Bleacke's Geek (Bleacke Shifters) (30 page)

The last conscious thought she had before her Prime flared and took over was that there was no doubt in her mind the guy was a Prime.

And that he was going to die right there if it was the last thing she did.

* * * *

Ken finally caught his breath as the red haze over his vision dissipated. Pain ravaged his body. He’d never hurt so badly for so long in his life. Every breath was a jaw-grinding struggle not to pass out from the agony.

Ribs
,
p
robably broken. Leg most likely broken.

Dewi and Palmer battled their way across the clearing for what felt like hours but was probably no more than several minutes. Fortunately Ken lay on his side facing them, because he wasn’t sure he could make his body move to turn over to watch.

Palmer had a foot on Dewi in height, not to mention over one hundred pounds. Unlike Beck he was a Prime, and every bit as strong as Dewi.

They were, unfortunately, nearly evenly matched.

Rage painted her features with an unnatural fury that would have scared Ken into shitting his pants had it been directed at him.

Palmer wore a wolfish grin and tossed taunts and punches at her. “I’m doing you a favor, Bleacke. You don’t want his runt pups mucking up the Targhee pack’s gene pool, do you? Not that you’re going to live long enough to have any. I should have finished you off that night in front of that bitch. I screwed up killing her before I killed you. I always regretted that. I wanted her to die suffering as much as possible after what she did to me.”

Dewi responded with vicious snarls and growls, her fury pushing her into Prime Alpha and well past the point of rational thought. Ken knew from the sweat beaded on her face and darkening her shirt how tired she was, the strain of battle, on top of her worry about him, spreading her stamina thin.

Ken grabbed the front driver’s tire and forced his body to move. That’s when he spotted Dewi’s gun, where she’d dropped it after being body-slammed by Palmer. It had fallen under the car.

A nine millimeter, like she’d taught him how to use.

When he tried to reach for it, will fled his body. Dewi’s admonishment to never touch a gun unless she was working with him and had given him permission robbed his arm of strength.

Fuck!

He couldn’t call out to her, mentally or verbally, to lift the ban. It would distract her, not that he thought he could pull a yell out of his lungs loud enough for her to hear anyway.

He stared at the gun, willing it to him, unable to reach for it.

That’s when he heard the sickening thud.

Straining his neck, he looked and saw Palmer stalking across toward Dewi, where she’d landed at the base of a pine tree after he’d flung her into it from across the clearing. She struggled to pull herself to her feet, but he could tell her tank ran on fumes.

Palmer licked his lips like he was about to rip into a steak dinner as she limply collapsed to the ground again.“I’m going to enjoy this, Dewi,” he growled. “I’m going to fuck your brains out right in front of your pathetic human mate so he has to watch. Then I’ll kill him before I kill you, so you get to see it. Just like I did to your mother and father before I killed them both. How’s that sound?”

He grabbed her by her hair and started dragging her away from the tree and across the grass. “Too bad you were too young to appreciate it. And I was interrupted before I could finish with you.”

White hot rage washed through Ken.

Fucker’s touching
my
mate!

Ken’s hand shot out for the gun, his pain suddenly gone as he rolled free of the vehicle and onto his stomach again. Firmly gripping the gun in both hands like she’d shown him, and with his elbows braced on the ground, he flipped the safety off and barked, “Palmer!”

The shifter’s head snapped up. He grinned, showing canines. “Ah, you’re not quite as wimpy as I tho—”

Ken fired, a blast of pain ricocheting from his finger, up his arm, and straight into his brain as he pulled the trigger.

His world went black.

Chapter Nineteen

Ken came to with Badger kneeling over him and gently slapping his cheeks, a worried look on the old shifter’s face, his one blue eye intently gazing down at him. “Eh, boyo. Ye still with us?”

“Didn’t we already do this once before?” He’d meant to make it sound snarky, but he realized he could barely breathe and it came out little more than a whisper. The pain had returned with a vengeance. He licked his lips and tried to make more noise. “Dewi?”

He nodded. “I think she’s all right, lad. Beck’s checking her over.” He glanced at the gun laying near Ken. “Ye shot him?”

Ken nodded. “Please tell me I didn’t hit her.”

Badger laughed. “Hit
her
? Lad, ye blew the back of his fecking head right the bloody hell off! Ye put it clean through his left eyeball. Couldn’t have done better meself if I’d tried. One shot, too. We heard it and came running.”

He didn’t care how it looked. He laid his head back and sobbed with relief despite the additional pain it caused him.

Then he heard her voice, weak and trembling and calling his name. He opened his eyes and spotted Beck helping her walk with his arm around her, supporting her as she made her way to him.

Unlike with Palmer, Ken felt no rage at the sight of Beck’s hands on his mate. He knew Beck wouldn’t hurt her. Beck loved her, but he would respect her…and him.

“Watch his ribs, lass,” Badger warned. “I think he’s having trouble breathing right. And his right leg’s probably broke.”

