Liam, Toni Griffin [freda ebook reader .TXT] 📗

his left leg broken, the bone sticking out through the skin. Declan couldn't see Tommy's face with his head slumped forward.

Hell, he couldn't even tell from where he stood if his brother was alive or not.

He turned to face the Alpha, fury rolling through him. Before he could so much as utter a sound, the gun in Alpha Wallis's hand went off again and fiery pain pierced Declan's left shoulder. The force of the impact knocked him backwards to the ground. His head landed hard against a rock, black spots danced before his eyes.

Twin howls rent the air when Liam and Ben burst through the tree line in their shifted form. If Tommy still breathed, Liam would rescue him. His last thought before he let the darkness take him.

Damn, but his mate could really run. Liam's heart nearly stopped when another gunshot rent the air. Fire rolled through his body. Not his own pain. Declan had been shot.

Shifting, Liam howled and broke through the tree line, Ben right beside him. Alpha Wallis stood in the centre of a clearing, the gun now pointing in their direction. Liam lowered his head down and put on a burst of speed. He might not be near as fast as his mate, but he could still run with the best of them. Ben easily remained right beside him.

Alpha Wallis seemed to be having trouble deciding who to shoot at first, finally deciding on Liam. He pulled the trigger again. At the last second, Liam veered to the left and headed to the Betas who were holding up Tommy between them.

As much as Liam wanted to take on Alpha Wallis, it would be better all-round if Ben did the honours. Liam liked being a Beta. He didn't want to be Alpha, and if he beat Kegan Wallis, and he would with the way he felt right now, he'd become Alpha of the Cairns pack, and he didn't want that. He'd discussed the possibility at length with Ben over the last week. As much as he wanted to be the one to take out the man who had caused his mate so much grief, he couldn't.

He'd promised Declan he'd get his brother and he planned to do exactly that. When the two Betas saw him heading directly for them, they took one look at their Alpha currently engaged in a fight with Ben and dropped Tommy to the ground and made a run for it.

Cowards. Liam watched them disappear into the tree line. He had more important things to do than give chase. They'd be caught eventually and held accountable for their crimes. At the moment he had other things to worry about. The sounds of fighting carried on behind him.

Liam had no doubt Ben would come out of the encounter the victor.

He shifted and knelt down beside Tommy. Even through all the bruising he could see the resemblance. Liam breathed a sigh of relief when he noticed Tommy's pulse beating under his skin. He didn't know where to touch the young man, his body a mass of bruised and broken flesh, afraid no matter where he placed his hands it would cause Tommy more pain. Probably a good thing Tommy had passed out.

Liam tried to be as gentle as possible, but his breath caught in his throat when the mate threads of Declan's younger brother and Ben joined in his mind. Fuck! Not good. Declan would have a fit when he found out. Declan had nothing against Ben, but Tommy being Declan's much younger brother would have all of his protective instincts coming out. Liam and Declan had talked at length about his little brother and how Declan had raised him after their parents passed. He didn't know if Declan could let go of that mindset, especially after what had just happened.

Looking down once again at the bruised and battered body of his mate's brother he had no idea how his friend and Alpha would react either. It would have to wait, though. At the moment, he needed to get back to his mate and make sure he was okay.

Liam picked Tommy up in his arms trying not to hurt the young man any more than he already had been, and started back across the field towards where his mate lay.

"Honey, come on, wake up, please," Liam asked soothingly as they got closer. He didn't receive any response.

The fighting had diminished and when Liam laid Tommy beside Declan, Ben made his way over to them.

Liam checked out his mate. The bullet had made one hell of a mess of his shoulder. But it looked like a through and through, thank God. They wouldn't have to go digging around to remove the bullet. As bad as the wound looked it would have been worse when it first happened.

Liam wished the healing could go faster, but he'd be happy with whatever he got.

Ben arrived and crouched on the other side of Liam.

His muzzle and back left leg were both covered in blood and he had a large gouge in his flank.

"Shift, Alpha," Liam said quietly to his friend.

As soon as Ben realized his mate had been found, but remained gravely injured, he'd lose his shit. And Liam needed him to keep it together. Ben's head snapped up and he sniffed the air several times before he made his way to Tommy's side. Ben lay down and licked Tommy's face before raising his muzzle and howling the most haunted sound Liam had ever heard.

Liam watched in wonder when Tommy's faint mate thread seemed to strengthen simply with the Alpha being so close to him. Every time Ben nuzzled Tommy the partially joined threads pulsed with energy and Liam held out hope for the future. The threads wouldn't join completely until after the pair had claimed one another, but that could happen later. Now, they needed to get Tommy and Declan somewhere they could heal in peace.

"He's alive, Ben. Now shift and we