Page 102 of Feral Mates
We backed away, allowing them to enjoy the spoils of war.
For now.
For they were also the hunted.
CHAPTER 24
Savannah
My father was considered a hero.
He’d served in the Marines receiving two medals of honor during his four times being overseas. When he’d left military service to the country, he’d been recruited by the CIA, spending his years chasing the bad guys.
And he’d caught plenty over the years.
With one exception, and to this day, not being able to find the monster who’d gunned down my brother had left him riddled with guilt.
The grief had eventually forced him to resign from his position, taking retirement early. He’d always been my hero. Now he was breaking all the laws and rules he’d sworn to protect to try to keep me safe.
And to help protect the three wolves who’d been forced to become men at the same time.
I’d told him only so much. Not because he wouldn’t believe me. My father knew the single lie I’d told as a nine-year-old had nearly broken me. I’d stolen a bag of M&M’s from a local store, lying about it until he’d found the wrapper in the trash. Instead of punishing me, which he probably should have done, he’d used it as a teaching lesson.
He’d required me to work off the cost of the product by doing yardwork. He’d then required me to confess my sins to the store’s owner, who had forgiven me after I’d handed him a handful of the money I’d earned doing chores.
I’d never forgotten the lesson or how my father had handled the situation. From that day on, I’d never stolen or lied to anyone.
And he knew I wasn’t about to start as a twenty-nine-year-old woman.
That’s why when I’d expressed my need for help in a huge way, he hadn’t so much as hesitated. He’d given me directions on where to go for safety and what he had planned on doing to help me out of the crisis.
Even from thousands of miles away.
That was my dad.
My first hero.
Now I had three others. They’d protected me. They’d rescued me. They’d risked their lives to keep me safe. Yes, because I was considered their mate, something I’d yet to fully grasp in my mind, but there was more behind the brooding faces and deep hunger.
They cared about me.
The human and their mate.
There was something exhilarating about riding on the back of a wolf. Kai was so strong, so wild, yet so gentle in his motions. Even when we’d faced another attack. I was still in shock from the knowledge that other shifters existed and that they’d come to our aid. How that was possible I’d hopefully be able to study in the future.
Right now, it couldn’t matter.
Only getting to safety and seclusion did.
I knew in my gut Thanatos was still alive. I could feel it as certain as I’d felt the lingering moments of death of other beasts. They’d tried to escape only to face another form of monsters.
Humans.
Sadly, I’d sensed there were still beasts being held in cages at the lab, but right now, we couldn’t free them. We needed to think about our own safety.
We’d found a place to hide deep within the woods, surrounded by a river on one side and a clear view of anyone daring to try to smoke us out of our position. We’d remained there for hours, listening and waiting.
But no one else had dared follow us.
