A Healing Love

by Shara Azod

  Chapter Three

  “Why can't you deliver the packages here?” Megan didn't like that Valeri person. What kind of a person hugs a woman he didn’t know? He could’ve hurt Mica. And he certainly had no business telling Mica she would be cured.

  “All my delivery trucks are out,” the gruff Russian informed her. “My sons are out on deliveries. I am sorry, but I cannot leave the store, and today is the last day before Christmas I will be open. If you want these packages before then you’ll have to come get them now, before dark. It’s not safe to be on these roads after dark.”

  Alaskan winters had ridiculously short daylight hours. As tempted as she was to leave the packages there, she just couldn’t do that. The packages he described were the ones she’d packed Mica’s Christmas gifts in; gifts she had spent months planning and designing. Chances were good there wouldn’t be another Christmas for her young charge. Damn that man! There was just no choice but to retrieve them.

  “Fine,” Megan snapped, mentally going over all the safeguards she had put in place around the home. Viciously rubbing at her brow as if she could stave off the headache brewing there, she mentally calculated the time it would take her to drive into town and back. It would be cutting it close but she could make it, provided there were no delays. “Please have the packages ready when I get there. I have no time to sit around waiting.”

  “Yes, ma’am,” was the cocky retort before she heard a distinctive click announcing Valeri had hung up.

  Looking out of the massive living room windows, Megan almost groaned out loud. There had to be over two and half hours of daylight left, so why did the sky look so dark now? Better get a move on—the last thing she wanted to do was be stuck driving back in the dark along these mountain roads. Plus, she wouldn’t want to leave Mica alone for too long. Every moment was precious now. Swallowing the sob that was never far from the surface, she did her best to put on a pleasant face.

  “I have to go into town. That weird Russian mountain man forgot a couple of packages.” Megan found herself grinding her teeth before she forcibly relaxed. Thankfully Mica was too busy putting ornaments on the tree to notice her agitation.

  “You want me to ride along?” Mica smiled brightly, but Megan saw the exhaustion behind the smile. It was hard not to rage when Megan watched her. Such a sweet person, beautiful down to her soul. And she was dying through no fault of her own.

  “No, I shouldn’t be long. Why don’t you snuggle up in front of the fire and read awhile? We can finish the tree when I get back.” Megan knew better, but she really wished Mica would rest.

  The sheer will and determination Mica exhibited never ceased to amaze Megan. Once that young woman’s mind was made up, she was tenacious until the task was completed.

  “Plu-ease,” Mica snorted, rolling her eyes. “I think I can handle throwing ornaments on a tree. But I promise to sit awhile if I get tired, okay?”

  Swallowing the lump in her throat, Megan quickly turned away. Mica would only get upset if she saw the tears that gathered in her eyes. Hurrying off, she drew in harsh, cold breaths as she jumped into the vehicle and sat there while it warmed up a bit. Guilt swamped her as she maneuvered on the lone paved road. All these years Megan had been cursed with the knowledge of what really ailed Mica, but there was no one she could tell. Who would believe her? That fateful morning twenty years ago Megan had awoken to find a rotten shifter cub curled up on the bed with her charge. Megan had known immediately what the pure white cub was. Siberian tiger shifter. She knew because she too was a shifter, though she had never revealed herself willingly to any of them. Not knowing what else to do, she had simply grabbed the cub by his scruff and chucked him out of the window. When she returned to examine Mica, she’d seen the bite.

  Because Megan’s own mother had been killed by a shifter when she was just a baby, she had been raised by humans. As a result, she had little to no knowledge about her own people. Hell, if she hadn’t been one herself, she would have sworn there were no such thing as African tigers, shifters or otherwise. All she knew for sure was how to spot them, most of the time, and avoid others like the plague, as they all seemed to be male. Oh, and she knew as long as she didn’t shift she was safe from detection. The scent she gave off whenever she did brought voracious males too close for comfort.

