A Matter of Pride (11 page)

A compliment?

“The big oaf outweighs me by a hundred pounds at least, and he’s a brute.”

Dean didn’t like the comparison.
“I thought you liked it rough.”
Not the nicest thing to say, but he didn’t like her acting as if he and Lex were one and the same.

“
I didn’t want to be raped, you nimrod
,” she growled at him.

“Are you saying I raped you?”

She stopped in her tracks and frowned at him.
“I’m talking about Lex.”

“What about me? What did you think about my technique?”

He wouldn’t have believed it if he hadn’t sensed it, but her embarrassment smelled sweet on the wind.

“You were okay, I guess.”

“Okay? You came like a rocket, baby.”

“Yeah? Well so did you,”
she snarled. He imagined smoke coming out of her pointed ears.

“Of course I did. You’re—”

“
Beautiful. I know
.” She sneered at him. “
Come up with something original, why don’t you
.”

“
I was going so say you’re the best lay I’ve ever had. You have the hottest, sweetest pussy of any cat I know. But beautiful is good too
.” He laughed when she swiped at him and dodged when she would have attacked flat-out. “
Cut it out, Stace. I’m sorry. You’re ugly and mean and stupid. I promise not to flatter you anymore. There, we good now?
”

“Not even close,”
she snapped at him and turned in a huff, not seeing the danger until it was almost too late.

But Dean saw. He dove between her and took the bullet aimed for her. The bullet burned through his thigh, but the threat of danger whipped up his fury and adrenaline. He ignored the pain and nudged her to run.

They raced into the woods, away from Big Mountain, and steered clear of the trails.

Had to be Hunters. He couldn’t imagine Lex’s cats not digging in with their claws and teeth. They might be assholes, but they were animal predators. Rifles belonged to humans who loved nothing more than to kill.

“Dean, are you okay?”
she asked when he slowed, listening for some sign of their pursuers.

“I’ve been better. But I think we lost them.”

Except they hadn’t. The area suddenly filled with men and mountain lions, a mixture of Hunter and Ac-taw, a travesty of everything their kind stood for.

“Nice one you tagged, Mark.” One of the Hunters spat a stream of tobacco and smiled. The grin didn’t reach his eyes.

The men carrying weapons looked fit, camouflaged and familiar with the hunt. Nearly a dozen men stood with half as many felines, just waiting to engage.

“I take it these aren’t Quince’s cats?”
Dean asked on a private pathway designed for Stacey, not a common Ac-taw link. He hadn’t realized he’d forged it, but when she answered, her essence wrapped around him in a way that was more than vocal, but spiritual as well.

None of the others around them so much as twitched.

“No. These are Lex’s guys. I recognize them.”
The fear in her voice shook him, giving him the strength to ignore the pain and stand up to their foes.

He let out a scream of warning and closed the remaining distance between himself and Stacey. When the first cat attacked, he was ready. They clawed and ripped until the cat fell dead.

The second and third cats met the same end but had done some damage. Between the bullet and his new wounds, he felt ready to drop. Unfortunately, the enemy’s sense of fair play had ended. The rest of the felines charged him
en masse
. He saw Stacey try to help, but a bullet impacted the ground ahead of her. Then a cat stole his attention by leaping at him. He swatted the bastard down and warned her to stay back when he could catch his breath.

Two of the cats jumped on his back. He felt teeth at his legs and the nape of his neck. Powerful jaws clamped around his neck, and he realized the third cat hadn’t quite been as injured as he’d hoped.

And then the world turned black.

Chapter Seven

Dante and John Crow. Two bastards she wished she’d never had to see again. The brothers grinned at her through bloodied teeth and licked their lips free of
Dean’s blood
.

She glanced at his unconscious body as the Hunters dropped him on a tarp. One of the men threw jeans, shoes and a shirt at her. “Change.”

