Untamed Shifter Love
by
C. L. Scholey
Juliet Cardin
Ashlynn Monroe
Olivia Starke
T. Cobbin
Untamed Shifter Love
Mouse and the Bounty Hunter: copyright © 2017, C. L. Scholey
Lord of the Hunt: copyright © 2017, Juliet Cardin
Moonlight: copyright © 2017, Ashlynn Monroe
The Hunter: copyright © 2017, Olivia Starke
William’s Warrior: copyright © 2017, T. Cobbin
ISBN: 9781944270643
Publisher: Beachwalk Press, Inc.
Electronic Publication: March 2017
Editor: Pamela Tyner
Cover: Fantasia Frog Designs
eBooks are not transferable. No part of this book may be used or reproduced without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations in articles and reviews.
These stories are a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events, or locales is purely coincidental. The characters are productions of the authors’ imagination and used fictitiously.
Mouse and the Bounty Hunter
by C. L. Scholey
A mouse by any other name would still be a mouse. Except Carlin is no mouse—it’s just her nickname. Kidnapped by a Kodiak bear shifter and his gang, they demand Carlin shift into the mouse they think she is to help them rob a bank. When she’s unable to shift, her captor, Balor, assumes she’s merely frightened and she will eventually shift...or die.
Tarvor has been on Balor and his gang’s tail for years. The bounty hunter wasn’t in any rush to capture the thieving nuisances, but now they have his mate. No more will Tarvor let the shifter gang run loose. Tarvor wants Carlin, and he wants her now.
Dedication
For Marilyn
Chapter 1
Carlin sat wringing her hands and flexing her fingers within the binding to keep her blood flowing. The floor underneath her where she sat was hard. Half of her ass was numb, and the other half ached. She was fairly certain she was sitting on a lug nut or screw in some dank vehicle. The air was stale and chilly. A wet fur stench invaded her lungs.
When the hood was removed from her head she gasped in air and blinked then took in her surroundings. A huge man sat next to her. She had heard him called Balor. ‘Balor’...evil eye was the name’s meaning, and it came from a race of giants, which was fitting for him, because he was big like a giant. Muscular and tan, his ebony hair made his dark eyes appear black in the gloom of a single dim light.
She remembered seeing him and three others sitting at a table in the bar a few hours earlier. They had been sharing two pitchers of beer. The place had given her the creeps, but Stacy wanted to try it out because she knew a girl who loved the dwelling. When Carlin and Stacy left the bar a commotion separated her from her friend and Carlin was snatched off her feet with a hand clamped over her mouth. She caught a fast glimpse of Balor and his evil grin before he draped the hood over her and tied her hands. Now the men were all in plain view.
They were an odd lot. All big, but their clothing was ridiculously large on three of them, too tight on another. They ranged in age. All four reminded her of mismatched socks.
Balor reached above him and slid a dingy curtain back to reveal a small window. Lifting his hand, Balor pointed. They were in a huge van, which was parked in an alley across from a bank. Carlin’s heart was racing; the men were leering at her. Two sat upfront, another on her other side. She was afraid they had grabbed her outside the bar to rape her. Opening the curtain gave her a glimmer of hope, and none of them had groped her or touched her. Balor was the only one who had put his hands on her.
Though her relief was overwhelming her petrified curiosity made the hairs on the nape of her neck stand tall. All were intense as Balor removed the bindings on her wrists. The five o’clock shadow he sported added to a sinister look. Three of six buttons were undone at his throat. Balor was one hairy bastard. He kept his gaze trained on her.
“Take it easy, little mouse. Do as you’re told and you’ll be fine. If you start screaming, I’ll snap your pretty little neck and put you somewhere no one will find you.” Balor’s words were cold, harsh. “Do your part well enough and I might offer you a proposition. Consider this your initiation.” The other men found his last words humorous.
He knows my nickname is mouse. Balor must have overheard her and her friend Stacy talking at the bar.
