Paul could see Anna tense at the words from her former step-brother. He turned away from his imprint to the man that he wanted to kill with every fiber of his being.
Unfortunately, Paul knew there were hidden security cameras in that parking lot. They chose to park there for the added protection of being able to catch things on camera if needed. However, it also obstructed his ability to phase and shred the sack of shit.
Jeremy Price stood with a ragtag collection of serious looking convicts. Muscles, tattoos, hardened faces with a look in their eyes that promised they would enjoy trying to beat the shit out of Paul and then have their way with Anna. Jeremy himself wasn't all that big. Maybe 6 foot even, dark buzzed hair, and light grey eyes.
Paul slowly made his way in between Anna and the men. He grinned when he could smell Emmett coming up from behind. Jeremy's eyes widened a bit at seeing Emmett again. Apparently, he had not forgotten the beating that Emmett gave him the first time.
Yet, Jeremy recovered. "Six to two this time."
Emmett chuckled. "I was out numbered the first time too. Still kicked both of your asses."
Paul still had yet to open his mouth. He knew that if he spoke, he would lose the control that he barely maintained. His body was shaking from the rage. The wolf wanted to kill. But, he could not phase. All he could do was wait for the fight to start.
Anna placed her open palm against the middle of his back. The contact with her soothed the wolf, helped him edge away from the desperation to phase. And, Sam felt the need to warn her of when he turns? Hell, she kept him from turning. More than ever, Paul knew that she was his match. The woman that he always needed.
Jeremy growled. "Get over here Annabell."
"Like hell I will." She scoffed. "No one controls me any more."
That shook the smugness off of Jeremy's face. Paul shook his head. Even after everything, that dipshit thought that he controlled Anna. That he would snap his fingers and she would heel.
It took merely moments for Jeremy's rage to surface after she defied him. The man lunged toward Anna, only to be stopped in his tracks by Paul. The others all joined in on trying to get to the girl. Paul and Emmett fought them with restrained strength and ability. Fuck, Paul wanted to rip them all apart, but the cameras prevented it.
One guy managed to get behind Paul and hit him upside the head. His ears were ringing as he fought to stay up and fighting. His concentration lost for several breaths. When, he regained his focus, he spun around to see Anna kicking her step-brothers balls across the parking lot.
Damn, she was actually pretty good at that martial arts shit. Emmett and Paul had been able to knock out the rest of the would-be-kidnappers. Then, they watched Anna take out all of her anger and rage on one of the men that had abused her for so long.
Paul had to admit, that it kind of turned him on to see her fight. Well, until he thought about who she was fighting.
Taking a deep breath and shaking his head, Paul moved closer to wrap his arms around Anna and pull her off of the beaten, bloody mess that was her target. Anna fought against him. "No, I can't stop."
Paul pulled her against his chest and held her tightly as the adrenaline high crashed and she started to sob. The Police arrived seconds later.
Emmett talked to them first as they needed to call several ambulances. Paul would have been happier if they were all dead. But, this way would be alright. She wouldn't have to live with the guilt of taking life.
Paul maneuvered enough to drop the tailgate of his pick-up and lifted Anna to sit on it while they waited for the Police to do what they needed to do.
Emmett talked to Chief Swan, giving him a rundown of what happened, and reminded him of the hidden security cameras around the lot. Charlie Swan grinned. "Well, the fact that we know that Jeremy Price escaped from custody in Oregon with five other men… I am thinking that this is going to be a very easy case to wrap up. Surveillance videos make it even easier."
Chief Swan ordered a couple of officers to go collect those videos and took a moment to check on a couple of the men that were starting to regain consciousness. The EMT's already had them restrained on gurneys so they couldn't leave.
Emmett sat down next to Anna and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, then placed a soft kiss on the back of her head. And, there, they all stayed for a while. Anna sitting on the edge of the truck tailgate, Paul stood between her knees, pulling her close into his chest with his arms around her back, and Emmett beside her with an arm over her shoulders. Their heads all pressed together as the two men comforted the girl until she passed out in their arms.