Everyone waited to see her react, and she refused to give them more of a show than she had to. With a feline shrug, she shifted back into her human form and took her time dressing, aware of the lingering stares. She had little fear they would molest her, not when Lex had made it more than clear that she belonged to him and him alone. But she had no idea what they might do to Dean if she disobeyed.

Once dressed, she walked when they said walk. She paid little attention to Dean, pretending he was of no consequence. A few Hunters dragged him on the tarp toward their destination, wherever that might be. She kept a deliberate lid on her fear and worry and sauntered with the group, pretending to be merely annoyed by their interference.

“Lex’s lackeys, back again.” She curled her lip at the cats who had yet to turn back to human. “I can’t believe he’s wasted so much effort on little old me.” She preened and walked past Dean’s still form. A glance at the Hunters on either side of them didn’t help her calm, but she forced herself to memorize faces and scents.

With three cats left and ten Hunters in their party, she felt less than confident about escape. She’d have to stall until Quince showed up with his troops.

If
he showed up.

They still had Monty and the pride for backup, but when and if the pride would find them remained a huge question.

Dear God. Dean, wake up.

The Hunters dragged him over several small rocks and upraised roots that had to hurt. He didn’t stir.

A Hunter looked back at him. “Think he’s dead? That’s a lot of blood loss.”

One of the Hunters dragging him shook his head. “Nah. He’s a tough fucker. Heart’s still beating. I checked his pulse before he knocked off. He’s good. Just beat up is all.”

Beat up? Dean had so many gouges in him he looked like a battered and stained throw rug. He’d done more damage than she might have thought to their enemy, but with so many Hunters armed and dangerous, he couldn’t have won no matter how many cats he knocked down. No one could have.

Another cat joined them from the woodline, and the group stopped. Her heart raced when she saw Jeremy, the cat Dean had attacked in the cave. He shifted into a man’s form and accepted the clothing one of the Hunters handed him.

Confused but refusing to look afraid, she ignored him while paying strict attention to everything he said and did. Had Quince been playing her all along? Had Joy’s bracelet been a ploy? An innocuous detail to get her to trust him?

“Well, well, the pretty lady and her dickhead boyfriend. Nice to see you again.” Jeremy and the others laughed and continued to walk toward the mountains, in the direction she and Dean had originally intended. Night had fallen between one minute and the next.

The full moon hung over the cloudless sky, giving the evening a deadly beauty she felt all too well.

“Cat got your tongue?” Jeremy teased and kicked at Dean’s still form. He kept a keen eye on her, no doubt wanting to see her reaction.

“I’m tired of talking to assholes,” she drawled.

His eyes narrowed. “That so? Didn’t seem too upset about that one shoving his dick inside you. Nope. Seemed like that’s one asshole you actually like.”

She scoffed. “Please. A Chastell? He’s a means to an end.”

“Yeah, well, that end isn’t happening anytime soon,” Jeremy sneered at her. “In case you’re hoping for a rescue from those fucking wolves patrolling the area, forget it. They’re chasing their own tails further east—we created a little distraction sure to keep the dogs busy. And Quince? That asshole’s just as stupid as you and the Cougar Falls pride. Lex knew something was off about him weeks ago. Not like Ronnie’s death wasn’t a major indicator we had problems.”

A month ago, Ronnie and a few cats from the Miami pride had tried to grab Stacey and her sisters. After kidnapping Gabby and hurting Miles, they’d had the audacity to strike at the Catamount Ranch. And they’d died while doing it. Ronnie, Lex’s brother, had been only one of the dozen casualties.

“I didn’t think Lex would care. Ronnie was like the rest of us. Worth less than nothing to our estimable pride leader.”

Jeremy shrugged. “Who’s to say? I do as I’m told. Just like you will.” He kicked Dean again, laughed with the Hunters, and moved ahead.

Stacey fumed. Just as soon as she could, she planned to slap Jeremy around with claws outreached. If he thought Dean had been brutal before, wait until he tangled with her.

