by K. Panikian
When I finished August sniffed me again and I stood patiently. He dwarfed my puma body but I wasn’t afraid. I knew that my Beast would dwarf him. The thought kept my puma calm.
When he was done, we turned and backtracked to the scent trail and, together, followed it up into the foothills.
Moving at a quick trot, I knew we had to be gaining on the panicked men. Especially if they were setting a trap for me. After a mile, I nudged August with my paw and left the trail. I would parallel it on this side. August took the other side and we kept going.
The trail zigzagged up through the forest, gaining in altitude quickly. The trees grew thinner and I felt more exposed. Large boulders lay tumbled on the steep slope, so I moved into the shadows, darting from rock to rock.
The path flattened on the ridgeline and I stopped, hearing an odd, faint clicking sound on the wind. Creeping forward, my tan fur matching the ground around me, I slipped to August’s side of the path and found him, his hackles bristling, as he glared around a tall boulder.
Mike and Alex huddled on the other side of the stone barrier. Mike had a large rock in his hand and scraped away at the dirt in front of him slowly and methodically, while Alex stood over his shoulder, peering down and muttering.
Hunkering my body lower next to August, I prepared to watch and wait.
Mike dug for another few minutes before letting out a satisfied sigh. Reaching into the hole he’d created, he pulled out a long, thin object, wrapped in plastic. He handed it to Alex and the other man unwrapped it—a rifle.
I stared at it and knew this was the weapon that shot Daniel. They’d hidden it, maybe intending to never use it again. But then I came along.
August growled softly and I nudged him hard with my shoulder.
Alex motioned to the rocks beside the trail and they climbed, settling on the top of a large boulder. They would have a clear shot down the trail to where I, presumably, would come hiking at any moment, if I followed them
My blood boiled. They were seriously trying to murder me! Wait until I told Darcy. She’d skin Alex alive.
I nudged August again and lifted my chin toward the rocks behind the men. He followed me as I crept behind the boulder where the men waited, and then higher and farther away from them.
In the shadows, I shifted back to my human form, shivering briefly at the loss of my fur in the chilly shade. Next to me August’s fur melted away as well. He turned his piercing eyes to mine.
Goosebumps rose on my skin and I cleared my throat softly. “We need them alive. We need them to point the finger at Blair and whoever else is involved in the rustling.”
“We need one of them alive,” August growled back.
I cocked my head, considering. “But we don’t know which one has the best information. If you kill the wrong one, maybe we end up with only a henchman that can’t identify anyone.”
August huffed out a breath. “Fine.”
I crept to the side of the boulder where we hid and saw the two men below us, still watching the trail. “I think that’s the rifle that killed Daniel. We should bring it back with us too.”
I scanned the scene carefully, trying to ignore the warm, nude male body beside me. August without clothes was breathtaking, his body sculpted with muscles and a dusting of golden hair. I swallowed again, trying to ease my dry throat.
“Sienna,” August murmured, “look at me.”
“No, that’s okay,” I whispered back.
“Sienna, why are you acting like this?”
His words echoed in my ears and my rage, never far from the surface these days, reared. This is not the time for flirting! “Acting like what?” I hissed. “Like we need to focus on the task at hand?”
“Like you don’t want to be near me.”
I blinked.
“Like you can’t stand the sight of me. Like you regret that I kissed you in the mine.”
I stared at him, my mind reeling. I felt completely lost for words and knew my mouth hung open.
“What?” I finally muttered. “We’re talking about this now?”
“I wanted to talk to you about it before, but the timing felt weird. I wanted to be alone with you but the cops were there, then you left, and I found you with Logan the next day.”
“I can’t do this right now. I can’t read your mind and I’m not feeling very trusting at the moment. I just want to get those two bozos to the cops. That’s all I’m going to think about.”
August leaned closer to me and his wild scent enveloped me in a musky cloud. My Beast purred and I pulled her back with a quiet cough. Smirking, August brushed his nose along my cheek and dropped a small, sweet kiss beside my mouth. “Then I’ll talk to you later. But we will talk, Sienna.”
Quaking inside, I turned away. I couldn’t handle sweet August.
I clenched my hands at my side and stood. “I’ll take Mike. You take Alex. Remember—alive.”
With a short nod, August stepped out from behind the boulder and crept toward the men. I followed and when we were both in position behind them, we moved.
I saw out of the corner of my eye, August tackle Alex as I landed on top of Mike. He let out a gasping shout and started to wriggle. Leaning slightly on my Beast’s strength, I punched him hard in the jaw—he dropped at my feet without a sound.
Next to me Alex dropped soundlessly as well. Crumpled on the ground, their boyish faces tugged at my heartstrings. They’d made some bad choices, but they were so young. Hopefully, spending time in jail would redirect their energies.
August knelt and tossed one man over his shoulder before piling the other man on top. He lifted his chin at the rifle and I grabbed it.
I followed him down the rocky slope back to the path, staring at his round, muscled butt flex in the sunlight the whole time.
“SO you accused them of murder, poaching, and arson, and when they bolted, you followed them. Why didn’t you call the police?”
I smiled weakly at Chief Palmer. “I didn’t think I had enough evidence to get the police involved. I didn’t want them to get away and warn the others.”
Chief Palmer leaned back in his chair and looked at me with an unhappy expression on his handsome face. “Sienna, I don’t know you, but both times we’ve met have involved me responding after you’ve taken out the bad guys yourself. This is not a healthy pattern.”
He leaned forward and pinned me in place with his dark, piercing eyes. “Can you please promise me that next time, you’ll call me first? Here,” he handed me a business card, “my personal cell is on that. Call me anytime.”
Next to me in a rickety plastic chair, August growled.
Chief Palmer rolled his eyes and pointed his finger at the alpha. “Don’t you start with me. You knew better too.”
August shrugged, his shoulders still tense. “We’ll see, Everett.”
“Did you find out anything?” I asked.
We’d been waiting in a small room at the Jackson police station for hours. After we stomped into the visitor center, having paused to get dressed again, carrying two unconscious men and a rifle, Ted had sprung into action and called the police. We’d been whisked to the station by the chief himself where we’d sat, with no news at all, for hours.
Chief Palmer sighed and scrubbed his face. “Oh yeah, we got it all. Neither of those men are cut out for a life of crime. As soon as we splashed some water on their faces and they woke up to see where they were, they sang.”
He pulled a notebook from his pocket. “A woman, Blair Weber, approached Mike in the spring with the rustling plan. She needed some quick cash to finance some unknown-to-them endeavor and Mike wanted the money to help his parents with their ranch, which was in danger of foreclosure. Mike convinced Alex to help, too, with a share of his cut.
“Mike and Alex passed along the information about the ranches to hit, and the details on where in the refuge the herds were moving, and then, when Daniel caught them digging a pit to bury the harvested bodies in the national forest, they sho
t him. They thought he was dead. They left his body to finish digging the hole, intending to drop him in with the elk, but when they came back he was gone.”
I nodded. Daniel must have escaped and headed north, trying to get back to the park, to where he felt safe.
“Where’s Blair now?” August asked.
Chief Palmer tapped his finger beside his nose. “Officially, those guys don’t know. They communicated via cell, rarely meeting in person. Unofficially,” I leaned forward, “I’m not telling you.” I sat back, blinking.
“You two need to stay out of this. The police will find Blair and whoever is working with her. The arsonist is so far not cooperating, but we’ll figure it out. In the meantime, go home. You’re done.”
August rose and I scrambled to my feet beside him. The chief pointed to the door and I strode out into the hall, my joints aching from sitting so long in my plastic chair and my mouth gummy with dryness. I checked my phone as we left the building—almost midnight.
Outside, the cold, night air blasted my eyeballs awake and I stretched. I need to find a ride back to the refuge to grab my car.
A warm hand at my back steered me toward the sidewalk and I moved away from it.
August frowned at me. “We need to talk.”
Shaking my head quickly, I took a step back. “No, thanks. I only want to go home.”
“It’s the middle of the night. We’ve got maybe a couple of hours before Blair realizes that the gig is up. We need to regroup and plan.”
“We?”
“Yes, Sienna, ‘we.’ Unless you’re done? You found your murderer and stopped the poaching. Is that the end for you?”
Chapter 16
I stared at August. Was it the end? If I stayed and helped him catch Blair, was I signaling my loyalty to him, to his pack?
Could I really leave though? What if August needed me? What if he took on Blair’s gang by himself and he lost? What if he got hurt because I wouldn’t help him?
Blair was gunning for both of us. We’d be safer together.
I sighed. “Okay, where are we going?”
August smiled slowly and I ignored the flutters in my belly. “My place.”
My hair flew into my eyes, I shook my head so hard. “No way. That’s the first place Blair will look for you.”
“She doesn’t know about this place. I just bought it.” August stretched out a hand to me. “Come on, Sienna. I have food,” he sang out the last word and I lost the battle to my reluctant grin.
Avoiding his hand, I followed him through the parking lot.
“How did your car get here?”
“Pack brought it. Probably Maren.”
I ferociously fought down the burn of jealousy that surged through me as I climbed into the car. I meant to close my gritty, tired eyes for just a second, but when I leaned my head against the window, I was out.
I woke up on a strange couch, in a strange cabin, with a soft blanket draped across me. I lay still for a long moment, breathing shallowly. I caught the smells of woodsmoke and alpha tiger, plus cooking meat. My stomach rumbled.
“Steaks are almost ready,” August’s voice called from behind the couch.
I sat up slowly, wincing at my tight muscles, and looked over the back of the couch. August stood a few steps away in a small kitchen—his broad back straining his t-shirt as he stirred something at a small stove. I glanced around the cabin, noticing the knotted, wood walls, the stone fireplace, and the loft above the kitchen.
After clearing my throat, I climbed gingerly off the couch and stepped into the kitchen. I was ravenous and the steaks smelled amazing.
“Sit.” August pointed to a small table with a couple of chairs and I sat. He brought over plates with two steaks before ducking back into the kitchen for glasses of water.
“Sorry,” he said. “I don’t have too much food here yet. Just the steaks and some apples, and cookies.”
“This is great, thanks.” I dug into the steak with a muffled moan. The rich, bloody flavors melted on my tongue.
August laughed to himself as he watched me swallow a mouthful and bite back another moan.
“So good.”
“I like that sound. I’m going to cook for you more.”
I choked and took a long swallow of my water.
We ate silently for a few minutes before I pushed my plate away, uncomfortably full. I hadn’t been able to resist eating the whole thing—I’d burned a lot of energy running around the refuge.
August pushed his plate away, too, and took a long sip of water. I watched his throat move and swallowed in unison.
“This is nice.” I waved my hand in the air at the small cabin.
“Yeah,” August smiled in satisfaction. “I needed some privacy from my packmates and this place is too small for guests.”
I flushed and started to push back from the table.
“Not you,” he said quickly. “I like having you here.”
I willed my pink cheeks to calm down.
“I didn’t want to be alpha, you know.”
“I didn’t know that. I don’t know anything about you, other than you were in the Marines.”
“I joined to get away from my parents. They were alphas in a pack down in Georgia and it didn’t look like a fun way to live to me. Lots of work, lots of responsibilities, lots of heartache. When I got out of the military I moved to Jackson. A buddy of mine said the alpha here would take me if I agreed to do some beta work here and there.”
August took another long sip of water and I copied him. “But I couldn’t stay uninvolved. He was a real bastard and people were suffering.”
“Your parents must have been happy when you took over,” I offered.
He shook his head. “They’re dead. A while ago.” August stared down at his hands for a long moment while I sat quietly.
I wanted to offer condolences, but I knew whenever I thought about losing my adoptive parents, other people’s words didn’t help me. I said simply, “I’m sorry.”
He pushed back from the table and carried our plates into the kitchen. I got up to help and he waved me away. “This is a one-person kitchen.”
I sat on the couch again and pulled the blanket onto my lap, staring at the fire. The logs snapped and I thought of the arsonist. I wondered if she’d given the police any information on Blair’s whereabouts yet. After a few minutes, August came to sit next to me, stretching out his long legs on the table in front of us and resting his arms behind his head.
Seemingly reading my thoughts, he said, “Maren’s leaning on Stacy and Yvette, trying to find out where Blair may be hiding.”
“Doesn’t that break the Commando Barbie code? How can you trust Maren is loyal to you and not to the other betas?”
August looked at me consideringly. “Maren is my sister-in-law. She’s loyal to me first. Yvette and Stacy are holdovers from the former alpha and once they’re recovered from their injuries, they’ll be on their way out of my territory.”
I felt my blush return as I picked at the blanket in my lap. “Why are you kicking them out?”
“They broke the rules, again. And I don’t give third chances. They knew you were off limits and they knew I’d forbidden them hassling Jordan or the other park shifters. I don’t like that my pack bullies the exiles. I’m changing it, but it’s a process.”
I swallowed, remembering my accusations after I got Jordan out of the tree. Maybe I’d been too hasty.
“I also have eyes on Soren, in Blake’s pack. Blake gave me permission to bug his car. I have my bear beta, Gideon, monitoring the tracker to let me know if Soren comes into Jackson Hole. I called him while you were sleeping and he’s going to parse the data and see if Soren’s going to one spot regularly outside of the West Yellowstone territory.”
I nodded.
“While we wait to hear back from Maren and Gideon, I would really, really like to talk to you about what happened in the mine.”
I shrank a little before deliberately straight
ening my shoulders. I was ready for whatever he said. It couldn’t be any worse than what I’d heard from Logan. I fought off a pang—that wasn’t true. It would hurt more coming from August.
“You’re amazing.”
My vision wavered as my pulse sped up.
“That was incredible. I’ve never met a Primal before. How have you kept yourself a secret?”
My chest tightened and my eyebrows squished together. “What?” I croaked before trying again. “What’s a Primal?”
My thoughts whirled. There was a shifter term for my Beast? Did that mean there were more like me?
“You don’t know what you are? Are you a Primal? Or something else?”
I stared hard at August’s serious expression. “I told you, I didn’t grow up with shifters. Everything about myself, I’ve learned on my own. I’ve never heard of a Primal.”
August leaned over to squeeze my hand. “The Primals are the first among us—the strongest—and the only ones with a hybrid form that I know of. The legend is they’re a different kind of shifter—made by the gods at the dawn of time, or something like that. I thought they’d died out.”
“Died out?”
“In the wars last century, before the treaty. They got used up, killing each other in battle. I did hear of some just vanishing, renouncing the packs. Usually they were hunted down after that—they were too powerful to be left out of the wars. But maybe that’s where you came from.”
August’s words echoed in my ears as I listened and wondered. A different kind of shifter?
“How come you know about Primals?”
“Only stories from when I was a kid. Don’t forget, my parents were alphas. They had access to information that regular shifters don’t. I remember them talking about the hybrid form, the power, the rage.”
I nodded. I had a lot of rage.
“So maybe my parents didn’t abandon me,” I whispered. “Maybe they were hunted down, or maybe they were trying to help me hide.”
“Maybe,” August said. “I can help you try and find out, if you want.”
Suspicion flared again and a wave of adrenaline weaved through me. “And what do you want in return? You want a super soldier to fight for you?”
