by Leela Ash
A Worm. Rex felt his stomach drop at the word. He was a Bear, fierce and strong. No enemy ever made him back down. But Worms were as bad as it got.
Paige spotted his doubt in a heartbeat. “What is it? What’s wrong?”
Should he lie? Protect her from the terrible truth?
No, that kind of ‘protection’ crippled your Mate.
Damn you, Bear! Now you’ve got me saying it!
“You remember Finn Donnelly?”
“Yes. I’m not forgetting the first time I saw a Dragon.”
“Well, when a Dragon gives in to evil, their Spirit Animal tears itself apart. Claws its own wings off. Once that happens, we don’t call them ‘Dragons’ anymore. We call them….”
“Worms.” She understood what that meant for her son. He could see it in her stricken, ashen face.
“I don’t know why a Worm would spare you. That’s the only detail that doesn’t make sense to me. But, well, I think we’ve got a huge problem. These guys have to be working for the Fangs of Apophis, the gang Donnelly told us about.”
Her shoulders slumped as despair returned. The sight of it roused his Bear into a red-hot, protective anger. “What can we do?”
He needed help. But who?
Donnelly seemed like the obvious choice—and the only Shifter in the state who would stand a chance going toe-to-toe with a Worm. But he was as subtle as a freight train. If they had to fight, they had already lost. Jake would be dead or gone.
And he couldn’t do that to Paige. Saving her son was the first order of business. Kicking the Fangs’ asses would have to wait.
“I’m going to ask for a bit of help.”
“No!” She sprang to her feet, eyes widening. “If we tell everyone, they’ll find out! They…!”
“Paige, hush.” Once more, he took her hands, wrapping them in the warmth of his own broad mitts. “It’s just going to be one or two people. Shifters I know can keep a secret. Trust me, okay?”
A weak nod was his only answer.
Now, he needed to make sure he didn’t betray her trust.
Chapter 10.
Nothing about Lily King said ‘subtle’ or ‘discreet.’
The strange woman stalked into Paige’s living room and peeled off her helmet to reveal a delicate, fine-boned face—the face of an angel. Nothing else about her was angelic, though. Black pants and jacket made from some strange, form-fitting mesh fabric. Leather boots and gloves. And mud. Tons of mud. Spattered across everything and dried to a rock.
Rex offered her a hand. “Lily. Thanks for coming.”
“You owe me, Big Man. What’s up?”
He quickly filled her in on the situation. Jake’s abduction, the strange Shifters. “I think these may be those Fangs of Apophis that the First Flight warned about.”
An eager light bloomed in her green eyes. “We attacking? You want me to summon the Pack?”
Pack? Lily must be a Wolf then. Paige studied her, curious. The only other Shifter women she’d seen were Hares, delicate and beautiful. Lily was gorgeous too. But a wildness, a hint of danger, lurked behind those wide green eyes.
This was not a woman she wanted to cross. Or, honestly, have much to do with.
But Rex thought they needed her help. “I need to rescue Jake first. Can’t risk hurting him. To do that, I need to know who his kidnapper is. Can you check the neighbor’s yard for any clues? I smelled something over there. I think it’s a Rat, but I’m not sure.”
“You’re not sure?” Lily broke into a grin that revealed a lot of white teeth. “Damn, Smokey, you need to work on your tracking. Nose like yours, you ought to rock.”
“Yeah, yeah. Can you do this for me?”
“Sure.” Paige froze as Lily turned toward her. The Wolf’s eyes raked over her once then dismissed her, like a field mouse. “She Kin?”
“No,” her lover replied as she blushed. “Though she’s seen Shifts. She’ll be fine.”
“Okaaay.”
The doubt in the Wolf’s tone made Paige grit her teeth. She was not going to flip out, no matter what happened!
In fact, it wasn’t scary at all. A silvery aura shimmered across Lili’s body, filling the room with its pale glow. When it faded, a she-wolf stood in front of the couch. Tall, long-legged and proud, with a thick brown coat tipped with black. A collar circled her throat, decorated with a strange silver medallion. The pattern of wavy lines on it looked vaguely familiar, like something from a Hopi pot.
