Therian Prize

by Cyndi Friberg

  Always only with him.

  He slammed into her so hard she collapsed on the bed, his body blanketing hers. He shook and groaned as his cock jerked inside her. His warm, wet seed jetted out and her pleasure crested in a slow, flowing swell.

  It took him a moment to recover enough to support his weight on his elbows and his knees. “Does a bath sound good or would you rather shower and then watch a movie?”

  Exhaustion rolled in as the last of her tingles abated. “So tired.”

  He immediately disentangled their bodies and moved to her side. “We probably shouldn’t have done this. You’re still recovering from your first shift.”

  “I’m fine.” She waved away his concern but could no longer keep her eyes open. “Love you. Just so…tired.”

  * * * * *

  When Heather awoke she was alone in bed and the room was still dark. She looked around for a clock but didn’t see one. It had been late morning when they returned from the clinic. Despite the importance of her definition, the entire process hadn’t taken more than an hour. But she had no idea how long she’d slept.

  Dismissing the useless speculation, she flipped back the covers and crawled out of bed. The television was on and Jake had fallen asleep on the sofa, wearing nothing but a pair of jeans. According to the cable box, it was 1:38 a.m.

  Jake had been running nearly nonstop since he found her in the alley behind his bar. She didn’t want to spend the night without him, but she’d wake him after she showered and found something to eat. Her stomach was cramping, she was so hungry.

  Deciding that her hunger wouldn’t wait, she hurried back to the bedroom and found Jake’s t-shirt. It covered her to mid-thigh, which was adequate for making a sandwich. She paused on her way through the living room, unable to resist another look at her mate. With his features relaxed by sleep, he looked younger and even more attractive.

  Her tigress paced restlessly, annoyed by the long period of inactivity. Heather would have to see if Jake knew a way to let her tigress off her leash.

  With a contented sigh, she dragged her gaze away from Jake and walked into the kitchen. The house was surprisingly open. Floor plans from this era tended to be chopped up and boxy. Digging through the refrigerator, she retrieved what she’d need to make a sandwich. She arranged everything on the counter and reached for the loaf of bread.

  A chill raced down her spine and her tigress roared. The glass door exploded inward, propelled by a patio chair. