by Lisa Kessler
Shit. She was going to shift in my truck if I didn’t get her someplace safe soon.
“We don’t have time to take her out to the ranch,” I said to my brother.
“Maybe let her out at Lookout Mountain,” Deacon suggested. “It should be empty at night.”
“Hurry.” Her teeth chattered. “Can’t…fight it…much longer.”
I drove away, doing my best to hurry without getting us pulled over for speeding when there was an escaped fugitive in my truck. By the time I reached the outskirts of Phoenix, Natasha was drenched in sweat and puffing out her breaths as if she were in labor. We were running out of time.
As soon as I turned onto the road leading to the rest area at the top of the mountain, I punched the gas.
Please let us fucking be alone up here.
I rounded the final corner and pulled into an empty lot. I heaved a sigh of relief and parked. I got out, and Natasha scrambled from the cab, stumbling into the darkness to shift. I peered in the truck to check on Deacon. He looked like shit. I took out my phone. Cole had texted to say he was waiting at the ranch, but we were at least an hour or more away, even if I drove eighty-five the whole way there.
But I couldn’t take Deacon to a hospital, either. If doctors ever got samples of our blood, they’d discover the difference in our DNA compared to human’s. We’d be outed without the Transparency Collective’s help.
I got back into the truck, and Deacon looked over at me. “Shouldn’t we watch her to make sure she stays away from humans?”
Yes. And my wolf seemed eager to stick close to her too. But I needed to get my brother some medical attention.
I started the engine. “Natasha has shifted on her own before. I’ll come back for her in the morning.”
“Wow.” Deacon raised his eyebrows. “I must look like shit.”
I chuckled, burying my concern. “Just don’t want to keep Cole waiting all night. Let’s get to the ranch.”
As I drove down the mountain, I kept an eye on my rearview mirror and wished I could let her know I’d be back for her. That moment I touched her, my wolf was instantly present, howling from the depths of my soul like…he recognized her. My mate. Probably wishful thinking, but…that had never happened before, and I’d touched plenty of women over the years.
I got on the freeway while I struggled to replay that moment when I grabbed her to pull her out of the cell. What else could explain my wolf coming to the surface of my consciousness when we were still two weeks away from the full moon? Nothing. He recognized Natasha the second I touched her skin-to-skin.
My mate. Holy shit. What if she shifted back and left town? Once she had a new identity, I’d never find her again. Fucking fate. It would’ve been better not to know my mate was even out there than to lose her before I ever got a chance to get to know her.
I smacked the steering wheel as I merged into the fast lane.
Deacon shifted in his seat. “What’s wrong?”
“Besides a wall collapsing on my brother?”
“Yeah.” Deacon chuckled, then winced. “What’s going on with you?”
Was I really going to say the words out loud? But if I couldn’t tell my brother, who could I confide in?
I stopped at a red light and looked his way. “When I grabbed Natasha’s wrist to get her out of that cell, my wolf went apeshit. My eyesight blurred, and I almost fell over.”
His jaw dropped. “She’s your mate.”
I swallowed. “I think so.” I drove through the intersection and onto the freeway on-ramp.
“Wow.” He shook his head. “You found her.”
I rolled my eyes and checked the rearview mirror as the speedometer passed eighty miles per hour. “You make it sound like it’s a done deal.”
“Isn’t it?” He shrugged. “You just broke her out of jail. You’re a hero. And once she gets to know you, she’s going to love you.”
I sighed, keeping my eyes on the highway. “There’s a good chance that by the time Cole patches you up and I get back to Phoenix, she’ll be long gone.”
“How do you figure?” he asked.
“First, I didn’t tell her I’d be back, and I can’t text her since the police have her phone.” I looked over at him and back to the road. “She’s been an assassin for a long time. She must know people who can make her a new identity. I’ll never find her again.” I laughed, but there was no joy in it. “Fate’s such a bitch. She shows me my one true mate just before she slips through my fingers.”