She was beautiful. Paige felt a pang of jealousy.
Frowning, Rex opened the door for her. No more than three minutes later, she trotted back and Shifted into her human form.
“Yep. Rat. Took the kid. Bit of a struggle. I’m guessing the Rat used chloroform or something on him.”
Paige inhaled sharply at that.
“He put the kid’s body in his Jeep and took off. Don’t know where he’s keeping the boy. Maybe off-road, but not too far.”
“How could you possibly know that stuff?” Paige protested. “The type of car? Where they were going?”
The Wolf’s head snapped toward her. Burning eyes locked with hers and, after a second of shock, Paige glanced away.
Establishing dominance. That’s what Wolves did, right?
Having made her point, Lily relented. “I know that, woman, because of its tires. They’re not the junk you pick up at Walmart. Deep tread for gripping rocks. Your Rat expects to be driving across sand and gravel—not on roads. But for off-road, those tires should be slightly deflated, and they’re not. That means, either he’s careful—he deflates his tires only when necessary. Or he’s not heading into the wilderness.”
Rex gave her elbow an apologetic squeeze. “Lily’s good at this stuff. That’s why I asked her to help.” He glanced back at the Wolf, studying her with an intensity that roused a flash of foolish jealousy in Paige’s heart. “By the way, what’s up with the necklace? I’ve never seen an item that didn’t vanish during a Shift.”
Necklace? Oh, the ‘collar.’ On second thought, Paige was really glad she hadn’t called it that.
Lily shrugged his question off. “No idea. It started doing that recently. I’m guessing it’s magic.”
“You ought to take it to a Hare. Figure out why that happens.”
The Wolf’s nose wrinkled. “There’s only one thing rabbits are good for, and it’s not pawing over my stuff.”
“Well, I would take it to a Hare,” the Bear grumbled, “but you be you. Thank you for your help, Lily. It means a lot to me.”
Paige was less enthusiastic. They’d gotten information, yes—though nothing that got them any closer to finding her son. “What do we do now?”
“Now, we go talk to SueSue Mint. She’s the matriarch of the Rats in this area. If you can describe this guy, she may know him or where he’s hiding.”
“Or I could just follow him,” Lily offered.
She and Rex both stared in shock at the Wolf. “You can track cars? On roads?” the Bear asked.
“Yeah.”
“Five-day-old tracks?”
“Yeah.”
“Since when?”
“Since a couple years ago.”
Rex grew thoughtful. “About the time that the Wellsprings supposedly woke up.”
“Yep. Which is why I didn’t laugh the First Flight out of the room when they said that.”
Once more, his eyes trailed back to that necklace. “Can all Wolves do this or just you?”
“Just me. We going to find this kid, or do you want to grab a couple beers and shoot the shit?”
This time, Paige agreed with the Wolf. None of this stuff got her any closer to Jake.
“Good point. I’ll follow you in the Jeep.” Wincing, her lover drew her close and kissed her gently on the forehead. “We’ll be back as soon as we can. And I promise you, we’ll save Jake.”
“Shouldn’t I come?”
“No. If Lily can track this Rat directly, we’re walking straight into danger.”
> Lily rolled her eyes. “Yeah, no reason for you to come—unless you like your kid. Or want him back for some other reason.”
“Lily!” Rex growled.
The Wolf wasn’t the least bit intimidated by his furious glare. “What?”
“Paige isn’t a Shifter.”
“She’s a mother, isn’t she? This is her kid? Then maybe she wants to help save his ass.”
She did, with every ounce of her heart. It sickened her to think of sitting here, alone in the gloom, watching the minutes tick by and praying that someone else would save the most precious thing in her world.
“This is too dangerous!” Rex thundered. Paige could imagine his grizzly, standing on its hind legs and bellowing.
And still, the Wolf didn’t back down. “The Pack hunts together. All of it.”
“Dammit, she’s not a Wolf!”
Ignoring him, Lily turned to her. All mocking, all contempt, had vanished from her heart-shaped face. “Do you want to help save your son?”
“I−”
“No! Out of the question! I forbid it!” Rex roared.
