We were well on our way to the Blue Ridge Mountain Range in Virginia where I was supposed to meet with four local bears to divvy up our respective search areas. It still left miles upon miles of thickly wooded terrain for us to search, but it was a less arduous task than if I were to undertake it alone.
Conversation seemed to come easily to us now, with most of the barriers cast aside after what we’d done the night before.
“Come on,” she coaxed, popping a fry into her mouth with a smile. “Spill it. Exactly how many women have you slept with?”
“I don’t really think it’s pertinent. You’re my mate. I won’t be sleeping with anyone else.”
“Then why sleep with anyone else at all?”
“Hormones. I assume that’s why you dated in high school, as well.”
“Fair point,” she conceded with a nod. “So, what does this mate thing entail? Do you have to um…bite me or something?”
“No.” It came out louder and more sharply than I’d intended. She flinched, recoiling from the sudden anger in my tone. “Sorry. I mean…no. I don’t have to bite you. And I wouldn’t expose you to my world like that. I won’t turn you into a monster.”
“You’re not a monster,” she protested.
“That’s debatable,” I mused, turning the knob for the radio. An upbeat pop number came through the speakers. I was a bit disappointed. We’d been turning it on periodically, listening for updates on Luke Elmsong. I hoped someone would find and apprehend him, on the off chance I’d been wrong about his location.
“It’s not,” she argued. “You’re a good man. You’re trying to do what’s right, and from what you’ve told me about your life, you always have.”
That wasn’t exactly true, but it felt too good coming from her lips for me to argue the point.
“So, you’re really planning on dumping me in a cabin in the middle of the woods?” She slumped a little in her chair. “That’s not really fair.”
“I don’t know what else I can do,” I said. “I have to keep you-”
I cut off, as my airway constricted suddenly. I gripped the steering wheel too tightly and heard the wheel creak dangerously. I was going to rip it off if I wasn’t careful. I knew this feeling. I’d had it once before when I was fifteen. I jerked the wheel hard to the right, sending us careening off the road at highway speeds. I pushed desperately at the brake. I needed to slow the car down before we went rolling down the steep embankment on either side of the freeway.
“Chance!” Lucy shouted, a note of hysteria in her voice. She was clutching her armrest for dear life and her eyes were suddenly huge in her pale face.
I slammed my foot down on the brake and we screeched to a stop a few inches from the guardrail that marked the beginning of the off ramp. Several cars honked their horns as they passed us, and I saw a few one finger salutes. I didn’t pay attention to them. I couldn’t. I scrabbled for the door handle and stumbled from the car.
“Chance!” Lucy called after me, as I staggered toward the edge of the embankment. “Chance stop, you’ll fall!”
I couldn’t listen, though. I hadn’t had this happen since I was fifteen years old and I’d been stupid enough to disturb a Native American Burial ground when I’d visited Washington State to spend Thanksgiving with my cousins. I knew what it felt like to have a smack down match with a God. I didn’t know which one I’d pissed off enough to put my balls in a vice, but I knew that I was safest anywhere but on that highway.
“Chance!” I heard her car door slam as well and I knew she was following.
My spine slithered weirdly, swaying like a snake before a charmer. Apt, with someone forcing this unwanted change on me. My teeth no longer fit comfortably in my human mouth. I tried to speak, but the words came out guttural.
“Stay back,” I growled. I bit my tongue as I tried to articulate the words, and that was the last straw. As soon as the metallic tang of my own blood washed over my tongue in the tenuous half state I was suspended in, I lost the battle to maintain my shape.
My nails lengthened into claws. My bones cracked and reshaped themselves, and my mind shifted into the simpler thoughts and desires of my bear form. I only had seconds left of rational thinking, before the warrior spirit of my bear took over. It wouldn’t hurt Lucy. Even the Gods couldn’t force it to do something that against its nature, but any of the cars passing on the freeway would be fair game.
