“Then what do you suggest instead, Brains?” Maximus said in a sneering tone. Xander chose to ignore his brother’s disrespect. He’d have it out with him later.
“We could return them to the wilderness. Not where we found them, but say 100 miles away,” Deacon said quietly.
“You think that’ll confuse them? They know where they were when they saw us, you moron. They had maps and everything,” Gunner said. Maximus’ head snapped in his direction.
“They were doing an organized hike?”
“Yup.”
“You brought all of their equipment with you, right?” Xander said carefully.
“Uh, they had some bags and shit. We just dumped them in the bushes,” Deacon mumbled. Xander was quiet as his anger rumbled inside him like a distant thunderstorm.
“Go and get them, you retards!” he bellowed, loud enough to make objects in the room tremble. “All of you!” Deacon, Gunner and Mikal leapt up and rushed out of the door.
Xander sighed, running his hands through his short dark hair.
“What a fucking mess. We can’t return them; it’s too dangerous.”
“Then we’ll have to put them down,” Maximus said, enunciating each word precisely. Xander didn’t reply. He was thinking of the humans who saw the show, the men he’d fought alongside in the military. They’d been good friends. He knew that his brother, and pretty much everyone in the clan, saw humans as a lower species, good for making money from, but otherwise dispensable. But he just couldn’t see it that way. He knew that developing strong relations with the human world was crucial for the future prosperity of his clan. The world was changing fast – and it was very different to how it was when his father was in power. The clan needed new skills and strengths; they couldn’t rest on their laurels forever. They had to quickly learn and adapt to the modern world if they wanted to continue to be leaders – and to do that, they needed some of the humans’ skills.
“And those three morons should be kicked out of the clan,” Maximus broke into his thoughts. Xander frowned, having fully expected his brother to recommend a far harsher penalty. Zanko spluttered.
“For an offence like that? They’re a disgrace to the whole shifter species. They should be put down.” Other voices rose up, supporting his opinion. Soon the noise became intolerable. Xander put his hand out; an attempt to quiet them.
“They’ve broken the cardinal law of shifters,” Zanko said in the intermission that had been created. “They must be put to death.” Xander’s anger rose up at the implicit challenge to his authority. Opinions were fine, but he didn’t appreciate being told what he ‘must do’. But when he spoke, his tone was measured.
“Your opinion has been noted, thank you, Zanko.” The older bear turned away and muttered something he didn’t catch.
“What was that?” Xander said.
“He said you might think your father was a soft touch, but he knew how to be ruthless when the time came,” Maximus said, his face betraying pleasure at the reaction he knew his words would achieve. “But I say, times have changed. Let’s show some mercy and cast them out of the clan instead.”
Xander fought to control his temper. His problems with Maximus were not over. Not by a long shot. He held his hands together and stared hard at every one of the clan members.
“I’ll give your opinions a lot of consideration and call another meeting soon to let you know what I’ve decided to do. Thank you,” he said. Maximus began to edge toward him, no doubt keen to impress his views on him a little longer once the others had gone. He turned curtly and walked toward the door.
“I have an urgent matter to attend to. Please see yourselves out,” he said as he stepped outside, leaving the door open.
The urgent matter was having some time alone on the hill top. But first he wanted to make sure that the women were okay. Taking a circuitous route, he made his way to Deacon’s place, treading lightly in the twilight.
It was almost dark inside the cabin, but he could make out two women sleeping on Deacon’s couches. He felt glad that they were relaxed enough to fall asleep. The thought that they were suffering from being snatched was not pleasant to him at all. But where was the third woman? In the bathroom maybe? He waited five minutes, but she didn’t return. He frowned, and began to walk a circuit of the cabin. At the back of the place, where the kitchen was situated, was a strong human scent. A scent that he thought he recognized. It led away from the house, and into the wood. He followed it quickly, keeping his steps too light to be detected by human ears. Almost immediately, he picked up the sound of twigs breaking underfoot. A quarter of a mile later, he picked up the scent of the human’s body: fear, exertion, and something sweet and delicious that seemed to connect directly with his groin. He pressed on.