“You don’t get to ‘forbid’ anything, Fairburn!” Lily snarled back. Dwarfed by the huge man, she was still a ball of furious rebellion. “It’s her choice!”
“She can’t do anything!”
Like a slap in the face, his words knocked the wind out of Paige. Tears welled up in her eyes as she realized he was right. She was useless. Weak. A babysitter and a maid. She’d just get in the way.
Lily didn’t agree, though. “Then she’s the Omega Wolf. No big deal. Every Pack has one. Dumbass loner Bear like you wouldn’t know it, but I’ve been saved by Omegas a dozen times.” Before he could protest, she whirled back to Paige. “So, what do you say? Do you want to help save your son?”
“I… He’s right.” Shame set her cheeks on fire. “I don’t know what I could do.”
“Do you want to find out?” Proud and defiant, the Wolf faced her. Something in her posture—the proud tilt of her head, the defiant cast of her shoulders—lit a tiny flame inside of Paige’s heart. “Weakness is a choice. Every day, you choose not to find your strength. Today could be the day you stop.”
“I….” Rex was angrily shaking his head and some cowardly corner of her mind wanted to crawl under the bed. To let a man or this strong woman defend her son. But Lily was right. She was a mother. Protecting Jake was her job too. How could she live with herself if she abandoned him? “Yes. I want that.”
“Good. Then it’s settled. You’re coming.”
“No!” Rex yelled.
“Yes!” Paige was glad that the Wolf, not her, had to face his anger. “Remember your question? Yeah, I’m the only Wolf who can track like this. And I don’t go without her. Either you let her help find her kid—or you do this on your own. I won’t lock her out.”
As Rex hesitated, wrestling with that conundrum, Lily stalked toward the front door. “C’mon Puppy-Girl. Let’s get you a weapon.”
Paige almost tiptoed past the irate Bear and hustled to catch up with the Wolf. “I’ve never shot a gun,” she admitted.
“Which is why I’m not giving you one today. You’d be more likely to shoot yourself—or me!—than the Bad Guys.” A mud-spattered backpack was strapped to the back of her dirt bike. Lily rummaged through it. “By the way, if you want to change that, talk to me later on. I can teach you to shoot. Your boy too.”
“Jake’s only seven!”
“I was five when my father taught me.”
Wolves clearly raised their kids differently than people! Paige glanced back at the doorway where Rex stood glowering with disapproval.
“Here we go. Hunting knife… strap that thing on, Puppy-Girl….”
The knife was enormous. Dutifully, she looped the belt around her waist and tightened it, even as doubts gnawed at her. Could she really stab someone?
To save Jake? Yeah, I could.
I think… maybe….
“…and there we go! Combat flashlight.”
Combat…what? With a flash of outrage, she realized that the Shifter woman had been teasing her all along. “Oh, har har! Puppy-Girl gets a flashlight. Nice one.”
With a gleam in her eye, Lily yanked a long black baton out of her backpack. Before Paige could ask what it was, the Wolf pointed it at her face.
The world exploded into light. Blinded, she cringed—and then a hard, metallic bar rapped her on the head hard enough to make her yelp.
“Combat flashlight,” Lily repeated. “This end blinds up to about twenty feet.” The light vanished, leaving a sea of black dots floating before Paige’s eyes. “Flip it around and it doubles as a club.”
Lily held it out. Paige accepted it gingerly as she fought to blink the dots away. She turned it in her hands, shocked by its solid, heavy bulk. “Okay, I think I love this thing.” Blinding people seemed much more do-able than stabbing them. Less blood.
“Keep it! It’s yours.”
“Oh, I couldn’t take your flashlight!”
“No worries. I got a dozen of ‘em,” the Wolf assured her. “And every girl ought to have one.”
Paige glanced between the two Shifters, so different. Rex, a solid mountain of raw disapproval. Lily, small and mean and ready to fight.
Together, they could save her son. Bear, Wolf, and, uh… Puppy-Girl.
She forced herself to give them a smile (though it was nowhere near as dangerous as Lily’s). “Let’s go then!”
Chapter 11.
