Switching Gears: Coyote Bluff Series Book 3

by Lea Barrymire

  They made it to the small entrance hole in a few minutes and, without even slowing, she bolted into the darkness. Nothing had entered the space since she’d dug it out the day before, and she knew the slight bend by heart. She’d built every den exactly the same, small sloped tunnel to a turn and then a larger area to sleep.

  The bobcat curled into the open space and pointed her nose toward the tunnel. She didn’t think anything would try to get to her in the den, but she’d lived through enough to know to not trust normal situations.

  Soil muted the sounds of night and it took only a few moments for the cat to fall into a light sleep. No point in worrying about it. Something would either make itself known and attempt to attack her or it wouldn’t. Sleep was the only way to ignore the gnawing hunger rumbling in her stomach.

  Cats didn’t wake slowly, stretching and taking time to figure out where they were. No. They woke all at once, every sense on alert and their muscles ready to go if needed. Amie had finally gotten used to that practice as she took the back seat to her bobcat. This time, though, the tension she felt flood the cat had woken the human side as well. And both were worried about what their senses told them.

  Wolf. Shifter. Jason.

  They’d found them. The scent of a packmate made her heart hurt, but the cat knew they had a moment or two to make the decision. Be caught or run. Amie yearned to know why they were after her, why Jason was in the woods not far from the entrance to their haven. Was he checking on her to see how far she’d gone? Had they contacted the local pack and Jason was their scout so they could run her out of the area? Or was there something else? Had he actually been working with those other wolves who’d attacked Zeke?

  Too many questions and not enough time to think through them all. As they breathed in the wolf’s scent it quickly vanished. He was using the wind to stay in her nose’s blind spot. Terror and frustration zipped down their spine. Run it was. If the male wanted her to know he was tracking them he would have circled farther around, giving her the warning of his approach. The fact that he’d moved downwind meant ambush. Jason, and whomever else he was with, were trying to take her by surprise.

  Climbing swiftly into a low crouch inside the den gave them a moment to test the air again. The best thing would be to try and run straight at them and see who was after her and, if she was lucky, she’d be able to slip between the shifters to get behind them. Her scent should be fresh enough on the vegetation he was currently walking through. Only a good tracker would pick up an increase as she approached. And only a great tracker would figure out she’d slipped by them until it was too late.

  Approaching the opening to the tunnel showed her that they’d slept a couple hours at most. The night still reigned, the nocturnal animals and insects in control. Another item pointing to the idea that Jason might not be the all-around good guy everyone thought he was. If the man was hunting her in the middle of the night, and likely had been watching her all day, they had bigger problems.

  Slipping through the hole and around the back of the tree she’d dug it under was nerve-wracking, but once she’d cleared the large oak she caught another whiff of him. They weren’t as close as she’d first thought. Good. That would give her time to approach and find a way to slip past them.

  Silently padding toward Jason and whomever he had with him had the cat and human sides agreeing that they wouldn’t be taken down without a fight. If he was bringing the local pack to lynch her, or to have her captured, they would all see how powerful they could be. A kitty smile of anticipation bared her teeth. She’d killed before and she’d do it again.

  *****

  “That sneaky minx.”

  Could a person be proud and pissed at the same time about the same thing? Zeke’s head was ready to explode with both emotions. Grin? Growl? He couldn’t decide, and stood completely dumbfounded. He stared down at the cat prints in the dust by their truck and could pick up the odor of kitty piss… Everywhere. On the hood, sprayed on the tires, in the dirt at each door. It was everywhere.

  The guys had spent all night wandering around the fucking woods looking for their lost bobcat and what had she done? Waltzed through them like they were nothing and peed all over their ride.

  Zeke was most surprised that she’d slunk through them without a single one of the betas, or Skip, seeing or scenting her. She needed to be a tracker or something for their pack. That was impressive, which led him to the pride part of his emotional milkshake. He wondered what had tipped her off, and once he was done spanking her he’d implement some additional training for his trackers. Between her nose and guts, Amie was proving to be the hardest prey he’d hunted.

