Bad Kitty Read Free Page B

attention."
    "Nuh huh. What do we care if she's hurt?
She's one of them. All the woman has to do is shift again and
she'll be fine."
    Rafe seriously doubted
that was the case. In this condition her body should have already
reverted to the cougar he scented inside her. There was something
seriously wrong here. He pressed his fingers to her neck to check
for a pulse and nearly jumped out of his skin. An electric jolt
fired across his flesh, making the hairs on the back of his neck
stand on end. Good God.
    He peered closer for a
better look. The red streaks in her long blonde hair appeared to be
dried blood and the swelling on her cheek and eye were already
turning colors. Not to mention the vicious cut bisecting half her
face. Someone or someones had certainly given her one hell of a
beating. He turned and glared at the men behind him. If not Tanner
and his ugly friends , then who? She was too far into their territory to simply be
lost. He ground his back teeth, knowing these idiots had found her
first , giving
them rights to claim her.
    His wolf growled inside him, a low but
distinct warning. He did not like that idea one bit.
    Reluctantly he turned his back to the woman
and faced the three men. It wouldn't work well to appear overly
interested in her. One whiff of his interest and this situation
would turn violent in a heartbeat.
    "Her pulse is faint, I don't think there's
going to be a claiming here tonight. She can't shift if she isn't
conscious. I'm taking her to doc for medical attention, although
I'm not even sure she'll live. She smells like death.
    "Now wait just a minute." Tanner moved
forward.
    Rafe held up his hand to halt the other man
and growled deep and loud, making sure to thread the noise with the
full strength of his dominance. All three men looked up at him in
shock. "You ready to challenge me, Tanner? I know you've been dying
to do something, but I doubt this is what you had in mind."
    "But we found
her , so we've got
rights. You can't stop us. It's the law!" The three men took a
tentative step in Rafe's direction.
    "I'm not kidding here. One
more step and I'll take it as a personal challenge. It's been a
while since I've ripped out anyone's throat , so I'm due."
    They froze, each looking
back at the other. Finally Tanner shrugged and stepped from in
front of Rafe's path. "This ain't over. We aren't just giving up
our rights to her. You can have her for now , but we'll be coming for her
soon."
    The menace in Tanner's
voice wasn't lost on Rafe. What he'd really meant was that after he
gathered a few more people to his side , he'd be ready for the challenge.
This was what an alpha wolf on the rise had to deal with on a
regular basis. If you couldn't prove your
dominance , then
you had no business becoming a leader.
    "Anytime, Tanner, anytime."
    Rafe turned and scooped the woman from the
dirt. She barely stirred. He seriously wondered if she'd live. The
cuts on her skin looked like slashes from claws and they were ugly,
but turning darker way too fast. Those were no ordinary wounds.
    Despite her battered
condition , he
sensed an inner strength that appealed to his wolf. It left him
with an almost uncontrollable urge to lay her out and nestle his
nose against her unmarred flesh. The underlying fragrant scent of a
woman managed to get in his head through the harsher smell of
whatever had been done to her. To his horror, his body hardened as
her scent imprinted on his brain. It was time to get them both out
of here.
    He brushed past the men
before any of them changed their mind. He knew the woman in his
arms needed more urgent care than they realized.
Fortunately , he
wasn't far from his cabin and his cell phone. How she made it this
far in without setting off any alarms surprised the hell out of
him. Not that he doubted for a second Tanner and his crew would
spread the word faster than wildfire. If Rafe was
lucky , he'd make
it to nightfall before the Alpha came calling.
     

 
     
     
    Chapter Two
     
    One