Another quarter mile and he could make her out in the darkness, but she wasn’t moving away from him, but off to the side, as if she’d got confused. Then she whirled around, looked wildly in all directions, and hurtled toward him.
He waited, and as she came close, he called out “hey,” in a soft voice and caught her up in his arms.
She gave one huge yell, then continued to scream her lungs out, kicking and punching him with surprising strength.
“Shh, it’s okay. I won’t hurt you, I promise,” he murmured. As her face turned up to look at him, pale and terrified in the darkness, he saw what he’d already suspected: she was the girl from his last fight who’d sent his bear absolutely crazy. His bear gave a long, satisfied purr. Even with her features contorted with fear and hatred, she was beautiful. Those almond-shaped dark eyes; that cute upturned nose; those full sensual lips. A lock of wavy hair fell across her face and he resisted the urge to sweep it back. He remembered the way she’d looked at him in the wrestling stadium – a little afraid but defiant and very curious. She wasn’t about to run away scared like the others. And now he’d just made a promise to her that he wouldn’t hurt her, and there was no going back on that. There would be no question of putting them down. She was still for a moment, returning his gaze, then she resumed her attack. She was beginning to do him some damage – inflicting blows that would leave a bruise tomorrow. He pinned her arms against her body and turned her so that she couldn’t kick him any longer.
“Quit,” he said softly, his breath blowing across her ear. He felt her body relax a little, or had he imagined it? “There’s no way you could make it through the wood by yourself, you know that, don’t you? It’s not safe you being out here by yourself.” She gave a bark of sardonic laughter.
“We were safe on the trail ‘by ourselves’ several hours ago. Then some assholes kidnaped us. Of course we’re not safe here!” she yelled. He stared at her deeply impressed by her feistiness. He hadn’t realized that human females could be so tough. She looked incredible, her jaw tilted defiantly, her eyes big and shining, lips red and slightly parted, and teeth glistening white against the darkness. He wanted her. He’d never been attracted to humans before, but he wanted her. A fog of desire filled his mind and there was that tell-tale tingle beginning deep in his groin. Not knowing what he was doing, he bent his head and kissed her, hard, on the mouth. For several dizzying seconds, she returned his kiss, her lips parting further, so full and soft under his. He felt the blissful moistness of her mouth, the ghost of her tongue. And then she bit him, hard. He jerked away from her, tasting his own blood, his lips burning.
She stared at him furiously as his finger went to the sore place.
“You shouldn’t have done that,” she said.
“I know, I’m sorry,” he replied, unusually meekly.
“Why have you brought us here?” she demanded. He sensed that she’d picked up on the subtle shift in power and she was using it to her advantage. Smart girl. He took a deep breath, blowing it out through his nostrils. He might as well be honest. There was nothing to lose.
“I didn’t have anything to do with it. I only learned about it when the guys from my clan brought you here.” She shrugged, a hard sarcas
tic movement.
“That’s nothing more than semantics. So your cronies brought us here. Why?”
“Because you saw them shift.”
“And I saw you as a man and a bear at the wrestling match. So?”
“It’s forbidden for humans to see us in the process of shifting. It’s one of our oldest and most sacred laws. For humans, the equivalent would be something like seeing God’s face or something.” She frowned.
“We hardly saw them at first. We thought there were some hinky-looking bears ahead of us, but we couldn’t be sure. Our main focus was on not being eaten. We only got a close up when they charged over and shifted into human form so they could get hold of us. And I’ve got to say, that was a little freaky.” Xander closed his eyes. Does the stupidity of certain members of my clan know no limits? he thought. If they’d just run off, the girls most likely would’ve had no idea what they’d seen. And now there’s this situation. “So we saw them; big deal. How about we promise not to mention it to anyone and you deliver us right back to the trail?” she continued. Xander sighed inwardly. More than anything, that was what he wanted to do. Put them back exactly where Deacon and the others had found them, and forget about the whole thing. But he couldn’t do that. The stakes were too high. He didn’t only have to trust her to keep quiet about shifting, there was the other matter too, which was actually far more important to him.