  “Are you done grumbling to yourself over there, or what?” Pete wasn’t finding any of this amusing, but perhaps it was because his truck happened to be the one covered in bobcat urine.

  “Yeah. What’s the plan?”

  “Skip says you and me are to go after her, that she might have spooked because there were so many of us last night.” His brother’s voice held a note of question.

  “You’re thinking the same thing as I am. She was not fully animal and had avoided us on purpose. She knew it was us and she still ran.”

  Pete nodded. “Yeah, the amount of piss she pumped out gives me some guess as to how angry she is about something.”

  Zeke couldn’t help it. He laughed. It was funny, especially if looked at from his point of view. She was a small female, living in animal form, hurting and alone. And she’d taken a bunch of men, shifters and strong, leaders in their pack, on a merry joyride through the woods. She’d evaded them, and felt safe enough to let them know exactly what she thought.

  It didn’t help anything that when Connor had called Margie with a report of the night everyone could hear her screaming in laughter over the phone. Coyote Bluff had been invaded by a bunch of head-strong, crazy females and they were sticking together completely. She’d suggested, after catching her breath, that perhaps Amie didn’t want to come back, or wasn’t ready to.

  With that thought floating through the air, everyone but Zeke and Pete had left, heading back to the hotel to rest and sleep. The Marrow brothers were on their own if they wanted to chase down the wayward cat.

  “So?” Pete’s question pulled Zeke from his thoughts.

  “I don’t know, man. Do we go after her? Leave a note someplace and hope she finds it? I had a hard enough time getting my coyote to back off last night. I don’t know if I can do it again.” But wandering around Kentucky in human form, sweating as they trekked through miles of brush, wasn’t the way either wanted to spend their day.

  “What if Margie is right? What if Amie decided she didn’t want to come back, or that she didn’t want to talk to us?”

  The question had been eating at Zeke’s heart for a few hours already. Had it all been a lie? Even as he thought the words he knew the answer was no. Amie had been open, loving and happy. She’d talked to him, told him things she’d never told anyone else. They’d laid in each other’s arms and felt the emotions roll off each other. She loved him as much as he loved her. So, then, what had caused her to run again?

  Like a literal light bulb above his head the sun broke through the clouds and beamed down on him. Zeke pulled his cell from his pocket and flicked through his contacts. The question he had would be easiest answered by Margie. A silent pray left his thoughts as he pressed the little green phone icon.

  “What—”

  Zeke threw his hand up and pointed at Pete with a scowl.

  “Fine.” His brother stalked off into the light shrubby brush surrounding the parking area and mumbled to himself as he picked leaves off of a long piece of browning grass.

  “What’s up Zekiel?”

  “Margie… do bobcats have any weird breeding habits or anything? Nesting or bringing kills to each other?”

  Silence.

  Zeke counted to three and opened his mouth to make sure she was still on the phone, but Margie spoke first. “Um. I don’t know. Give m
e a sec and I’ll do a little research.”

  The clicking of keys and muttering made things a little easier. It soothed his coyote to know that someone was doing something. The idea he had was odd, strange and amazing, but if it worked what did it matter? It didn’t. Not at all. That was the deciding factor when Margie finally told him the information he needed to know. Doing something to catch the eye of his mate again was worth every moment of embarrassment or torture. At least he hoped so. If he went through with the plan he was cooking up and didn’t get the girl in the end he’d never live it down.

  Chapter Eighteen

  The smell of a fresh kill woke her, but the growling of a hungry belly was the deciding factor that made her stretch, and clamber out of her hiding hole. Only the whiff of coyote stopped her from bolting from safety in hopes of some food to stop the gnawing roll in her stomach. Having to go to sleep hungry hadn’t been a fun thing for either side. They hadn’t experienced true hunger in a long time, and neither liked it. So a fresh meal, sitting close to their bolt hole, seemed like a tempting reason to leave.

