An Unwanted Second Chance (JB Tirado) novel Chapter 71

Chapter 71

The doctor assured everyone that Max would be ok. His left leg was broken and his throat had been bitten, but luckily the main arteries had been missed, allowing him enough time to get back to the hospital before bleeding out. Penny was sitting beside him, her face pale, her hands shaking as she gently stroked her

mate’s face.

Patrick was leaning against the far wall, his face red, while Leo watched from the doorway. Wesley had gone on Kent’s order to the training academy to adjust patrol rotations again.

Kent could barely concentrate on the doctor’s words as he watched his best friend lay in the hospital bed The thought of how close Max had just come to death filled Kent with both fear and rage. If it weren’t for Riley holding his hand so tightly, Kent might have already been running towards the rogue encampment.

“What happened?” Kent managed to ask once the doctor had left.

Max winced, adjusting his position in bed. “I went to see that woman.” His voice was hoarse. “I explained who I was, that I had her son and I was willing to see about returning him if she agreed to come take a DNA test and prove she was his mother.”

He closed his eyes, sinking back into the pillows. “She said it was a trap. That we would kill her the moment she was within our boundaries. I even offered to take her cheek swab at the encampment, but she kept

screaming it was a trick.”

Max opened his eyes. “She just shifted so quickly. I didn’t have time to react. She went straight for my throat. Probably would have gotten me but Jeremy jumped on her. I managed to shift, but I thought she was going to kill Jeremy. Luckily Scott and Jaxon were nearby. They were able to get us out of there.”

“Where’s Jeremy?” Kent asked, looking at Patrick.

“Two rooms down,” Patrick answered quietly. “I already checked on him. He should make a full recovery but it will take longer than Max’s. Scott and Jaxon both had some minor injuries but they were already released.”

Kent nodded, thanking the Goddess for his warriors‘ safety.

“She’s deranged,” Max whispered, closing his eyes. “Absolutely crazy. She’s not going to take any chance we offer her. She wants to kill us. The scouts have heard her offering our pack territory as a reward for killing us and getting her son. She has no plans of doing anything peacefully.”

“I don’t want my son to go with this woman,” Penny whimpered, tears streaming down her face. “I don’t care if she really is his mother. She’s violent and unstable. She could hurt him.”

“We’re not going to let that happen.” Kent tried to infuse as much reassurance into his words as possible. And he meant it. There was no way he was letting this maniac get her hands on that child, even if she was

his mother.

Penny looked unsure as she glanced from Kent to where Riley stood at his side.

“Kent’s right.” Even Kent was surprised by Riley’s words. “There’s no way that woman should be allowed around a child. I’ll make sure the council is aware of her actions.”

The relief shown on Penny’s and Max’s faces at those words. Leo murmured his agreement from the

doorway.

Chapter 71

Kent looked over at Patrick. “Did you figure out your plan today?”

Patrick nodded. “I think Riley and I have a good idea of what we could do. We definitely need to flesh out the

details but I think it could work.”

“What plan?” Max asked.

“Patrick has an idea for launching an offensive movement against the rogues,” Kent explained. “He and Riley went out to look at an area today to discuss it.”

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“We can talk about it more when Max is out of the hospital,” Riley murmured, squeezing Kent’s hand.

“Riley’s right,” said Leo. “Let’s focus on making sure the patrols are secure for now. Risks of another rogue attack are low right now. They need to build back after their last attack.”

“Agreed,” Patrick muttered, pushing off the wall.

Kent nodded, rubbing his chin with his free hand. “I’ll head over to the training building to meet with the evening patrols before they head to make sure their guard is up. Wesley should have the new rotations ready

to distribute.”

Kent turned towards the door, pulling Riley with him. Leo stepped out of his way and he heard Patrick saying something else to Max, but he couldn’t focus on what. He tugged Riley down the hall and out of the hospital to where the car was waiting.

They were silent during the short drive to the pack house. Kent couldn’t keep himself from wondering how close his best friend had just come to death. He didn’t know what he would do if something happened to Max. He had honestly never stopped to consider it. Max had always been such a consistent presence in his life, but the thought of losing him terrified him as much as the thought of losing Riley.

Once they parked at the pack house, Kent walked her to the door before grabbing her elbow and pulling her up short.

“I need to go over to the training academy right now,” he said quietly. “I need to make sure the rotations are right before the next shift comes on. I probably won’t be back before dinner, but if you need me, just come

find me.”

She stared at him with an indecipherable look before nodding.

He tugged her to him, flattening his hand on the small of her back and leaned down to kiss her. He meant for it to be a quick kiss, but something about her made it hard to pull back. She wrapped her arms around his neck, arching against him.

Finally he found the strength to pull away, catching sight of two pack members watching them. He turned on his heel and walked away before he could think about any of it.

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