Grayslake: More than Mated: Bear Up (Kindle Worlds Novella) Read online

  Not normally a nervous passenger, she was nonetheless reduced to clinging to the “oh shit” handle above the door and trying not to squeak as she was rattled around like a cookie in a jar. She closed her eyes tightly at one particularly hair-raising corner. A soon-to-be broken cookie if Bennett carried on driving like this.

  Dean must have caught her small squeak of pain as the vehicle slid to the side again, slamming her broadside into the door, and he turned on the driver.

  “Slow down, Bennett. Human in the car, remember?”

  Bennett grunted, casting her a glance in the rearview mirror. “Sorry, boss lady. I’ll slow it down a bit.”

  She shook her head. “Don’t mind me. Missing girls are way more important than my comfort. You just get us where we need to be.”

  Warmth and a look of approval crossed both men’s faces at her words, the vehicle carrying on at a just slightly reduced breakneck speed. Kacie clung to the handle, trying to concentrate on the scenery around them, but thoughts of Angela filled her head.

  “Was she… Angela Russell, I mean… was she killed by the same men who attacked me?” she asked suddenly.

  Bennett nodded. “Think so. Smelled like it anyway.”

  Smelled like it? With those three little words Kacie was thrust back into a world that was so unlike the one she was used to. One that looked identical, yet was so different. A world where people could be identified by scent rather than sight, and men with claws attacked women in alleyways or in the safety of their own homes. Well, okay so Angela hadn’t been in her own home, but she was babysitting so she might as well have been. And those girls had been taken from their home…

  Rage built up inside her. It started with a small ball of heat at the center of her being but festered and grew the closer they got to town. The memory of claws flashing in the darkness made her stomach clench in remembered pain, and the anger exploded outward. It raced through her body in an instant, infecting each cell like wildfire until it consumed her. She clung harder to the handle above the door, her teeth clenched so tightly she was sure they were about to break off. Without warning, a feral growl rolled up from the center of her chest.

  The two men in the front of the vehicle started in surprise, Dean turning to look at her.

  “What?” she demanded. “You think you bears have the monopoly on viciousness? These guys took little girls… we find ‘em, I want an hour alone in a room with them.” She growled again, giving voice to her rage. “I’ll teach ‘em not to pick on women.”

  Dean nodded, a small smile on his face as the car pulled to a stop outside the Watson place. “You know what? I think that would be a lesson they wouldn’t soon forget.”

  There were cars surrounding the Watson house when they arrived, vehicles from the sheriff’s department as well as one she recognized. Lilly’s little pink SUV was parked behind one of the police cars, the woman herself talking to a couple of men from town.

  Relief rolling through her, Kacie slid from the back of Dean’s car and headed over to her friend’s side. Lilly turned from her conversation, and her eyes widened as she saw Kacie. The next instant, she was wrapped up in the tightest hug she’d ever been given.

  “Ohmigod, Kace, I thought we’d lost you,” Lilly whispered when the pair had finished squealing. “When those rogues attacked… there was so much blood.”

  Lilly released her grip a little and looked down at Kacie, which was when she realized exactly what was different about her friend. She held herself like Dean did.

  “You’re one of them, aren’t you?”

  Lilly’s expression was worried, and she nibbled on her lower lip. “Yes, I am.”

  “Fuck’s sake, Lilly!” Kacie broke away to run a hand through her hair, turning in a circle before looking at the other woman again. “How am I the last to know about this?” She peered at Lilly intently. “YOU? A bear? You faint if you get so much as a paper cut!”

  Lilly shrugged, looking sheepish. “I really hate paper cuts? The way the paper slices through your skin…” She shuddered. “It’s horrible.”

  Kacie shook her head. Lilly was actually going pale at the very thought of a little paper cut. Amazing.

  “But… a bear?” She blinked as some of the memories from that night melded together and made more sense. “You fought them off, didn’t you? You saved me. You and Kait. Oh hell, is Kait a bear too? Is that why she disappeared off to the city? Some secret bear business?”

