Page 17 of Wolf Revealed

Roman’s crew caught sight of him then, weapons turning on him as he sprinted down the gravel pathway toward them. While two of the men focused on him, one stayed where he was, still blocking Lark and Kal’s escape from the alley.

Neither of the two men facing him seemed concerned Mike had claws and fangs and was coming in hot. They simply stood there, waiting for him. Either they’d known he was a werewolf, or they refused to let their alarm show.

The men began shooting at the same time, bracketing Mike in until it was impossible to avoid the rounds coming his way. One ended up grazing his right shoulder, the next hitting him on the left side, right below the ribs. A third grazed his thigh.

The bullet wounds hurt like hell, but Mike ignored the pain. It was obvious from the satisfied looks on their faces that the men expected the gunshot wounds to take him down, and their eyes widened when he simply growled and covered the last dozen yards in a single leap.

He landed atop both the men, sending them crashing to the ground. One of their guns went flying, bouncing through the heavy wrought iron fencing into a neighboring yard. One less gun involved in this scenario couldn’t be a bad thing. Though he’d have to remember to retrieve the weapon later.

From the corner of his eye, Mike caught sight of the third guy trying to drag Kal further down the alley pathway while Lark punched and kicked the man like a whirlwind.

Why didn’t she partially shift? Claws would definitely have helped.

But he had no time to think about it because the two men he’d knocked down had regained their feet and were coming toward him, their moves precise and coordinated, suggesting they’d fought together often. Between that and their supernatural speed and agility, they were still dangerous as hell, even if one was unarmed.

The man without a weapon lunged forward to engage with Mike, earning the guy a ragged slash across his right forearm. Unfortunately, it didn’t seem to have any effect on him, because he latched onto Mike, their hands getting a grip on each other’s wrists. Then they started twisting and yanking, trying to toss each other off balance as the other man lifted his gun to shoot the moment his partner provided him an opening.

Mike twisted to the side as the gun went off, getting in close to the first guy and using his body as a shield as the round slammed into the ground where he’d just been standing. The man Mike was grappling with tried to put him in a vulnerable position, but Mike refused to let him get the upper hand, even if it felt like he was wrestling a three-hundred-and-fifty-pound defensive lineman.

He risked a glance in Lark’s direction, to see the guy dragging both her and Kal away.

Mike’s heart clenched in fear.

He had to do something.

Another shot rang out, the bullet clipping Mike on the hip. He growled in frustration, knowing that luck was the only reason he hadn’t been injured seriously. He couldn’t keep doing this.

Knowing that putting any distance between him and the man he was using as a shield meant an immediate barrage of gunfire in his direction, Mike lunged forward instead, clamping his fangs down on the man’s exposed shoulder and neck.

The shout the man let out was more than pain. It was rooted in the primal fear of being bitten by a predator possessing a lot of very sharp teeth. He probably thought Mike was trying to rip out his throat.

And if that was what Mike needed to do in order to reach Lark and Kal in time, then he would most definitely do just that.

He wouldn’t like it, but he’d do what he had to do.

Fortunately, that wasn’t necessary. The moment Mike buried his fangs in the guy’s neck the man cared about only one thing—getting away. He released his grip on Mike’s wrist and tried to shove him away.

Mike pulled back, ready to use the man’s panic against him. Planting his hands on the guy’s chest, Mike shoved hard, sending him flying into the wrought iron fence hard enough to bend the metal and crunch more than a few bones.

In one lunge, Mike was on the other man with the gun, grabbing the hand holding the weapon and twisting it violently. There was a sharp snap, and the guy shouted in pain, dropping the gun. Mike kicked it aside, then tossed the man into the metal fence next to his buddy, just about putting him through it.

Dismissing both of them from his mind, Mike turned and sprinted down the gravel path where Lark and Kal were still being dragged kicking and screaming. He was ready to tear this last man apart for daring to touch his family.

That rage must have been clear on Mike’s face, because the man took one look at him, threw a quick glance at the two other supernaturals lying smashed up against the fence, and decided to bail. He shoved both Lark and Kal toward Mike, then ran like hell.

“Are you okay?” Mike asked urgently, his fangs and claws retracting as he put a hand on each of their shoulders and looked them over. “Did they hurt you?”

“I’m fine,” Lark said quickly before turning to drop to one knee in front of Kal. “Honey, are you okay?”

Kal nodded. “I’m okay.”

Mike gazed down at their son to see Kal regarding him with an expression that could only be described as awe-filled.

“Dad, is that really you?”

Mike smiled. “It’s really me.”

Kal grinned and hurried over to wrap his arms around Mike, holding onto him tightly. Mike hugged him back while Lark looked on, her eyes wet with what definitely looked to be happy tears. And the sensation Mike felt in his chest at that moment was quite possibly the most amazing thing he’d ever experienced.