  Megan had no idea why the shifter’s bite had made Mica sick. Not a day hadn’t gone by that she hadn’t researched any and everything she could get her hands on, seeking that answer. Others had been bitten by shifters and never suffered more than the discomfort of an animal bite. Unfortunately, since she knew no other tigers like herself, there was no one she trusted to ask. The information she had found in far-flung villages across the world and on the internet was steeped in myth and bullshit. How many witch doctors, websites, mystics, shaman, etc., etc. had told her to her face there was no such thing as female tiger shifters? And yet here she was, living proof that was bull. Therefore every piece of information had to be treated with skepticism. And now she was running out of time. So far all she had learned about shifters had only brought more questions, not only about Mica, but about herself.

  Unless the shifter that had been standing in the cabin when they got there had some answers. He damn well better have some answers; her baby was dying. She didn’t have to be Mica’s mother to love her like one. She had devoted her entire life to that wonderful girl. But the man’s strange reaction gave her something she had run out of—hope. He had to know something; he certainly acted as if he did. If that meant she had to fight him, well, she was just going to have to fight him.

  And just let his family members try to get into the cabin while she was gone! She’d made sure she laced plenty of traps with catnip (which worked!); the amount of which made traveling anywhere but along the path that led directly to the front door a mistake. Over the years she had learned enough to keep her charge safe from humans and human-animal hybrids.

  By the time Megan arrived in front of the general store, she had worked herself up into a fine lather. Her fangs were even showing, her claws not far from the surface. There was no point in hiding them from Valeri—he knew what she was just like she knew what he was. The only reason she hadn’t shifted and gone to his ass tiger style earlier was for Mica’s sake. That crap about Mica being healed---she wanted to know just what the hell he was getting at. For damn sure she would kill any shifter who dared set foot near her charge again. If what he said was some ruse to get close to her, she would feast on his entrails. Fucking male tigers had done enough already.

  For once Megan was going to get answers. If there was any way to cure Mica—without sentencing her to be some cat toy—she would. Damn Russian alley cat probably held back her packages on purpose!

  Jumping out of the vehicle, Megan stomped into the store, using her cat senses to locate all potential threats. That was one of the few good things about being a freak of nature—she could tell if anyone was hiding no matter what form she was in. Only Valeri was there, but the scent of others, all male, lingered in the air. She was going to have to get back to Mica quickly.

  “If the others in this area go anywhere near Mica, I’ll rip out their throats.” Anger caused Megan’s voice to take on an animalistic growl. She didn’t care. It was controlled fury, ready to be channeled and used at the right moment should she need to. “You will relay to them to stay the hell away, or I will hunt them one by one and tell them in my own way. I need a new winter coat anyway.”

  Thank God she had thought to set those traps! She’d also disabled the doorbell just in case. Sure they could bang on the door, but chances were excellent that despite her determination to finish trimming the tree, Mica was going to take a nap. Being a deep sleeper, she probably wouldn’t hear knocking.

  “You don’t exist.”

  Instead of the confrontation Megan had geared herself up for, she was met with a look of dumbfounded shock from the other tiger. What the hell? Hadn’t he recognized her earlier?

  “Are you
seriously going to tell me you didn’t smell me at the cabin? And don’t give me that bullshit about there not being any female tiger shifters. I’m right freaking here, aren’t I?” Megan had very little patience right about now, and this man-cat was trying every bit of it. “I certainly smelled your stench from a mile off.” Not true, but he didn’t need to know that. “Did you send one of your kittens after my little girl or not, old man?”

  Valeri didn’t do more than gape at her, mouth and eyes wide open. No, eyes dilating, the blue-green beginning to swirl, fangs descending. Megan had run into one or two hostile shifter types in her time, the kind that would much rather attack than talk. Valeri was definitely projecting aggression, but not the hostile kind.

  Awww, shit—really? Surely she was past her prime for this kind of thing?

