Page 99 of Baseball and Shifters

Too still.

Then a low, feral growl shakes the clearing.

Ranger.

I turn my attention to where he lies just as he surges to his feet and shifts, landing on four feet. His predatory golden eyes scan the clearing before locking onto Demi and with a roar he charges.

“Shit,” Liam mutters as he rises, ready to join Demi in battle, but Derrick beats him to it.

Before Ranger can make it more than a few feet, Derrick is in the air, shifted into dragon form, he hovers a few feet above the trees as he blows a flame barricade between Ranger and hisfather. The flame licks out, burning patches of fur when Ranger gets too close.

“That’s enough, St. James.” Demi’s voice rings with absolute authority. “Shift back and give up or be burned in a dragon's flame, your choice really.”

Ranger snarls, pacing just beyond the fire. Smoke curls from his singed fur, his teeth bared, but even through the fury I can see a flicker of hesitation.

He knows he’s outmatched. He’s lost.

Another beat passes, and he lunges.

Wrong choice.

I shield Rachel's eyes, tucking her face into my chest, assuming that her idiot father is about to go up in smoke. But instead, Derrick swoops down with a great roar and knocks Ranger into the dirt with a swipe of his great clawed hand. His head hits the ground with a sickening crunch, and he shifts back to human form, bloody and defeated, but breathing.

I don’t release Rachel, I don’t move a muscle. None of us do.

Derrick shifts back to human form, standing over Ranger, watching for any sign he’s going to get back up. Ranger remains still, face half buried in the dirt, the jagged lines of impact from a dragon's claws etched across his skin, even in human form. His once-crisp dress shirt hangs in tatters, stained with dirt and blood. One sleeve is completely torn away, revealing the raw, bruised flesh underneath. He won’t be getting up any time soon.

Demi steps over, calm and commanding. He doesn’t gloat or hesitate. Just crouches and snaps an enchanted set of handcuffs around Ranger’s wrists.

“It’s over,” he says quietly.

And it is. Finally.

Bas exhales a snarl, turning away from Trent’s unconscious form with his chest still heaving. He shifts back to two legs andhe and Derrick leave Demi with the fallen assholes, crossing back to where Lucas and I still sit with our mate.

Lucas is still crouched beside me, one hand on our mate and the other now gripping my shoulder like he’s making sure I'm still here. We’re all here.

We found her.

She’s safe.

But when I look down, Rachel’s trembling in my arms, silent tears sliding down her cheeks. Her lips are pale, her breaths shallow.

“She’s going into shock,” Derrick says, back in his human form now, voice tight. He crouches beside us, pressing two fingers to her neck to check her pulse.

“I’ll call for a secure medical team,” Demi says. “They’ll be here in minutes.”

I press my forehead to Rachel’s and whisper, “It’s okay now. You’re safe, Shadow Girl. I’ve got you.”

She doesn’t respond, but her hand curls into my shirt, a silent anchor.

“She’s cold. Her pulse is weak, but steady.” Derrick’s voice is a barely restrained growl.

“She doesn’t seem to be bleeding,” Lucas says, voice tight as he traces the bruise on our mate's temple with a feather light touch. “At least not on the outside.”

“We don’t know what he did to her,” I grit out, brushing some dirt from her cheek. “How long she was in there. What she had to endure.”

“I’m not waiting for medics,” Bas says, starting to reach for our mate. “We’ll meet them halfway.”

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