Free Mates Since Birth (Half-breed Shifter Series) by Miranda Stowe

Cold enveloped her soul.
    She clenched her hands into fists. “Is there any way to stop this wolf pack you sent for?”
    A tortured-looking Knox shook his head.
    Her jaw set. “Is this your way of telling me you’d rather I bond to another wolf, not a jaguar?”
    “No. God, no. Ari…I just want you to be able to choose your own path.”
    Her voice rose with her mounting ire. “But what if I did choose Dane? What if I actually want to be with him? Would you still respect my decision?”
    Closing his eyes, he bowed his head. “Yes, daughter. I would respect any mate you chose.”
    “Except it’s too late for that now, isn’t it?” she hissed, her mind spinning with ways she could protect her mate. They would have to run. “When is this pack supposed to arrive?”
    “Soon. By morning.”
    The next question came from Dane, floating down the hall and surprising her into whirling around. “And from which direction are they coming?”
    Her mate slipped silently from her old bedroom, wearing a pair of her father’s jeans and one of his old shirts. The top actually fit a little snug across his shoulders, which stunned her. She’d always thought her father was so massive. Larger than life. But Dane’s girth obviously exceeded his.
    He didn’t look terrified or even upset about the fact that his own father-in-law—for lack of a better word—had sent for a posse to slaughter him.
    Knox lifted his face and croaked, “From the west.”
    Dane paled. “The Mahlikari pack. I passed them on my travel here. You are aware they’re absolute purebloods, right?”
    Ari glanced at her father, who shared a puzzled frown with her. Together, they turned back to Dane. “They’re what?”
    “Absolute purebloods. Extremists. A full-blooded shapeshifter pack that despises anything human, especially half-breeds with any kind of human in their bloodline. Actually, I think they hate half-bloods more than they do humans.
    “ You know what they’ll do as soon as they get here, don’t you? After they kill me, they’ll rape Ari like the cheap piece of dirty blood they think she is, then leave her for dead if they don’t finish her off themselves.
    “ Then they’ll decimate your entire community. I’ve seen it done before. They have no respect for half-breed anything .” He narrowed his eyes. “Not even you. Duo-animagous shifters, any kind of blood mixing, is an abomination in their eyes.”
    Knox shook his head, but rasped, “You’re certain they’re—”
    “Yes,” Dane barked, already a flurry of motion. “We need to get the women to safety. How many other shifter families live in this area?”
    Knox swallowed, looking sick as he turned to stare at his mate while Jaycee slowly sank to the floor, also looking nauseated, her eyes large and frightened.
    Ari answered for her parents since they didn’t seem able. “Around thirty. Thirty families.”
    Dane’s jaw tightened. He nodded. “Gather as many as you can, spread the word. All humans or shifters too old, young, or weak to fight need to leave immediately. I want to meet with the remainders to form a strategy of defense.” He paused then, sending Knox a curious look. “You do intend to stand firm and fight them, correct? If you abandoned the houses, they’d probably burn them to the ground.”
    Knox nodded. “Of course. This is my home. I’ll defend it against any foe who threatens us.”
    Dane gave a single nod. “Then I’ll stand with you.”

 
    Chapter Six
     
     
    Ari’s hand trembled as she tied the laces of the black combat boots she’d just tugged over her feet. Two hours after learning a group of extremist purebloods were headed her way to decimate her entire community, she’d showered, pulled her hair into an economical plait and dragged on her ass-kicking gear. Laces snug, she let the leg of her khaki BDUs fall over the tops of her boots, and straightened to her full height. Just as she checked her scrunchy to make sure her ponytail was still