by T. Cobbin
“This is wonderful. The tree is so huge.” His chick’s voice was filled with awe.
They were standing in front of the Christmas tree that he and several other males had erected in the center of the village square yesterday. They did this every year, and each year the kits and their parents would make decorations to put on it. With the variety of shifter cats living together it brought a small amount of harmony; it wasn’t so much the celebration of Christmas but peace between them all.
His chick waved to Terrie who was coordinating a group of males up and down ladders around the tree, adding the last of the lights. That girl was going to make a great boss someday. This time of year it brought home just how much his parents had missed out on.
With a gentle sigh he carried on walking to the village hall. The hall wasn’t that big, maybe the size of a basketball court. On weekends he often got the teenagers together to play a game or two, keeping them busy and off the streets.
Inside the building there were tables upon tables filled with all kinds of craft items, from egg cartons and paint to glitter and glue. Seeing him enter, several of the village kits ran over to him.
“Harris.”
“Yay, Harris! What are you going to make this year?”
“He always makes the star, stupid.” A small female child with fiery red hair stood with her arms crossed over her chest, staring at a bigger boy who was doing the same back at her.
“Hey now,” Harris calmed the pair. “Sit down, both of you, and you can help me with the star in a bit, okay?”
Both of the children’s faces lit up, their smiles brightening their once grumpy look.
“Harris, will you help me paint my star?”
“Whoa, little dudes and dudettes, let me place this special lady in a chair first, and then you can harass me with your requests.”
He had made sure word had gotten around about today, warning everyone that the human female was joining them and to avoid calling him Alpha. He knew, however, there would be a slip up here and there.
Looking around, he was glad to see that a few cats he wanted to talk to were in the hall already. Sitting Chick down at a table, he pulled his coat from around her shoulders, putting it on the back of the chair, and crouched down to the kits.
“Right, little peeps, I have to talk to a few people, so temporarily I’m going to appoint this lady here to be my helper. She can glitter way better than I can. Then I’ll come back and paint that star with you.” The kits let out a big cheer as he stood, and he placed a kiss on his chick’s head. “Thank you, Miss Helper. I’ll be back in a moment.”
And with a wink he headed off toward Murphy Buzzell. He needed to bring the man down a peg or two or May and Fred and a few others wouldn’t get through the cold months with their rent being so high. As he headed in Murphy’s direction he saw Garrett so decided to speak with him first. He needed to find out if the copper had come up with anything on their new guest.
* * * *
Chick had found the day awesome. She had grinned from ear to ear with the kids running her ragged even though she had sat for most of it. Glue this, tape that. When Harris had eventually come to join them to make the star, the children were ecstatic. She’d watched with glee as they had him running around in circles, but not once did he complain.
Back at the house she had undressed for a bath and swore she had found glitter everywhere on her. As she bathed she recalled watching Harris talk to several of the villagers that afternoon. One man who she knew as Murphy had become rather animated until she thought she’d heard Harris growl, then the man quivered and kept nodding, agreeing to whatever was being said. Strange.
She lay on the bed, freshly dressed and clean as a whistle, waiting for the evening to draw in. Harris had gone off to take his own shower and get dressed. Tonight the villagers would again gather for the lighting of the lights and what Harris said was a meeting of wandering souls ready to settle for another year. She was beginning to love the people and the village. They were all so close.
She yawned, and her eyes grew heavy.
She was standing in the living room of a small apartment. Blue cushions were scattered on two brown leather couches. White curtains with pale blue flowers on them covered the windows. She could see herself in the reflection of the window as she stared out of it, looking at a city she didn’t recognize, with her arms crossed over her chest. She felt depressed, wondering where her life was going.
A phone rang in the background. She didn’t even turn to pick it up or see who was calling. The call went to her answering machine, and she recognized the voice straight away. Her deadbeat father.
“Melinda, pick up for fuck’s sake. I know you’re home. I rang your work today and they said you were fired a few weeks ago. Anyway, I’m not calling about that, I need you to do something... I need money...”
She didn’t hear any more of the message because of a thud at the front door. Turning toward it, she had to duck and cover as it suddenly exploded inward, wood splintering all over the place. Hearing the bang of her front door hitting the floor, she peeked over the back of the couch and looked up to see one of the men who’d been terrifying her dreams over the last few nights walking into her home. Her dreams? Was she asleep?
“Hello, Melinda. We have a message for your father.” The man walked toward her. His stench hit her as he got close. He smelled like he hadn’t taken a bath in forever. His brown, crooked teeth stuck out as he grinned.
He had something in his hand...a white rag? He pushed the sofa aside, leaving her defenseless. She kicked out as he loomed over her, missing him by inches.
“If you think taking me will threaten him, you’re wrong. He doesn’t give a shit.” Her voice came out shaky and scared.
“When he has to hear and see his daughter screaming as she loses her fingers one after the other, he will! If that doesn’t work, watching her get raped and begging her daddy to save her...maybe that will change his mind.”
“Pffft,” she spat. “He wouldn’t pee on me even if I was on fire, and I wouldn’t beg him for anything.”
