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pain. Fuck it hurt. Liam had never managed to get himself shot with a
silver bullet, and he had to say he didn t enjoy the experience.
Thankfully, his hold on the guy made it so that the bullet didn t hit
anything vital. Instead, the shot affected Liam s hind leg.
The Wolf Who Hatched an Egg 111
Liam would have tried to continue his attack, but he became
aware of all the other swans around him. In his mind, he felt Shiloh s
panicked cries. Liam, get out of there. Oh, God, Liam& Run.
Liam wasn t above doing just that. He pushed off the swan and
slowly backed away, trying to keep hold of his senses. The silver
already burned through him, and, surrounded, he didn t have much
chance to escape.
Surprisingly, the swans didn t seem to be focused on him. An
older man approached them, glowering at Liam s attacker. Jesus
Christ, he said. Have you lost your mind, Charles?
Shiloh was getting away, the man called Charles answered.
And besides, we still got the wolf.
You only got him because he fought for Shiloh, the man
answered coolly. Now, Charles, I never trusted your words too much
in the first place, but now, I m beginning to doubt them even more.
You can t be serious. Charles let out a sound of disbelief. That
egg is mine and Shiloh stole it.
A woman appeared by the older swan s side. And yet, you shot
at the vehicle carrying it, endangering both the egg and Shiloh. Even
if Shiloh did take the egg, we don t appreciate having him hurt. He is
our son, after all, and you agreed to leave him be.
So the man and the woman were Shiloh s parents, then. It was
somewhat comforting to see they at least cared about Shiloh.
Liam took advantage of the distraction and began to slowly back
away. Charles must have sensed his motion, though, as he reached for
his gun. Before he could point it at Liam again, though, Shiloh s
mother pulled it away from his grasp. I don t think so. I said it
before. No guns.
Charles gritted his teeth in obvious anger. What do we do about
the wolf, then? he said.
For a few moments, the woman turned toward Liam. Her gaze
looked familiar, and Liam saw Shiloh in her. He wished he knew
what she was thinking.
112 Scarlet Hyacinth
Then, the woman broke eye contact and went around Charles. The
motion blocked Charles s body from sight, and Liam would ve bet
money the man couldn t see him either. As he looked around, he
realized everyone was studiously looking at the talking swans. Some
of the gathered men discreetly stepped forward, allowing him to pass.
What the fuck?
Get out of there, Liam, Shiloh said. He sounded a bit calmer,
but still afraid. Us swans respect matings, and they must have
realized there s no way you could have done what you did if you
weren t my mate. Go before they change their minds.
Liam didn t wait to be told twice. His leg hurt like hell and he was
bleeding heavily, but his connection with Shiloh seemed to be feeding
him strength. He took off, following the feel of his mate in the
distance.
Somehow, he knew Shiloh waited for him. He hated the risks his
mate was taking, but asking Shiloh to back down would be useless,
and it could only lead them to a worse situation. If the swans caught
Liam, they could use him against Shiloh. Liam would avoid that, even
if it cost him his very life.
Don t even think that, Liam. Shiloh s voice came through their
connection. I m driving your way. Meet me at the coffee shop on the
corner of the block.
Liam focused every ounce of strength he had on his destination.
Moving would cause the silver to affect him even more, but the swans
could change their minds any minute now. As much as Liam hated
running away from a fight, he knew how to pick his battles.
The coffee shop wasn t too far. In fact, in normal circumstances,
he could have gotten there in minutes without breaking a sweat. In the
current situation, he didn t even succeed in reaching it. Of course, it
didn t help that he was essentially a huge-ass wolf wandering in plain
sight in the middle of LA. He had no idea how the swans would cover
this up, but right then and there, he couldn t bring himself to care.
The Wolf Who Hatched an Egg 113
His mate came to him, meeting him halfway to the coffee shop.
Liam limped to the car and Shiloh hastily helped him inside in quick,
efficient motions. He was trying to be brave, Liam realized, and he
felt so very proud of his mate.
Hang in there, Liam, Shiloh said. I ll get us help.
Shiloh started the car again, and Liam focused on the sound of his
mate s voice to keep himself from losing consciousness. Don t
worry, Liam, Shiloh continued. Nico will give us a hand and I m
sure Skylar will know what to do.
Liam wanted to be as confident as his mate, but with a silver
bullet lodged in his flesh, it wasn t easy. Still, he surmised it could
have been much worse. His mate or the egg might have been injured.
Liam could deal with his own physical pain, but he didn t think he d
be able to stand it if anything happened to his family.
Lying on the backseat of their car, he didn t register everything
Shiloh was saying. He distantly acknowledged the fact that they
didn t seem to have been followed, thank God. Even so, Shiloh was as
tense as a bowstring, and Liam could see how much it tore him up to
have to choose between going faster and risking the egg and keeping
a more sedate speed and chancing Liam s health.
In the end, they reached Nicolas s house without further incident.
The hummingbird lived over his own store, a very convenient thing,
especially since it wasn t too far by LA standards. Nicolas ran toward
them as Shiloh parked the car. What s the matter, Shiloh? he asked.
Liam couldn t be sure how Nicolas had guessed something was
wrong, but Shiloh must look pretty anxious right about now. We
were attacked, Shiloh said. He stopped the vehicle and took the egg.
Liam s hurt. Silver.
Nicolas cursed under his breath. Okay, let s get him and the egg
inside.
Shiloh opened the back door and reached for Liam. Liam forced
his tired muscles to obey and crawled out of the car. Don t strain
yourself, Shiloh whispered in his mind.
114 Scarlet Hyacinth
I ll be fine. I just need to get this bullet out.
Shiloh led him into Nicolas s music store-library and upstairs to
the apartment. Have you called Dani? Liam heard Nicolas ask. We
need all the help we can get.
I didn t get the chance to call anyone, really, Shiloh answered as
he helped Liam onto a bed. Nico, they most likely know where I
work. They ll come for me here.
Okay, let s not worry about that for now. I ll deal with the bullet.
You take care of the egg and call Dani.
And Skylar, Liam added mentally. And contact the pack.
They ll help.
Will they? Shiloh inquired. He sounded doubtful.
It can t hurt trying anyway. At most, they would refuse, but
Liam doubted it.
All right, Shiloh replied hastily. Just stay put. Nico will help
you out.
Trusting his shot ass to a hummingbird hadn t been on Liam s
bucket list, but he couldn t exactly protest. He just lay there, forcing
himself to struggle against the burn. For a little while, it actually
worked, but then the odd flame began to fade, and so did Liam s
consciousness. Liam sent Shiloh a brief surge of affection and
surrendered to the darkness.
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