Page 46 of Having the Bear's Baby

Liam recognized the traitor at once. A newer member of their clan, Patrick Woods, barely eighteen, was holding his arm and shaking like a leaf. His eyes were glued to the ground as he shuddered.

Liam let out a sigh, then looked at the two other nude men, who were previous members of the forcibly disbanded Granada clan. They appeared rather young as well.

The young with their distorted ideals and malleable minds.

Liam looked at Alex, then at Emma. They shared their thoughts without saying a single word.

Liam crouched, going face to face with Patrick, the traitor. The young man continued to tremble in the cold night air.

“You know what you’ve done,” Liam whispered.

Patrick nodded. It was small and weak.

“Look at your alpha, Patrick.” Liam pointed to the dead lump on the ground.

The young man did. He was terrified; it was abundantly clear. The wound on his arm would begin to rot and fester, even as a shifter, if he didn’t get help. The bitter side of Liam didn’t care if he was mangled. The forgiving side saw himself mirrored in those young, foolish eyes.

Liam slid his eyes to the slash, fixating on it.

“Let’s get that looked at, then you are banished. Do you hear me, Patrick Woods? You will not see these grounds ever again.”

With part relief and part dread, Patrick began to weep. Liam stood and motioned at the remaining members of the Granada clan.

“As for the rest of you scraps. Your alpha is dead. But I will show you mercy. Be gone from these parts or suffer my wrath.”

Stunned, the men gazed at each other with dumbfounded looks. Liam puffed his chest out and let out a shrill, sonic-shattering roar.

“GET OUT!”

All three of the men fell backward. Alex took Patrick by his neck while the other men ran for their lives, fleeing into the black dark.

Emma took Liam’s hand again. Her warmth soothed him, and she kissed his shoulder.

“My alpha,” she muttered.

NINETEEN

EMMA

Emma insisted on staying at the cabin as they initially planned. She had told Liam flat out that she was not going to let Patrick and the others ruin the memories that they were creating here.

When he argued, she had said that if they left now, then all they would remember when they came back to this wonderful place was the fight and betrayal that had occurred there.

She was happy that he had seen her point. Besides, she wasn’t ready to leave their hideaway and go back to the entire clan yet. She liked having Liam all to herself. And the cabin still felt safer than any other place she had ever been. Apart from Liam’s strong arms, that is.

But today was the day they had planned to go home, but Emma still wasn’t ready. Only now, she didn’t have an argument to get them to stay any longer.

Liam needed to get back to the clan and his home, but the cabin had given them both so much.

It felt like a lifetime ago since they arrived, given all that had happened since then.

“What’s wrong?” Liam asked as he loaded the last of their things.

Emma stared out into the trees while she listened to the birds chirp away their day.

She turned to Liam and sighed. “Nothing. I just didn’t realize leaving here would be so hard. I’ve grown so fond of this scenery and the peace it brings.”

He came up to her and pulled her into him as they stared out together.

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