"Thank you Emmett." Paul finally spoke.
Emmett pulled back and grinned. "You know, the first time that I stopped that guy, I didn't know who they were. She was just a girl that needed help. Then, after, I heard about what all had happened. I just couldn't believe one girl could survive so much. She is strong."
Paul nodded. "Yeah. She is." He smiled while he nuzzled into her hair. The wolf wouldn't allow him to let go yet. The fear of losing her was still too fresh.
"Paul, I am really happy that she has you. She deserves to be happy and safe. I will always be here to help protect her if you need me. But, she obviously needs you." Emmett said and offered a hand to the wolf. Paul nodded and shook his hand.
Jeremy woke up and started yelling and screaming insults and threats to Anna. She woke again at hearing the words and clung to Paul tighter. The Chief ordered that the EMTs get him the hell out of there. Then he walked over to finally check on Anna and Paul.
Paul pulled back enough for Chief Swan to talk to her. Charlie sucked in a breath at seeing the bruises forming across her face and split lip. Anna had been really good at fighting Jeremy off, but he had still managed to get in a few hits.
"Let's get one of the medics to look at those." He said soothingly. Charlie turned to wave down and EMT. "I am so sorry that this happened again Anna."
She shook her head. "It's not your fault Chief Swan."
"Still, I just can't imagine…" He trailed off. "Anyway, I just need to get your version of things before I let Paul here take you home. I am sure you would like a shower and some sleep."
She nodded and started talking to Charlie. As they talked, Paul caught a whiff of something. He looked at Emmett, who looked just as concerned. The two looked around. Donovan was there. Somewhere.
Paul texted Emmett so as to not voice anything. The two of them worked out a quick plan while Anna finished up with the Chief. As soon as they were permitted to go, Paul told her to get in the truck quickly. Emmett stayed in the back and rode with them until they reached the edge of town.
On the way, Paul quickly explained to Anna that the second the truck stopped, she needed to get out of the truck and get on Emmett's back. As a vampire, he was strong and very fast. He would get her back to the rez while Paul got the pack ready for the fight to come.
Emmett had already let the Cullens know. They were forming a perimeter to keep Donovan trapped and moving with Anna and Emmett toward the wolves.
The second that the truck was out of sight of the town and other people, Paul slammed on the breaks. Emmett jumped down from the truck and Anna jumped onto his back. Donovan appeared in front of them, confusion on his face as he saw Anna with Emmett and then the two of them took off through the trees at lightning speed. Paul watched as Donovan's face contorted in rage as he went after the two. 'Please Emmett, keep her safe.'
Paul then texted Emily to see if Sam and the pack had left yet and were ready. She confirmed that they left as soon as they got his text.
Paul, pulled his truck off onto a side road and quickly phased into his wolf form. He could run faster than the truck would take him. But, he needed to not phase until he was sure that Donovan was still following Anna.
The plan was for Emmett to take the longer pathways, to keep Donovan from getting suspicious, cris-crossing as if they were trying to out run him rather than lead him into a trap. It also gave Paul the time to connect with the pack mind and make sure everything was ready.
They planned to all converge in a clearing. Out in the open, where the leech could not jump into the trees away from the wolves.
As Paul ran, he shared with the pack what had happened in the parking lot.
"Damn, your girl has skills." Seth said in awe. "I don't want to piss her off."
Sam sighed. "The important thing is that the step-brother is in custody again. One problem down. Let's hope that we can eliminate the second here shortly."
Everyone agreed.
"So, Paul? She calmed your rage?" Jared asked.
Paul forgot that he had showed all of the memory, including that part. He smiled inwardly at the thought. And, his mind wandered to the other times she had calmed his anger.
Damn, she was perfect. Before he could stop himself, he remembered the conversation they had in the library before they left.
"Ha! You two are so not just friends." Embry teased.
