Page 51 of The Alpha's Forced Pregnant Mate

I looked around, realizing he was right. Demons were emerging from the woods, surrounding us on all sides. Laura cursed under her breath as she moved closer to me, her sword out. We were outnumbered, and the odds weren’t in our favor.

“Let me go or we’ll kill you all,” I growled, letting my wolf come through in my voice.

Tanner just shook his head. “I don’t think so.” He stepped forward, his eyes gleaming oil-black as he let the demon inside of him take control. “But we do have a deal for you.”

The demons surrounding us churned and skittered around, anxious for blood. Some of them looked mostly human still, while others were visibly rotting, but none of them looked as convincing as my two wolves.

“We have Whitney. She’s knocked out but not poisoned. We will give her to you and you don’t even have to give us a person in return. Instead, we want access to Silverfang Creek territory. Put us on the next patrol shift and just look the other way while we take what we've been searching for."

"They mean Faye and Sienna," Laura whispered anxiously. "What are we going to do?"

I was trying to think fast, but I couldn't focus knowing my mate was right inside that house, seconds from death if I made the wrong move. My heart was pounding and my wolf was pacing inside me, desperate to get to her. I knew I had to be smart about this, but it was hard to think when all I wanted was to rip the throats out of everyone who'd dared to touch her.

But there was no way I was going to let these demons get anywhere near Faye or Sienna. No fucking way. They would have to kill me first. I don't even know the wolf-witch and her child, but I'm not a fucking monster, despite what everyone must think.

The demon in Tanner tilted his head as if he'd heard Laura speaking to me. "Don't let the she-wolf speak for you, Alpha. She isn't even one of yours. She's a Silverfang. Wouldn't the other Alphas make the trade if their mate was in danger? All we want is a chance to get inside the perimeter."

"I don't fucking think so."

"So be it. We can use your mate for our ritual, but Whitney has so little witch blood we'll need to bleed her dry for it to work. We'd have gotten many more uses out of the wolf-witch and her pup. Pity." Tanner cackled. "I hope you've said your goodbyes."

They moved toward us, their black eyes glittering with malice, and I knew that they would show no mercy.

"Get ready," I murmured to Laura. "They're coming."

Laura nodded, gripping her sword tightly. "I'm right behind you."

"And I'm beside you."

We stood back-to-back, preparing for the onslaught of demons.

"Now," Laura shouted, and we surged forward, fighting as one unit.

The demons swarmed around us, clawing and biting. One of them managed to grab Laura's leg, and she screamed in pain as it sank its teeth into her calf. I lunged forward, ripping the demon off of her and tossing it to the ground.

As I turned to face the next wave, I saw Tanner and Rick approaching me, their eyes gleaming with malice. Tanner laughed, his voice a twisted echo of his human tone. "You think you can fight us all? You're going to die here tonight, Julian."

Rick grinned, showing off his pointed teeth. "Your mate is ours now, and you will never see her again."

I felt my wolf rising up inside of me, growling and snarling for release. The need to protect my mate was stronger than anything I'd ever felt before, but I couldn't give up my human form. Not when I needed to get Whitney out if we managed to make it inside the house.

But there were nearly twenty demons around us. It was hopeless, I knew that, but I wasn't going to give up. I glanced out of the corner of my eye as Laura kicked a demon to the ground and stomped on its skull with her steel-toed boots, and my heart clenched in my chest. Whitney would want her to make it, even if I couldn't.

"Let me clear a path for you!" I yelled to her. "Get the fuck out of here Laura, it's useless!"

She looked over at me, her face smeared with blood and dirt, and I could see the resignation in her eyes. She yelled back, "No! She wouldn't leave me behind!"

I wanted to argue, but then the demons were swarming around us again and we had to fight for our lives.

Laura fought like a wild woman, slicing through the demons with her sword and screaming like a banshee. I could feel myself tiring as we fought off wave after wave of demons, and I knew that we wouldn't be able to last much longer.

The sky was getting lighter as the sun slowly started to rise, and the demons seemed to grow stronger as the night began to fade. They attacked with renewed vigor, biting and clawing at us as they tried to tear us apart.

I'd failed my mate. I could still feel her teeth in my neck and I'd failed her so miserably. The rest of the Reckless Stalkers were hours away and hope was running out.

I squared my shoulders, tightened my grip on my sword, and prepared for my last stand. I'm sorry Whitney, I thought. I wish things could have been different. I wish I could have been the good man you needed me to be.

Just as the last bit of hope faded out of me, I heard a sound in the distance, quickly growing closer and coming up the driveway. A low rumble, but not with one origin, but many.

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