  “Hey, buddy, keep it in your pants. I’m only here for some answers.” However, Megan did edge backwards in the direction of the door as she spoke. Just in case, she allowed her claws to come on down.

  Just because she’d never actually seen kitty lust up close and personal didn’t mean she didn’t recognize it, And man, oh man, could she smell it. It was a good thing she’d never come across a needy tiger before, because the pheromones this one was kicking out were a killer! Had to be pheromones, ’cause no way was she attracted to this male. Not once in her forty-three years had she ever been remotely interested in sexual intercourse with man, woman or man-beast. Why would she start now, and why with someone she so obviously despised?

  And yet...

  “Do us both a favor,” Valeri drawled. “Do not run.” His pupils were so large they almost swallowed his irises. “Please, don't run. I don’t know if I can keep control if you do.”

  Megan had no idea what to do with that information. Unfortunately for her, her body didn’t seem interested in waiting for her brain to figure it out. Her brain really believed the warning and was going over the pros and cons...

  But damned if her feet didn’t turn and haul ass.

  Chapter Four

  That smell! Luka stumbled as soon as he climbed out of the truck, inhaling over and over again. How was it possible? Oh, the smell had changed subtly; instead of the sweet aroma of innocence that Luka just wanted to be around, it had grown up, as the woman whom the scent belonged to sure had. His knees buckled, causing him to fall into a bank of snow. There was no other woman that smelled like that, no other woman on earth to bring his body to life, tingling with awareness and need. Oh my God, she’s alive! Her scent was strong, though the life force wasn’t. She was alive, but in so much pain it nearly crippled Luka.

  Somehow, someway, she had managed to block the intensity of what she was suffering. Because of him. He knew he needed to get up, he had to go hold her, kiss her, make her better. For once and for all he had to take the pain away. But he didn’t deserve the completion that would bring him. He didn't deserve to finally have his mate when he had almost killed her. If there were a choice, he would take all the pain and leave her to find happiness. But that wasn’t possible, and deep down inside, he was a deadly predator. No way he could stomach not being with her, not loving her.

  Fuck! His father had set him up. No doubt Papa had known immediately who she was. Just as Papa knew Luka had given up all hope of ever really having a life. He’d believed he’d never mate, never have young. Tigers mated once, for life, and he had believed he killed his one and only because he was too young and stupid to know a wolf in tiger’s clothing when he saw one.

  Because neither he nor Mica had been developed enough to truly mate, the bite would’ve changed her body in some ways but been unable to in others, effectively poisoning her. But the bite had connected them mentally and physically. He should have felt everything she went through. However, the pains had dulled for him when Mica would’ve been around thirteen. He had believed she’d died then. How had she been able to keep the worst of the pain away from him? Tears flooded his eyes. Unable to stop them, he silently let them flow. He didn't care the biting wind almost froze the moisture to his skin.

  Alive! All of a sudden life seemed a hell of a lot brighter. Luka wasn’t a sentimental kind of tiger, but hell, he felt like he had emotionally been run over by a semi carrying a brick house. Geez, he needed to get his ass in the house. Fumbling for the key in his pocket, it dropped from his suddenly nerveless fingers. He had no idea what he would say, what exactly he’d do. But he did know he had to get to her soon. If only he could gather the same courage he’d had while trying to hunt Gleb. Facing a fight to the death seemed a hell of a lot easier than going to claim his dying mate.

  He had to get it together. It may have been a miracle she was still alive, but she needed him. If nothing else, he could hold her and make her better. Getting off his knees, however, was a feat. Especially because someone thought it was a good idea to place traps under the snow all over the yard. Traps with catnip in them. What the hell? Had Mica figured out what happened to her and hated his kind because of it? That made no sense; why would she come back now if she had?

  Letting himself in the house was probably not his smartest move, but Luka made sure he didn't make a sound. God, it was hard! All he wanted to do was rush inside to care for what was his the way he should’ve been doing already. Stopping once he had silently closed and locked the door behind him, Luka sniffed the air carefully. The last thing he wanted was a confrontation. Maybe if he hadn’t run off like the scared little kitten he was all those years ago...