“Are you seriously giving up already?” Deacon shook his head. “You don’t deserve her, then, bro.”
“Fuck you.” I tightened my grip on the wheel.
Was he right?
He shrugged. “If she’s the one, isn’t she worth fighting for?”
“I just blew the wall out of a damned jail for her. If that’s not fighting, then what is?”
“You did that to protect your pack.” He wiped sweat from his forehead. “You didn’t know she was your mate yet.”
True. I looked over at him. “When did you get so wise?”
“I’ve always been the smart one.” He rubbed his hands on his pants. “I just let you think otherwise because I’m also kind.”
I laughed, and even though things were fucked-up, my injured brother had given me a little hope. If Natasha vanished, I’d keep looking for her. Hell, there were a couple of psychics in my pack, and Ryker and Serenity were also PIs. I’d find her again.
Natasha had someone in her corner now. She just didn’t know it yet.
CHAPTER 7
Natasha
I managed to get out of Dex’s shirt and the orange coveralls before the shift claimed the last vestiges of my free will. I drank in Dex’s scent one last time and dropped the shirt as pain slammed into me as if I’d been hit by a truck. I fell to all fours as my bones cracked and mutated. But even drowning in agony, I didn’t miss the sound of him driving away.
They had left me here.
In a strange way, I was almost grateful for the wave of unwelcome emotions. Anything to distract from the torment of the shift. I’d been shifting every month for eighteen years, and it never got easier. Nero had experimented with meditation as a method to increase the speed of the shift and end the pain sooner, but it never worked for me. How could I focus on my peaceful place when pointed teeth were jutting from my elongated jaw and thick black fur erupted through my skin?
Screaming might’ve been a stress reliever, but my vocal cords had already torn and reshaped. I might be able to growl or snarl now, but screaming wouldn’t be an option.
That left me overanalyzing why Dex had let me out of his truck and then abandoned me without a word. When did I start deluding myself into thinking he cared about what happened to me? He’d been honest with me from the beginning. Breaking me out of jail was to save shifters from being exposed. It had nothing to do with me, no matter how he intensely he’d stared at me through the glass partition this morning.
I should just be grateful I was still breathing and out of that cell. He didn’t owe me anything.
As the pain receded, my sleek black jaguar got to her feet and shook off the last traces of humanity. It was her turn to hunt. I was still conscious inside but far from in control. I could coax the animal at times, but I didn’t call the shots during the new moon.
We silently stalked deeper into the shadows, away from the dimly lit rest area. The scents of rabbits and coyotes wafted through the air, and we followed the trail. I’d do my best to keep her away from the streets and traffic. Hopefully, we wouldn’t cross paths with any humans, either.
New moons used to be spent on the massive compound of the Nero Organization. It had been surrounded by a twelve-foot cinder block wall so we didn’t have to worry about contact with humans. Since Nero’s destruction, though, I had been shifting in the woods outside the remote satellite facility in Flagstaff. It was far from civilization, which made it ideal for our shifts.
This mountain overloo
ked all of Phoenix, agitating the cat with all the lights and noise. I kept myself busy mapping out my next steps while the jaguar stalked rabbits. As soon as I could shift back, I’d get dressed and find a thrift store with a clothing drop-off. Once I had a change of clothes and hopefully a hat and sunglasses, I’d need to find out where they had impounded my car. I kept a key to my safe-deposit box inside the owner’s manual in the glove compartment. My box had a burner phone and two thousand dollars in cash in it, as well as a new passport and driver’s license with a new identity. I could get a plane ticket out of the country and regroup while I pooled my funds from my offshore bank accounts to start over.
None of it would be easy, but I’d completed tougher missions.
When the cat had her fill of hunting, I showed her the mental image of my clothes. Gradually, she followed my suggestion and started back up the mountain. As we got closer, the woodsy scent of Dex’s shirt teased our nostrils. He smelled like the forest right after a heavy rain.
Maybe I’d keep his shirt.
