Marked Northern Shifters 1

over.”
“No, Liam!” cried Alec, while Gabriel shook him and yelled, “ Shut up . I talk, not you. Don’t you remember my instructions? Keep your fucking mouth closed.” Gabriel moved, so one hand pushed up Alec’s chin while the other now held the knife at Alec’s throat. “ I am in charge here.”
“I can tell,” said Alec. His tone, amazingly, was dry, even if there was a tremor in his voice. “You need a knife or shackle or an unconscious man to be in charge.”
Gabriel shook Alec hard, all the while careful to keep the knife’s point close to Alec. Liam was watching for the opportunity to leap and save Alec, and Gabriel didn’t intend to give it to him.
“You think you’re a man?” Gabriel asked Alec, annoyed and wanting to toy with him.
“Why yes, I do.”
“Maybe I should cut off your dick.”
“And that makes you a man?”
Liam could smell the rage rolling off Gabriel who, with a trembling hand, sliced the skin along Alec’s jawline making his victim grunt in pain.
“Do you like that? I can carve you up in front of Liam here and enjoy doing it. Did you know I used to bring Liam here when he was a teenager?”
Alec’s voice was thick now, with shock and anger. “It takes a big man to beat the shit out of a skinny teenaged boy. Well done. You must have been awfully proud of yourself.” Alec winced, a high, painful sound escaping, as Gabriel sliced his cheek.
“Keep that up and you’ll lose an eye.”
“Oh, I want to lose an eye, Gabriel. You make the most generous offers.”
And Liam, slow on the uptake, frozen by bloodlust and fear and fury, and worst of all indecision, realized then that Alec was trying to distract Gabriel from Liam, was trying to sacrifice himself for Liam, goading Gabriel into killing him.
“Be the big bully, Gabriel, blind me. People will think you’re so brave.”
As he lost focus, Gabriel let loose a furious growl, and opened a window of opportunity by lifting the knife away from Alec before it plunged into Alec’s eye. Liam leapt, using all his strength, all his energy for this one, final, necessary act. Before the knife reached Alec, Gabriel’s survival instincts kicked in and he was turning towards Liam, trying to save himself rather than killing Alec. Gabriel had always wanted to save himself. But it was too late. Liam ignored the knife entering him as his jaws reached for Gabriel’s throat and ripped the skin and cartilage open to taste the blood of his former alpha.
Sinking to the ground on top of his prey, Liam drank in Gabriel, drinking in the awful, terrible blood that might also save him. Because Gabriel had aimed for the heart, and he hadn’t missed.
Chapter Fifteen
    Alec dropped to his knees and sank his fingers into Liam’s bloody white fur. “Liam? Liam .”
The fur seemed to be moving, retreating. Alec looked at the wolf’s head. That, too, was changing shape, shifting. He withdrew his hands, fearing they might somehow impede the shift. He recalled enough to know that shifting aided healing, though this knife in Liam’s chest and the blood seeping out of the wound alarmed Alec. He wiped blood out of his eyes.
Too much blood. He took his gaze off the forming and reforming body. Liam had said he shifted quickly and Alec hoped it was the case. Alec glanced over at Gabriel and, to his horror, he saw the same process beginning, in the opposite direction. The man’s torn throat was closing, his clothes were ripping and dark fur had begun to grow on skin.
Alec hugged himself. He didn’t want to pull the knife out of Liam’s body and cause more damage. He didn’t even know if he could stab Gabriel and then stab him again, while the werewolf kept trying to heal himself. Pulling in a long, shaky breath, Alec looked skyward.
“Liam,” he pleaded. “Tell me what to do.”
“Leave him be and he should be all right.”
Alec jerked to standing and almost fell over. Trey, who had seemed to materialize out of nowhere, reached out to steady him while Alec stared, caught in his mesmerizing gaze. It took him a moment to realize Trey held a gun in the other hand, though it was not pointed at him. Trey aimed for Gabriel.
“It is time for Gabriel to leave us.” Trey sounded oddly formal as he cocked the gun. But he didn’t pull the trigger. Instead, the large man’s hand began to shake and Alec remembered that Gabriel was his younger brother.
“Can you do it?” asked Alec, stepping forward. It had to be done.
“There’s not much time.