  Only Mica was here, though the scent of another woman was still there. The very same woman who’d once tossed him out of the window like he was vermin. It was good to know Mica’d had a constant companion over the years, one that was not male. But he was here now; he would be providing for all her needs and wants from now on.

  Creeping around the corner, Luka found the woman who’d haunted his dreams since he’d first seen her. Asleep curled up on an extra-large chair in front of the fire, she looked just as sweet as she had when she was a child. Her beautiful dark skin still appeared as smooth as cream; her midnight hair was no longer up in a braid, but fell softly against her cheek. His fingers itched to move it, just to see if it felt as silky as it looked. Even though her eyes were closed he could remember vividly the way those deep brown eyes looked, so wide-eyed yet accepting when he had changed forms right in front of her. They were tilted up ever so slightly, framed with long, thick lashes. Those lashes remained the same, but would the soulful look still be as trusting? Especially after he confessed he was the reason she had suffered so terribly over the years?

  How could she possibly forgive him? No, it wasn’t the first time he had asked himself that question, but the rising panic kept it echoing in his head. He needed this woman more than he could put into words. Nothing meant a damn thing without her. That she was still breathing was a miracle; the pain he now felt up close was excruciating. Without thought of anything other than soothing her, Luka scooped her up in his arms before he thought the better of it. It had worked when she was small, and it worked now just as well. The pain subsided to a dull ache, then morphed into something else entirely.

  Just as Luka sat with his precious gift bundled in his arms, her eyes opened.

  “I knew if I came back here I’d dream of you again...”

  He recognized she was not completely awake, but the words—they sent him soaring and shamed him at the same time. If only he had spoken up sooner. Luka found himself swallowing the lump in his throat, willing himself not to move. Her pain had diminished greatly, but there was only one way to take it away forever. Human females tended to frown on mating with anyone they’d just met. He’d learned that from watching Misha chasing his tail over his mate, Elba. Even if technically he and Mica had been bound for years, she didn’t know him. Didn’t stop the growing arousal he was powerless to control. Being near his mate after so many years of need was going to do that.

  Then she touched him.

  Such a small hand cupped his cheek; velvety soft and painstak
ingly tender. Not the kind of caress he’d ever received from the small circle of people he interacted with—which added up to the male members of his family. Just as bold as you please, she stroked the side of her face, offering him comfort. As if he deserved any such thing. No words sprang to mind to answer her statement. There was just so much he wanted to tell her, but didn’t know how to begin. The throbbing in his crotch wasn’t making things easier either.

  “My, my. You’ve grown into such a fearsome man. But sexy. I knew you would be.” The smile she gave him as she spoke broke him into a million pieces, then put him back together again, a changed tiger.

  All he knew was bitterness. It was all he had ever known for so long now. Here was his sunlight, his hope, his reason for being. God, if only he could find a way to let her know. Damnable nature was quickly turning his brain to melted snow, useless for anything other than slacking thirst. Shit, he really didn’t want to mess this up.

  “Does this mean you’re a full-grown tiger now? Do you have stripes?”

  Luka momentarily forgot to breathe. On some level she remembered it all, just relegated it to just a dream. And yet, she hadn’t seemed to put it all together that he was the reason for her suffering. There weren’t enough words in any language he knew of to describe the hurt he felt. Not a physical pain, not the guilt that had eaten him for so long it was a part of him, but in ways he didn’t understand. This was getting too maudlin for him.

  “Mica, honey, I need you to wake up.” He waited until the last clouds of sleep slowly disappeared from her eyes. Bracing himself, he waited for a scream, a push, something. He wasn’t going to let her go, but he could take whatever contretemps was about to come.

  Only it didn’t come. Her body stiffened, but she didn’t push him away. Didn’t move. Surprise dawned as she awoke fully, but he felt no fear coming from him.