  “No, not at all. Kait’s as human as you are.” Lilly chuckled, shaking her head. “She did help, though, when we were attacked.”

  It felt like the blood drained completely from Kacie’s body. “Oh hell, is she okay? If she’s not a bear… Did those assholes hurt her?”

  “She’s perfectly fine, I promise.” Lilly smiled, reaching out to give her upper arm a reassuring squeeze.

  “They’re still out there though… we have to fetch her, make sure she’s okay.”

  “Oh, she’s fine, believe me,” Lilly chuckled. “She’s with Creed, and now he’s finally gotten her, there’s no way he’ll let anyone hurt her. Ever.”

  Kacie’s eyes widened at the hint of gossip. “Kait and Creed? No way!”

  “I know! It’s great, isn’t it?” Lilly’s grin of happiness for their friend said everything. Then movement behind Kacie caught her attention and her expression became serious. “We’ll catch up later, hon. I’ve got work to do.”

  “Go.” Kacie shooed her away. “Go do whatever it is you bears need to do. But… girly night in and you give me all the gossip. Soon.”

  Lilly threw a grin over her shoulder. “Deal.”

  Chapter 6

  The instant Dean strode into the Watsons’ home after speaking to the bears outside, he was assaulted by the scent of blood and unfamiliar bears. He paused for a second, curling his lip back from his teeth as he breathed in to study them.

  Five males, all unfamiliar… He growled, the rumble of pure rage made into sound. These males had invaded his territory, killed a human under his protection and taken two bear females from his clan. And if that wasn’t enough to seal their fate, they’d also hurt his fated mate.

  He bunched his fists, his claws aching to burst free. They might be walking and talking, breathing and all that, but they were dead. They just didn’t know it yet.

  “Itan?” The girl’s mother, Elisa Watson, stood in front of him, her youngest child held tightly. Her expression was haunted, eyes red-rimmed from tears. “Thank the moon. Please… you have to get my babies back. They… Angela…”

  He took her by the upper arms, expression open and determined. “We will get them back, Elisa. You have my word as Itan on that.”

  “Thank you,” the woman whispered, tears welling in her eyes again. She didn’t ask anything else, didn’t need to. He was Itan and he’d given his word. Her children would be found, or he would die trying.

  And that was where assholes like Anderson went wrong. They pursued power for its own sake. They wanted people at their beck and call, looking up to them, and to issue orders. They forgot that an Itan was not a free bear. Forgot that the Itan didn’t only lead the clan, he served the clan as well. His word was law, but it was also his bond. And no Itan could ever break that.

  “Mrs. Watson? Hi, I’m Kacie. How about I make you a nice hot drink and we’ll let the…” she paused for a moment, flicking a glance around the room. Anderson and his deputies were already in the next room, where the scent of blood was the strongest, but other bears were already here, waiting Dean’s orders. She didn’t skip a beat though. “And we’ll let the Itan and his associates deal with the sheriff, shall we?”

  A hand under the terrified mother’s arm, Kacie led her away into the kitchen, throwing a small smile over her shoulder at Dean.

  “You got a keeper there,” Bennett said quietly. “Never seen any newbie accept the bear-life quite so easily.”

  Dean’s chest puffed out a little with pride. “Well, she’s a Lick girl, born and bred, plus
she’s my fated. What else did you expect?”

  The two men walked through the main room, where what remained of Dean’s humor fled. Framed by the comfortable civility of the Watsons’ home, with its hardwearing cord and leather couches, and cozy throws, was a scene right out of a horror movie.

  In silence, he studied the room, noting every splash of blood, every handprint, every claw mark and bite in soft, undefended flesh. Like all bears, Dean had been born a shifter, but he’d always been aware of real bears. There were a few in the Lick territory. Mostly, they avoided wereclan areas, but occasionally they stayed. So he knew what a natural bear kill looked like.

  Kill was the operative word. Bears were animals. They killed to eat or to defend themselves. There was no malice in what they did.

