longer,
she stopped backtracking and raced along the branch.
When she reached the end, she pushed down and jumped
off, flying right for the jaguar.
His dark eyes widened for a fraction of a second before
he underwent the change. As she torpedoed straight
toward him, his animal took over. Thanks to her momentum
she slammed into him, taking him to the ground.
In his shifted form, he was bigger than she’d expected,
outweighing her by about fifty pounds. His weight slowed
him down, but it wouldn’t diminish his strength. Slashing
out, she dragged her claws against his face. This piece of
crap had talked about kil ing an innocent cub like it was no
big deal. Gabriela felt no guilt for attacking him.
The male snarled and slashed right back. She dodged,
rol ing off him and onto the dried grass and snow, but his
claws raked across her shoulder. She let out a hiss, but
jumped to her feet and attacked again. They rol ed on the
ground, slashing and clawing, each trying to get a grip with
their mouth. Jaguars had one of the most powerful jaws in
the world and as shifters, they were even that much
stronger.
Out of her peripheral vision she could see the vampires
trying to intercept, but it was impossible given the way she
and the male were rol ing around.
When she heard an eerie howl fil the air, she knew Owen
had arrived. She also knew he was going to be pissed at
her so she real y hoped he took it out on the vampires.
She’d seen Owen hunting before and had seen his power
and strength when he was only seventeen. She could only
imagine how strong he was now.
The wind rustled her fur as a blur of white tore past her.
As she dodged another slash from the jaguar, she was
vaguely aware of one of the vampires crying out in pain. In
her peripheral vision she saw the vamp fal and then
watched a gush of crimson pour out as Owen took its head
off. The other vampire started to run, but Gabriela felt a
sharp stab of pain in her gut and turned al her focus on the
jaguar.
Realizing the male had slashed right through her
stomach in an effort to distract her with pain, she did what
he wouldn’t expect. Instead of pul ing back from him and
putting herself at an even bigger disadvantage, she lunged
closer, letting his claws dig deeper into her bel y as she
snapped his neck with her powerful jaws.
Her teeth sliced through bone and tendons until his
bloody head rol ed from his body. Her jaguar silently
shouted in victory even as her body screamed in agony.
While she didn’t enjoy taking a life, she’d done it before in
the line of duty and this guy deserved it after the innocent
humans he’d kil ed and for the innocent lives he’d stil
planned to take. And al for money. Disgusting.
Rol ing off him, unbearable pain lanced through her. She
stumbled and fel face-first onto the icy ground. She tried to
get up, but could only emit a soft whimper as her limbs
gave out. It felt as if giant daggers sliced through her
middle, but she was lucid enough to realize Owen was
shouting something at her.
He was in human form, naked as he knelt next to her. His
words were jumbled as he continued shouting, his voice
frantic. She tried to make out what he was saying, but it
was too much. The darkness beckoned. More exhausted
was too much. The darkness beckoned. More exhausted
than she’d ever been, she let the black wave overtake her.
Chapter 6
With his arms crossed over his chest and his eyes closed,
Owen stood by the door of Dr. Shahi’s operating room
where Gabriela was inside. The scent of her blood tickled
his nostrils, making him nauseous. He stil couldn’t get the
sight of her ripped-open stomach out of his head. Didn’t
think he ever would as long as he lived.
There was a slight sound of movement to his right in the
waiting room but he kept his eyes shut, not wanting to see
anyone. Gabriela’s parents, brothers and Skyler were on
the right side and six members of his pack were on