“As much as I want to, I can’t let you go,” he said. “Our shifter nature, and our home are both closely guarded secrets. I can’t risk anyone from the outside world knowing where we live.”
“We’ll keep that a secret too. I know this is all serious shit to you, but all we want to do is get on with our hike.” Xander bristled at the implication behind her words – that there was something trivial about their concerns. He had to give her some idea of the potential danger she was in.
“You need to understand that I just called a meeting where several members of the clan wanted to kill you all to ensure that you didn’t cause any trouble,” he said. She gasped. Her lower lip trembled, and he felt her heart rate speed up, her pulse fluttering like a bird all through her body.
“You’re going to kill us?” she managed to say.
“No,” he said simply.
“You voted against the other clan members?”
“I was undecided.” Her eyes widened, the whites showing all the way around. Her expression altered as she got the measure of him.
“What changed?” Her voice was a throaty whisper, as if her throat was constricted.
“I came close to you just now, and I realized that I couldn’t hurt you. And I gave you my word.”
“You’re a man of your word.”
“I am.” She looked searchingly into his eyes. It suddenly became hard to maintain eye contact, and he had the uncomfortable feeling that she was looking right into his soul. She relaxed a fraction more, as if she’d assessed him and decided that he was telling the truth.
“If you’re not going to hurt us, let us go.” He shook his head sadly.
“I can’t. I can’t take the risk.”
“You’re not going to kill us; you’re not going to let us go. What are you planning on doing with us?” Her chin was jutting out; a challenge. He opened his mouth, but nothing came out. “You don’t know, do you?” Damn. She’s feisty. He noted how small she was compared to him. She barely came up to his chest, yet she was facing him, square on. He was silent, turning over his options, and unexpectedly, a wave of anger hit him at the position he’d been put in. There was no satisfactory solution, at all. He grabbed her arm, harder than he’d meant to, instantly regretting it as she cried out in pain. She’s a human, he reminded himself. You need to be a lot gentler than you’re used to.
“Come on, let’s go back,” he said brusquely, and began to lead her quickly through the wood. She stumbled in the dark, unused to negotiating the tangle of branches and vines that covered the forest floor.
“Let me carry you,” he said, going to lift her up again.
“No, get off me. I can walk,” she snapped.
“Okay. Fall on your face if you prefer,” he said, with a trace of petulance. She was an infuriating woman.
She kept stumbling, and tripping, grabbing at branches to break her fall, but she kept her mouth firmly closed and rejected his repeated offers of help. When they arrived back at Deacon’s cabin, they saw that the lights in the living room had been switched on. Her breathing quickened and she raced toward the door. Xander came up behind her and lifted up the potted plants on the porch, looking for key. He found it and let them both in, he following behind her.
Her friends were awake, sitting close together on the couch, looking bewildered, faces etched with tension.
“Freya!” the brown-haired one exclaimed. Then she saw him standing behind her and gave a little scream, before clapping her hand over her mouth. Both women scrambled up higher on the couch, trying to get as far away from him as possible. He realized how huge and menacing he must look to them, and he felt a little ashamed.
“I tried to escape while you two were asleep,” the girl that he now knew was called Freya said flatly as she joined them on the couch.
“Freya! We’re in the middle of nowhere! That was so dangerous,” the other one, with the auburn hair and freckles exclaimed.
“I know, but I couldn’t just sit here doing nothing,” Freya replied. “Unfortunately, this one –” she angled her head toward him. “Caught up with me.”
