N. Walters - Quinn's Quest

He sprinted around the corner and found Bethany and the others under attack by two huge wolves. Saliva dripped from their jaws as they growled and cornered Teague. In spite of Isaiah’s orders, he’d partially shifted and was swiping at his attackers with razor-sharp claws. Neema was trying to get to her mate and Craig was desperately trying to get both women behind him even though both of them, with their wolf blood, were stronger than he was.

Quinn didn’t hesitate. To hell with keeping a low profile. His mate was in trouble.

He raised his weapon and fired, sending silver bullets flying toward the two large beasts, trying to distract them as much as hit them. One of them yelped as a bullet grazed him, but the other one managed to get out of the way in time to avoid being hit.

These were pureblood werewolves. They were incredibly fast and strong. Quinn started to change as he raced toward them, allowing his wolf to take over. He yanked off his shirt and threw it aside. At the last possible second, he tossed his gun toward Teague. “Catch.”

Teague quickly shifted back to full human form, snagged the weapon out of thin air and backed away from the beasts to place himself in front of the women and Craig.

His wolf surged forward. He managed to shed the last of his clothing just in time. He met the largest of the wolves head-on. The beast was huge with pitiless black eyes. He tried to clamp his jaw around Quinn’s neck so he could snap it. There was no doubt he could do it too.

At the last second, Quinn twisted aside and kicked at his opponent. He heard several more shots being fired and knew Teague was keeping the other wolf off him.

This wasn’t good. Even in this derelict area of the city someone would eventually call the cops. They couldn’t afford to have the authorities involved. The need for secrecy was paramount.

Head down and growling with fury, Quinn faced the other wolf. No way was he letting this beast anywhere near Bethany. She was his. To love and protect. His woman. His mate.

The wolf leaped again and the sheer weight of him took Quinn down. He rolled and managed to get free, but not before the larger wolf snapped at his foreleg. Sharp fangs scraped over skin and Quinn could smell blood, coppery and warm as it rolled down his leg. Thankfully, the beast missed the bone and the wound was only a surface one. He didn’t know if he’d be that lucky next time the wolf struck.

He caught a glimpse of Bethany struggling to shift in order to help him. Her nails turned into claws and then back into hands. Her jaw elongated and shrunk again. Shifting was too new for her to be able to do it on command under such extreme circumstances. It didn’t matter that her first change had come easily. Emotions affected everything and she still thought of herself as more human than wolf. The change came much easier to purebloods than to half-breeds.

Undaunted, Bethany screamed and surged forward. She bent down and grabbed a piece of rusty pipe off the ground, clasping it in her hands like a baseball bat. She swung at the large wolf but it ducked and the pipe whooshed over its head. The beast snarled at her.

Fury the likes of which he’d never known exploded inside Quinn. He leapt at the other wolf, landing on its back. They rolled across the ground in a snarling, snapping heap of fur and teeth.

Suddenly the beast pulled away, turned and ran. Quinn started to give chase but Bethany’s cry stopped him. He turned back around to find her kneeling on the ground, the pipe abandoned beside her.

The rest of their group was racing toward them. Quinn quickly glanced down the street, but both werewolves were gone. And with them, his chance to find his sister.

He tilted back his head and howled his grief. Beyond him, he could see Craig, his brother’s face filled with despair. They’d been so close. But they’d lost her.

Isaiah opened the back door of the van. “Get in. The cops are on their way.” Sirens screamed in the distance.

Bethany climbed into the van and Quinn jumped in beside her. It was Craig who thought to gather Quinn’s clothing, the spent bullet casings and even the pipe that Bethany had used as a weapon. Her fingerprints would be all over it and they didn’t want to leave anything behind that would lead the cops to their door.

And speaking of weapons. He glanced toward Teague and sighed with relief when he saw his 9mm tucked safely away. The van pulled away and he allowed the change to take him. The shift back from wolf to man wasn’t physically painful, but it was emotionally devastating. It represented his inability to rescue his sister. Being a werewolf wasn’t helping in his search for her. As a half-breed, he wasn’t as strong as a pureblood. He’d failed Chrissten yet again. And he’d almost failed Bethany.

“Your arm is bleeding.”

He shrugged off his brother’s concern as Craig handed him his clothing and he pulled on his jeans and sneakers. He took his shirt and wrapped it around the gash in his arm. “It’s nothing. Just a scratch.” Their gazes met and Quinn could see the tears in Craig’s eyes. His brother’s disappointment hit him with the force of a sledgehammer.

He didn’t want to look at Bethany but couldn’t help himself. She was sitting beside him, her back against the wall of the van. Her legs were pulled up close to her chest and she had her arms wrapped around them and her face buried against her knees.

She was shaking.

God, his life was a mess. He’d let down the two women he loved most in the world. Chris was still missing and Bethany had almost been recaptured. He didn’t doubt for a moment that had been the goal of the purebloods. Once the males were taken down they could have easily subdued the two half-breed females. It ate at his guts to know he’d almost allowed that to happen to her. Only pure luck and Teague’s willingness to fight the two stronger wolves had given him time to get there. The rogue wolves had run off when the rest of the pack had arrived, taking with them any knowledge of Chris.

He wanted to touch Bethany, to reassure himself she was unhurt. It might be selfish of him considering the wall he’d put up between them after their mating, but he needed to feel her warmth and smell her sweet scent.

Teague held his wife in his lap, running his hands over her back and arms as if to reassure himself she was okay. Kevin and Hank kept their gazes averted, both lost in their own thoughts. Craig stared out the back window. Michael was driving the van with his brother sitting beside him, but he knew they were as aware of Bethany as he was.

In the close confines of the van it was impossible not to smell her musky, seductive scent. Where she’d only had time for a quick wash she stilled smelled like sex, like him.

He put his arm around her and pulled her close to his side. “Everything is okay.” The words were meaningless but he had to say something.

She shook her head and didn’t speak. None of them did. A deep sense of failure settled over the group. When they finally parked in the alley behind Haven, Quinn was more than ready for some time alone. But it wasn’t to be. Not yet.

They trooped into the large kitchen. Teague went straight to work putting on a pot of coffee while Neema pulled out several large skillets. The last thing Quinn wanted was breakfast, but maybe Bethany was hungry. He worried about her. She was still too thin from her ordeal.

He swallowed hard as thoughts of his sister threatened to choke him. What about Chrissten? Was she hungry? Scared? Had she given up hope? So many questions without answers.

Isaiah and Meredith faced the group. Anger radiated from the alpha male. Was he angry about Quinn shifting in public? Too bad if he was. If they wanted him to leave, he would. And he’d take Craig and Bethany with him.