The man drew closer to her, holding the hand out with the rag in it. She could smell the putrid fumes coming from it. Drawing a lung full of air in, she went to scream, but a hand appeared over the top of her head. She hadn’t noticed the other man coming in from behind her. This hand also had a rag clasped in it. Before she could fight it was held over her mouth.
Her lungs burnt from holding her breath. She couldn’t hold it any longer, she had to breathe. The pungent fumes from the cloth smelled awful. Everything seemed to become distant and far off. Dizziness struck and the room began to go dark.
She grabbed the hand holding the cloth over her mouth and tugged at it, trying to pull it away. Her hands scraped at the man’s hand, and she could feel his skin gather under her fingernails. Bile rose in her throat.
“Chick, come on, it’s a dream. I’m here. Stop fighting, sweetheart.” The voice, she recognized the voice. But why was he stopping her from breathing? Why was his hand over her mouth? The earth felt like it was rocking. “Come on, love, wake up now. I’m here.” Harris? The voice belonged to Harris.
Her eyes flew open. She was sitting on Harris’s lap, and he was rocking her. Her body was damp with sweat, her heart pounding in her chest, trying to fight its way out.
“There we go, Chick. Back in the world of the living.”
She looked up into a pair of blue eyes that stared down at her in worry. His hands were stroking over the bare skin on her arm. She tried to think back, putting her day together. How had she gotten there? Going out, decorations, village hall, glitter, bath, and getting dressed. Then she had laid down in the bed. She didn’t remember falling asleep. Confusion muddled her brain. She tried to think over some of what she remembered about the dream.
“Melinda, I think my name is Melinda.” It felt so right to say the name that in her heart she knew it was her. She had a name!
Chapter 9
F
uck! Harris hadn’t left Chick for long, but he’d returned to find her kicking out at the bed again. She was moaning, her hands trying to scratch something on her face. He had ran over to the bed and scooped her up in his arms, holding her hands back from her face. Two thin scratch lines on her upper lip began to draw blood where she’d hurt herself. Eventually he managed to wake her, and when she looked up at his face he saw recognition hit her.
“Melinda, I think my name is Melinda.” Then slowly tears welled and fell down her face, and she went back to clinging onto him as if her life depended on it.
She had a name. Although part of him was pleased to have some information that would allow him to start finding out who she was, the other part was worried she would leave sooner than he hoped.
“Do you remember anything else, Chick?”
She calmed a bit and relayed more of her dream. The men, the foul cloths with fumes on them, which he figured was probably chloroform. The fact she had no job and a father who was worthless. Was it right to be a little pleased she could have more here than wherever she had come from? He brushed a stray curl of her hair behind her ear. Although her face was tear stained she still looked beautiful.
“Want me to put Garrett on finding out if there’s a missing Melinda out there?” He waited with a little dread in his heart at losing her.
“But what if those men are real and they’re looking for me too? If there is a Melinda missing, then what if it’s them who gave the police my name?” She was growing more upset again, which he didn’t like one little bit.
“Maybe they think you’re dead already? The moors is a vast place filled with lots of crevices, and the nights get cold, so freezing to death would be easy.” He thought back to the night he’d found her. Was that really only a few days ago? She had been cold to the bone and would have frozen to death if he hadn’t heard her tiny pleas for help.
“I don’t want to bring trouble to your door, Harris. You and your family, even the villagers, have been wonderful. But if my memory is seeping into my sleep, then I have a home somewhere too.”
His sister stepped forward into the doorway. He already knew she was there because of her scent and his hearing. She’d been standing in the hallway listening. Harris knew Terrie had become quite fond of his chick too.
“Well, you could stay for Christmas. It’s the time for peace, love, and family arguments. Call it a holiday?” Terrie smiled at them warily. Harris could hear how unsure she was in asking; it was in her voice. Yes, his sister had come to love their chick too. Looking down at the woman in his arms, he too waited for her answer.
“Well, I could...but you’ve done so much for me already. What if those men are still looking for me? I couldn’t let anyone ruin your Christmas. And what if the whole of my memory comes back today or tomorrow or even the day after?”
Harris decided to make the decision for her. This way she would be there for at least another four weeks and maybe relax a little. It would also give him time to make her his. If there was someone in her life, then he would deal with it after.
“No one will ruin Christmas. We won’t let them. If someone is looking for you, we will deal with that too. And as for your memory...if you get it back, that’s brilliant. But I think we will keep you for Christmas.” He smiled down at her. “Yep, consider yourself kidnapped by us ’til the new year.” He chuckled at the look on her face. Standing up with her still in his arms, he turned and gently placed her on the bed.
“What makes you think I won’t call the cops and asked to be taken somewhere else?”
“Would you?” he asked, cocking an eyebrow. “Do you really want to go somewhere else? If so, I’ll call our bobby now and he can sort you out I’m sure.” He swallowed, wondering if calling her bluff was a good idea. When he received no answer he walked toward the bedroom door. “I’ll go get coats and a blanket. We have a lighting ceremony to attend. And as for doing so much for you, we have not only enjoyed having you around but you know you’ve enjoyed it too.”