"Shut it Call." Paul growled at the younger wolf. There was a reason that Embry was not working for the Police Department either. His father was Sheriff Call. And, Embry's mouth had the two of them clashing like Titans when they are around each other too much. Best to keep the family peace by letting the boy work in the garage and far away from his father.
Everyone could hear Leah chuckle across the mind. "Let's see, since Anna came back, she had two nights of living at her uncle's house, followed by three weeks of living with you in a hotel room. She gets back and has a couple of weeks back at her uncle's house, before you get injured and she lives with you at Sam's house while playing nursemaid for a week and a half. She got all of a few days back at her uncle's, and then you insist on her moving into your house for protection while her step-brother was on the loose."
"What is your point Leah?" Paul growled again. Why couldn't everyone focus on saving Anna and not on their relationship?
Paul could feel Leah practically roll her eyes. "My point is that you two should just live together. It's just you in that house now, since your dad passed last year. And, both you seem awfully comfortable living together and moving somewhere with things. I am not saying you have to get married next month or even start having sex. Just, give the poor girl some stability, instead of bouncing between living arrangements. If you want her to stay, she needs to have roots. Why not grow those with you?"
Paul grinned as he thought about that. He couldn't deny that he was happier when she was with him. His wolf was happier. And, after that conversation in the Library, he knew they needed to really spend time figuring each other out. It did offer the best answers. He didn't answer Leah as he arrived in the clearing. He just shook his head to focus on what was to come next.
It was a large group for just one stupid vampire. But, the cat and mouse game had gone on for too long. Donovan was too fixated on getting his hands on Anna to let the opportunity to end it once and for all pass by.
The pack was all there, spaced out around the clearing, crouched low in the tall grass. No one could see them walking around. But, the leech would be able to smell them once he was there. Fortunately, a strong breeze was blowing. And, the leech was coming in from up wind. The wolves would know his approach, but he would not get the warning until it was too late.
Paul stood to full height in the center of the clearing. He could smell Emmett and Anna as they raced their way toward him. Then he could smell Donovan, hot on their trail. In seconds, Emmett came to a stop in front of Paul's wolf form.
Anna still clung to him tightly with her eyes closed. "Anna." Emmett nudged. "You can let go now."
She quickly opened her eyes and jumped down to run and hug Paul. Her fingers in his fur as she nuzzled into his neck. She backed up to press her forehead to his before he licked at her face. He didn't like that she smelled like Emmett, but he could live with it if this plan worked.
She smiled. "For future reference, being carried that fast makes me pretty queasy. I had to keep my eyes closed to not mess it all up by getting sick on Emmett."
"Ew. Thanks for holding back." Emmett shivered at the thought.
Paul licked her face once more and she smiled.
Then Donovan appeared with a smirk on his face. "Thought you would out run me?" Then, they could all see the expression change as he was able to smell the other wolves.
The Cullen's entered the clearing, blocking one end. The pack all stood up from their crouched positions, forming a horseshoe around the leech.
Anna stood up. "No. I am tired of running. I have a family now that will fight with me. I am not alone or scared anymore." She took a step to the side of Paul and ran her fingers along his back. "It's okay Paul. I had a chance to take out my anger on Jeremy. This one is all yours Dr. Banner."
His imprint supported him and wasn't scared of what would happen. Paul didn't need anymore encouragement. He gave into his rage. The anger for breaking his bones. The anger for hurting Anna. The fear of that leech being in the hospital near Abbie and Jayden. He dumped it all into the mix and let go of his control.
What happened next was fast, bloody, and over way too fast. It didn't really quench his rage. But, the sound of Donovan's head as Paul bit down and yanked, popping the body part off, it held a sense of closure.
Paul backed away from the shredded body as Emmett bent down to start burning the remains.
The warm feel of Anna's fingers as they found their way into his fur once again, it pulled Paul from what remained of his rage. She took off the over shirt that she wore and used it to clean the blood from his fur as she smiled down at him and nuzzled into him once again.
"Thank you." She whispered. "Thank you for giving me the support and strength to face my threats. And, for being the weapon to protect me when I can't do it alone."