  This wasn’t a natural bear kill. The human girl, Angela Russell, hadn’t been killed. She’d been slaughtered in cold blood. She lay on her back on the coffee table like an offering, her face serene. That’s where the peaceful image ended. Below the neck, her clothes and her skin were shredded and covered in blood. The stark white of broken ribs was the only relief in the wash of scarlet.

  Disgust and rage rose hard and fast. She hadn’t just been killed, she’d been tortured first. Played with.

  He snarled, a low, rumbling sound that promised vengeance and hell when he caught up with who was responsible.

  This shit did not happen. Not on his watch.

  “Oh…Holy shit.” Morgan cursed as he walked in, obviously unprepared for the sight of the murdered girl spread out like an offering. “Fuck’s sake, you could’ve warned me. Human sense of smell, remember?”

  “Sorry, bud,” Dean rumbled quietly. “Still taking it in myself.”

  “Understandable.” Just like that Morgan locked down, his expression turning purely professional as he studied the scene. “More than one bear. And it looks like she put up a good fight. I might be able to pick up something from blood traces, but it’s going to take me a while to filter through her blood. Spells are good, but they aren’t that good.”

  Dean shook his head. “We don’t have the time for that. They’ve taken two girls and we need them back, yesterday. You got anything else?”

  “Girls? How old?”

  “Four and seven,” a hoarse voice answered from the doorway. Jeb Watson stood framed there, the big man’s face haunted. Dean noted how he avoided looking at the scene beyond the two men, and he moved subtly so the man wouldn’t see. Angela wasn’t his daughter, but these bastards had his two children. Dean knew without a shadow of a doubt that if Jeb saw the body, all he’d see was his daughters lying there instead. Just as all he could see was Kacie…

  “Good.” Morgan nodded. “Then chances are they still sleep with teddy bears? Yes?”

  Jeb nodded dully, forcing his attention from Dean to the big warlock. “Yeah, they do. Why?”

  “Bring them to me. I might just have a way to track your daughters down before any harm comes to them.”

  Mrs. Watson was in shock, but she was still mistress of her own kitchen. She wouldn’t let Kacie do anything, firmly sitting her down in the corner while she bustled around, making coffee for the men in the house. Her expression was strained but she kept up a light stream of chatter, mostly about town business rather than what was going on in the next room, or, interestingly, anything to do with bears.

  Thankfully, no one would let her leave the kitchen to deliver drinks. Instead, as soon as a load of drinks were ready, there somehow seemed to be someone in the doorway waiting. Kacie had no doubt they knew, that somehow they could hear the kettle coming to the boil each time. Except the last time, when Mrs. Watson…Elisa…had gotten a feed ready for the baby, Poppy. As she settled down to feed her, the baby held snugly and firmly in her arms, the door opened again.

  Kacie breathed a sigh of relief to see Dean waiting there. Excusing herself from the kitchen for a moment, she slid through the door into the corridor to join him.

  “Hey,” she said softly, studying his expression. He looked weary, like bone-deep tired, and worried. “How’s it going out there?”

  He didn’t answer straight away, moving them both closer to the wall as the sheriff’s men wheeled a gurney out of the front room, a zipped up black body bag strapped to it. Sadness welled deep in her chest. Angela had been so young. A student home for the holidays, Kacie remembered her being a vivacious girl with her whole life ahead of her.

  Dean sighed. “As well as can be expected.”

  Need tightened his features and he reached out to pull her into his arms. She didn’t argue. Simply stepped into his embrace and let him wrap her up. Nestled against his hard, strong body like this, she felt safe. Protected. Tears prickled in the backs of her eyes. It could so easily have been her in the body bag and she felt awful that she was glad it wasn’t. Not that Angela deserved to be, but if it had been, she’d never have found out that Dean felt the same way about her as she did about him. Had for years.

  Pulling back, he looked down into her face. He didn’t speak. Instead, he reached up and brushed his thumb over her lower lip. She murmured in pleasure as his lips covered hers. The kiss was soft and gentle, more about giving and receiving comfort than raw passion, but she didn’t care. She clung to him, eager for anything he had to give. For any touch he gifted her with.

