Page 74 of Hidden By the Gargoyle

She flinched. She knew he was right.

“The police officer your mate is fighting with right now is Harold’s son.”

All the color leeched from the female’s face.

“The wolf shifter he insulted is the alpha’s sister.”

She took a step back.

“And that police officer views Poppy as family. So, I suggest you go get your mate calmed down now before he destroys this situation beyond all hope of repair.”

The female turned and sprinted toward the tree line. Now that I wasn’t distracted by a cat shifter, I saw two males in partially shifted forms, battling. Poppy hadn’t shifted as they had, but she was facing off with the enforcer of the cat clan, with nothing but claws and fangs to reveal that she wasn’t fully human.

She moved fluidly, avoiding his lightning-fast strikes and kicks.

“You need to go help her,” I said to Dax.

“She’s doing fine,” he replied.

I winced when she barely evaded another swipe from the enforcer’s claws. He was partially shifted like the alpha and Zeke and nearly a foot taller than her now.

His other hand caught her bicep, leaving four bloody slashes on her arm, and I nudged Dax with my elbow.

“Go help her. I’ll be fine.”

He shook his head. “My first concern is your safety.”

I started to argue with him some more, but Poppy closed in on the enforcer, catching the next strike he threw her way with a hard block. Then, her own claws came up and jabbed him in the throat.

It was a quick, brutal move, one that made me cringe.

The cat enforcer went down, clutching his throat. I knew that he would survive the wound, but it would be painful as it healed.

Poppy threw a violent kick at his head, and he fell face-first onto the grass in a boneless heap, obviously unconscious.

“See? I told you she was doing fine,” Dax murmured.

I hadn’t realized that Poppy was such a good fighter, but I should have. Her brother was alpha, and she could have been, but she didn’t want the position. She joked that shifters couldn’t take any drug strong enough for the kinds of headaches running a pack could cause.

As soon as the enforcer crashed down, Poppy whirled toward where Zeke had been fighting the cat alpha. But it was no use.

At some point, Zeke had pinned the alpha onto the grass by the throat. The male had clawed him up but hadn’t been strong enough to beat him. The alpha struggled weakly in Zeke’s grip. I realized that Zeke was choking him.

The alpha’s mate was crouched next to him, her mouth moving rapidly. I couldn’t hear what she was saying, so I asked Dax, “What’s she saying? Can you hear?”

“She’s talking to both of them, saying this is all just a big misunderstanding. She’s telling her mate he needs to calm down and asking Zeke to give them a moment to talk.”

Judging by Zeke’s body language, that wasn’t going to happen. He looked like he wanted to rip the male’s head off.

Finally, the cat alpha went limp and stayed that way. I could see that his eyes were open, but he was no longer fighting. It was only then that Zeke released him and got to his feet.

The sound of sirens caught my attention, and I looked up. Garrett Kent’s SUV tore up the drive and slid to a stop next to Zeke Marshall’s patrol car.

As soon as he climbed out, he glanced over at Dax and gave him a nod. Without a word, he turned back to the group of shifters and approached them.

“Let’s go,” Dax said.

Before I could respond, he leapt into the air, holding me tightly in his arms, and headed toward the cabin.

---