“What do you want?” Try as she might her bravado sounded more like a squeak.
“All you need to do is get inside the bank and chew through the alarm wires and let us in. We’ll do the rest,” Balor said.
“Chew through alarm wires?” Carlin’s eyes widened. Oh God, they’re insane.
“It should be no problem for a mouse.”
“Unless you eat her, Patch.” A man upfront guffawed as he bumped his shoulder into the grizzled older man behind the wheel. Patch’s name lacked luster, it was more an obvious observation, a patch covered an eye. A long, unkempt gray beard hung from his chin. In the gloom of the van she made out beady eyes.
Patch chuckled and reached down to tweak Carlin’s nose. “I need me more than a mouse, Animal. Their tiny bones stick in my teeth.”
The younger man in the tight clothing guffawed and slapped his hands on his knees. Carlin blinked. Kidnapped and threatened with cannibalism wasn’t the way she wanted to end the day.
The van door slid open and Balor grabbed her elbow and proceeded to muscle her outside. The sky was pitch-black, barely enough starlight to see where they were headed. Balor yanked a hoodie up to conceal most of his face.
Balor threw his arm over her shoulders and hunched down, then raced them across to the alley on the bank’s side, with her feet barely touching the ground. He skid to a fast stop and pushed her against a cold, brick wall. His breath was heaving in what she presumed was excitement, because the short run wouldn’t have daunted the insanely muscled large man. A streetlight above her head fizzled on and off until settling to dim. Balor gazed down at her, towering over her small frame. She swallowed hard.
“This hole near my boot leads to an opening in the bank. Shift, go in, do your job, and come out. Easy shit. Then all you have to do is wait in the van,” Balor said. He motioned with a slight nod of his head at a tiny opening near the ground in the brick.
Carlin looked from Balor to the hole then back to him. “Er, you want me to fit into this tiny hole?” He’s insane. Crap, crap, crap.
“Shift,” he said, snarling.
Eyes wide, Carlin did a small dance from one foot to the other.
“Do you need to piss?”
“No.”
“Then quit with the potty dance and shift.”
Her movement from foot to foot increased. “I, I’m, ah…”
“What the fuck are you doing?”
“Um, shifting?”
Balor seized her t-shirt in a tight grip and shook her, ripping the material at her shoulder. “Stop being a smart ass and shift into a mouse.”
“But, but, but…”
Balor growled and released his punishing hold. He took two steps back.
The pendant on the chain around Carlin’s neck became warm. That had only happened a few times in her life. She vaguely remembered feeling the same warmth before Balor grabbed her outside the bar. Each time her special pendant heated, trouble followed, yet she managed to remain calm.
Balor’s gaze made Carlin’s skin crawl, and she was certain something horrifying was about to happen. She was also certain she needed to stand her ground. Carli
n went still as the man began to change. His body grew, his buttons snapped, he was hairy everywhere. As he expanded he came closer without moving his feet. Carlin was suddenly aware why he needed the huge ass clothing. Paws larger than baseball mitts were where his hands used to be. The popping noises she expected to be more buttons were his massive boots as they exploded. Fangs white as stars glistened in the dim light. A strong odor wafted to her wrinkling nose.
Carlin tilted her head up—way up. A massive Kodiak was now pinning her to the wall none too gently. She was certain she had gone insane. The abrupt appearance of a bear, a clothed bear, was too unbelievable. The monstrosity before her had to be Balor. Parlor tricks?
For some reason she laughed. Balor looked bizarre in his shredded clothing. Fucking ridiculous.
“You, um, split your pants. I can see your underwear.” Minion boxers were visible. She giggled, resisting the urge to cover her mouth.
“I’ll split your head if you don’t change into a mouse,” was Balor’s growling reply.
“I may need to change if I wet myself,” Carlin mumbled.
“Shift, damn you,” Balor howled.
At a loss, shrugging her shoulders, she attempted the impossible. Carlin crossed her eyes and concentrated. She groaned, she gasped, she growled. Her body shuddered, and she clenched and unclenched her fists.
