by Ariel Marie
Searching for His Mate
Ariel Marie
Copyright © 2017 by Ariel Marie
Cover Design: SelfPubBookCovers.com/Viergacht
Editor: Dana Hook at Rebel Edit & Design
* * *
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, organizations, businesses, events, and incidents are a figment of the author’s imagination and are used fictitiously. Any similarities to real people, businesses, locations, history, and events are a coincidence.
All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher.
Created with Vellum
Contents
Before You Begin
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Epilogue
A Letter To the Reader
Sneak Peek: Dani’s Return
About the Author
Also by Ariel Marie
Before You Begin
WARNING: Due to the explicit language and graphic sexual scenes, this book is intended for mature (18 years +) readers only. If things of this nature offend you, this book would not be for you. If you like a good action story with hot steamy scenes with shifters, then you have chosen wisely….
This book is for my shifter loving fans. Hold on to your seat belt for this short, quick read!
Ariel Marie
1
She refused to believe that the hands on her diamond-encrusted watch were telling her the correct time. Stacia Sagona sighed as she glared at the elderly woman standing at the teller’s window. It should not take so long for one person to do business at the bank. She glanced back at her watch and noticed that the lady with the perfectly curled snow white hair had been there for close to fifteen minutes. Mid-afternoon on a Wednesday, and Bells National Bank only had one teller working. It was insane!
“I need another cashier’s check to send to my grandson,” the elderly woman droned on. “He’s turning thirteen.”
Stacia rolled her eyes as the teller laughed. She was in a wicked rush, and Grandma here was holding her up. Her brother Landon would kill her if she was late again. She glanced behind her and noted that the line had grown.
Tapping her foot, she pulled her phone from her purse, swiped the glass screen, and began typing out a text to Landon. He would complain, of course, but it wasn’t like he could fire her. Not only was she his younger sister, she was also his secretary, office manager, and assistant. He would be one unorganized alpha if it weren’t for her, she thought with a chuckle.
Their family had been in charge of the local bear shifter community for centuries. Landon was the current alpha of the Osawana Grizzlies after their father had stepped down to retire. According to her father, Lakis Sagona, one of the most powerful and wisest grizzlies she knew, it was time to let the younger generation rule.
So, he and her mother, Saba Sagona, after forty years of ruling the most powerful bear shifter clan, built a cabin deep in the woods just on the outskirts of town and officially retired. Stacia was proud of her parents. They deserved to live the rest of their lives to the fullest. They had given their all to protect the Osawana Clan, and it was time for them to be a little selfish and do the things that they wanted to do.
Her brother was bred to become the next alpha. He loved the Osawana Clan just as much as he loved fresh salmon. But her brother was a bear, and that meant he had a temper. He would protect the clan with his life, which was good, but that left him no time to find a mate. As the clan leader, he would need a good, strong female at his side to help rule one of the longest standing clans. Valentine’s Day was coming up, and Stacia had a plan. She was going to find her brother a mate.
Valentine’s Day was one of her favorite days of year. One day set aside in the year that a man and woman could be lovey-dovey and show the world how much they loved each other. It was the most romantic day of the year, and she didn’t have anyone, but that was okay. One day she would find her mate, but for now, she was on the prowl to find a mate for her brother.
Her phone buzzed in her hand. She glanced down, and even her bear groaned.
You’re still late.
Landon’s response to her message was short, but spoke volumes. He was pissed. Well, she hoped she would live long enough to find him a female.
“Thank you so much, Carla.” The older woman’s voice broke through Stacia’s thoughts.
There is a God, Stacia thought as she watched the elderly woman slowly step away from the counter. Stacia fidgeted in place as she waited to be called. This was not the bank branch she normally did her banking at. She just happened to be on this side of town, trying to run errands for the pack.
Each month, she would stop at her local bank to get a money order for her rent. She hated using checks because her landlord always took forever to cash them, so she figured it was just best to get a money order to pay it. But, at the rate she was going at this bank, she might as well have written a check.
“I can help who is next,” the teller called out.
Stacia practically rushed to the counter, grateful that she was finally able to do her business.
“Hi there,” she gushed, reaching into her purse. “I’m late for work. I just need a money order.”
“Oh, sure,” Carla, the teller, said with a large grin. “Sorry about Mrs. Ester. She sure can talk.”
Stacia held back her eye roll. It wasn’t just Mrs. Ester who had the gift of gab. Carla did too. But Stacia wouldn’t be rude and say anything to her. She just smiled and got out the forms of identification that she would need.
The bell over the bank’s door jingled. Stacia’s bear instantly went on alert as a tingling slid down her spine.
Something was wrong.
“Everybody on the ground!” a deep male voice shouted above the screams that followed.
