Snippet Saturday – Dark Moment
Mar
13
2010

How about a scene from Standoff?

CASCADIA WOLVES: STANDOFF by LAUREN DANE
Copyright 2008
Al Rights Reserved, Samhain Publishing

Lex paced at the private airfield. Anxiety rode his nerves and he wasn’t sure what it was. His people had gone over the field an hour before and all was clear. It was probably Nina. She’d been pissed off that he’d made her stay back at the house. Could be his brother too. Cade was livid but Lex had refused to let his brother come to get Grace. Two Alphas at the airfield in a time of war? Absurd. And there was the little fact of hello, Lex Warden, big bad Enforcer?

“Megan, you there?” he asked into the wrist mic.

“I’m here.” He’d stationed her at the other end of the field to keep an eye on things. She had a good eye, one of the very few people he trusted totally.

“Something feel off to you?”

“Yes. But I’ve checked in with everyone and so far so good. I’m sure it’s just the stress of not hearing back from Tee yet.”

The control tower let them know the plane would be landing momentarily and they moved back as the sleek, small jet taxied down the runway and came to a halt.

He saw Dave come down the steps followed by Jack and then a glimpse of Grace and Hiroshi after her. Breathing sigh of relief, he motioned to have the car brought close and walked to greet them.

He wasn’t able to stop his grin at the sight of his sister-in-law. So serious, intellectual and compassionate, but she had a quirky sense of humor and God knew she adored Cade and she kept Nina in line, which he had to admire in a big way.

“Okay, everyone can let me go now.” She tried to get around them to move toward the car but looked up to see Lex and smiled. “Hey, any news?”

He put an arm around her and kissed the top of her head. “Nothing. But they had to plan and get ready. Lots of humans in the area so they’re probably just watching and waiting for dark.”

He opened the door and that’s when he heard it.

Jack had too and shoved her down, landing on top of her. A helicopter had dropped three wolves carrying automatic weapons onto the tarmac and as they ran toward the car, they shot.

“Get her in the car, now!” Lex screamed and Jack moved faster than any wolf Lex had ever seen. In one deft toss, Grace landed in the car and Jack slammed the door, staying just outside.

Megan came running and in a moment of utter unreality, Lex watched a bloom of red cover her chest. She looked down and then fell. Lex transformed and charged their attackers as his own people came from all corners of the airfield, shooting, growling, transforming.

“Oh my God!” Grace shoved at Jack to get out but he held her there as she watched Megan get shot. She realized it was their normal car and she rifled under the seat until she found her traveling bag, just a basic medical bag but she thanked the heavens she’d been compulsive enough to carry it everywhere before going out the other door and running around the back of the car toward Megan.

Dave saw her and moved to grab her as Jack growled her name and charged. But she was an Alpha, damn it, she was fast and powerful and she would not let anyone but her brother’s people die out there that day. She jumped around Dave who knocked into the last standing attacker. The wet sounds of teeth meeting flesh and strangled cries sounded in her ears right as the white-hot pain of a bullet ripped through her chest.

But she kept moving until she reached Megan.

“Megan, honey, you have to change. You have to. I can’t help you. Not like this.”

She leaned down and spoke in her sister-in-law’s ear. “The wound is too much. You can’t heal as a human. Come on, I order you to change, damn it. Bring your wolf, Megan. Come on!”

Her fingers were slick with blood as she grabbed Megan to hold her close. She realized it was her own as her left arm began to go numb.

“Grace! Fuck, fuck. You’ve been shot. Damn it, why didn’t you stay put?” Jack reached her and fell to his knees. “Come on. Come on, let’s get out of here.”

She turned to him and snarled. “I’m not going anyfuckingwhere! This is my sister, she’s my wolf and she has to change or she will die. You will help me bring her wolf and you’ll do it now. LEX!” she screamed and Lex approached, naked from his shift back to human form. Grief on his face when he saw Megan.

“Shit, Grace, you’re… No, not both of you. Get in the car or I will put you in the trunk.”

“We’re wasting time! Bring her wolf! She can be healed if we bring her wolf. NOW. Damn it, now.”

And the whip crack of authority in her voice finally made them hear her. Both men looked to Megan who barely breathed and began to chant at her, put their hands on her, ordered her wolf to emerge.

And then in a shower of power, weak and warm but there nonetheless, Megan found
her wolf.

“Get her into the car and back to the house now.” Grace stood and fell to her knees.

“Hospital.” Jack picked her up and Lex his sister and they jumped into the car.

“No. Not the hospital. They’ll have to make a police report. We can’t risk any more exposure. Take me home. I have medical supplies there, I’ve stored them just in case. Let me transform once I know Megan is all right. For now…” she paused as more blood pulsed from the wound just inches above her heart, “…the bullet passed through. Silver.

Tear strips from your shirt and pack the wound. I’m losing blood.” The Pack doctor had headed to the haven as there were several pregnant women who needed her care. Grace had to stay human until she knew all was well.

Dave drove the car faster than was totally safe but Hiroshi kept an eye out for anyone following and called ahead to the house.

Grace slumped back into Jack, feeling his anxiety and worry for her. “Grace, you have to be all right. Change now.”

She shook her head. “Can’t. If I do, I may be too weak to change right back. If Megan needs me…”

She lapsed in and out of consciousness. A normal bullet and her metabolism would already be healing but the silver, even just passing through was poisoning her, impeding healing.

“Cade is going to rip my head off.” Lex brushed the hair away from her face. “You were hell on wheels out there today, Grace. You saved Megan’s life. But if you ever disobey like that again, I’m gonna kick that tiny little ass.”

“And whose army?”

“You shouldn’t let her hang around Nina so much,” Dave called from the front seat.

“We’re here. Hold on, they’re opening the gates for us now.”

“Megan on the low table in the living room. Bring my supplies.” Grace had to do that one last thing and then she could transform.

She heard Hiroshi relay the order and allowed herself to rest again. It began to hurt to breathe and she figured there was internal bleeding to deal with as well.

They skidded to a stop and the doors yanked open. Cade. The scent of Cade rushed through her system as Jack got out, still holding her.

“What the fuck? Whose blood is that?” Cade demanded in the background. They apparently hadn’t told him, which was wise. Hiroshi began to explain as Jack followed Lex and took them into the living room. She heard Cade’s bellow of anger in the background.

People rushed around Megan but Grace pushed them back until she could ascertain Megan was all right. Her breathing was normal as was her blood pressure. Grace turned in slow motion to see Cade, throwing aside the wolves who’d been trying to hold him back while she did her check. She coughed and wiped a hand over her lips, staining her skin scarlet. Lovely.

“Okay,” she whispered and fell to her knees. Cade surrounded her, crying out her name as she let her wolf take over.

Be sure to stop in to visit today’s other Snippeters!
Emma Petersen
TJ Michaels
Ashley Ladd
Lissa Matthews
McKenna Jeffries
Eliza Gayle
Mari Carr
Elisabeth Naughton
Juliana Stone
Lauren Dane
Shelley Munro
Taige Crenshaw

2 comments to “Snippet Saturday – Dark Moment”

  1. Lori
    March 13th, 2010 at 6:18 pm · Link

    Loved this! Great book.



  2. Mary
    March 13th, 2010 at 7:55 pm · Link

    I love Cade and his mate needed to be deserving of him. Grace more than deserved him she earned him. I am going to have to get my copy of this book off my keeper shelf to read again. Thanks Lauren for such a great series and so many wonderful books.