Trusted Bond Read Free Page A

missed his. When he twisted
    back and buried his fangs in my side, it felt as though I had been punched
    and stabbed at the exact same time.
    Heat spread through my side, and because I was momentarily dazed,
    the headbutt that followed knocked me back to the floor. Razor-sharp
    claws tore at my side, and I realized that the spray of blood was mine. I
    heard Yuri‘s roar of fury, saw his clothes rain down on me, torn from his
    body so he could shift.
    I was in the middle of their fight, and having lost blood, I was not as
    strong or fast as I was normally. My body was torn and ripped, tossed
    between two powerful panthers like a toy, trampled again and again,
    crushed and mauled before I was finally able to get my bearings enough to
    bolt free of the lethal tangle.
    Looking at the two of them, watching how savage their attacks on
    each other were, I realized that they would fight to the death unless I
    parted them. I meant to bolt forward, but strong hands on the nape of my
    neck kept me from moving.
    ―Wait,‖ Crane said from above me, my best friend‘s voice hard as he
    knelt down beside me. ―You‘re bleeding,‖ he cautioned me. ―I think
    you‘re really hurt. Shift back so I can see.‖
    But there was no time.
    ―Let him go, you idiot, before Yuri kills Abbot.‖
    Crane rose beside me in one fluid motion as Markel, another panther,
    and his rival for the affection of Logan‘s sister Delphine, appeared on my
    right.
    ―Jin‘s the only one fast enough to get between them without getting
    hurt.‖
    ―He‘s already hurt!‖ Crane roared back at him. ―And I don‘t give a
    shit if Abbot dies. He‘s dead anyway.‖
    Trusted Bond

    11

    ―What the fuck are you talking about?‖ Markel yelled, shoving
    Crane hard so his hands were torn from me. ―We‘re responsible for his
    safety while he‘s here. You think his semel‘s just going to accept that he
    was hurt in Logan‘s house? Use your head!‖
    Crane flew at Markel without answering, and both men went down
    in a tangle of arms and legs. When they both sprang to their feet seconds
    later, tearing at their clothes, I shifted back and screamed for them to stop
    and help me. Or I tried to—what came out was a strangled version of my
    voice. I had to grab for the counter to keep from dropping to my knees.
    Turning my head, I saw Crane and Markel fly at each other in their
    panther forms, meeting in a frenzy of bloodlust, claws, and teeth, both in a
    murderous rage. It had started out as being about me for Crane, but now he
    had the chance to slaughter his rival. He would make the best of his
    opportunity; the animal that lived inside of him demanded it. When my
    eyes flicked from them back to Yuri, who was being attacked by Abbot
    and another panther, I saw what my sheseru did not.
    Shifting to panther form, I darted around the room and dived onto
    Yuri‘s back, pounding him down hard, flat on the floor under me,
    shielding him from the attack of the third panther. Teeth were buried in the
    back of my neck as claws were driven into my side. Sharp, searing heat
    washed through me as the panther and I rolled off Yuri and I was thrown
    into the stove. Abbot‘s teeth missed my jugular by a fraction, but he was
    wrenched away before he could complete the second strike. Yuri was
    there, keeping him off me, even as the other panther hooked his claws
    deep into my back. The pain was like a pulse of electricity running
    through me, constant, swelling. The bite into my shoulder, hard and
    piercing, made me howl in pain.
    The shudder tore through me as my head smacked the floor hard,
    everything swimming around me for a second before the weight lifted and
    was then gone. Turning my head, I saw a man lying beside me on the
    floor, his throat torn out. That fast, the moment he died, he had shifted
    back. In death, the form of the man was revealed.
    Yuri was suddenly above me, his gold fur washed with blood. I
    understood I was looking at my savior even as I panicked.