Page 9 of Hellhounds Never Lie

I rubbed my chest again, this time to calm the panic seizing my heart.

Screams ofrun, run, runanddanger, danger, dangerandoh fuckroared through my head. My every instinct begged me to leave the beasts in the trees far, far behind.

Except I couldn't leave without the hellhound. That was the whole point of being out here.

The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end as I forced the truck to slow even more. I was nearly at the place where, based on their trajectory, I expected the hellhound to break free of the trees. I swiped the back of my hand over my mouth. The ball of fiery light around the creature grew brighter and bigger the nearer it came.

Shit. The thing was huge.

Then they burst onto the road. I slammed on the brakes and fumbled to open my door. I managed to get it open, then I leaned out the door with one hand on the steering wheel and one foot on the brake. No way was I stepping out of the cab. I wasn’t putting the truck in Park either.

I refused to leave the safety of my only means of escape.

"Get in," I shouted. I sent my free hand flailing through the air in what was supposed to be a come here motion but probably made me look like I was having a seizure. "Hurry. Get in."

The wolves, who were too damn close for my comfort, cried out, warning me away, but the hellhound merely swung their head to look at me. The creature's eyes shone in the dark like glowing embers. Golden fire flowed over their massive back, licking wildly along their glistening, midnight black fur. A blaze of luminous oranges and reds curled around their enormous black claws, which protruded from even larger black paws. I gulped. When the beast snorted in response, flames erupted from their mouth and nostrils in a glow of white-blue. Even from this distance I could feel the blast of heat.

"Please. They're coming." I felt breathless. If I hyperventilated and passed out…

It was probably better not to think about what would happen.

Already the shadows under the trees were undulating with movement. The wolves were almost upon us. Fuck it. If the hellhound didn't want help, I wasn't sticking around to die with them. I fell back into the driver's seat and slammed my door closed.

In a blur of movement, the hellhound shifted into a muscular titan of a man dressed in faded jeans and a tight black T-shirt. His short brown hair had a bit of a wave to it that seemed at odds with the sharp angles of his face. The duffle bag he'd been carrying in his mouth dropped and he caught it in his big meaty hand before it hit the ground.

The guy's wariness was obvious when he didn't immediately jump inside the truck. But really, how could I be considered a worse threat than the bloodthirsty mob tracking him through the hills? I’m not ashamed of my slim body, but the guy had to have at least fifty pounds on me, easy. It was pretty obvious I wasn’t a threat to him. He took his sweet ass time as he approached the truck slowly.

"Come on, come on, come on," I muttered, as I squinted at the trees again.

A host of frenzied eyes glinted back at me under the glow of my headlights. Shitty shit shit.

I yanked on my miniscule well of magic and threw a curtain of light and flames across the ditch. Well, it was only an illusion, but it'd buy us a few minutes. Maybe. Hopefully.

Shifted werewolves were more animal than human, or so I’d heard. I was banking on that now. Praying they'd be leery of getting too close to what appeared to be a deadly wildfire. At least until they figured out my light show wasn't a threat.

The hellhound barely spared my diversion a glance as he opened the passenger door.

"You here because of the alpha?"

"Just get in." My tight and sweaty grip slipped over the smooth steering wheel.

"Did the alpha send you?"

"You mean Robbie? That’s where you were, right? In that pack in the hills? If that’s who you mean, then no. I'm here to save your ass. But if you want to stick around here, I can't stop you."

The hellhound made a big production of inhaling deeply. He nodded, as if satisfied with whatever he scented. The wolves were breaking through my flimsy illusion now—looking more like a bunch of circus animals jumping through fire rings than a deadly pack hunting for blood.

"If you're coming, get the fuck in," I snapped, not even looking at the guy now. I was too transfixed on wolf after wolf after wolf emerging from the trees. My breath tore from my lungs in tight short bursts. "I swear to fuck if you don't move it in the next—"

The stranger dove inside. Thank fuck. The door hadn't even shut when I gunned it.

ChapterFour

DILLON

I yanked my legs inside the cab of the truck and righted myself in the seat. Then I quickly shoved my bag down by my feet and grabbed the door to slam it shut. Holy hell it was hot in here, even by my standards. Did he seriously have the heater blasting in this weather?

I eyed the stranger.