Free My Alphas: The Complete Series by Emily Cantore Page B

door braced with iron. Nia flung it open and pushed Cass through, finally letting go of her. A woman with dark hair and dark eyes shoved past Nia and then turned to face her.
    “Go back! I will defend the Pack Mate.”
    “Shut up Kale!” Nia yelled and pulled the door closed. The woman leapt forward and slid into place an iron bar the thickness of an arm.
    She then stepped back and stood facing the door, her fingers curled into claws, ready to strike down anyone who entered.
    *
    With Cass in Nia’s care, Edon rushed outside, Rey close behind him, to defend the pack.
    They’d left only two scouts outside and now one of them, Wolma, was unconscious and bleeding on the cavern floor. Although they were nocturnal, some werewolves still came and went during the day so there was always a greater presence outside than the two scouts. Edon knew this had been their mistake. As he and Rey had started fighting, the pack had gathered inside, leaving the scouts outside alone.
    Edon burst out into the early morning light and shifted. Even as he did, he assessed the situation. Eight werewolves in sight, two near to the entrance and the rest running toward them, coming out of the forest. He tackled the first one head on, grabbing the wolf with his jaws and flinging him over his shoulder. He heard but did not see the blow Rey landed, which practically tore the werewolf in two.
    As one they moved toward the next werewolf. He was a giant brown wolf with white streaked through his coat. Rey circled around behind him and Edon approached from the front. The wolf couldn’t focus on both and the moment he turned his head, Edon ripped his throat out. The wolf took two steps and collapsed, his hot blood pumping out into the soil.
    Edon howled, his mighty voice echoing over the valley. The fury of battle throbbed in his bones, filled his muscles with fire.
    This was their power - his and Rey’s. Separately they were powerful but together they were unstoppable. This was what had grown their pack from the two of them to the forty they were today. They didn’t need to speak to communicate and appeared to move as one, as though they were one mind sharing two bodies.
    Three more werewolves were swiftly torn apart, their eerie connection presenting a greater force than any group could hope to overcome. Around them the pack fought the remaining three and Rey howled, Edon joining him, the joy of their bloodlust piercing the air.
    At the sound of their combined voices, two of the werewolves nearest the edge of the battle turned tail and ran. The pack knew better than to chase without their Alphas permission and so turned their attention back to the remaining werewolf.
    He was a giant, pure black like Rey but even wider, his form layered over with muscle. Edon leapt on his back, sinking his teeth into the back of his neck. Taking advantage of this distraction, Rey attacked from the front, snapping the wolf’s two front paws off between his jaws in a brutal twist of teeth and bone.
    The wolf toppled to the ground with Edon atop him. Edon shifted and reached down, digging his fingers into the open wound on its neck.
    “Shift!” Edon roared.
    The wolf shifted into a man with black hair, still trying to fling Edon off him.
    “Why did you come? Who sent you?”
    “Fuck you-”
    So fast he was a blur, Rey tore his head off with a swipe of his paw. It bounced away, rolling to a stop in the dust.
    Edon looked up at his friend, their almost supernatural connection broken. He saw Rey look across the valley at the two fleeing werewolves.
    “No. Don’t chase!”
    Just what they needed - an attack to draw them out and be counterattacked. He saw Rey’s ear twitching, a sure sign of tension. He wanted to chase the fleeing wolves and run them down into the ground. A few years ago, Edon would’ve joined him but they couldn’t be so foolhardy now.
    The battle over, the werewolves walked around barking and panting. Some were injured but it appeared none had been