  Another inhale told her it wasn’t just any coyote. Nope, it was the only one she wasn’t sure she wanted to see. On one paw she wanted to rush out and tackle him, bury her nose in his neck and breathe him in. On the other? They wanted to rush out there and bite his juicy, round ass for her being in this situation in the first place.

  Zeke.

  The night before she’d smelled their mate and it had taken more energy than either had for such things to turn away from him. But he’d been near their den. Again. And his scent was wrapped into the tantalizing smells of a fresh rabbit.

  A surge of something, the human side wanted to call it romantic happiness, rolled through them. Their mate had supplied a meal for them. The cat was happy as well. Good mates took care of each other, and bringing an offering to her den was something a bobcat male would do. She preened a little, flicking her ears and the little stub of a tail. Even a little purr erupted and rumbled her chest.

  Creeping forward, she caught a glimpse of the rabbit’s fur as it covered her den entrance. Her coyote hadn’t just killed her some food, but he’d placed it nearly inside her sleeping den. He’d kept her safe and offered her a meal. The kitty was beside herself with glee.

  Silly kitty. Told you he was here to be with us.

  The bobcat huffed at the human sharing her mind. Perhaps that’s what he’d been there for, but they didn’t know for sure. But now? The cat would roll over and purr for a belly rub if he was still around. She could tell from the faintness of the scent, though, that he’d left his present a bit before she awoke and wasn’t around the den any longer.

  Interesting.

  Not to the cat. She was hungry. Getting a meal from her mate was fantastic, but musing over it wasn’t going to be an immediate worry. She needed to eat and get fuel into their system. A well fed kitty didn’t do well when required to go hungry for a night and more. Ravenous wasn’t even close to how much she wanted to swallow that rabbit whole and not worry about even chewing.

  With a bit more finesse than that she pulled her prize into the back of her den and ripped off large chunks of meat and fur, swallowing without tasting. She didn’t need to taste it to appreciate it, though. Her stomach was happy and full by the time she’d taken in most of the meal. Her belly extended in that well-satisfied kind of plump pudge that was slightly uncomfortable to lie on.

  With a sniff she noticed the mess in her den and she realized eating inside probably wasn’t the best idea. With a sigh she stood, crouching slightly, and picked her way over the carcass. She’d have to either build or find another location to crash for the night. A thrill shot through her. Doing so meant she’d be potentially losing her mate again because, if he was gone from the forest for the day, he’d have to track her again.

  The human side was smiling. Zeke was one of the best trackers in the pack. It would be a good test for him. If he really wanted them he’d try, right?

  Thoughts of mates and such needed to wait. They needed to nap and find a place to den up for the night. They could worry about Zeke, life and their future later.

  *****

  Watching the grainy screen was the best thing Zeke had ever done. His heart clenched as he noticed movement behind the rabbit carcass. Leaving the meal for his kitty had been part one of his plan. How she accepted his offering would determine the next phase.

  “Oh, look she’s dragging it inside with her.” Pete slammed a fist into Zeke’s shoulder. “Good job man. She seems to be forgiving you, or at least her cat is.”

  “Ass.” Zeke grinned at the growled hmmph when he shoved a hard elbow into his brother’s chest. “This is only part one. Sure she took the meal, but she was hungry.”

  “Aww, man, you know this will work.”

  Zeke shrugged. “I hope so.”

  “So pessimistic. Glad I got all the happy genes. Someone needs to keep you from crying.”

  “You had to get something good. I got all the other genes. Handsome, sexy, better shifting, best nose...”

  “Mom just told you all those things because she felt sorry for you.”

  Zeke grinned at his brother and they both burst into a scoffing laugh. Since they’d been kids it’d been the same lines and they were comforting this time. After a moment of glaring at each other and sharing a manly nod, Zeke’s eyes slid back to the trailcam screen.

  Willing movement from the dark maw of the den held him captive forever. Or a moment. It might have been an hour. It didn’t matter if it’d been a lifetime. The instant a grayscale bobcat emerged from the den, looking around with what couldn’t be anything other than a satisfied and cocky tilt to her head.