“Uhhgg,” she howled and held still, then tried again.
Balor returned to the form of a man. His pants were split, and the front of his boxers were ripped at the waistband and sagging. He resembled the boys with the low jeans and boxers showing. With everything ready to bust out into the open. His shirt was open wide to reveal a hairy chest. Carlin wanted to rip her own hair out in frustration.
“What the hell are you doing?” Balor demanded.
“Trying to shift,” she gasped. Exhausted from attempting the impossible, she slumped.
“For crap sake, why didn’t you tell me you can’t shift when you’re scared?”
“I, ah, well…”
“You’re going to get used to me, mouse.” Balor lifted her face with a finger to her jaw. He had to bend down to gaze into her eyes. “You will shift, you mouse.” Balor grabbed her arm, threw her over his shoulder, and strode back to the van. He tossed her inside then crouched over her. “You are going to help us rob this bank. I don’t care how long I have to wait, but you will shift, damn you. Or by God, you’ll wish you were never born.”
I already do.
Chapter 2
Tarvor stood near the entrance of the shifter bar. There was news—two humans not accompanied by shifters, both females, had strolled into the bar for a drink. This was unusual but not unheard of, and everyone had been on their best behavior until the bartender noticed a somewhat devious bear shifter take notice of one of the females repeatedly called Mouse.
With so many shifters the bartender wasn’t at all certain the tiny woman wasn’t a mouse. There was an odd scent to her, but since the females weren’t causing trouble and the evening came to a climax he lost sight of them. The next thing he knew a fight broke out, then the two women were gone, and so was the bear shifter and his friends.
Now there was a report that a female by the name of Carlin, AKA Mouse, had gone missing. Tarvor wasn’t interested in the woman, unless she had been asked to join Balor and his robbing crew. A mouse shifter was extremely rare and would be a huge boon to a shifter like Balor.
Tarvor had been hunting Balor and his gang off and on for years. The brood robbed banks, normally at night, and so far they hadn’t harmed anyone. They were a pain in the ass mostly. There were other shifters who posed a danger to shifters and humans alike that needed to be hunted first, and Balor sat on the back burner. Until now. If his gang had stolen a human or another shifter, the act would pose a threat to Tarvor and his kind. It would mean Balor and his brood were escalating. If Balor was getting stupid or sloppy, he needed to be stopped. The world wasn’t ready to be exposed to shifters.
Tarvor was allowed admittance into the bar by a cop friend who knew Tarvor specialized in bounties. It would take Tarvor’s shifting capabilities to take on Balor, a known Kodiak, probably the biggest in the world. The idea made Tarvor grin. Balor was a big son of a bitch, but in weight and height he didn’t compare to Tarvor.
The bar was located in a quiet, remote village, and the windows were tinted, so no one could see in. Determining it was safe, he shifted into what was thought to be an extinct short-faced bear. Standing six feet tall when on all fours, faster than most shifters, powerful, he made an excellent bounty hunter.
There were very few of Tarvor’s shifter line left. Though he wanted to keep his line pure, others of his kind tried to breed with the Kodiaks and grizzlies to fit in better with the modern world. The pull was getting stronger to mate, and Tarvor knew he would find his mate eventually. He hoped she was of his line or at least a Kodiak.
Standing on two legs, almost stretched to the ceiling, Tarvor inhaled a huge breath. He almost fell on his ass. Balor and his brood had been there. What’s more the little female claiming to be a shifter mouse was Tarvor’s mate. Tarvor shifted back.
This makes no sense.
At a loss, Tarvor stood for a few more moments. He looked to his cop friend. Jake was a cougar shifter. The pair had been friends since they were weaned. Shifter mothers were particular who their offspring played with, and so was Tarvor’s grandfather. The boys met on Tarvor’s first visit to see his grandfather. Destined to be a police officer like his father, Jake and his parents thought having a bounty hunter as friends would benefit both boys. Tarvor’s grandfather wanted his grandson to make good friends, knowing he would take over his area once he passed.