Stacia turned and caught a glimpse of three armed men with black ski masks covering their faces enter the bank. They waved their guns in the air, drawing screams from the patrons in the bank.
“Get on the fucking floor!” one of the men shouted while pointing his gun at Stacia.
“Okay!” Stacia snapped. Raising her arms, she lowered herself to the floor while her bear grumbled.
Cries and whimpers could be heard across the room. She laid flat on the floor, keeping her eyes open so that she could see the room. By the looks of it, she was the only shifter. She let loose a curse. She couldn’t take a chance and shift to take out the robbers. The human bullets wouldn’t kill her, but her bear would be pissed at being shot, and it wouldn’t slow her down. One of the humans could get hurt if she caused a commotion. She couldn’t risk it.
Humans were already leery of shifters. The world has known of supernatural beings for well over fifty years now, and one would think that the humans would be used to not being the only ones habiting the Earth.
Stacia took everything in, knowing that when the bank robbers left she would need to give a statement. Her best friend’s brother was a cop, and he always stressed that any information people could relay would greatly help out law enforcement.
She sighed quietly as her thoughts turned to that of Izek Compano. His gruff exterior was sexy. All six foot seven of him was enough to make her drool. Her bear had certainly noticed him, but he had never even looked twice at her in that way.
“Give me all the money, bitch,” the robber
who had pointed the gun at Stacia yelled at Carla.
“Okay…please, don’t hurt me,” Carla sobbed.
“And no funny stuff,” he growled. “Don’t give me the dye packs, either, or I’ll come back and hunt you down.”
“Okay,” Carla stammered.
Stacia could smell the fear radiating from the bank teller from her position on the floor.
“Where’s the manager?” another robber yelled out, stalking across the lobby. Scuffling could be heard from one of the offices as the other two males dragged a struggling man across the floor.
“Open the safe room,” one of them yelled.
The poor human male stood, and his hands trembled as he pulled out a set of keys from his pocket. Her shifter ears picked up the sounds of police sirens wailing in the distance. It was too soon for the humans to hear it. Stacia celebrated on the inside, knowing that the moment the robbers heard the sirens they would take off.
“Hurry!” the robber snapped, aiming his gun at the manager’s head. The manager quickly continued working on the large steel door.
“Shit! The cops are coming,” one of the robbers shouted as the sirens drew closer.
“I thought we cut the alarm? We need a few more minutes. Stall them. We need to get into that fucking safe.”
“We’re taking hostages today, boys.”
2
The grizzly bear inside of Izek Compano loved a good fight. That was one of the reasons why he became a cop. He could fight battles for the innocent, and his bear would be satisfied. Only lately, his bear had been grumbling more than usual. He was working on a short fuse, and Izek had to work extra hard to control his bear. Even with the action of being on one of the busiest SWAT teams in the state didn’t calm his bear down.
The SWAT team for the city of Great Falls, Montana, was made up of shifters and humans, working together for the good of shifters and mankind. Izek loved his brothers in blue. It didn’t matter what type of shifter they were, or if they were human. He got along great with his unit and wouldn’t trade them for all the fresh salmon in the world. His bear licked its chops at the thought of salmon. Later tonight, Izek planned to invite some of the unit over and fire up the grill once their shift was over.
They had just received a call that the downtown branch of Bells National Bank was being robbed, and it had become a hostage situation.
“We roll out in three minutes,” Izek called out, slamming his locker shut.
Joking and laughter usually filled the air of their locker room, but now that they were being dispatched on a call, seriousness filled the air. As a member of a deadly tactical unit, each member knew that even with all the careful, strategic planning it took to complete missions, there was always a chance that someone would return in a body bag.
Each member nodded and grabbed their gear before they headed out towards the garage. From the intel that they’d received, Bells National Bank was not a large bank, and there were reports of only three robbers.
With this size job, they should only need the ten-man team that was present. If they needed the second team to come in to help, they were only a call away.
Izek followed his team and jumped into the GFPD portable command vehicle. He was the SWAT Captain. This was his team and he was in charge. Each member of his team was handpicked by him. The nine dedicated officers of his unit were well-seasoned officers of the Great Falls Police Department. They were the best of the best, and he was damn proud to lead them.
Ross and Walter were the communication specialists of the team. They instantly dropped down at the workstations and booted up the computer systems.
“Bells National Bank has been robbed,” Izek began, briefing his men. “Reports from the scene state that three armed men walked into the bank at oh-nine hundred, and immediately took control of the bank. So far, no demands have been made, or any reports of anyone hurt.”
“ETA is seven minutes,” Oliver, one of the humans of the unit called out from the driver’s seat.