Lily was a furry bullet streaking along the edge of the road. Knuckles white around the steering wheel, Rex followed her—and fought the urge to run her over.
Damned meddling idiotic fool of a Wolf!
His Bear shared his anger, roaring and swatting angrily at nothing. The two of them stewed, filling the Jeep with a furious silence.
Still as a mouse, Paige endured his anger, clutching her flashlight like a magic charm. Her flashlight.
Once more, he sent venomous thoughts winging toward the Wolf. His….
MATE! howled his Bear.
…babysitter was walking into a fight, armed with nothing more than a flashlight and a knife he doubted she dared to use. If Paige got hurt today, he was going to tear Lily apart.
He expected their quarry to head straight into Cortez. Instead, Lily circled east, taking backroads and trails that meandered toward Mesa Verde. Rex cruised after her at a steady 15mph. Helluva speed to run. Slow as molasses in a Jeep.
“I had to do this.” Soft as a summer breeze, Paige’s voice finally broke the tense stillness.
“No, you didn’t. Lily’s an idiot and she talked you into it. Look, don’t be stupid. I can let you out here and pick you up on the way back.”
“No. I want to help save Jake.”
“Well that’s not what’s going to happen.” Fear added a harsh edge to his words, and he winced to see her flinch. So did his Bear.
Do not swat our Mate.
Could this thing not stop calling her that? “Now I’ve got to save your son and worry about you at the same time. You’ve just made this job twice as hard.”
“You don’t need to worry about me.” She had a chokehold on that ridiculous flashlight. “Just save Jake.”
“I don’t need to worry? Ha!” She cringed at his bark of laughter, winning a moan of displeasure from his Bear. “Have you ever been in combat? No? Then hell yeah, I have to worry!”
“Why?”
“Because you’ll get killed!”
With no warning, Paige spun to face him and screamed at the top of her lungs. “So what?”
Unexpected, that howl of pain sent his Bear backpedaling furiously. As startled as if its Mate had suddenly transformed into a rabid wolverine.
Big wimp, Rex snarled at it. His Bear rose to its hind legs and continued inching away, staring anxiously at the infuriated woman.
Rex, however, was made of sterner stuff. In a calmer voice, he said, “It matters if you get hurt.”
“Only
to Jake.”
“To me too.”
Meant to soothe her, his soft words had the opposite effect. “Right. Because if I got killed, you’d have to find another babysitter. No, wait!” Her laughter, bitter and hysterical, shocked him. “Scratch that. You’ve got Judy. I’m just the backup babysitter. And trust me, Mrs. Gordon has already found a replacement at Ancient Ways, so you won’t be inconvenienced there, either.”
Ahead of them, Lily paused, panting. Rex drifted to the side of the road and parked, still stunned by Paige’s accusation. “Is that what you think you are to me? A babysitter?”
“Secondary babysitter.” She glared straight ahead, throttling the flashlight.
“After everything we shared−”
“Stop! Stop it, right now!” Finally, one hand abandoned its death grip on her light—but only to jab an accusing finger in his face. “You made it very clear that you think what we shared was nothing. A hook up. A fling. A one-night stand.”
“That’s not true!”
“You said you weren’t interested in a relationship! So, if we’re not in a relationship and I’m not your employee, what am I to you?”
“You’re a… a friend!”
“Bullshit! Friends do things together. We don’t. And I don’t want to be your ‘friend’ anyway!”
An anxious keening wove through his thoughts. Rex had never seen his Bear this upset before. He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to fight the beginning of a monstrous headache.
“And another thing!” Paige began.
He held up a hand weakly. “Hang on. Just give me a second. I have to… ugh.”
Like a light switching off, her anger evaporated. “What’s wrong?” She leaned close, scanning his face anxiously.
“It’s nothing. Just my Bear.”
“Does it sense something? Is there something wrong?”
“No, it’s upset that we’re arguing.” He gave her a helpless shrug. “Keeps screaming ‘MAKE THE MATE HAPPY!’ I think my head’s going to burst.”
For a second, she stared at him, disbelieving. Then her lip twitched once… twice… and she burst into laughter. Not the harsh brays that shook her before. This was a real laugh, kind and gentle.
