Page 50 of Rejected Mate Bride
Demetrius held on tight and tossed Sofia upside down over his shoulder. Her tiny fists rained insignificant punches against any part of him that she could reach.
“Let. Me. Go,” Flora said, writhing against the hands that held her, desperate to reach Sofia. She knew that her chances of getting her back from Demetrius were slim, but she had to try. If she could only reason with him, maybe he would take her instead. “Please, take me. Take me instead. Leave Sofia alone.”
“You silly woman,” Demetrius laughed. “I have no more use for you. I can find another mate, but your insolence must be punished. Don’t worry, I’ll take great care of her.”
Ben kicked Flora’s legs out from under her, and she fell to the ground with a crash. Pain shot through her legs as her knees collided with the hard earth beneath her.
“Follow us, and we’ll kill you both,” Stella threatened.
Flora couldn’t believe she had ever considered the woman to be her mother. A sob bubbled up from her gut as she realized all hope had been lost. Camden was far away, and she was powerless to stop this.
But as Stella and Ben moved across the path to join Demetrius, a loud crash from behind Flora drew all of their attention. A line of men and women appeared on the ridge where Flora had tripped. The Silverrose pack was coming to her rescue.
“Let the girl go,” Edgar Thompson said in a loud, commanding voice.
The rest of the pack growled their approval, and a few shifted into their wolf forms, preparing for a fight. Flora spotted her friend Tessa standing with the rest of the women from their training group, and her heart soared.
Maybe all hope isn’t lost after all, she thought.
“You all have no clue who you’re dealing with,” Stella said in a high-pitched voice, the one Flora remembered her using whenever plans didn’t go her way. “This is Alpha Demetrius Sier! He will cut you down in a second.”
“He will die a quick death if he doesn’t release the daughter of our pack!” Tessa shouted back.
“You think this woman is a part of your pack?” Demetrius said, nodding toward Flora. “She is a human. Nothing.”
“You’re wrong!” a man shouted, and Flora was surprised to see that it was Thatcher. “She’s one of us!”
The crowd was getting antsy, waiting for Demetrius to release Sofia. But Flora could see Sofia, still struggling and growing more furious with each passing second. She began to swing her body from side to side, trying to right herself in Demetrius’ arms.
“Stop your moving!” he growled, hitting her on the back of the legs. Flora felt like she was going to be sick.
“Don’t TOUCH ME!” Sofia screamed.
A high-pitched snarl followed her shout, and Flora’s eyes widened as she saw claws growing from Sofia’s fingers. Her shifter side was awakening in the face of danger. Sofia growled again and slashed at Demetrius’ side. He snarled and dropped Sofia to the ground. Flora screamed and lurched forward, knowing she wouldn’t be able to catch her, but Sofia was quick.She rolled into a ball and out of harm’s way before jumping to her feet and running toward the line of wolves.
Turning her attention back to Demetrius, Flora saw blood pouring from the open wound across his ribs as he staunched the flow with his hands. His upper lip pulled up as he bared his teeth, snapping his head toward Sofia’s back as she ran for cover.
“You’ll pay for that,” he snarled.
As he spoke, the rest of the Ironbrand pack came stalking through the forest behind him. Flora hadn’t been expecting such a show of force, and she was reminded of just how uneven this fight was going to be. Carefully, she got to her feet and ushered Sofia toward her.
“You won’t be able to protect her now,” Demetrius threatened.
Chapter 24 - Camden
As soon as they had arrived in Ironbrand, Camden realized he had made a miscalculation about Sier’s intentions and had turned around, heading back home to Silverrose. He was worried he would be too late when the town was completely empty when they arrived.
It hadn’t taken long for him to catch the heavy scent of the pack heading into the forest. The sound of voices let Camden know he was approaching his target. As he and the squad came over the crest of the hill, he saw the pack spread out below them, and, further down, Flora, Sofia, Stella, Ben, and Demetrius.
Camden’s heart lurched forward when he saw his family in harm’s way. Jasper reached out a reassuring arm to him, steadying him on his feet as he swayed from fear.
“You can’t afford to fall apart,” Jasper reminded him.
Camden nodded his head tersely and stalked forward, but all four of them stopped short when they saw the trees moving behind Demetrius.
“Is that….?” Marbles asked.
“The entire Ironbrand pack,” Thompson finished. “Even the women are here. What the hell?”
