Claiming Emma [Novikov Clan 3] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) (21 page)

“An eye for an eye,” he whispered. Emma shook her head, not understanding what he wanted with her. Who was this man? Why was he doing this to her?

Black spots filled her vision, and Emma could feel herself weakening. Realization began to set in, and she felt herself slowly losing consciousness. He was going to take her. She tried to scream, but a strained moan was all she could manage. Slumping over, she ended up leaning into her captor, and he easily swung her over his shoulder. Her body now fully numb, she stared at the ground until she could no longer keep her eyes open.

Mahkah woke up to the sound of footsteps hitting the stairs and smiled. His brothers had probably rushed through their meeting with the Alpha, so they could jump back in bed with their mate. Reaching out, he moved his hands around, hoping to find a very naked Emma close by. All he felt was cold sheets. He sat up and looked around. There weren’t any noises coming from the bathroom. Shoving the covers off his body, he went to the dresser and grabbed a pair of jeans and a T-shirt.

Just then, Chayton and Takoda rushed into the room. They were both breathing heavily, their faces white.

“What?” Mahkah felt his stomach drop.

“Wolf…the scent is outside. Where’s Emma?” Chayton looked around frantically, and Mahkah felt his body shake.

“We fell asleep after the bath. Is she downstairs?”

“No…her scent…it was in the yard, too.” Takoda looked ready to burst out of his own skin, and Mahkah knew he needed to stay calm and focused.

“This doesn’t make any sense. What’s going on?” Mahkah rushed from the room and took the stairs two at a time. His brothers were close behind him. “Why would a wolf be here? Why would he take Emma, knowing that she was a mate? Shifters know the rules. Mates are sacred.”

“Adam’s been in contact with the wolf’s Alpha, Gabe Wolff, in Minnesota. They had Adam’s consent before the trip to travel here. It was a female wolf that attacked Emma. She was in heat.” Mahkah swallowed hard. The female wolf attacked because Emma was another female in her territory during mating season. It was common knowledge female wolves didn’t tolerate another woman in their territory during mating times. “Chayton killed her to protect Emma, and her mate disappeared soon after the attack. Two sentries were sent to find him and take him back to their pack in Minnesota. They’re probably here, somewhere, searching for him,” Takoda finished.

“Fuck…she was mated?” Mahkah swung the front door open and began stripping. In bear form, the three of them could use their heightened senses and hopefully find Emma before…he stopped the thought. He wouldn’t allow himself to think that way. He needed to stay focused.

“Yeah.” Chayton immediately followed his lead, looking a bit ill. He had killed a wolf’s mate for attacking Emma and in the process may have cost their mate her life.

Mahkah was aware of what the wolf had in mind, revenge. He would be thinking the same thing if someone had killed his mate. Nothing would stop him from seeking revenge. Chayton wouldn’t be able to live with himself if something happened to Emma. He would blame himself. She was their world, their everything. His fear was tangible. A living thing. He had to pull himself together. Not only for his mate, but for his brothers.

Before he completed the change, he looked at Takoda, stopping his brother from joining them. “Call the clan. We need everyone to hunt for Emma.” Looking reluctant, Takoda went back into the house while Mahkah and Chayton shifted fully.

Mahkah stopped and sniffed the air. He located the scent of the wolf and Emma in the front yard. Both were fresh. He followed the trail easily by moving through the trees. Chayton was close behind, trailing also. He wanted to run, to move faster, but with the heightened senses of shifters, he needed to have some element of surprise. Changing directions, he tried to stay downwind, hoping the wolf with Emma wouldn’t realize he was being followed.

It was hard to stay rational when his heart and mind were pushing him in different directions. His heart wanted to run, growl, and tear into the wolf that took his mate. His head was telling him to stay calm. The goal was to get to the wolf and Emma. He needed to save her. Sounds now filled the forest, and Mahkah tilted his head up, listening and scenting the air. The wolf and Emma were close, but so were other wolves. With any luck, it would be the sentries coming for their pack mate.