  This, them, was the one thing she could hold onto in this whole situation that she actually understood. She’d always had a thing for him, as long back as she could remember. Had always felt they had some kind of connection, even if he didn’t seem to notice her.

  His response earlier and the way he held her now, as though she was precious and delicate…no way had he not noticed her. He had to have been ignoring her. That stung, more than she cared to admit, but she was quick to excuse his behavior in her mind. Perhaps there were rules about humans and bears.

  The thoughts were swept away, though, as the kiss deepened, and she was lost to sensual bliss. She’d been kissed before, but never like this. Never with the same intensity of passion Dean managed to pack into each and every little touch. As though he had to hold himself back whenever he was around her.

  It was exhilarating, addictive and kind of a little scary all at the same time. Especially now that she knew what lay hidden inside him. She caught her breath as he broke the kiss, a little sound of disappointment in the back of her throat.

  He leaned his forehead against hers, his eyes closed but his voice low and full of regret.

  “We can’t do this here.”

  “Why not?” she whispered back, smoothing her hands over his broad shoulders. She would never get tired of touching him. She just wanted to touch him with much less on, and preferably somewhere more private. “We’re only kissing. Not even making out properly.”

  He lifted his head, eyes dark with a heat that made her shiver. “Sweetheart, we won’t stay just kissing for long. I promise you.”

  “Oh…ohhh.”

  He smiled at her little gasp and dropped a kiss on her forehead. “We’ll pick this up later. I just came to tell you I have to go. We found a way to track the girls.”

  Relief flooded her. “Awesome. What are we waiting for?”

  Dean shook his head. “Not we. Me. You can’t come, sweetheart. It’s too dangerous.”

  “What the fuck? You’re kidding me?” She gave him a sharp look, hardly believing what she was hearing. “These assholes attacked Lilly, Kait and me in the alley, right?”

  “Yes. We believe so.”

  “Then screw that.” Determination filled her, and she stood up to her full height. Which, if she was honest, was itty bitty compared to Dean’s well-over six-foot frame. She could kick them in the ankles. She didn’t care. “Get me a baseball bat or something because I want some payback. I’ll teach them not to pick on women or little girls… assholes!”

  “My little mate. So brave and fierce.” He shook his head, bending to steal another kiss that stole her breath. His expression dropped serious when he pulled away
. “But I can’t let you go, Kacie. You’re my fated.”

  “Bullshit,” she tried to snap back, but her voice emerged way too soft and breathy. “Fated, what does that even mean anyway?”

  He slid his hand into her hair, palm cradling the side of her neck gently. The look on his face was so achingly tender and fiercely protective it brought tears to her eyes, stopping her planned argument right in its tracks.

  “It means that you’re it for me, sweetheart. Without you, that’s it, I can’t go on… You’re my reason to live.”

  Holy shit. She blinked and nodded, speechless.

  And to think she’d just been hoping for an “I like you.”

  She could really get used to this bear thing…

  “Turn left just up here.”

  Dean hit the brakes at the command, swinging the SUV into the turn and hitting the gas again. “Where now? Carry on?”

  The tension in the car was high, what with three shifters and Morgan crammed into a space not really suited for such big men, humans or otherwise. Magic warred with shift potential, turning the air almost too thick to breathe. Gunning the vehicle down the road ahead, he cast a glance over his shoulder.

  Watson and Morgan sat in the back, a map spread over their laps. The big warlock clutched a teddy bear, his free hand held tightly clenched over the map as it steadily dripped blood. Jeb leaned in, relaying where the drops fell. “Right. Right here. Now!” he barked.

  “Fuck it,” Dean growled as they passed the turn. “Bit more warning would help, guys!”

  Slamming the brakes on, he swung around in a squeal of tires and swerved to avoid the cars following. Now they had a lead on where the Watson girls were, the clan was out in force to get them back.

  “Doing the best I can,” Morgan replied, his voice tight with strain. “It’s not like fucking GPS, you know.”

  “I know, bud.” Instantly Dean apologized. They were lucky to have Morgan around, and he knew that. It gave them an edge other clans just didn’t have. “You’re doing great.”