The shift back was just as painful and without the payoff of being able to see the world through an apex predator’s eyes. I groaned, sweating and trembling, as the deadly claws shrank and pulled back into my fingers. By the time I was me again, I was drenched with sweat and mildly nauseated.
Miraculously, my hair was still in its braid. No doubt it was messy, but at least it was out of my face. I got dressed quickly and hustled over to the rest area. The bathroom doors were locked so washing my face wasn’t an option. I did my best to wipe it with the sleeves of the orange jumpsuit. The last thing I needed was to have remnants of rabbit all over me.
I rolled up the legs of the coveralls to just above my knees. Hopefully orange shorts wouldn’t attract much attention.
The moonless sky meant the walk down the winding road might be treacherous for humans, but with the night vision of a jaguar, I had no trouble jogging down to the street. If I could find a thrift shop before daylight, I might even have a chance of evading the police.
After chatting with a couple of homeless guys behind a gas station, I got directions to the closest Goodwill. By the time I found it, the sky was beginning to lighten. I needed to hurry. Three bulging black Hefty bags sat by the donations door. Perfect.
I tore the first bag open and pulled out a pair of denim shorts that looked like my size. I dug around for a hat, too, but came up empty. The second bag had a San Diego Padres baseball cap in it, though. I had hoped to find something bigger to hide my hair and face, but it would do.
Once I changed into the shorts, I chucked the orange jumpsuit into a dumpster and twisted my braid up into a low bun, then slid on the baseball cap. I looked down at Dex’s oversized shirt. I could grab another one out of the donation bags, but I didn’t. I also didn’t waste time examining why.
Sadly, this would be the simplest part of my plan. Next stop would be the impound lot, and I couldn’t exactly just ask for the car after busting out of my cell last night. I’d cross that bridge once I figured out where it was. If the lot was across town, I didn’t have any money to get from here to there. But I’d figure something out. I always did.
“Hey!”
Shit. I spun around to run.
“Wait. I can help.”
I stopped and tentatively turned around. A woman with short silver hair and a glowing pink and yellow aura walked toward me waving. “We have resources.” She pointed at the back door. “Come inside. I just need to open things up and we can talk.”
Maybe I could use her internet to find the Sherriff’s impound lot. I tugged on the brim of the ball cap and hurried over. I quickly added a slight Texan twang to my accent. “Thank you. I’m sorry about the bags.” I bent to help her carry them inside. “I was desperate.”
She unlocked the door, studying me. I still hadn’t seen a mirror and prayed I didn’t have any blood or fur on my face.
Her empathetic smile warmed her features. “Well you came to the right place. You’re not from around here, are you?”
“No, ma’am. I came to Phoenix with my boyfriend, but we…broke up.”
Her aura glowed with warmth and concern. “Oh no. Where are you from?”
“Austin,” I lied. As much as I wished it didn’t, lying came almost as naturally as breathing. “I got out with the clothes on my back. I don’t even have my cell phone.”
Her eyes widened. “Maybe we should call the police?”
“No!” I blurted out faster than I meant to. “There was no physical abuse. I…I just want to go home.”
“How much money do you need?” She flipped the light switch and turned on the cash register, then opened a laptop. Her aura swirled, the gentle pink darkening to a compassionate green.
“I can’t take your money.” I pointed to her laptop. “But could I borrow your laptop?”
She turned it my way. “Of course you can.”
“Thanks.” I quickly opened the browser.
She left me alone behind the counter while she unlocked the front door and turned on the “open” sign. According to Google, I was about ten miles away from the impound lot. It was a long walk, but I could make it.
I cleared the browser history and closed the laptop as the woman came around the counter.
“I’m Beverly, by the way. And you are?”
“Tracy.” Again, the lies were too easy.
Beverly pulled a twenty-dollar bill out of her pocket. “I want you to have this, Tracy.”
I shook my head. “You’ve already given me more than enough, ma’am.”
“I won’t take no for an answer. You can use it for cab fare or something.”
