A Leopard's Path by Lia Davis Page A

to protect his female while ripping the mutant bastards to shreds.
    “Bastards,” Ana spoke the curse as she took off.
    “Ana!” Damn it. Tanner. Kieran sent the sentry the telepathic curse as he fell in step with Ana.
    I see her , the sentry thought back.
    Kirk chimed in. There are two ahead of you, and two more inside the camp. Tanner and I will take care of the latter.
    Good .
    Beside him, Ana stilled and rested her fingers on his forearm. A few yards in front of them, the two creatures she’d tracked stood, scenting the air. These two wore collars. That was new.
    “Bastards.” Ana’s curse was a soft whisper before she spoke to him. “I’m not sure what the collars are for besides a means to keep track of them. One of their weaknesses, as Keegan found out, is telepaths. If you flood their mind with your thoughts, it confuses them.”
    “I’m not a telepath.”
    She cut him a gaze and smirked. “I am, and as my mate you should be able to use the gift.”
    He wasn’t so sure about that, but he didn’t have time to ask questions. The mutants jerked their attention to him and Ana and charged. Kieran drew his gun, only to have it knocked out of his hand as one of the creatures tackled him to the ground.
    Fuck . They were faster than he remembered. “Savannah must have enhanced their abilities.” Lifting a hand, Kieran changed it to the claw of his leopard and swiped it across the beast’s face. The mutant screamed and lost his grip, giving Kieran the opportunity to flip the asshat off him.
    “Looks like it,” Ana called back.
    An inhuman screech cut through the forest. Kieran glanced to Ana to see the creature she fought catch on fire. The dying mutant didn’t only catch Kieran’s attention, but that of its buddy. The male Kieran fought charged at Ana, catching her off guard.
    She gripped the creature by the throat as they tumbled to the ground. Kieran’s heart hammered, but he felt Ana’s calm along the bond. How could she be so steady? Kieran ran at them and hit the beast with his shoulder.
    Ana screamed, and a searing pain flooded Kieran’s senses. His leopard growled and rose to the surface. Swinging, he hit the mutant in the jaw. The crack of bone breaking echoed off the trees. The creature went limp. A moment later, a shot fired.
    “Bastards,” Ana growled again as she holstered her gun.
    Glancing at her, he let out his own growl at the gash across her cheek. He reached out, but she kissed him quickly. “There’s no time. We have to get to Tanner and Kirk. I feel a trap brewing.”
    She was right. Linking his fingers with hers, he took off toward the rebel camp. There was no telling how many mutants there were. And Kieran had sent Ashwood’s best sentries in there.
    When they reached the grouping of tents, Kieran froze wide-eyed as Tanner used his telekinesis to move tents and various other objects around in the air. Beside Kieran, Ana lifted her arms in the air and made circular motions. The wind picked up and she directed it into a small cyclone, then moved it to the objects floating in the air.
    A tornado of camp equipment swirled and moved around the area.
    Tanner nodded to her. “Cool. The dumbasses are confused by it.”
    “How many of them?” Kieran asked.
    “About four that we saw. No humans.” Tanner advanced toward them. “Kirk is circling in the trees in cat form.”
    A slightly painful tug along the mating bond drew Kieran’s attention to his mate. She was calling magick, yet it was different than before, more powerful. “Ana?”
    “Everyone needs to leave the area.” When they didn’t move, she growled. “Now.”
    The energy she had raised started to spill over to him, electrifying and hot. He had no idea what she planned to do, but he trusted her enough to listen. “Kirk, let’s go!”
    Once he and Tanner were several yards away from the camp, Kirk jumped out of a nearby tree and shifted. “What the hell is your mate doing?”
    Before Kieran could answer, a bright