Chapter 124

Darren

My world shattered when Aria’s hand was ripped from mine.

“Aria!” I shouted, my voice cutting through the din. But there was no response, no sign of her in the sea of panicked faces.

I cursed under my breath, shouting her name through the mate bond as I whirled to catch a glimpse of her. People jostled me as they ran, gunshots echoing through the hall.

“Aria!”

No response.

Dammit.

I should have hired more security. I should have anticipated something like this. The protesters outside had been growing in number all night, their shouts and jeers growing louder and more aggressive. But I hadn’t expected them to storm the event, and certainly hadn’t expected them to be armed.

Who had armed them? Who had rallied them to do something like this?

The questions burned in my mind, but there was no time to think. I had to find Aria. My mate.

I pushed through the crowd, my wolf surging to the surface as I scanned the room for any sign of her. My senses were heightened, every sound, every scent amplified as I searched desperately for her. But the chaos was too much—too many bodies, too much noise, too much fear scenting the air. I couldn’t even pick up her distinct scent with so much going on around me.

“Darren!”

I turned at the sound of my name, relief flooding through me as I saw Liam fighting his way toward me.

“We need to find the leader,” he said, grabbing my arm. “If we can take him down, the rest will scatter.”

“Do you see him?”

Liam’s eyes scanned the room in search of the source of the chaos. Then he pointed toward a man near the entrance, his gun pointed at the ceiling as he rang off more shots. Thankfully, he wasn’t shooting anyone—clearly just trying to instill fear.

But it was working. And if anyone was the leader of the protesters, it had to be him.

Liam and I didn’t hesitate.

The two of us moved as one, our bodies cutting through the panicked crowd like butter. A few protesters tried to jump in our way, swinging bats and other forms of makeshift weapons like animals.

“Monsters!” they cried. “Go back to where you belong!”

I grabbed the first man who lunged at me, my claws digging into his arm as I twisted it behind his back. He cried out in pain, dropping his weapon in an instant as I shoved him to the ground. Liam was beside me, disarming another protester with a sharp kick to the chest.

All the while, I kept my eyes scanning the crowd for any sign of Aria as we fought our way toward the leader. I still couldn’t see her, but I could finally sense her presence through the mate bond; she was alive, and unharmed. Just scared, although her fear scent was mixed with all the others in this room.

If it hadn’t been for the man with the gun, I might have sent Liam off to find the leader while I searched for Aria. But there was no time. We had to disarm the guy before he hurt someone. Or worse, killed someone. Aria would understand.

Finally, Liam and I got a clear shot at the man and charged him together. His eyes widened, his gun aiming toward us, but he was too slow. A human’s speed was no match for our own.

Within an instant, I had lunged through the air and knocked the gun from his hand, sending it skittering across the ground. He stumbled backwards, but Liam was on him in an instant, pinning him belly-first to the floor with his hands behind his back.

“Who sent you?” I snarled, dropping to one knee beside the man. I needed a good look at his face. I wanted to commit every facet of the bastard’s appearance to memory.

“No one,” he hissed through clenched teeth, and spat on the floor. “I organized this on my own. All you monsters deserve to die.”

“He’s lying,” Liam growled, his eyes glowing fiercely as he glanced at me. “There’s no way this fucker organized this by himself.”

I was inclined to believe my Beta, and knew that this man had information that he wasn’t going to give out willingly. But before I could say another word, the crowd around us began to part, the protesters scattering as they realized their leader had been subdued.

And then I saw her.

Aria.

She was rushing toward me, her face drawn and pale and her dress torn as she pushed her way through the crowd. But she was alive, and unharmed, from the looks of things. My heart leapt at the sight of her, relief flooding through me as I stood.

“Aria!” I called out. I closed the distance between us, reaching for her.

She reached me a moment later, her hands trembling as she cupped my face. “Are you hurt?” she asked by way of greeting.

I shook my head, my hands moving to her waist as I pulled her close. “No. Are you?”

She shook her head, but there was fear in her eyes—fear and dread as she looked around at the devastation. The event space was in ruins, tables overturned, glasses shattered on the floor, and the guests were cowering in the corners.

This was supposed to be a night of peace. We were supposed to give speeches about unity and understanding, about bridging the gap between humans and werewolves. But now… now it was nothing short of a nightmare.

Aria, as if sensing my thoughts, suddenly pulled away and turned to face the frightened guests. The security officers on staff had managed to subdue the remaining protesters, the ones who hadn’t escaped into the night.

Thank the Goddess, no one appeared to be hurt—just terrified.

But they weren’t just afraid of the protesters, I realized as I saw their gazes darting to Liam, whose eyes were still glowing with rage as he pressed the protesters’ leader into the floor. A buzz in my skull reminded me that my own were glowing as well, and my claws were extended.

Monsters.

Aria’s breath hitched as she glanced at me, and I quickly retracted my claws and forced my eyes into a mask of calm. But the damage had been done.

Taking a deep breath, Aria opened her mouth to speak. “Everyone, you’re going to be alright,” she called out, raising her hands in a placating gesture. “I know you’re afraid, but…”

As she spoke, my eyes caught something on the ground. Or rather, the lack of something.

My stomach dropped. The gun. It was gone.

I knew, in an instant, that I had to get Aria out of here. Someone had taken the gun that I had been too careless to pick up, and for all I knew, it was trained on us.

“Aria—” I reached for her, her back turned to me as she addressed the frightened crowd.

But before I could reach her, the sound of the gunshot rang out.

The room erupted into chaos once more, the crowd screaming as they scrambled for cover. I lunged for Aria, knocking her to the floor so hard that the breath left her lungs. Her green eyes were wide as she looked up at me.

And then I saw it.

Aria’s hand flew to her cheek, her eyes wide with shock as a thin line of blood appeared on her delicate skin. We both turned our heads to look.

The bullet had grazed her, just barely missing her face. And it had embedded itself in the wall behind her.