned to face him, she found Cobalt looking in that direction.
“You into kidnapping too?” Cobalt tossed Lowe a black look, one that promised pain.
“Fuck off,” Knox snarled and closed ranks with his twin, flexing his fingers as he stared Cobalt down. “You don’t know shit about my brother. You don’t know anything about any of us.”
“Know enough to know you’ll get your asses kicked if you don’t hand Holly over.” Cobalt scoffed and folded his arms across his chest, and Holly didn’t fail to notice that all of the brothers wore only dark jeans and T-shirts.
Everyone had come here prepared for another fight, had dressed in as little clothing as possible so it wouldn’t hinder their shift if they needed to make one.
Lowe peeled off his black coat and tossed it aside.
Things were going to go south fast if she didn’t do something.
“Saint didn’t—” she started, but the males spoke over her, making her want to growl and attack all of them.
“Come on, Holly. They won’t dare attack you.” Flint held his hand out to her and rolled his fingers, his face etched with hard lines as he glared at Knox and Lowe. “If they do, I’ll make them regret it.”
“Yeah? I’d pay to see that. You only won against Saint because you clawed his balls, you sick fuck,” Knox snarled and took a hard step forwards, his fingers curling into tight fists now. “How about I claw your balls and see how well you fight?”
Cobalt and Storm stepped forwards as one, Storm cracking his knuckles as hunger blazed in his brightening eyes and Cobalt running an assessing glance over Lowe.
They were going to fight.
Fight.
That word echoing in her mind had heat rolling through her, a fierce and powerful urge to shift chasing in its wake. She wanted to fight. She needed to fight. It was the only way. She felt that deep inside her, heard it roaring in every hard beat of her heart, compelling her to obey it.
If the cougars wanted a fight, she would give them one.
She was moving before she could stop herself, shoved a stunned Knox and Lowe aside as she pushed between them, and wiped the smug look off Storm’s face as she growled and bared her fangs at him, threatening him rather than going to him for protection.
Daring him to try to take her or to try to reach Saint. She wouldn’t let these males near him. She wouldn’t let them disturb his rest. She wouldn’t let them take her.
Because