  “Oh, brother, you are so lost. Yeah, she’s totally into you. Now, what are we doing tonight?”

  Zeke knew he was grinning like a fool. “Oh, we’re going to tempt the human side tonight. Hope she doesn’t claw my face if I get off-key.”

  Pete chuckled. “Casanova you are definitely not. But what woman could resist someone wooing her with song?”

  “One wearing her cat form who has sensitive ears?”

  “Hmm, yeah that might not work, but I’ll have fun watching it either way.”

  Zeke flipped off his brother before turned back to the screen and noticed his mate had vanished from the view. He glanced down at the map on his phone and noticed the important red dot was on the move.

  “I can’t believe she didn’t find the tracker while she was eating.” Pete muttered.

  “Yeah, me too, but Margie said she’d gulp down large chunks of meat like our coyotes do, especially seeing she hadn’t eaten last night. I lucked out. Just don’t tell her that she’s being tracked. I have no idea what she’d do to me for that one.”

  Pete’s chuckle was menacing, not at all the comforting sound Zeke had hoped for. This was going to be a nasty, horribly scarring thing once Amie found out. All he could do was hope to be completely mated and have some sick days saved up for whatever she decided to do to him in retaliation.

  “You know what? I might have a better idea.” Pete quipped. “What do all cats enjoy?”

  “Mice?”

  “Sometimes I am sure mom dropped you on your head.” The grin his brother sported vowed horrible things for Zeke, but he was intrigued and waved his brother to continue. “I think we need to come up with something else to tempt her cat side. Bring the animal over to liking you.”

  “Depends what you have in mind I guess. But seeing she ran from all of us, and odorized your truck, that might be a good idea. If her cat is in charge then I do need to make the kitty happy.”

  Pete nodded. “Go take a shower. We’ll get a plan together.”

  “I hate when you’re mysterious.”

  His brother laughed and headed out the hotel room door. “Get a shower and a nap.”

  Even knowing he was in for a night of horror, ridicule by Pete and potential bodily harm by his wary mate Zeke couldn’t help but grin.

&n
bsp; *****

  What the fuck?

  Amie—no, her cat—woke with her heart racing. What woke them?

  Lying in the dark she waited, and listened. There was a scuff and the creaking of a branch outside. Was that an animal whine? Breathing shallowly she tried to hear anything else. They were safe inside the den. Cat paws could move a lot of dirt when needed. It wasn’t as spacious as they liked, but the tunnel was long enough to have the customary bend and the area she slept in was enough for her to turn around if needed. Tight quarters, but she couldn’t be choosey.

  Just before she drifted off to sleep she heard something again. This time it wasn’t an animal cry that woke her, or even the distinct sound of sticks and branches breaking. It was the very human male voice expounding upon the derelict nature of the world, the men in it and the impending death of Peter Marrow.

  “Goddamn, son of a bitch. Fucking Pete.” Zeke grunted before continuing his colorful conversation. “Fucking fucker. I’m going to beat him until he cries for mom. Can’t fucking believe he did this to me.”

  Could a predatory cat really laugh? They tried, it still sounded like a chuff, but it was as close as they could get. The grumbling outside her den sounded so much funnier than it should. Obviously Zeke was in some sort of predicament. Again. And this time it hadn’t been set in play by her. But he still was a mess, if the sounds of him struggling and the continued breaking of branches were anything to go by.

  Shimmying out of the den hole was harder to do in the pitch black, but she managed it without much difficulty. The whole time Zeke was sputtering and cursing his brother. Even after she’d crawled out, and her eyes adjusted to the small amount of moonlight, she couldn’t see him. That didn’t stop her from hearing every single word. She chuffed again at his antics.

  “Don’t you dare laugh at me, missy. I’m in this situation for you.”

  Swiveling pointy ears made it easy to find him. But even then she tilted her head and blinked a few times she still couldn’t see him. He was close, she could tell that by scent alone. Where was he? When they finally found him she yelped in a very kittenish way. Could anything better be offered to a cat?