More Than Pride by Kell, Amber (good books to read for beginners TXT) 📕

“We’ll get him back,” he said instead. Turning to the alpha pair, he asked, “Where did he go?”

Adrian spoke first. “I asked him to investigate some hunters encroaching on my family pack.”

“No!” Chester shouted.

Evin slid an arm around the fragile man. “What’s wrong?”

“The hunters. He can’t go see them. They’re counting on it. They sent me here.”

Evin removed his arm. “What do you mean, they sent you? Are you working for them?” He didn’t understand people who aided the enemy. Why would you help someone whose goal was to eradicate your species?

Talan stood and approached Chester. It took all Evin’s resolve not to step in front of his mate and block the lion’s approach.

“What do you know about these hunters?” Talan asked. 3The lion growl underlying his words sent a shiver of fear down Evin’s back. He didn’t frighten easily but the look in the alpha’s eyes would scare a more stalwart person than himself.

A fine trembling shook Chester’s frame. Evin couldn’t stand it anymore. He placed a supportive hand on Chester’s back, rubbing it soothingly. Chester relaxed into his touch.

After licking his lips and swallowing a few times, he started speaking. “My parents were killed by a rabid dog when I was a young child. For a long time it was just me and my brother, Garfield.”

Evin gave a surprised laugh.

Chester turned towards him. “Yeah, I know, my mother had a wicked sense of humour, and he does look a lot like an orange tabby cat, just not as fat. I hadn’t talked to Garfield for a few years. I travel around and can’t always afford a phone, so I usually call him when I get to someplace stable. Two months ago I called and a stranger answered the phone. He told me my brother was in trouble. I-I went to see him and found out a group of men had taken over his house. They had him in a cat carrier so small he couldn’t change even if he wanted to.”

Rage tore through Evin. No one should be treated that way.

“They told me they had been tracking the lion shifters for a while and figured the best way to catch a shifter is to send in another shifter. Th-they injected me with a poison. They said it would kill me if I didn’t return in a week with everything I can tell them about the lion shifters’ base. To make sure I did what they said, they injected Garfield too. I-I don’t care if I die—my life hasn’t been much anyway—but my brother doesn’t deserve this. He helped raise me. He wasn’t the warm cuddly type but he’s the only family I have left. He told me to r-run.” Tears welled in Chester’s eyes.

“That’s why you wouldn’t let Dillon bite you, isn’t it? You were afraid he’d get poisoned.”

Chester nodded. “Yeah, I couldn’t take the chance.”

“You should’ve told him,” Adrian said, a scowl marring the pretty shifter’s face. “He thinks you’ve denied his claim.”

“No!” Chester shouted. “No. I just wanted to protect him. I didn’t expect to find my mate, much less two of them. I couldn’t infect him.” 3Talan sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “I wonder how long they’ve been trying to get to us. We’ve had some problems lately with People Against Werekin. Do you think they’re part of that organisation? That might have put us on their hit list.”

Chester shrugged. “They didn’t find me worthy of discussing the details. They saw me as a pawn and treated me like that. It could be the same people. I did hear something about a society, but, like I said, they didn’t really talk to me until they shot me full of poison.”

Evin sniffed at Chester. “You don’t smell infected.”

“That doesn’t mean he’s not,” Adrian warned. “If it’s PAW, they used to have an entire lab at their disposal and we don’t know how many more they might have that we don’t know about. They could easily have developed a poison.”

“True,” Talan agreed.

“Dillon might have gone straight into a trap,” Evin snarled. “You can debate my possible poisoning later. Right now we need to go after him and make sure he’s safe. He could’ve been captured and we’d never know it.”

Talan narrowed his eyes. “As Dillon left about two minutes ago, I think, even if he were captured, they wouldn’t have had the chance to do much. I value each member of my pride and I don’t appreciate you behaving as if I were negligent in their care.”

Fear dried the moisture in Evin’s throat. In either form, the alpha lion would have little trouble killing Evin if he tried to protect Chester.

To Evin’s surprise, Adrian pulled a cell phone out of his pocket and dialled with the speaker turned on. A minute later Dillon’s voice came across the line.

“Hello, Adrian.”

Adrian didn’t bother to return the greeting. “Dillon, get back here—your mate is in trouble.” Adrian hung up before Dillon had a chance to respond.

“Do you think he’ll come?” Chester asked.

“Yes, Chester. I’m sure he’ll come,” Adrian said in a gentle voice.

Evin rubbed Chester’s back. How had everything fallen apart so quickly? He’d come to warn of hunters and his brother’s collaboration and had met his mates, only to lose one right away and have the possibility of losing the other one.

A door banged open somewhere in the house. “Adrian!” Dillon’s voice echoed from down the hall. 3Adrian smirked. “In here.”

Dillon came skidding into the room. His frantic gaze swept over Chester and Evin before settling on Adrian. “What’s going on?”

“We’ll let you talk then we’ll decide what to do.” Adrian grabbed Talan’s arm and pulled him out of the room, their pancakes abandoned.

Chester leapt at Dillon. Instinctively, the lion shifter caught him. “What’s wrong?”

“I thought they’d captured you,” Chester sobbed.

Dillon turned a questioning look towards Evin, who stepped in and told him everything Chester had shared with them.

“We need to go and rescue your