"Forget the mates," the quiet one said. "I want a look at those blessed babies." His voice was at odds with his demeanor, the pitch higher than I'd expected.
Both Branson and Aver looked a hair's breadth away from shifting.
"Did I miss the party?" Nash asked. I'd heard his car pull up but didn't want to turn around to acknowledge him. That would've meant taking my eyes off my enemy, and while there was still more of them than there was of us, I couldn't do that.
Three to one weren't the worst odds. But we still couldn't hit first.
Not because I didn't want to. Jeb deserved my fist in his face for how he treated Paul. What he said about Kansas was just confirmation. I shifted, rising to a stand between my cousins as my fingers ached to do violence. I clenched my hands into tight fists.
"It chafes, doesn't it?" Aver said quietly. He didn't sound extremely angry; his words were more conversational than hostile. His eyes were on the quiet one who had mentioned the children. "You're here, listening to another Alpha's orders. Your pack must not think very highly of you."
Nash, Branson, and I exchanged a look, readying for when Aver finally pushed the quiet one over the edge.
"You don't know what you're talking about," the quiet one said. "I asked to come here."
"Sure you did. Asked…" He held out his left hand like he was holding the word in his palm. "Was sent because you're so spineless no one thought you'd have a problem listening to whoever issued you an order." He pretended to hold the rest of what he'd said in his other hand, raising and lowering them as he mimed weighing the two statements. "Means the same, right? The end result is still you, neutered by another Alpha's instruction."
The shifter roared a moment before he swung, his nails pointed as he shifted just enough to make him look like he was stuck between monster and man.
Aver didn't duck. He could have easily. He'd been goading the other man to hit him and was expecting it to happen, but one of us needed to take the punch so we could start kicking ass, and Aver had decided he was the Walker for the job.
The very second the shifter's knuckles collided with Aver's chin, he dove back, stepping out of the way of the remaining momentum. My gaze locked with Jeb's, and I smirked.
Branson had already shifted and had one of the other shifters by the balls. He shook the other man like a toy, making him scream. Finally, the other man shifted, and the two went at it, two wolves fighting for territory. Too bad for our enemies: this land was ours. This home was ours. The people inside the home, every single one of them, belonged to us.
I ducked down, slamming my shoulder into the throat of my nearest attacker. Raising my boot, I kicked one of them in the gut, sending the man flying back into the bushes. That gave me just enough time to check on the other two. Nash was doing dances around three of his attackers while Aver weaved between the rest of them, knocking them out with his fists. It was easy to forget that Aver was more like us than he was like a human. He acted so reserved all the time; I figured that came with hiding his nature. But, in moments like this, when it mattered, Aver stepped up to the plate.
I wasn't worried, not now that the fighting had begun. This was all I'd wanted to do. These shifters had come onto our land and thought we would cower? There was a blur just outside of my vision on the right side, and I spun around with my elbow leading the way. I made contact, slamming the boniest part of my elbow against his windpipe. He dropped, gasping and clawing for his throat, but three more had already taken his place.
"You're making my day." I laughed, sizing up my newest opponents.
In the mayhem, I'd lost sight of Jeb, a fact that only mattered because I was sure he was a sneaky one. He probably hadn't won a clean fight in years, and it was only a matter of time before—
Two thick arms crushed over my chest, violently forcing the air from my body. I didn't need the putrid stench that came from being so close to his breath, but I got it anyway. Jeb squeezed again with all the strength of an anaconda.
My vision blurred, and I let my head droop. Jeb never let up, but I'd never expected him to. I slammed my head back, getting much more power than if I hadn't created as much distance as I had.
Something crunched beneath my skull, and Jeb let go, stumbling back over his feet. He landed hard on his ass while he clutched his bleeding, broken nose. "I'm going to tear your human a new hole," he snarled.
I launched into the air, landing with one knee against his gut. The other was meant for his groin, whatever shriveled bits he called his balls, but he bent his leg, instinctively shielding himself. The air hissed from his mouth all the same, and I bore down, never allowing an inch between us. His face turned red, and I wrapped my hands around his neck, squeezing so he couldn't breathe even if he made enough space to inhale.
His face turned red, then purple. Dimly, I was aware of someone screaming my name, but Jeb's taunt played on repeat. I couldn't stop what I was doing, not until the threat to Kansas was eliminated.
"You're killing him," Nash said, though not in a way that made me seem he was worried for Jeb.
Strong hands grabbed my shoulders, and while I was pretty sure that was Nash too, my wolf and I had other plans, ones that Nash was interrupting. I released Jeb, spinning around with a snarl.
"I understand, brother," Nash said, catching my eyes with his. He held my gaze. "I understand, but you aren't doing Kansas any favors."
I blinked, my refusal to listen to what he said locked and loaded. But, as the moments passed, without Jeb's face in my view, clarity returned. Holy shit, I'd been close to killing him. I still wanted to. "I love Kansas," I whispered. This wasn't the right time. It wasn't the right place, and if any of the other shifters heard me, that could just make things worse, but I'd needed to say as much, out loud.
"I know." Nash clapped my shoulder. "But Nana is here, and she's gonna be pissed if you kill one of the representatives."
Sure enough, Nana was pulling up in her old truck. My mother sat in the passenger seat. She wasn't the only one who'd shown up either. Paul's new car, the one he'd bought after crashing his other one in an attempt to free me, puttered on the side of the road. This one was in worse shape then his first car had been.
Tyrone got out of the passenger seat, staying close to Paul's side.
Branson was the last of us to return to our side of the street. Aver's lip was bleeding, but he wouldn't stop smiling, which only pulled his cut open.
"We could've taken them," he huffed.
I blinked, wondering where my normally cautious, rule-abiding cousin had gone.
"I'm not finished!" Jeb said, having regained his breath. He bounded forward, stopped by Nana's loud, sharp snarl.
"That is enough," she ordered. "Representatives, leave this area. This road does not belong to the pack—"
"It's all their territory," the quiet one retorted. He wasn't so quiet now that his nose was bleeding and his pride hurt. "We have a right to defend—"
"You have no rights," Nana replied, her eyes shining. She faced a shifter larger and stronger than her but showed not an ounce of fear. "You are here by request. This is not your territory to defend."