“I’d say it was very fortunate, young lady,” he replied. “I’m the Alpha of this clan, which means that what I say goes. But there are many here who want you dead, and the will of a bear isn’t always so easy to control.”
“Dead?” the other two gasped in unison, and the brown haired one began to cry. Freya sat between them and took their hands, squeezing them tight.
“He’s not going to kill us. Apparently.”
“I used to be a soldier. I’m now the leader of one of the most powerful shifter clans in the land. It’s beneath me to lie,” he said.
“And how can we trust that’s true?” she retorted. Her words stirred up his anger once again. Jesus; she knew how to wind him up.
“Because you’ve got no other option!” he said, his voice rising to a roar. This time, all three of them shrank back on the couch. “You have my word that you won’t be harmed. And now that I’ve made my decision, the clan will also be warned not to harm you. But please don’t try to escape again. I’m not going to lock you up inside. You’ll be free to roam around the territory. But if you run away, you won’t get far. And if we have to come looking for you, then all bets are off.” The women were silent; evidently reeling from shock.
“You know this is illegal, right? In the human world, you can’t just decide you’re going to kidnap someone, and it’s all fine,” the auburn-haired one said. Xander’s bear stirred inside him.
“You’re not in the human world anymore, lady,” he said, in a deep, rumbling voice. “You’re on shifter territory, and we have our own laws.”
Three faces displayed identical expressions of disbelief, followed by a dawning understanding.
“Think of it as being in a different country with a different set of laws. You’ll be well cared for here. You’ll have to stay in this cabin for the next couple of days, but after that, we’ll find you an empty one. I’m sure you can get one designed to your own specifications if you like too.”
“Why the hell would we want to design our own cabin?” Freya spat. He was starting to leave, but he spun around at her words.
“Because this is your home now. So you might as well enjoy it as much as you can.”
“What do you mean, it’s our home?”
“I mean, that you’ll be living here from now on.”
“And what does that even mean?” Freya said, a quavering note to her voice.
“I mean that you can’t ever leave. You’ll all be spending your lives here,” he said. “I’ll leave you
now, but I’ll get someone to bring you some food later. Let them know if there’s anything else you need.” Before they had the opportunity to say anything else to him, he strode out of the cabin and closed the door firmly behind him.
At the end of the path that led to the cabin, Xander paused, staring up at the night sky, his hands balled into fists. He was well aware how harsh his words had been. But he’d been no harsher than he’d needed to be. The women living their lives in Broken Hill was a reality now, and the sooner they accepted it, the happier they’d be. He let off a growl of frustration. And the further away he stayed from the feisty one, the better. She was too much for him to cope with, by far. Suddenly, he felt tired. He went to find his brothers, to let them know his decision about the women.
Chapter Eleven
The second the door closed, Freya, Marin and Eloise all burst into tears, crying with big, jerking sobs, in a mixture of relief, anger and disbelief. At last, Freya wiped her face on her sleeve, all cried out.
“How the hell can that animal stand there so calmly and tell us that we’re going to live as prisoners here?” she exclaimed. “Like it’s nothing. When I get out of here, I’m going to take them down, every last one of those duplicitous bastards. They fight in all these shows, and have all these fans, like they’re heroes, and then they kidnap innocent women. I’m not surprised they’re kept behind glass and fences.”
“What do you mean?” Marin said, blowing her nose.
“At the wrestling matches. The fighters are separated from the audience by bullet-proof glass because they’re so dangerous.”
“And yet we’ve just been close to them and they haven’t hurt us,” Eloise said in a tone almost of wonder. “They seem a lot like humans.” Freya snorted.
“Humans who think it’s acceptable to kidnap people. They’re animals, believe me.”
“I’ve never seen a human that size either,” Eloise said. “That guy scared the hell out of me. He’s like a muscle machine.”
Bear in the Rough: Bear Shifter Romance (Broken Hill Bears Book 1) Page 9
