Werewolf Rage Book #2 in the Taming The Wolf Series (10 page)

Cyrus set her down gently on the couch and did a quick pass over with his hands making sure she wasn’t injured.
He silently wiped the tears from her cheek as he knelt down in front of her. They looked in each other’s faces silently for a few moments, knowing how close she had come to dying before Cyrus shook his head once, his chest still heaving. He moved forward, wrapping his arms around her and resting his head against her heart.

Neither one could talk or say a word.
There was too much to be said and neither one had the words. She felt Cyrus’s pounding heart against her legs and took over soothing him as tremors raced up and down his body. She ran her hands through his hair and over his back, still not saying anything.

She heard the front door bang open and then footsteps. She looked up to see her father, Tobias and Cole staring at them from the doorway.
She shook her head silently as she continued to hold Cyrus and they all bowed their heads and walked on. Even Cole, who stayed to look at her a few more seconds looked shocked and horrified. She could feel Cyrus’s hands bunched in her shirt and the tenseness of his muscles. A few moments later, as she laid her head against his, she ventured to break the silence.

“I’m okay Cyrus.
I’m okay,” murmured softly against his hair.

His ragged breathing and the muscles rippling down his back warned her that she’d said the wrong thing.
He raised his head and stared into her face, shaking his head back and forth. “You shouldn’t be alive. A hybrid was trying to kill you right in the park, in daylight in front of everyone. You shouldn’t have survived. It’s a miracle,” he said hoarsely, his eyes still frantic and swimming in panic.

Ava nodded her head.
“I’ve told you before, I can take care of myself. If you didn’t notice, the hybrid was the one laying on the ground groaning, not me,” she said softly with a faint smile.

Cyrus glared at her as he gripped her shoulders. “
This time
,” he whispered hoarsely.

Ava frowned and couldn’t help the shiver snaking down her back.
If there was one hybrid, that meant there were more. She swallowed a bubble of fear and cupped Cyrus’s face in her hands. “Life is never certain. Death is. We’re all going to die at some point. Some sooner than later. But I’m alive. I lived and I survived. Please, don’t . . .,” she started and then stopped. What could she ask of him? Not to worry? Not to be torn up by the fact that she had come very close to being torn to pieces?

Cyrus narrowed his cool blue eyes at her and moved back so he could pull her forward on the couch. When they were eye to eye and chest to chest he took her face in his hands, rubbing his thumbs across her cheekbones as he memorized her face.
“We both came close to dying today,” he whispered before leaning in an inch and capturing her mouth with his.

Ava wrapped her arms around his back as he kissed her as only a man could who had seen his mate staring at death.
She tried to sooth and calm him, but his kiss just became more frantic. She pulled back a moment later, gripping his hair in her hands. “Cyrus, please.
Please
calm down,” she pleaded, kissing first one cheek and then the other.

Cyrus’s chest was moving up and down as if he’d been running for an hour and he shook his head.
“I can’t,” he muttered, and stood up suddenly, running his hands through his hair. “My mate was threatened, I can’t calm down,” he said turning away from her.

Ava sighed and stood up on shaky legs, moving to hug him from behind.
She molded her body to his and tried to allow her physical closeness to comfort him since her words weren’t helping. Slowly his breathing eased and his head lowered. She rested her head against his hard muscular back and felt him relax by slow degrees. He turned around in her arms and ran his hands down her hair, his face now tense in its control but still red with fury.

“I’m going to find whoever sent that hybrid
and kill him,” he swore viciously. Ava said nothing.
What could she say?
She was mated to a werewolf, not an accountant.

“Come on honey, let’s go into the kitchen.
I’m a little shaky still and I could use a drink,” she said, pulling on his hand.

Cyrus held her back one more moment as he looked at their clasped hands.
He brought her back to him, lifting her hand to his mouth, kissing her hand with so much feeling she felt her heart ache. She reached up on her toes and kissed him gently one more time. “I’ll always fight to be with you Cyrus. Even against a hybrid. The one thought that kept going through my mind was you. I couldn’t let him kill me,” she said softly against his mouth.

Cyrus closed his eyes in pain and held her tightly against his body.
“I got to the pub right after you had left and ended up talking to Kurt and my Dad about the meeting tonight and Perry’s situation. Before I know it, all these kids are rushing through the doors screaming about a hybrid killing you in the park and my mind just turned to fire. That’s the only way I can describe it. I don’t even know how I got to the park, but my only goal was getting to you and seeing you one more time. I thought you were already dead Ava. And when I got to the park and saw you kick the crap out of that freak, my heart just exploded inside of me. It was too much Ava. I shredded that thing. I’ve never been so overcome by the desire to kill in my entire life. It scares me how powerful my feelings are for you. It’s too much. I feel too much,” he said, staring at her as a new wave of pain washed through his soul.

Ava kissed his chest where his heart was and sighed.
“That’s the way love is Cyrus. As least it is with you and me. It’s a lot of love but we can handle it. I trust you with my heart,” she said looking up into his torn face.

Cyrus groaned softly.
“If only you could trust me with your life. I haven’t been a good protector. I knew there was a hybrid sighting and I let you walk home from work on your own. I should be the one torn to pieces for being so careless with you.”

Ava snorted and grinned as she squeezed him tighter.
“I won’t be locked in a tower in order to be safe. That’s not living. That’s just surviving. I can take care of myself. I’m a big girl now. I promise,” she said softly, trying to get him to smile.

Cyrus closed his eyes briefly and swallowed.
“We’ll talk about precautions later tonight after the meeting. We better go find your dad. He was pretty upset too,” he said and pulled her toward the hallway.

Ava and Cyrus walked into the kitchen to find her father holding Cole by his shirt up against the wall.
Ava’s mouth fell open in shock and even Cyrus looked surprised.