Further in the distance, the scent of his own clan moved into the forest. Mahkah kept his pace, moving silently. He knew these woods, had grown up here, hunted here and fought with his brothers here. The bears had the advantage, but regardless, the fight could only end one way. Bears were tougher than wolves. He could kill that wolf with one swipe of his paw, completely decapitating him. The wolf was aware of that.

The scent grew stronger, and Mahkah looked over his shoulder, nodding at Chayton. With his lumbering ferocity, brute force, and determination, Mahkah knew they would be able to kill the wolf and save Emma. All doubt cleared, and he stayed focused as they made their way around large trees and boulders. The loud snap of a twig stopped him. Mahkah was instantly alert, taking a calming breath.
We’re almost there, Emma. Hang on, baby.
The wolf was near…more wolves were moving in as well, followed by his other clan mates.

With the element of surprise on their side, Mahkah needed to act fast. If the wolf had a death wish, he would want to kill Emma quickly, before he realized that he was being followed.

“I know you’re there, bear…” a voice said, loud and clear. Mahkah froze, turned his head slightly, and nodded to Chayton. His brother turned and left him, and Mahkah knew without words Chayton would know what to do.

Continuing forward, Mahkah climbed up a large boulder and came face-to-face with his worst nightmare. The man had an unconscious Emma in front of him, a knife at her throat, blood dripping slowly from her neck. Mahkah’s entire body shook with the force of his rage. He stood there frozen, his mind spinning with the scene in front of him. He had to do something quick. A low growl erupted from his throat.

“I’m being kinder than you were to my mate. She won’t feel a thing, but you will. You’ll know what it’s like to watch your mate die before your very eyes, to hold her as she takes her final breath. It’s better than you deserve.”

Slowly shifting, Mahkah stood in front of the scene, naked. Emma was breathing, he knew that, could see the rise and fall of her chest. Her human body though, wouldn’t be able to withstand any real blood loss or the cold that surrounded them. She couldn’t heal like a shifter. She was fragile and delicate.

“Nothing to say…” the wolf taunted, and Mahkah wanted to tear him apart, limb by limb, to rip out his heart while he was still breathing, but he had to think of Emma.

“You don’t want to do this. As we speak, wolves and bears are moving in. This will start a war between your pack and my clan.”

“Do you think I care? My mate is dead! I have nothing to live for.” Tightening his grip on the knife, he pressed it harder into Emma’s throat, and Mahkah watched as more blood seeped out of the wound. Spotting his brother move in from behind, Mahkah lifted his hands in a mock surrender.

“I wish your brothers were here to witness their little
human
being killed,” he spit out. Blinking slowly, he signaled Chayton while counting to three.

One
, time seemed to stand still, and Mahkah took a deep breath, flexing his muscles, preparing to pounce.
Two
, he needed to get to Emma as fast as he could. Chayton would take care of the wolf, and he could put pressure on her wound, stop the bleeding.
Three
, all hell broke loose. Mahkah exploded into action, running with lightning speed. He grabbed Emma just as Chayton slammed into the man, sinking his claws into flesh. A sickening crunch could be heard, and the knife dropped from his lifeless fingers. Mahkah pulled Emma into his arms, cradling her against his body.

A naked Mahkah wrapped his hand around Emma’s throat. He wasn’t sure how bad she was cut, but warm, sticky blood trickled through his fingers. Her pulse was slow and steady, and his only thought was getting her to safety. The clan doctor should be able to sew her up and stop the bleeding.
Stay with me, baby, please.
She’ll be fine, he told himself repeatedly. He noticed his hand shaking on her throat and took deep steady breaths to try and calm himself. She needed his strength, his assurance. He couldn’t lose her. He could feel his beast rising up from within.
Calm down, man, think of Emma.
Nothing will ever happen to her again, he vowed. They would keep her safe if it killed them.

Mahkah held Emma close, refusing to let her go as two wolves growled, stalking closer. He glanced to Chayton, and a feral light flickered in his eyes. A silent message passed between them. He couldn’t put her down to fight, and really, his brother didn’t need him. Chayton had lost his humanity the second Emma was harmed. Mahkah almost pitied the pair of wolves. Almost.