So I turned away, catching one glimpse of Lucy’s horrified expression as I went. I sprinted for the cliff’s edge, even as I shifted to all fours. I reached the edge and without hesitation threw myself over the side.
My bear was a big, stubborn brute with a more selfish disposition than mine. It let out a confused bellow and scrambled at the hill, managing to dig his claws into the hard packed earth that made up the side of the embankment. It hurt like hell as the dirt and debris tugged at my claws during the speedy descent, but the stubborn bastard that was my bear was making sure we’d survive to reach the bottom. I could hear Lucy screaming faintly above me.
We landed with a painful thud on the ground a minute later. When I glanced up, I realized exactly how lucky I’d been. If I’d thrown myself off a foot or two in either direction, I would have hit several evergreens on the way down. I didn’t think the impact would have killed me, but it would have hurt and possibly shattered my vertebrae, leaving me at the mercy of whatever douchebag divine being that was pulling my strings.
I rolled and got to my feet shakily, lumbering forward on all fours in the direction the pull was leading me. My course led further into a sloping valley, toward the base of the nearest mountain. If I’d been able to control my spirit, I’d have left my bear form behind and ranged outward, trying to warn any lawmen who might be in the area. But I was trapped in this form, dragged inexorably forward by a will that wasn’t my own.
There had been a trail here once, I could tell. It was nearly overgrown, but it was still there, and it was that twining trail that I followed into a clearing. Nestled in by the base of the mountain was what looked like a tiny, one room schoolhouse.
Pushing my bulk through the door frame was a struggle, and I hoped that when I left this place again, I’d be doing it on two legs instead of four. The room was tidy, despite the coating of dust that lay on top of nearly every surface. The exceptions were the blackboards, which were already so smudged with chalk that it was hard to tell, and the desk. The culprit sat atop it.
A Goddess, this time it appeared. Blue-Jay, the trickster God I’d disturbed in Washington, had been nothing like her. Though initially displeased with me, he’d made me the butt of a number of jokes, smacked me around a bit and had left. It had been scary, but survivable. I somehow doubted that this goddess would be so benevolent. I hadn’t disturbed a shrine built to her. I hadn’t passed into her domain. So forcing my change could only mean she meant me ill.
“How accommodating of you,” she purred, crossing one leg over the other. She rearranged the fabric of her sunshine yellow halter dress to lay better. I wasn’t sure what she was worried about. I certainly wasn’t looking up her skirt. Her holy underthings were the last thing I was thinking about. “I thought I’d have to crash the car to get your attention. I’ve been following you for the better part of the morning.”
It was frustrating, being unable to communicate. I wished I could speak, but the bear’s register wasn’t made to vocalize a human voice. The woman smiled brightly at me.
“Ah yes, this form is quite the effective muzzle, isn’t it? I do so hate interruptions.”
I eyed her with mounting dislike. She was a tall, shapely woman with champagne hair, tied loosely in a braid down her back. Her eyes were a flat bottle-green and they were fixed on me with an equal amount of venom.
“I thought this place would be apropos, as I need to impart valuable knowledge to you. If I allow you to shift back to your human form, you will remain silent until I give you leave to speak. If you cannot follow that mandate, I will shift you back into
your bear form until I am finished. Do I make myself clear?”
I dipped my head once, an acknowledgment of her terms. She lifted one hand, clad in a white lace glove, and waved lazily in my direction. The vice that had clamped down on my brain and that had made breathing difficult in the car finally lifted. I focused and was finally able to push the spirit of my bear aside, resuming my human form. Of course, my clothes were completely ruined. I was forced to sit bare-assed on the cold flat surface of one of the desks facing the goddess.
She gave me a cursory once over and a smirk, clearly liking what she saw. That might have been flattering in any other circumstance, but I was a mated bear now, and I knew that she had more in mind for me than a florid sexual escapade.
“Good.” She slid off the teacher’s desk and picked up a piece of chalk. “Now, you pay attention. If I ask you a question, you may answer. Do you know who I am?”
