“Andraya, just wait. Daddy will be right back,” Emma said. She spoke into the radio. “Say you’re coming back, Jake, let her hear your voice.”

Jake shoved his hand through his wet hair. Drops were in his eyes, cold against his skin. The helicopter was already on the pad warming up, blades rotating fast. Justin Right, his pilot, came running out to them.

“Please, Jake. They’re so upset.”

Emma was so upset. She needed a way to be back in control, to make things right for the children. Jake let his breath out, angry that he couldn’t be in two places at one time. “Draya, be a brave girl for Mommy. I’ll be right back.” He hated this, Emma needing him, the children needing him, sending Drake to the hospital with Conner when Jake should be going with him. Love was a cruel thing, tearing a man’s heart out.

“See, Andraya? Did you hear Daddy?” Emma had both children in her arms now, ignoring the way their small bodies rubbed against her many wounds. Their hands dug into the bite marks and puncture wounds around her neck and throat, but nothing mattered to her other than comforting them. Even Susan was crying. She’d held up, trying to be cheerful, alone in the safe room, but once Joshua had come, she’d broken down right along with the children.

Emma alternated kisses between Andraya and Kyle. “Come on, I’ll make hot chocolate for everyone.”

“Emma, the generator isn’t fixed. You can’t,” Evan said.

She glared at him as the children cried more. “Cold chocolate then. It will be fun. We’ll sit at the table, all together. Come on, Susan, come sit with us.”

Andraya hiccupped and clasped Emma tighter around her neck. “Don’t go.”

“I’m not going anywhere, baby,” she crooned softly. “We’re all going together.”

“Come on, Kyle, don’t you want chocolate?” Evan asked.

Kyle nodded his head over and over, but didn’t look up from her shoulder. Evan held out his hands to take him but neither child would leave Emma. Emma shrugged and carried them, one on each hip, praying her robe would stay on, as she went down the stairs to the long hall. She avoided the area where Drake’s blood hadn’t been cleaned up. The lanterns didn’t throw off much light, so the two children saw very little, but Susan, who was following, gasped aloud. Evan’s hand on her shoulder steadied her and they went on through to the kitchen.

She bent to settle Kyle in his chair. The windows rattled and a howling shriek caused Andraya to bury her face against Emma’s neck. Kyle screamed and threw himself at Evan, who immediately wrapped his arms around the little boy.

“The wind seems to be blowing harder,” Emma said, uneasy. “Do you think the helicopter got off all right?”

“I’ll check for you,” Evan said and stepped to the window to look outside at the helipad. “The lights are gone, Emma, so Jake is on his way back.”

“Thank God,” she breathed and for the first time all day, she truly relaxed. She hadn’t realized how much she really counted on Jake and his strong presence. There was just something invincible and powerful about him.

Kyle wiggled and turned boneless, trying to escape Evan to get back to Emma. Evan put him down so he could run to her.

Evan reached out his hand. “Come on, Kyle, give Mommy a break. I’ll put you in your high chair. Emma, you look like you’re going to fall down, and your neck is bleeding through the bandages.”

Emma reached up to press her fingers against the bandages where the puncture wounds were and came away with smears of blood.

Susan gasped. “Here, Emma.” She held out a small handkerchief.

Emma half turned toward her when she heard Evan grunt and she spun back around. She saw his large body stagger. Emma ran toward Kyle as Evan toppled to the ground, firing the gun in his hand at a large, snarling cat as it leapt toward Kyle. Emma’s hand missed the back of Kyle’s shirt as the leopard snatched him on the run and nearly slammed into the door, one hand shifting to open it. Evan rolled over and started to fire a second time, but Emma screamed, “No! You might hit Kyle.”

The leopard flashed through the door with her son, leapt over the flowers and the low garden wall to disappear into the night.

Susan screamed. Andraya became hysterical. Emma caught Susan by the shoulders. “Lock down the house and do your best to help Evan. Tell Jake what happened. I’m going after them.”

“You can’t,” Susan protested. “Wait for Jake. You’ll be killed.”

Evan tried to catch her leg as she ran past him, but he missed, cursing. He tried to get to his feet, but his ribs were broken and it was difficult to draw a breath. Susan crouched beside him, looking warily into the night.

“I can’t see her anymore.”

“Don’t worry. Jake and the others will come running. They had to have heard the shot.” He couldn’t get to his feet, so he dragged himself to the door in an effort to close it.

Jake, Conner and Joshua burst out of the darkness as if the wild wind had driven them, howling at their heels every step of the way. They were soaked, barefoot and shirtless, running flat-out, yet hardly winded. Susan screamed again and backed away as Jake towered over Evan, his face a mask of fury.

Crouching low, he nearly jerked Evan off the floor, his fists twisted in the front of Evan’s shirt, death in his slashing gaze. “Where is she?” He bit out each word distinctly, his teeth sharper, his canines longer in the dim lighting.