Melody Snow Monroe Read Online Free PDF Page A

and pulled her upright. Only then did she hear the growls. The hair prickled on her arms as her imagination ran wild. Growls meant wild animals. Shit . It made sense. They were in the woods. There was no telling what lived here.
    He stepped in front of her as if they were about to be attacked and he wanted to protect her. Her legs nearly gave way, but she inhaled to keep her wits about her.
    Leaves rustled and several wolves emerged, their eyes nearly glowing. Her heart practically burst out of her chest. “Holy shit, holy shit.”
    “Shh.” Taryn stepped toward the wild beasts and held out his arms. “Don’t move or saying anything. Above all, don’t scream.”
    She had no intention of moving. Screaming was another matter. Something flashed behind her, but she didn’t dare take her gaze off the vicious-looking animals. They bared their teeth and all she could think of was what the psychic had told her about being in danger. Well, she didn’t need a psychic to interpret that image. Right now terrorists might be easier to deal with.
    Out of the corner of her eye, she caught sight of something brown moving closer to the pack. More wolves materialized in front of Taryn and she knew that it was only a matter of minutes or seconds before all three of them would be mauled to death. Her breaths came out fast and sweat dampened her armpits. She wanted to run, but if she got too far away from Taryn and Kellum, one of the wolves would chase after her. She’d be dead for sure.
    “What are you going to do?” Her voice cracked. So far, none of the animals had gone on the offensive.
    “We’re in their territory.”
    She wasn’t sure what that meant but now wasn’t the time to question him. “Then why did we come here?” Surely it wasn’t just to satisfy her need to see a waterfall.
    Neither man answered. The large wolf who appeared to be the leader crouched low. She inhaled to still the panic. Tears blurred her vision. This wasn’t happening. She shouldn’t have gone off on her own. If she and Krista had stayed together, they could have headed down the mountain the moment she fell ill.
    The wolves growled in unison. Then the worst imaginable thing happened. The teeth-baring wolf launched himself into the air, and a huge ball of light blocked her view. The flash lasted only a second. From nowhere two huge mountain lions appeared.
    I’m fucked .
    “Taryn? Kellum?” she yelled. Where the hell had they gone?
    One minute they were standing with her and the next two mountain lions were hopefully saving her from sure death.
    Should she run or get down on her knees and cover the back of her neck like she’d been taught in case of a bear attack? Her head pounded and tears streamed down her face. Her throat clogged and pain squeezed her head so tight her vision went black for a brief moment. Her legs gave way and she collapsed onto the ground.
    The growls intensified, forcing her to look. The lions and wolves met in midair. Animal shrieks tore through the air as the remaining two wolves joined the fray. Crab-walking, she pedaled her feet, frantically trying to get away. Her screams matched the cries of the beasts. The mountain lions each grabbed a wolf by the neck and tossed him aside. Her heart lurched. The discarded animals lay still. She kept her gaze on those two in case they weren’t dead and came after her.
    When they didn’t move, she stared in horror as the remaining four wolves attacked the lions, biting them on their flanks and scratching their legs. Blood squirted into the air. Dear Lord in Heaven.
    She wanted to move, but her muscles had locked. Her gaze refused to leave the massacre. The lions twisted and turned, kicking and biting to dislodge the smaller offenders. Each pulled off the wolves from the other lion. Bones crunched, and howls rent the air. Her heart lodged in her throat as bile raced to her mouth.
    And then everything went still. Except for the heavy panting of the lions, death lay quiet all around