“Tell me who sent that hybrid after my daughter right now or I promise you won’t be able to walk for a month,” Harry swore, growling low in his throat.

Ava swung her gaze to Tobias but he was glaring at Cole too with his hands fisted at his side ready to back Harry up.

“What in the heck is going on here,” Ava demanded hurrying to her father’s side and pulling on his arm.

Cole’s stiff angry face lightened when he saw her and he nodded at Harry.
“Take your hands off me and I’ll tell you everything I know,” he said.

Harry’s face contorted in rage and he brought his face closer to Cole’s.
“If you don’t tell me the truth, I’ll know it and you’ll be banished from this town after I’m done with you,” he said before slowly lowering Cole back to the floor.

Ava stared in shock at her father.
Even though Cole’s shoulders were wider and bulkier, he and her father were about the same height. But if it had come to a fight between the two men right at that moment, her money was on her dad. The last time she’d seen him this furious was when her ribs had been kicked in.

Cole straightened his shirt as he stared at her, looking her up and down as if he were checking her for injuries.
Cyrus stiffened beside her automatically but she held onto his hand tightly.

Harry pointed Cole to the kitchen counter silently and Cole sat down on one of the stools, running his large hands through his dark hair, his green eyes troubled and clouded.

“I don’t know for sure who sent the hybrids. All I know is that there are a few men from Tanner’s Landing who in the past five years have been
cultivating
hybrid children. One of them was our old leader. He did it to keep himself in power and protect himself from challengers. He also used the hybrids to keep the people scared and in line. A few people who disagreed with him ended up torn to pieces mysteriously most times. He ruled with fear and monsters. That’s why when Braxton challenged him, most people didn’t care because we figured anyone would be an improvement. Only problem is that Braxton is just as power hungry and insane as Vincent Weiss was. More so now that he’s obsessed with having Perry.”

Cole looked over Harry’s head, remembering something that made his face turn hard and his eyes cold.
“Someone’s been following Vincent’s example and creating hybrids. Any man who would mate with a real wolf should be killed,” he said, his voice dripping with disgust.

“We’ve had a few children in the past couple years go missing.
We track them as best we can but we always find their bodies. Half eaten and unrecognizable. I know a few men who could be responsible. My bet’s on Braxton Mayhew. He’s been hunting me and Perry ever since we left. Hybrids are the best trackers known to mankind. They never tire and they always find their man.” He glanced at Ava briefly before adding, “
Or their woman
.”

Harry frowned at Cole and shook his head.
“Why
Ava
? Braxton doesn’t even know her.”

Cyrus stepped forward and leaned up against the counter as he stared at Cole.
“I can answer that.
Fear
. Whoever sent that hybrid wants this town to be scared. It was a warning. He wants us so terrified of being attacked by hybrids that we’ll throw Perry to the wolves so to speak,” he said with a cynical twist of his lips.             

Ava felt cold all of a sudden and moved toward Cyrus. He stood up from leaning on the counter and pulled her into his arms automatically, holding her tightly as he continued to look at Cole.
“He won’t want the hybrids to hurt or kill Perry. He wants
her
back. But he won’t mind killing anyone that gets in his way,” he said quietly as he rubbed a hand up and down Ava’s back.

Cole stared at Cyrus and Ava for a moment, an unreadable expression on his face before looking away. “I guess I never really got it before.
The whole mating thing. Not until today anyways. When those kids burst into the pub screaming that the hybrid was killing Ava, I saw your face Cyrus. It was a rage and despair I’ve never seen before. You turned into a wolf immediately and jumped out the window so fast we could barely keep up with you. And what you did to that hybrid,” Cole paused and shook his head, looking at his feet for a moment. “I think I’ll take your threats to stay away from Ava a little more seriously now,” he said with a half grin.

Cyrus made a huffing sound that might have been a laugh.
“Smart decision.”

Harry continued to stare at Cole, still looking suspicious and cold.
Ava looked back and forth between her father and Cole curiously. Harry and Tobias shared a look before Harry shook his head.

“You’re holding something back. You know something you’re not telling us,” he said and glanced at Ava briefly.
In those few seconds her eyes connected with her father’s, she could see how upset he truly was that she had been attacked. He might look calm and cool, but his brown eyes were molten fire.

“You’re putting my family and my town at r
isk by not telling us. I’m going to give you one more chance to tell me everything. If you don’t, you’re banned.”

Cole’s face turned hard and angry and he stood up from the stool, his arms crossed over his chest as he stared her father down.
Harry stared back, fully willing to make good on his threat.

“You chase me
out, don’t think for a second Perry won’t be with me. We stick together. Didn’t you pick her as your mate today?” Cole taunted.

Harry didn’t even blink. “Perry refused to be my mate until matters are settled between us and Tanner’s
Landing. She doesn’t want to put a bull’s eye on my back. That doesn’t mean I won’t kill for her. She doesn’t know everything, does she? I don’t sense that she’s held anything back from me. But you?
I know you are
,” Harry said angrily. “My daughter almost died today!” he yelled, pounding his fist on the counter.

Cole’s face softened and he nodded.
“Look, I get it. Cyrus tore that thing to pieces before you even had a chance to protect your only daughter. I understand. I was feeling a lot of that myself. But taking out all your rage and anger on me isn’t the answer.
I’m
not your enemy. The only reason I’m here is to protect my sister. The woman you love by the way. If you sense I’m holding anything back, just know they’re my own secrets and have no bearing on this situation or your daughter’s safety,” he said.

Ava let out a slow breath as some of the tension in the room faded.
She studied Cole’s determined face and knew he’d take being thrown out over baring his soul. She turned and looked at her father and was surprised to see him looking sheepish and embarrassed. Cole had called it. Her father just needed somebody to tear into.