“Not a damned clue,” I muttered. My voice still retained the throaty rasp of my bear’s tone. I cleared my throat. “But you’re not a Native American spirit, I can tell that much. I’ve tangled with one. I know the difference.”
She rolled her eyes as if that was the most ridiculous thing she’d ever heard. “Of course, I’m not. Do I look like I originated from this country?”
“No,” I admitted. Underneath the debutante façade she hid behind, there was definitely the feel of an old-world power. I wasn’t sure what pantheon she came from but she was old, far older than the little wisp of a body she was wearing appeared.
“I am Frigg,” she said, writing the name on the board. As if it wasn’t a name I’d heard a thousand times in prayers at home in lessons about our heritage. I was glad she’d turned away from me, so she couldn’t see me mouthing wordlessly at her back. I wasn’t sure if that broke her vague rules and I didn’t want to be forced back into animal form again.
She turned back to me, hands on her hips. I kept my mouth shut, hoping she’d continue and would tell me what had possessed the chief goddess of the Norse pantheon to step down from on high and force my change in the middle of the freeway.
“Do you recall the details of the Aesir and Vanir war?” she asked, tapping her foot. I nodded slowly.
“The Aesir tried three times to burn Gullveig alive. The Vanir, offended by the rude treatment of one of their own, prepared for war. The Vanir had magic, but the Aesir had might. Both sides eventually wearied of the war and discussed a peace treaty. They traded hostages. The Aesir adopted Freyr and his twin sister, Freya, into the fold, and the Vanir took in Hoenir and Mimir, killing the latter in the last violent act of the war.”
She nodded. “You know your history. Though you did leave off the part where they sent Mimir’s head to Odin in an act of petty vengeance.”
I shrugged. She hadn’t asked a question, so I didn’t dare reply. She smiled tightly and nodded her approval. “You’re learning. I’m sure you’re wondering why that’s relevant.”
I nodded again. What was the point in dragging me out here to drudge up ancient history? I doubted my oldest were-bear ancestor had even been alive when that particular conflict had occurred.
“It’s happening again,” she muttered, pacing back and forth in front of the desk. “The war has broken out a second time. Freya is dead. Idun is missing, and Freyr is on the warpath.”
My eyes widened as I continued to stare after her. She was agitated, pacing back and forth. Idunn, the keeper of the apples that allowed the Norse Gods to live for eternity, was gone. The Gods were mortal, or soon would be.
“I don’t understand,” I blurted. “How? Why? What does any of this have to do with me?”
Frigg fixed me with an icy stare. “What did I say about speaking out of turn?”
I snapped my wayward mouth shut, swallowing hard. Right. I’d been ordered not to talk or she’d turn me into a bear. After another minute of frosty silence, she resumed pacing.
“We don’t know what possessed Freya to steal Idun away. We don’t know why she tried to damn us all to mortal life. We’d hoped that some time with the dwarves would loosen her tongue, but even after months, she told us nothing. Thor killed her in a fit of anger and here we are, embroiled in a war yet again. The foolish, impulsive boy…”
She trailed off muttering obscenities. When she finally regained her composure, she continued.
“She’s put obstacles in our way. Whatever she was involved in, she had time to prepare for the fallout. I can barely scry, and what images I do get are fragmented, unclear.” She rounded on me again, and I flinched back, sliding a few inches on the wooden desk.
“That is where you come in. Heimdall’s vision was similarly obscured, but he could tell me the details of your mission.”
I got a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach. If I was right, this mission was about to go from bad to worse, thanks to Frigg’s interference.
“You will track him down,” she said putting her hands on either side of the desk I sat on. She leaned her face so close to mine I could have kissed her, if I were so inclined. “And you will kill him.”
“I can’t,” I blurted, and then clapped a hand to my mouth. She gave me a chilly smile.
“You can and you will. Because if you do not, I will be forced to, ah...properly motivate you. Your mate, she is human, yes?”
