Black Seduction by Lorie O'Clare

hell were they going? Into the mountains? If so,
possibly she could escape in her fur. Racing over the rocks and losing him
would be a hell of a lot easier than outrunning him on flat ground in the
valley.
    Others obviously thought the same thing. In spite of the
dark, and her hair falling over her face, she spotted several drop to all fours
behind her and leap onto the rocks as their torn clothing fell to the ground
around them. There was no way of knowing if they were trying to help rescue her
or assist Devon, knowing she would be more agile on the rocks since she was
smaller and lighter than he was.
    There wasn’t any way to free her hands and move her hair from
her face. She tried until she was sure she would break her own bones if she
continued. But staring into Raul’s determined expression as he raced behind
them, confusion warred with fear inside her. Raul was honor-bound. If anyone
risked being killed, he would fight to save them. No matter who they were. As
much as she wanted to believe he raced to protect her because he cared for her,
doubt still plagued her.
    Devon leapt onto a rock, and she lost sight of Raul. “No,”
she screamed, and then felt air leave her lungs when he jumped again and her
middle crushed down against his shoulder. “Raul,” she cried, although she
doubted anyone heard her.
    A large black shadow leapt over the top of them. Angela
barely noticed it before it flew out of her line of vision. She twisted
furiously, enduring the piercing pain that ransacked her body from the urge to
change and the restriction of Devon’s arm crushing her midsection. Breathing
was almost impossible.
    Devon came to a quick stop, almost throwing her forward. At
the same time Raul slammed into Devon’s backside. Angela felt the pain of the
scream as it wrenched from her throat. Hands were on her, yanking her from
Devon’s arms.
    Devon stumbled forward, cursing loudly. At the same time, a
jaguar screamed its outrage. Angela could barely turn around as she was sprung
free from her human prison.
    “Don’t change until I tell you to,” Raul ordered into her
ear.
    She wasn’t able to meet his gaze. He shoved her into Ran’s
arms and pushed past her, pouncing on Devon so quickly the large man fell hard
into the jaguar in front of him. Skin and fur tangled as rumbling growls and
human screams filled the air.
    They were barely up the mountain, with no clear path, just
rocks jutting out of the earth everywhere. The ground wasn’t even, and on two
legs, keeping balance was distracting if not damn near impossible, especially
when her legs quivered worse than a newborn cub’s.
    Angela lunged forward, forgetting about Ran until he pulled
her back against him. “Stay put,” he whispered in her ear, although his hold on
her wasn’t half as punishing as Devon’s had been. “Everything will be okay. I
promise.”
    She shoved her hair out of her face and gulped in the frigid
night air. It was the first time it dawned on her how cold it was outside. Even
with Ran’s warm body pressed against her backside, it was suddenly so cold that
she shivered uncontrollably.
    Ran wrapped both his arms around her. “Don’t worry. Raul
will be triumphant. He always is when he fights for something that matters to
him. And you matter a lot to him.”
    She shifted, glancing over her shoulder and up at his strong
profile. “Trust me,” he said, not looking down at her.
    She turned her head back to the fight, which grew with
intensity by the minute. Did Ran know what he was talking about? She couldn’t
picture Raul discussing her with his littermates, but they were close. Not
anything like her and Natasha.
    Ran rubbed her arms, and she worried he sensed her unstable
emotions. There was nothing worse than someone viewing her as anything but
strong.
    But emotions poured into the air, angry and violent. It was
hard to say whose emotions were the strongest. Everyone was tense, ready to
drop to all fours if needed. Some already had. And