Free Chasing Trouble by Layla Nash

thundercloud, and the entire bar immediately silenced. The pack members jumped to their feet or cowered, depending on rank, but none of them looked at her. Logan moved Natalia off his lap and ushered her behind the bar, out of harm's way, and looked at Ruby and her brother. "Is something wrong?"
    "Fucking Evershaw ." A snarl boiled up in her chest and Rafe wasn't far behind, eyes flashing gold and red.
    Benedict wobbled to his feet, ready for a fight. If the SilverLine pack dared attack O'Shea's, he would stand with the O'Shea pack. Miles was just a dick.
    Edgar tapped the bar near Ruby's elbow. "Do we need backup?"
    "No," she ground out, and a light dusting of hair sprouted along her arms, disrupting the myriad tattoos she had.
    Benedict blinked. He'd never seen that before. Before he could ask what happened, though, the front door blew open and a hulking beast of a man staggered in. Benedict recognized him from the bar, so knew the trouble wasn't due to Lewis's return, but then he saw who squeezed in the door next to him, and his heart stopped. Eloise.
    She looked stunned, disoriented. Hurt. He lurched forward, a roar starting in his chest, but Edgar grabbed his arm and yanked him back. Ruby beat him across the bar to grab Eloise by the shoulders. "What the fuck happened? Why is Todd fucking Evershaw calling me, asking about you? What did you do ?"
    "Christ," Eloise said under her breath, lifting up a pair of mirrored sunglasses to rub her eyes. "Can the interrogation wait until I've had a dr--"
    And then she spotted him, and all the color drained from her face. She ducked, tried to bolt, but Ruby still had her arm and then Logan did as well. He loomed over them and grabbed her, hauled her over to the bar as a chorus of growls erupted from the rest of the pack. Ruby snarled and turned her ire on Lewis, interrogating him as the man cowered as if she weren't a foot shorter than him.
    But Benedict only cared about Eloise as she squeaked and cringed, and Logan's hands were on her, squeezing her arms, bruising her --
    He launched forward and knocked his brother back, shoved his alpha , with a roar that silenced the bar for the second time that night. He kept Eloise behind him as he squared off with his older brother, ready to draw blood. "Don't touch her."
    Logan's eyes narrowed, already flashing gold, and his shoulders grew as he flexed. "You challenging me, cub?"
    "Don't touch her," was all Benedict could say. No other coherent thoughts could make it through the rage and fury. Eloise scared, and hurt, and trembling as she leaned against his back. "You hurt her."
    "I did not and you know it." Logan's teeth showed, far pointier than any human's. "Back the fuck off, Benedict, or we will brawl right here."
    Benedict couldn't move. Couldn't risk something happening to Eloise. So he waited, and the tension simmered. Ruby and her wolves gathered on the other side of the bar, giving them room in case the lions started throwing down. And then Natalia said very calmly, "Logan Chase, stop being a bully this instant."
    He blinked. Logan did not, but his expression darkened. "Woman, now is not --"
    "You scared that girl." Natalia edged herself between her mate and Benedict, shoving Benedict back a few steps to get room. "And you know it. Now cut it out and let's go home."
    He grumbled and snarled, fighting it, but then Edgar flicked the back of Benedict's ear and he jumped. The spell broke. Tension eased. Eloise still trembled behind him, but Benedict could breathe.

Eleven
    R uby was snarling from the moment we walked in, and I cringed back, thinking the other alpha called her about my little episode. I tried to hide behind Lewis, but he was absolutely worthless as she barreled around the corner and dragged me into the center of the room like I was a naughty kid. Before I could even really object, I looked up and saw three of the five Chase brothers sitting at the bar, including the lawyer. Benedict. My heart leapt.
    Until the big one --