Teeth »ᴄɵᴍᴘᴌᴇтᴇ«

TWENTY-SIX

TWENTY-SIX

The bullet that hit my flank made me grit my teeth as much as I could with two tusks in my mouth. I turned at snarled at the human male who'd shot me.

"Shit, J, you've just pissed it off," a female Claw-Cutter grumbled.

"Fuck you, that thing is about to eat Wes!" the male who shot me replied.

I growled at the male as I felt magic from nīeten blades build behind me.

Zane?

Val! Are you okay?

Don't kill them.

There was a pause. What?

Tell everyone not to kill the Claw-Cutter's. If they try, I will protect the humans.

Your serious?!

Of course. This is my fight, I'm not letting anyone take it from me.

Don't be stupid, Val.

Tell them, Zane, and then find Rowan Hayes. I sent him a mental picture.

I heard Zane's voice rise over the nīeten that were standing around. I heard shock and denial at my words. The Claw-Cutter's were shocked also as they heard Zane say that I would protect them from nīeten magic.

It was the female that turned to me. "Why?"

I smiled as much as a cat with two tusks could before deciding that, to protect Zane and Rowan, yes, yes I could. And I would kill any who tried to harm them.

Looking back down at the male beneath me. He froze when my grey eyes met his green. I didn't really want to kill him. But, if I let him up, would he attack Zane and Rowan? And Archie and Lucas? And Taylor and Ryan?

Then I remembered what humans had done to my family. It had been a human war. Humans had killed my father. Humans had made my mother kill herself. I blinked then. Humans had killed my parents? So was I the killer my mother had accused me of being? Were their deaths my fault? Yes, I knew they were my fault. But had I committed their murder's? No, that had been the humans. I suddenly understood why the Tri-moons existed, they existed to protect those too weak to do so.

Hands gripped my fur, but before I could react, I felt Zane in my mind, it was him gripping my fur.

"Val?!"

My ears rang with his shout as I stared at the human below me feeling my hatred for humans grow. Maybe it wouldn't have been such a bad idea. For all nīeten to be able to shift and the humans be enslaved to us.

"No, Val, your wrong," Zane said, yanking my fur to get my attention. "We all deserve to have free will."

What was he saying? That people like this should live? That the people who killed my parents deserved to live?

I turned and snarled at him. He didn't flinch, knowing that I wouldn't actually hurt him. Before I could turn back, his hands gripped my face. It was him, not his strength that kept my head where he held it.

"These people didn't kill your parents, Val, you know that," Zane said softly. "And the Tri-moons exist for their own selfish reasons."

At his words, I remembered what happened. The icy whip. The leader of Tri-moons. Rowan. Then the darkness that lead to my shift.

Zane was right. The Tri-moons didn't exist to protect those weaker. They did exist for their own selfish reasons. I remembered the leader of Tri-moons words about him wanting to breed me.

I snarled at the memory. Looking at the other Claw-Cutter's who were watching Zane and I, I growled at the weapons that were pointed at us both. Moving off the human, I stood to block Zane from the gun's.

"Jack, check on Wes," the female said, keeping her gun trained on me.

A male went over, slowly to Wes who was crab walking away from me as quickly as he could, stopping only when the 4X4 made him do so.

"She okay now?" the female asked.

I cocked my head, what?

"You'll be safer if you leave," Zane replied, making me wonder what I had missed while I'd been thinking. "She's... had a rough few weeks."

"Enough to make her loose her head?" the female scoffed as she called a retreat.

"She lost her mum, and then the Tri-moons kidnapped her..." Zane choked on the end, gripping my fur as though making sure I was still with him. I could feel his mind swim with the want to cuddle me and never let go.

The female paused in her retreat. "The Tri-moons harm their own?"

I snarled, leaping forward, the only thing that stopped me was Zane's light grip. I growled at his want to never be apart from me again, it made me want his hand to never leave my fur, which was the only reason why I stood where I was.

Zane must have caught why I was upset with the female as she jumped back, lifting her gun in reflex. "We aren't theirs and they aren't ours. Most of us don't agree with the Tri-moons."

"Is that so?" she asked lightly, keeping her weary but questioning eyes on me.

"It is," Zane replied, stroking my fur.

I snapped at myself as the urge to purr at his fuss. But I couldn't stop the rumble. My purr was as loud as a ride-on lawn mower as it rumbled out of my throat. People around me jumped, Zane chuckled as moved up to fuss around my head. Stroking my ears, under my chin.

As talking continued around me, I blanked it out, feeling Zane fuss me. Watching for any sudden movements. But at some point, I felt something move within. My human form. Seconds later I felt a tearing sensation. A burning in my flank. Then all I saw was darkness.

   

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