"Tessa, damn it!" Harold barked as he slid to a stop behind her. "Your ex-husband is out there. You cannot let him see you or the bear."

Drake is out there!

It didn't matter. She was going to kill Bradley now that she had the beast inside her, and the beast wanted that male's blood for coming on their lands. The fact that her mate was out there just sealed the deal. She was going out to confront him. She wanted to see the look on Bradley's face when he came face to face with a grizzly bear.

I hope he pisses himself.

She didn't know how to shift back to her human form to tell Harold to open the door, because she didn't want to destroy another one. As she prowled toward the front of the house, Harold cursed but came around her to stand in front of the door. The bear didn't want to hurt him, but she would take a swipe at him if he didn't move.

"I'll let you out, but don't you fucking get hurt," he snarled, then opened the door.

The moment the door opened, Tessa's bear scented her mate. A gunshot rang off to her left, just inside the woods, and she took off at a dead run.

As she rounded the side of the house, she saw Drake drop to his knees as he held his chest. She could see his eyes glowing from fifty yards away. Tessa's heart shattered at the sight, and her bear roared as it ran faster, panting and tasting Bradley's blood on its tongue.

When Bradley came into view, Tessa's human side gritted her teeth. She wanted to rip him to shreds. Her true mate was on the ground, bleeding from a shotgun wound. The pain of her change was nothing compared to what she was feeling now.

"Tessa!" Bradley called out. He still didn't see her coming, because he was too focused on Drake's body as it lay on the ground. "Where are you?"

Right here, motherfucker!

Bradley's head turned to the left, his eyes going wide as saucers. Her eyes were locked on his as he realized a bear was coming for him at full speed. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw movement, but didn't look to see who, or what, it was. All she wanted was Bradley's life.

A roar split the night as a flash of brown filled the space between Tessa and Bradley. The scent of blood in the air doubled as Drake's bear landed on Bradley, taking him to the ground by the throat.

"Tessa! Get out of here!" Rex yelled from behind her. She looked over her shoulder and saw the two brothers running for them. Gunner was already throwing his clothes off as he began to shift. Within seconds, another bear ran past her, stopping a few feet from Drake. "Come on, Tessa. This is Drake's right as your mate."

She wanted to scream at them. She wanted to push Drake out of the way. He'd been shot!

"He's fine," Rex promised, and stood in front of her. "You don't want to see this. Go inside."

Her beast panted and small growls sounded from somewhere deep inside the bear. Drake was hers, and she'd be damned if he took Bradley out without her there.

With one swipe of her paw, she pushed Rex out of the way. He yelled for her to stop, but she took off at a dead run, ducking her head to push Drake off of her ex-husband. It took one look at her to make Bradley scream out in fear.

His throat was already bleeding, the scent was like ambrosia on the air. The man lying on the ground had tormented her for years. Seeing him in the same position she'd been in several times was the biggest gift karma could've ever delivered.

"Tessa!" Drake's human voice echoed off the trees. Her name was a command in the air, and she looked up at him as he marched toward them. He was stark naked, covered in sweat, and his eyes still glowed with the anger of his beast. "Kill him, or I will."

"Yeah, you stupid bitch, kill me," Bradley snarled from the ground as he held his throat. Blood seeped through his fingers, assuring Drake had already broken his prey's skin. "So, you're a fucking shifter? Ha! You're better off with these idiots. Maybe they can get some use out of you."

"You son of a bitch!" Drake roared as he shifted again, pushing Tessa away as her true mate took him by the throat again.

The sound of Bradley's air leaving his body was softer, less morbid than it should've been when Drake ripped out his throat with his fangs. Tessa's bear backed away when Drake's bear turned for her. He had blood all over his snout, but it didn't seem to bother him. He just prowled toward her as if she was his next victim.

Please, let me be a human.

The thought was followed by a tingling in her spine. Tessa's bear eased itself to the ground, resting on its belly, and the shift began, returning her to her human self. The bear in her mind slinked away and quieted, content with the kill her mate had made to protect her.

"Drake?" she whispered as soon as her human voice returned. She didn't care that she was naked. She didn't care that Rex and Gunner were watching them. The only thing Tessa wanted was for Drake to shift to his human body and take her away from Bradley. "It's over. It's over. It's over."

Tessa covered her face with her hands as the tears fell from her eyes. Bradley was dead and she was free. She was finally free from running and worrying for her life. Warm hands wrapped around her body and lifted her from the ground. She knew immediately it was Drake, but she didn't uncover her face. There was no need. Her new senses could tell it was him.

"Shh, I've got you," he whispered against her hair.