She was right. I could use it for cab fare. I grudgingly took the twenty and stuffed it into my pocket. “Thanks.”
“I hope you get your phone back from your boyfriend. Texas is a long trip without a cell for emergencies.”
“I’ll be all right. My mama raised me to be resilient.” In truth, I had rarely seen my mother while I was at boarding school. When I’d learned my parents had been murdered, it had been a shock, and I had been sad, but I hadn’t been shaken. My life had been at Brightwood Academy in New York by then. That was where I’d mastered my southern accent—my best one in my opinion.
I tapped my finger on the edge of the counter. “I better get going. Thanks again, Beverly.”
She smiled, the crow’s-feet lining her eyes a testament to a life full of smiles. “Safe travels, Tracy.”
I left Goodwill through the back door, grimacing at the heat. Shit, it wasn’t even ten o’clock in the morning, and it had to be ninety-five already. Ten miles on foot in this heat wasn’t happening. I could use Beverly’s twenty for a cab, but if I couldn’t find a way to get inside my car, I might need that cash. I waited until I had put three blocks between me and Beverly before looking around for a bike without a lock.
After scanning for any watchful eyes, I mounted an unlocked ten-speed and started pedaling. I could’ve hotwired a car but decided not to take the risk. The police were looking for me. Driving around in a stolen car would make it too easy to end up back in a cell.
When I reached the police impound lot, Dex’s oversized shirt was plastered to my skin with sweat. My face was probably red, too. I parked the bike at a rack and pulled the brim of the baseball cap down as I cased the lot. There were security cameras posted at each of the corners, but they were pointed at the center of the space. I figured I could slip through the fence and maybe stay hidden, but I couldn’t be sure.
My car was parked in the third row, four cars from the fence. I didn’t have the fob or anything to jimmy the door open. I was so close to that key. I paced the sidewalk trying to gather my thoughts. If I could get into the car, I could grab the key and leave. Maybe I could climb the fence and smash a window. I peered through the chain link at the dirty office window and groaned. I was fucked.
“Hey, girlie. Need a lift?”
There was only one person on Earth who got away with calling me �
��girlie.” Relief swamped me as I turned around to see Vance Park in a silver sedan. I jogged across the street and got in on the passenger side.
“How did you find me?”
“I’m wily.” He tapped his temple, and his Aussie accent made me chuckle in spite of how shitty the past twenty-four hours had been. “Did you forget I taught you everything you know?”
I rolled my eyes. “I need to get into my car. I’ve got a safe-deposit box with a new passport and cash, but I need the key out of my glove box. I could be on a plane and out of your hair by nightfall.”
“No one’s going in that impound lot right now.” He spun the car around, heading away from my Lexus. “Too risky.”
I groaned, shaking my head. “So where are we going?”
“I’m taking you back to Asher’s. We’ll make a plan from there.”
I raised a brow. “Does the pack know you came back for me?”
He chuckled and looked over at me. “Dex was the one who sent me. He said you shifted on Lookout Mountain last night and he asked me to go pick you up. When I didn’t find you there, I figured you’d be looking for your wheels.”
“Dex?” was all I could squeak out.
“Yeah.” He merged onto the highway. “Did you really think he would go to all the trouble to break you out of jail and then just dump you on the side of the road?”
Yes.
I pressed my lips together, struggling to wrap my head around the reality that he sent someone back for me. “Why would he ask you to pick me up? The pack would be harboring a fugitive.”
He looked over at me and grinned. “Wolves.”
I laughed, and it felt so damned good. Smiling, I checked the mirror and settled into the seat. “Wake me up when we get there.”
“Will do.”
I closed my eyes and surrendered.
CHAPTER 8
Dex
I stayed up all night sitting next to the bed in Asher’s guest room watching Deacon sleep. Once we got back to the ranch, Cole had stitched his forehead and determined my brother had a mild concussion. Rest was on the schedule for today. No moving around and getting his heart rate up. Apparently even reading or playing on his phone could overstimulate his brain.