She fell to her knees next to him, crying, reaching for him and laying her head on his shoulder.

He managed to put one hand on her and pat her back. “I love you, baby,” he whispered to her. “You did good.”

“I’m so sorry,” she sobbed. “I’m so sorry he hurt you.”

He tried to stroke her back, but moving his arm that much hurt. “It’s okay. I got him. I took care of him for you. It’s okay.”

“What?” That was Beck.

Ken realized trying to keep his eyes open hurt too much. He let them fall closed and enjoyed the feel of Dewi’s back under his hand, the comforting scent of her there with him.

Badger spoke. “Yep. He shot the bloody bastard. Heathcliff McKenzie Ethelbert just killed hisself his first Prime Alpha wolf.”

Dewi’s body tensed. “What?” He felt her palm caress his cheek. “
You
shot him?”

He didn’t open his eyes. “Yeah.” He coughed, then moaned because it hurt like fucking hell. “Right through the eye. Just like you taught me.”

When none of them spoke, he finally forced an eye open again to see why. Dewi looked stunned. “What?” he asked. “What’s wrong?”

“How?” she asked. “
How
did you do it?”

He found her hand and laced his fingers through hers, then brought it to his lips so he could kiss it despite it hurting his ribs to move. “No fucking way was I letting that bastard hurt
my
mate.”

“But there’s no way in hell you should have been able to touch that gun, much less fire it.”

Beck snorted. “Told you he’s got a serious set of balls on him.”

Ken barked out a soft laugh. “I really wish you’d quit obsessing over my testicles.” Another coughing fit set off pain in his ribs, and before he could recover, the blackness took him.

* * * *

Ken opened his eyes to blackness. For a moment he panicked, afraid maybe he’d died or something. Then he got a lungful of Dewi’s comforting scent somewhere close by and the sound of her breathing. His ribs didn’t hurt so badly, neither did his leg, and he realized he lay naked in a very comfortable bed.

Correction,
their
bed. He could tell from the scents in the room that it was their bedroom.

He relaxed as he felt the mattress dip next to him and Dewi’s cool hand smoothed his brow. “Baby?” she whispered. “You awake?”

“Yeah.”

She snapped a bedside lamp on and he blinked against the sudden light. He shifted position a little and realized without having to lift his head to look that his ribs had been bandaged and his right leg put in a cast while he was passed out. The pain had eased, but from the way his brain felt foggy, he suspected that was due to better living through chemistry.

“What time is it?” He closed his eyes. Ugly bruises had blossomed on Dew’s beautiful cheekbones. He knew within a day or two they’d be gone, but the sight of her injuries made his heart hurt.

A pinchy pull in his right arm made him realize he had an IV. “It’s almost three in the morning. We had our doctor come take care of you. He says your ribs are cracked, and he wants you to take it easy for a week or so. Leg might be in a cast for a few weeks.”

“And the IV?”

“Yeah. We can take it out in the morning. He wanted to make sure you had fluids and antibiotics and painkillers and stuff.”

“No cone?” He cracked an eye open briefly to watch her expression.

She looked at him questioningly for a moment before she got the joke and laughed. “No, no cone of shame for you.”

With his right hand he groped for hers. She reached for him and he pulled her down to him for a kiss. “I love you so much, Dewi. I can’t lose you.”

Her lips pressed against his, and despite his pain he reached across with his left hand and fisted it in her hair, holding on tight and keeping her in place as he ravaged her bruised mouth with his lips.
“Mine,”
he thought to her.
“You’re all
mine
.”
He wanted to be rough, wanted to own her.

Wanted to claim her.

She melted against him as a soft moan escaped her.
“Yes!”

With his hand still firmly buried in her hair, he pulled her up so he could nuzzle the crook of her neck, along her left shoulder. She would taste so good, the salty sweetness of her skin, but he wanted more.

He wanted blood.

Her
blood.

His teeth grazed her flesh. She practically undulated against him as much as she dared in his injured state. “My mate,” he growled against her flesh.

“Yes!” she gasped.

The urge became too great. Despite the risk he drew his lips back and sank his teeth into her shoulder, hard, immediately feeling her flesh give way and tasting her sweet blood.

She let out a sharp, squealing cry as she clung to him while he licked her flesh, trying to soothe the mark and feeling sanity quickly flooding back to his brain even as he wanted to growl over how good she felt and tasted.

Fuck it.
He did growl, almost a purr. And while his body still hurt like hell, his cock throbbed, wishing he could fuck her right then and there.

His growl made her giggle but she didn’t move, waiting until the wound finally sealed as his lips feathered over her flesh.

Belatedly, Ken’s reason returned to him and he released her. “You okay?”

As liquid as syrup, she snuggled against him. He heard the smile in her voice. “I’m fine.” Her tone had taken on an almost little girl quality.

“I won’t get my throat ripped out for that?”