And with his chick looking shocked and thoughtful he walked into the hallway to retrieve the items.
* * * *
Melinda was sure that man could rile a nun. She watched him swagger out of the room.
“Who does he think he is?” she uttered to no one in particular. She might be attracted to Harris, with his sexy butt and gorgeous muscles, but he sure liked to put his foot in his mouth. However, when he had asked if she wanted him to call the copper, her immediate and only thought was no.
“That’s my brother for you. He likes chewing on bricks,” Terrie muttered, walking into the room and sitting beside her on the bed. “But never mind him. Please say you’ll stay even if your memory does come back. I heard you say your father was a deadbeat and you just lost your job, so what he said.” She pointed to where Harris had walked out of the room. “Stay ’til the new year?”
“But that’s a month away, what about bills and stuff?”
“We battle that when it comes, right? One day at a time.” Terrie looked at her with such hope.
Melinda had only been there a few days. Was she really thinking about staying another month with these people she hardly knew? Although they had taken her in and made her feel incredibly welcome. She couldn’t remember anything but the layout of the room she had been standing in, the two men, and her first name. So at the moment she still had nowhere to go and nobody to call who might know her.
With a roll of her eyes and a shrug, she looked at the hopeful, young teenager and sighed. “Okay, one day at a time. I could stay ’til Christmas, but no promises that I’ll stay after that.”
Terrie gave an ear-piercing scream and hugged Melinda’s neck tightly. Melinda knew Terrie was chuffed, and she couldn’t help smiling herself; Terrie was just that type of girl, so infectious. Melinda was learning from her. Turn the negatives around until you find a positive. Looking over Terrie’s shoulder, she watched Harris swagger back into the room, holding a blanket and his coat.
Terrie pulled away. “Meet you downstairs. Don’t you just love this time of year?” She laughed, practically dancing out of the room.
“She adores you already. You know that, right?” the big man in front of her asked.
“Yes, I can see that.” Biting her lower lip, she smirked. “She’s the sweet to your sour.”
A frown briefly appeared between his eyebrows, but it disappeared quickly when he too smiled and shrugged his shoulders. “I’m not always sour though, am I? Bath times I can be quite soft.” His eyes glinted with amusement, which made her cheeks heat. “Come on, Chick, Christmas lights are a waiting.” He chuckled.
She placed her arms through the jacket he held out and snuggled deep inside it. It smelled of him. Spicy, earthy, with a hint of coffee. She peered up to see him looking down at her. She blushed at getting caught breathing him in.
With a sexy smile on his face he picked her up. Her pussy twitched and grew damp, and her nipples hardened, pushing against her new bra as his manly aroma surrounded her. He didn’t move straight away, instead he buried his head in the crook of her neck, heightening her arousal. There was definitely something between them. She had visions of licking his tanned skin. A shiver shot down her spine, and she barely held back the moan rising in her throat. What would it feel like to be under him while he pounded inside of her?
“Keep thinking those thoughts, Chick, ’cause they make you smell all the sweeter.” He pulled his head from her neck and looked down at her with lust-filled eyes. “Lickable sweeter.” He ran his tongue over his lips and smiled. Bloody hell, he looked tasty himself.
“Is it hot in here?” she said, fanning her face with her left hand.
Harris threw his head back and roared with laughter, surprising her, but she couldn’t help chuckling along with him as he carried her out of the house with Felix and Terrie following.
As they made their way through the village, a house light occasionally lit the pathway, but otherwise nothing. She couldn’t see anyth
ing in places, and she wondered how the others did. She presumed they just knew the village by heart. Melinda lifted her head to see the stars sparkling in the night sky. It was a wonderful, peaceful sight.
She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply, taking all the scents in. Her hearing perked up, and she could hear the crunch of the occasional stone under three pairs of footsteps. She could even distinguish Terrie’s lighter footsteps. Harris held her tighter toward his chest. She didn’t know if it was because her arms had loosened a fraction around his neck or if he was watching her and thought she was falling sleep. But she really didn’t care which one it was, she just snuggled in deeper, breathing a sigh of contentment.
* * * *
The noise from the villagers had Harris smiling. They stood around in small groups. Some with hot drinks in their hands. Some had cups of eggnog or mulled wine. The scent of hot chocolate filled the air too. Kits were running in between or around their parents, each of them chuckling or screaming in delight. There were currently fifteen types of cat shifters living in Stonesdale. There was a new shifter family of pumas wanting to join them in the New Year, which would make sixteen if they past the vetting.
Every year on the first of December the Alpha would plant a tree in the center of the village and every single villager would take part in decorating it. In the evening the Alpha would turn on the lights and say a few words. His ancestors knew trouble existed between certain cat shifters. A few years back there had even been a war between the lynx and cougar shifters, but not there in Stonesdale. Harris’s father had been Alpha then, and he had made sure that anyone who came to him and wanted to plant their roots were vetted and double-checked, and that they knew the rules and would follow them. His father had been one tough Alpha to follow.