* * * *

Chayton stood between his brother and the wolves. There was no way they would be able to get around him to attack Emma. His beautiful mate was already pale and losing blood, becoming weaker by the minute. He could hear her heart slowing down as well and tried to keep himself in control of the situation. She was their mate, their love, their everything. Giving a slight nod to Mahkah, he planned a distraction, giving his brother what he needed most, time.

Chayton let his bear have control. He could smell Emma’s blood, and it only served to enrage him further. His lips curled back over his massive teeth. He allowed the rage to consume him. He rose up on his back legs and roared with enough power to be heard for miles. Both wolves backed off, moving away, trying to show they weren’t going to attack or become aggressive. En masse, bears came into view, circling around the pair. Chayton dropped back to all fours and nodded to his Alpha. Something passed between them, and he sprinted toward Mahkah and the house. He wasn’t concerned with the wolves any longer. He and his brothers had what they wanted—Emma.

* * * *

Wolves, she thought in disgust
.
If there was one thing that Emily hated, it was other shifters in their territory. The idea that wolves had come for Emma, the Youngblood brothers’ mate was a disgrace. Mates were a very sacred thing. When the call went out that a wolf had taken Emma, she’d joined in, wanting to help her clan and her friend. Circling around the two wolves, she could tell they wouldn’t go down without a fight. Luckily, with a dozen bears surrounding them, they would be taken out, without much effort.

The Alpha, Adam Novikov, began to shift, taking his human form, and the rest of the clan stood behind him, in their bear forms. Adam alone could take on both the wolves without even breaking a sweat. He wasn’t the Alpha of their clan for nothing.

Emily took in both the wolves, studying them. They were bigger than most she had encountered in her life, and it was obvious they also held rank in their pack. Sentries. They were wolves that were trained to fight and protect their pack. They also kept order and peace.

They both shifted, and in their place stood two of the sexiest men she had ever seen. Her mouth instantly began to water, and her bear wanted to rush forward and rub against them. Thrown off by her own thoughts, Emily shook her head. Where had that come from? No, wolves were not sexy. They were a different species, came from packs. They weren’t like her kind, nothing like bears.

Feeling uneasy, she tried to act calm around her clan, but she could tell that they were able to smell her arousal. Many heads had turned toward her and were now staring at her instead of at the Alpha and the scene before them. Wishing a huge hole would swallow her up, Emily moved back, trying to hide herself behind her other clan mates.

As quietly as she could, Emily made her way to the back, only to step in a hole. Sharp, stabbing pain shot through her paw and she collapsed fully onto the ground. At that moment, everyone turned toward her, and the silence between the Alpha and the wolves was broken by her misfortune. Her day was turning to shit faster than she could ever imagine. If this was a dream, she wanted to wake up now.

“Shift,” the Alpha demanded, and Emily couldn’t disobey a direct order.

Shifting from her bear form to human wasn’t too difficult. She stared down at her hand. It was broken. Holding her wrist, she knew she would heal within a short period of time, but her ego was shattered. How embarrassing. Dropping her head down, she slowly stood up. Being the center of attention wasn’t usually a bad thing, unless of course, it was the beginning of a potential fight.

The two wolves came forward then, moving through the bears, and she was shocked. Why hadn’t anyone attacked? Why were they letting these two wolves come toward her?

“I spoke with your Alpha. He said there were two sentries following one of their own out here,” Adam Novikov said.

“Yes, sir. I’m Cole and this is my brother, Charlie. Sorry we didn’t make it in time. We’ve been tracking David.” He pointed to the dead man on the ground. “His mate was killed.” The wolf’s voice was deep and steady, making her tingle.

“You can collect your pack mate and head out,” the Alpha ordered, and both the men nodded.

As they turned to leave, she heard them inhale loudly. Twin heads jerked toward her and stared openly, eyeing her up and down.