“Tair, you’re going to work your magic. Let’s see if we can peacefully negotiate for the hostages,” Izek said, nodding to his negotiator.
Tair was the best negotiator in all of Montana. It helped that he was a leopard shifter. Leopards were known for their high intelligence, so if anyone could barter for safe hostage passages from the bank, Tair could.
“Yes, sir,” Tair said with a small salute.
“Let’s make these bank robbers regret they woke up this morning,” Izek growled amongst the agreement of his unit.
His bear rumbled, readying for a fight. Izek pushed his animal down, trying to calm him. Soon, he promised his animal. Later tonight, he would have to shift and head into the woods to let his bear out. His animal would be on the prowl for something. For what, Izek didn’t know.
“Captain, over here!” a voice yelled out, grabbing Izek’s attention as he jumped down from the vehicle. His eyes scanned the mayhem outside of the bank.
“Tair, get the robbers on the phone. Javri, get this scene under control. Now!” he barked to his team. They were proficient and competent. Izek knew they would get the situation under control. Now that they were there, he would be the officer in charge.
“Who was in charge?” he asked, arriving by a squad car with a few beat cops.
“I am. Mike Wilde, sir.”
Izek took the outstretched hand of the well-seasoned officer who stood tall and fit in his blue uniform. Izek was impressed by the firm handshake of the officer. Not many men could withstand the firm handshake of a bear shifter.
“You are no longer in charge, Officer Wilde, I am,” Izek announced, asserting his status. His eyes met each of theirs. The alpha in him was pleased when they couldn’t hold his gaze for long. “How many bad guys, and how many hostages are in there?”
“From what we know there are three robbers, along with a total of twelve hostages.”
“Have your men get that crowd back,” Izek ordered, pointing to all the spectators. He rolled his eyes at the sight of the multiple media vans parked behind the crowd. This was beginning to turn into a fucking circus.
“Yes, sir,” Mike said with a nod. He and his men jogged away, heading towards the crowd.
“Where are the plans for the bank? We need both storefronts on each side of the bank to be evacuated.” He made more demands and barked orders as he walked towards his team.
Shouting filled the air as people scrambled to follow his orders.
“Captain!” Oliver waved him over to the tactical vehicle.
“What do you have?” Izek asked.
“I’ve reached the leader inside the bank. He’s willing to let out a few hostages now for good measure,” Tair said, placing the telephone receiver in the base.
“What does he want?” Izek growled, feeling the rest of his team surround him.
“He’s demanding that their getaway truck be allowed to come to the front doors of the bank. Once that’s done, he will let more hostages go.”
Izek paused. If they could get all the hostages away from the robbers, his unit could move in and take them out. Even if they allowed them to get into their truck and follow them, they could move the danger away from civilians.
“Call him back and make the deal.”
3
His team was in place, and the streets were cleared out to allow the dark SUV to make its way down the street. The leader of the bank robbers had kept his promise and let a few of the hostages go. They were still in the dark on exactly who the robbers were, and Izek did not like it.
He would prefer to know who they were dealing with. Usually, they would have everything on the criminals—who they hung out with, parents’ names, and even what type of toilet tissue they preferred.
Glen, one of the wolf shifters of the unit, was posted on top of the building across the street. He was their sniper, and he was a crack shot. His keen sight as a shifter helped immensely.
“Glen, you got eyes on the door?” Izek asked, speaking into h
is communicator. Izek, Javri, and Vernon were armed and posted a few doors down from the bank’s entrance. If anything jumped off, they would be ready to infiltrate the bank.
“Yes, sir,” Glen’s steady, low voice came across the airways.
Lou, Oliver, and Eric were covering the back of the bank. They didn’t want to chance any of the robbers sneaking out the back entrance. They would infiltrate the bank from their side, and Izek and his men would enter through the front.
“Lou, come in,” Izek commanded.
“Lou, here.”
“Anything from your angle?”
“Quiet as a church mouse back here,” the bear shifter answered.
“Their vehicle is in position,” Walter announced.
“Tair?” Izek called out for the negotiator.
“Phone is ringing,” Tair confirmed before the air went dead. Seconds slowly ticked by before the glass door of the bank opened. “He’s going to send out a few more hostages.”
Stacia glared at the robbers as they paced the lobby of the bank. She sat with her back against the teller’s counter, fuming. They had let some of the customers go, but it was only her and the employees of the bank left.
She wondered if Izek was one of the cops working this case. She knew that he was a SWAT officer for the local police department. If he was, then they would be rescued. He and his team were the local heroes.
Whatever the robbers were trying to steal from the vault room was not there. An argument had broken out amongst the three criminals when it was discovered that the safety deposit box they were after was empty.
