Page 17 of Unwilling Mate

“Her mother? What the fuck are you talking about?”

“Lily was her mother,” Weston explains.

His words are like a sucker punch to the gut, knocking all the air out of me.

“No.” I shake my head in denial. This can’t be true. Abigail… Lily’s daughter? I stumble backward, my knees suddenly go weak as all the information sinks in. Lily is dead?

“I have to talk to her. I have to explain. Tell me where she is.”

“You need to leave her be and go back to your cabin, Thorn. She is not yours. She belongs with her family.”

“I’m her family, and those women she stayed with tried to kill her!”

It’s the worry flashing over Levi’s eyes that gives him away and makes me realize where Abigail is.

Fuck, they took her back there.

I shift back, spin around, and start running, ignoring Levi and Weston calling after me to wait. I can hear them follow me through the woods, but I don’t really care if they’re coming. All I care about is getting to Abby and making sure she’s unharmed.

A sense of déjà vu sets in as I run through the forest back to the house where I first found Abigail. Even the same anxiety sits on my chest like a fifty-pound weight. The only difference is that this time I know why. My mate is in danger, and I’m the only one who can save her.

When I finally get to the house, I shift as I run up to the porch. This time, I don’t bother knocking before I simply throw my shoulder into the door. The wood bursts away, not standing a chance for my shift or strength. I’m vaguely aware of Levi and Weston still hot on my tail, but that thought is pushed aside when three high-pitched screams fill my ears.

“Shut the fuck up!” I roar at the women.

I’m about to demand where she is, but Abigail’s scent hangs heavy in the air. I know she is here, and when I catch the sound of someone banging at the basement ceiling, I know exactly where she is.

“If there is one fucking hair on her head out of place, I will kill all three of you.” I leave them with my warning and make my way through the house to find the basement door.

I don’t hear her heartbeat or sense that she is on the other side, so I simply kick in the door. The wood explodes, pieces ricochet off the walls and down the stone stairs.

My bare feet smack against each step as I run into the dark basement. Abbie is knocking against something, and I follow that sound down a hallway to a door. Grabbing the handle, I try to open the door, but it’s locked.

“Step away from the door and cover your head. I’m kicking in the door,” I yell through the door.

The knocking stops, and I hear her move away into the corner of the room. I don’t use a lot of my strength, not wanting to hit her with any flying pieces of wood, but even a light kick against the knob has the door flying open.

I find Abbie huddled up in the corner of the room, protecting her head with her arms. She realizes the door is open and looks up at me with glassy eyes before jumping up and running straight into my open arms.

Holding her to my chest tightly, I bury my face into her hair and suck in a breath like it’s the first one I’ve ever taken.

For a single moment, everything is all right. She is alive and safe, in my arms, and nothing is going to stop me from takingher home. Everything is fine until I take another breath, and through her flowery scent, I catch the unmistakable smell of blood… her blood.

“Abbie, you’re bleeding.” I push her away from my body just far enough so I can look at her and check for injuries. Her new clothes are ripped, her sweater hanging off her shoulder, and one of her bra straps has snapped.

I grind my molars together painfully as my eyes roam down her body all the way to her bare feet, where blood is pooling between her toes. “It’s your foot.”

Wasting no time, I pick up my little mate and hold her to my chest. She wraps her arms around my neck, holding me as if she is scared I’ll let her go. She brings her hand to cup my jaw. Leaning in, she places a soft kiss on my lips, and that is all the confirmation I need. She knows I love her, just like I know she loves me. We are made for each other in every way.

Only when I turn around do I notice Levi has followed me down here and is watching us with a surprised expression. Abigail turns her face into my shoulder while I push past Levi to get up the stairs.

My intentions are to walk out the back door and take her back to my cabin, but when I hear Abbie’s stepmother yell at Weston in the other room, I know we can’t leave just yet. I follow the shouting into the large living room where Abbie’s stepmother and stepsisters are sitting on one of the couches. Weston is standing in front of them, his arms crossed, and an angry frown on his face.

“I hate liars, and you are the worst kind of liar, so sit down and shut up,” he orders in a tone that leaves no room for discussion.

“Why was my mate locked in the basement?” I question, taking a seat on the couch farthest away from them. “And who the fuck ripped her clothes?”

No one says anything, which really doesn't matter because I plan to kill all three of them.

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