They walked through the night and camped in the woods hours later. No one hurt her or touched her. One of the men threw a blanket at her, so she didn’t freeze through the night. Dean stirred once or twice, but he didn’t make a sound. She thought she’d seen his golden eyes glowing in her direction, but she was afraid to check on him and bring him undue attention.

The next morning, after they took care of some basic needs, they headed out again. The men shared strips of jerky and trail food, but she turned her nose up at it, maintaining her queen of the manor façade.

“Please. I’ll eat when I have a decent cut of venison or beef in front of me. Not before. And I’ll use plates and silverware. Not my hands,” she said in disdain. The three cats remained feline. They snarled at her but didn’t move any closer.

“Can’t wait to see Lex plow that one. Maybe a cock in her mouth will shut her up.” A Hunter leered at her.

Jeremy laughed. “I doubt it. But it would be fun to watch.”

She refused to cringe at the thought. If Lex put anything near her mouth, she’d bite it off. Then she’d tear into him and take pleasure while he bled to death. She’d never been so angry at anyone before, but Lex had attacked her, her family and now by extension Dean. Her mate, hers to protect even if he didn’t know it, and he lay unmoving on the tarp.

“Get the cat up.” One of the Hunters noted Dean had woken.

Thank God.

A man moved forward to kick him from the tarp when Dean swiped out and caught his claws in the man’s leg. The Hunter screamed and yanked back while the others laughed at him.

“Stupid. You get too close, that’s what happens.” To her horror, another Hunter shot the screamer in the head.

Dean shook loose and stood, wavering.

“Move it, Chastell, or I’ll do to you what I did to him. You’re baggage at best. But if I determine we don’t need you too, I’ll drop you.”

This one sounded quieter but more authoritative than the others. It was the first time one of them had actively taken charge.

Stacey turned to him. “You. What’s your name?”

“Ted. Why?”

“You seem to be in charge.”

Jeremy’s lips tightened, but Ted nodded. “I am. So you keep your mouth shut and do what you’re told. You’re Lex’s problem. Trust me when I say you don’t want to be mine.” He looked to be in his mid-forties, with graying hair, a muscular build and hard, murderous eyes so light they looked wolfish.

“Fine. But could you answer some questions for me?” She walked with confidence to his side and did her best to showcase her natural beauty. Ted might not want to deal with her, but given enough provocation, he might.

“Speak.” He nodded to the others, who prodded Dean to move. “You fuck around, the cat dies. You get me?”

She shrugged. “Do what you like. He’s not my concern.”

Ted frowned at her.

“What?” She gave a light laugh. “I’m sure you’ve heard about me by now. I’m beautiful, bitchy and have an instinct for self-preservation. I don’t like Lex because he doesn’t appreciate me. I like strength and power. And that cat has neither,” she said with scorn.

Ted didn’t say anything, but he didn’t object to her walking next to him. Thankfully, his attention had moved from Dean.

She heard the others taunt him and heard some roughhousing, but if Dean could walk, his injuries couldn’t be too bad. She hoped.

“Tell me where we’re going,” she demanded.

Ted glanced at her but kept walking. “We’re meeting Lex where we agreed. Now how many of Quince’s cats are out there—and the pride? How many of them are coming?”

Jeremy answered, “Quince has no idea we’re here.”

She turned to him. “I thought you were supposed to be keeping an eye on me.”

“I was.” Jeremy grinned, the prick. “But I told Quince you and Dean were headed south. That you had a plan to trap Lex and had lied to him. He’s there with two dozen idiot cats, sitting ducks for Lex’s attack.” He smiled at her, his eyes flat, evil. “Oh, and don’t worry. Your family is being taken care of as we speak. After today, the Catamount Ranch will be under new ownership.”

Fear hit her hard. Joy, Melissa, Amy. Miles. And what about Rachel and Julia and their babies? The friendly pride who’d taken her in as family and offered her protection? She had brought this danger to them.