“How long ago did they leave, Jake?”
“The bartender said he lost sight of them a few hours ago.”
“Thought so. Any bank robberies since?”
“No, it’s been quiet out there. Balor and his brood must be up to something if they grabbed the girl. A mouse shifter can cause all sorts of trouble if bullied into compliance. From her description she’s a tiny thing. I doubt she went willingly, but it’s likely that she put up little resistance, you know her kind is too timid. Bet she’s scared shitless. Balor’s an evil scumbag, same with his lackeys.”
“Bunch of pusillanimous polecats,” Tarvor grumbled.
Jake chuckled. “Always cracks me up when you say that.”
Tarvor grinned. “One of my great-granddad’s favorite expressions he passed onto my grandfather and me.”
“Think you can find them?”
“I have to, they have my mate.”
Jake’s eyes widened in surprise. “Unlucky bastards.”
“They’re about to find out how unlucky. That acrimonious asshat needs his fangs shoved where the sun don’t shine.”
* * * *
Carlin watched Balor pace. He was in Kodiak form. His erratic movements caused a breeze, but his bulk warmed the small cabin. Her skin was covered in goosebumps, her hair stood on end, and sweat dripped from her temples. Carlin wasn’t certain if it was her teeth or her knees that were clicking together the loudest. She knew her mouth hung open; it helped her breathe better. She snapped it closed when a fly came near. Balor was smelly in shifter form. The buzzing in the cabin was steadily growing as mosquitoes came calling.
“You less scared yet?” Balor demanded on a growl.
“Sure.”
Carlin was certain she could see down his throat and she would fit easily. Her ever-increasing teeth clacking and her knees knocking kept time with the pounding of her heart. Her left eyelid flickered, a nervous habit she couldn’t control.
“Maybe you could…” Carlin squeaked the words and clamped her lips closed to clear her throat.
Balor stopped pacing to stare at her. A single sharp front claw tapped the dirty, wooden floor. White fangs glistened. His nose was wet. His breath ruffled her hair.
Not helpful.
Clearing her throat a few more times, s
he began again. “Can you, um, shift back?”
“We’re in the middle of a shifter forest. Cougars, bears, eagles, wolverines, wolves…”
“Okay, okay. It’s just that you take up a great deal of space, and I find it a little difficult to breathe.”
“Claustrophobic?”
Bear-ophobic.
“Yes, that’s it.”
“Well, get over it,” he bellowed.
Carlin clamped her hands over her ears as he roared. They were alone in the small cabin. The three others were outside keeping watch. There was hardly room for the two of them much less a massive stag, a vicious wolverine, and a one-eyed grizzly bear.
When they all shifted Carlin thought she’d drop dead. Unfortunately, she hadn’t. She was torn between horrified amusement and the urge to faint. Their clothing had ripped and dropped to the ground, the wolverine fighting to escape his jeans. Shifter clothing anarchy.
Carlin realized if Balor shifted into his human form he’d be naked. I’ll stick with the stinky bear.
Sunlight streamed into the enclosure, adding to the heat. Carlin guessed it to be midafternoon. She was tired, not having slept in over twenty-four hours, but there was still enough adrenalin pumping to keep her upright.
Balor sat on his haunches. Baseball mitts for paws lay in his lap. He looked as though he was waiting for her to toss him a few marshmallows. Yawning, exposing deadly fangs, he snorted, sending a fly whizzing across the room to splat on a wall. The endless flies didn’t seem to bother him while she swatted another. Huffing, Balor settled onto a small carpet and set his head on his paws. Before long he was curled up on the floor asleep.
Carlin blinked, still trying to wrap her head around the idea a human could change into an animal. She remained in the small wooden chair she was plopped onto when they first entered hours earlier. Her ass was numb. She had her legs pulled to her chest, afraid Balor would step on her. He was less than two feet from her.
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