The Alpha's Rogue ✔️

10 | Repay The Favour

2947 words

"Are you crazy?" she shouted as he leapt off the edge.

The last thing she saw before following him was the perfect way the sunlight glinted through his hair, making it shine like gold while the wind ruffled it in all directions. "Better crazy than dead," she muttered then jumped, squeezed her eyes shut, and clenched her jaw together as a scream threatened to rip from her throat. She wouldn't scream. She'd jumped off the cliff into the lake back at her home a thousand times, and even though this drop was miles longer, she braced herself and refused to show fear.

Looking down, she saw Zion straighten his legs and arms, then enter the water with barely a splash. With the surface tension broken, she fell into the water much less gracefully, but grateful it didn't knock her out or smash her to pieces with the force of a concrete slab.

The water rushed up around her as she sunk, the depths murky and cold, and before she could slow herself down, she felt herself being grabbed and propelled upwards. Her face reached the surface, and she gulped down air while watching her mate do the same. His large hands easily wrapped around her waist and kept her afloat while the shock still numbed her system.

"Are you okay?"

She nodded, gripping his strong shoulders under her fingertips. "Yeah, I'm good."

Then awareness slunk in, her cold body finally registering a stab of pain in her shoulder, just below her collarbone. Looking down, she saw a hole in Zion's jacket and a stream of red trickling through. A wave of dizziness washed over her.

"I think I've been shot." She'd been clawed, had bones broken, skin ripped by rogues, hair and fur tugged out in fights over the years. Pain was her friend, spurring her to fight harder and smarter. But never before had she been shot, and couldn't say she liked the level of pain and disorientation it brought. Her whole arm and right side of her torso felt like it was on fire.

Zion cursed. He looked up at the bridge above them, hearing shouts from the men pursuing them, then looked back at Savannah with dead seriousness in his eyes. "I need you to take a massive breath, and hold on for your life."

She didn't fully understand him until bullets began showering down around them, zipping past and hitting the water with deadly splashes. She gripped his shoulders and clung to his back, entrusting her life to him. Then he dove, and the water stung the hole in her shoulder like a hundred tiny crabs clawing at the open wound at once.

Biting her tongue to stop from screaming, she buried her face in the hollow between his shoulder blades and felt his powerful body propel them through the water with strong strokes. The muscles of his back rippled against her front, and a strange sense of connection vibrated through her as she hung on, completely powerless yet empowered by the fact that Zion was protecting her. Her life was very literally in his hands, and she couldn't do a thing but let him help her.

When they finally resurfaced, she gasped for air and looked around them, realising they'd reached the other side of the river and were hidden amongst low hanging mangrove branches. The roots provided something to grasp hold of, and she hauled herself up to give her lungs more room to breathe.

Zion was immediately there, lifting her out of the water and carrying her safely to the river bank. His touch was firm, but gentle.

She felt completely safe in his arms. "Thanks," she said to him.

"Don't thank me yet," he grunted, panting slightly. "Not until you don't die from that bullet wound. Silver can be nasty for wolves like you."

She wanted to roll her eyes, but couldn't find the strength to read too much into his comment. He didn't mean it as an insult, and it didn't rub against her like it would have only a few hours ago. She had a new appreciation for his quick thinking and fast actions. But when he scooped her up into his arms, she protested. "I can walk. A shot to the arm doesn't make me an invalid. You know I can—"