Adrian shot to his feet so violently that his chair toppled backward, crashing to the floor with enough force to make every patron in the shop turn and stare. His eyes blazed gold as his tiger instincts flooded his system, primal fury roaring through his veins.
"Riley's in danger," he said, his voice carrying an edge that made Morris and the other council members immediately straighten. "I have to go. Now."
"Adrian, wait—" Terrance started, but Adrian was already moving.
"Be careful," Morris called after him, but Adrian barely heard the words.
His mate was in danger. Nothing else mattered.
He burst through the coffee shop door and immediately pulled out his phone, speed-dialing Mark as he strode toward the alley behind the building. His younger brother answered on the first ring.
"Mark, I need you to gather some pride members and start hunting," Adrian said without preamble, his voice deadly calm despite the rage burning through him. "Darius has Riley and her mother. He's probably taking them somewhere remote on pride territory—away from public eyes."
"What?" Mark breathed. "How do you know?"
"The mate bond. She's terrified, Mark." Adrian ducked into the narrow alley, already pulling off his shirt with sharp, efficient movements. "I'm shifting. I can cover ground faster that way than driving."
"Smart thinking. We'll spread out now and search every cabin and every hideout we know about."
Adrian ended the call and stripped completely, his clothes hitting the concrete without ceremony. The shift came easy—bones elongating, muscles expanding, and auburn hair givingway to burnt orange fur marked with thick black stripes. Within seconds, a massive tiger stood where Adrian had been, blue eyes rimmed with molten gold and burning with lethal purpose.
He moved through the city's shadows with predatory silence, avoiding main streets and keeping to alleys and abandoned lots until he reached the outskirts. Once he hit the tree line, Adrian unleashed his full speed, powerful muscles propelling him through the forest at a pace that would have been impossible in human form.
The wind whipped through his fur as he raced deeper into pride territory, following instincts and scent trails that would lead him to his mate. Every stride was driven by the echo of Riley's terror still pulsing through their bond, fueling his fury until his tiger was a barely contained force of vengeance.
Then her voice came again, clearer this time.
Deep in the woods. Some kind of shed. Can smell pine and old tools.
Adrian's massive paws dug into the earth as he changed direction, his mind immediately calculating possibilities. Pine trees and old tools meant they were far from the main pride areas, probably in one of the more remote areas where pride members kept hunting cabins and storage buildings.
Then it hit him—Darius's family cabin. The bastard's grandfather had built it decades ago as a hunting retreat, tucked deep in the forest where sound wouldn't carry and privacy was guaranteed. It was exactly the kind of place someone would take hostages if they wanted to avoid detection.
Adrian reached out through the brother bond he shared with Mark, his thoughts cutting through the distance between them with razor precision.
Head toward Darius's family cabin. That's where they are.
Mark's response came immediately.We'll meet you there.
Adrian pushed harder, his tiger form eating up the miles with relentless determination. The forest blurred past him as he sent another message, this time through the mate bond to Riley.
I'm coming for you. Hold on.
The faint echo of her relief and fierce determination came back to him, and Adrian felt his lips pull back in a snarl that would have terrified any human who saw it. Darius had made the fatal mistake of threatening what belonged to him. The bastard had no idea what kind of fury he'd just unleashed, but he was about to find out.
Adrian's powerful legs drove him forward with renewed speed, his mind already calculating the most efficient ways to tear Darius apart when he reached that cabin. If that psychotic bastard had laid even one finger on Riley or her mother, there wouldn't be enough left of him to identify afterward.
The scent of fear and Riley guided Adrian as his massive tiger form bounded through the forest, his powerful muscles coiling with deadly intent beneath his burnt orange coat. The cabin soon emerged through the trees—weathered logs and a wraparound porch that had seen decades of Darius's family hunts. But Adrian's piercing blue eyes immediately locked onto the small shed behind the cabin.
The door hung open like a gaping wound.
His heart nearly stopped. The metallic tang of panic flooded his senses, his tiger instincts screaming that he was too late. But then Riley's fierce determination pulsed through their mate bond—not defeat, but defiance. Whatever was happening inside that cabin, his mate was fighting back with everything she had.
She's alive. She's fighting.
The thought steadied him just as rustling emerged from the treeline. Mark's familiar scent reached him first, followed by three other pride members—all in their magnificent tiger forms, their eyes glowing with shared purpose. Adrian's gaze met hisbrother's, and without words, he projected his tactical plan through their bond.
Create a diversion at the front. Take out Darius's men. Leave him for me.