“Yes,” I ground out. My bear surged forward, even without her interference, and I could feel it pushing just beneath my skin. The urge to take my more powerful shape and attack the goddess was overwhelming. No one threatened Lucy.
“That can be changed,” she purred. “My husband has several Ulfhednar on retainer. I’m sure one could be persuaded to exchange blood with your lady love and where would that leave you? Wolves do not run with bears.”
I couldn’t help it. I lunged for her, a red haze obscuring my vision. Lucy was my mate. Mine. No wolf was ever going to lay a paw on her. Frigg skipped back a step, a bubbling laugh escaping her lips. The force of her will slammed into me once more and I choked. I eventually fell to my knees, too dizzy to do anything more. Then, and only then, did she let me up.
“It does not have to come to that,” she said brightly. “Your directions are simple. Kill Luke Elmsong. Deliver the swift justice that he deserves and return home. We will not trouble you again. In fact, the Aesir will owe you a debt. You may collect it at any time.”
“If I do it, you can repay me by staying the fuck away from Lucy.”
She laughed, a high mirthless sound. “If that is your wish, we will comply.”
“Can I go now?” I growled. “You’ve made your point.”
“Yes,” she said, crossing her arms across her ample chest. “Just keep in mind that if you do not kill Luke Elmsong, I will send Ulfhednar after her. And turning her will be the kindest thing they do to her.”
I whirled around, ready to charge her again, no matter how fruitless it would be. But she was nowhere to be seen. The only evidence she’d been there at all was the name written in impeccable script on the blackboard and the piece of chalk that lay broken on the floor where she’d stood.
I walked out of the schoolhouse and started the long journey back up the hill. The climb was treacherous, and it didn’t help matters that my feet suddenly felt made of lead.
I had little choice in how to proceed. If I killed him, it would break something within Lucy. She would probably never forgive me. On the other hand, she was fragile and human. She would not be able to defend herself against the Ulfhednar, the ancient pack of werewolves that Odin kept in his halls in Asgard. With her nearly crippled leg, she would barely be able to run.
Wolves do not run with bears.
Frigg had been right about one thing. If Lucy were attacked and transformed into a werewolf, she would never be able to escape. She wouldn’t be able to stand living a solitary life in the mountains. She would always feel a pull toward her pack, would feel the urge to mate with her Alpha. She would never be able to stand a life with me.
I set my jaw, digging my
human fingers into the side of the embankment, hauling myself back toward the top. Back to Lucy, back toward the only thing that made any goddamned sense in my life. Slowly, I began to formulate a plan on how to proceed.
Frigg’s threats still rang in my ears. I couldn’t leave her in a cabin alone, an easy target for werewolves. I’d take her along with me on the hunt for her brother. We’d travel slowly. I’d use my spirit to range out during the night and if I located him before the full moon, I’d track him down quietly and slit his throat.
I wouldn’t risk her life, even if she hated me for it. I’d do what had to be done.
Chapter Nine
Lucy
Chance had returned to the Firebird bare-assed and even more stoic than usual. He remained silent the rest of the way to the Blue Ridge Mountain range after giving me the briefest of explanations on why he’d suddenly transformed into a massive grizzly bear and thrown himself off down a steep embankment.
I didn’t for one second believe it was just a bear thing, as he’d claimed. I hadn’t known Chance for long, but I did know a few things. I knew that if what had happened was a normal occurrence, he wouldn’t have risked driving down the freeway impaired. He was something approaching a policeman in were-bear society, or so I’d gathered. There was no way he would have put that many lives in jeopardy if he was in danger of spazzing out on the drive over.
I was staring out the window most of the drive. I needed to puzzle his odd behavior out and I couldn’t do it while I stared at his bare chest. The more I stared at him, the more I convinced myself that his reasons didn’t matter and that I was just happy he had returned safe and whole.
We’d passed so many street signs on the journey that it took me a few minutes to realize that we’d breezed right past the exit for the lodge he’d intended to drop me at.
Tracking the Bear (Blue Ridge Bears Book 1) Page 7
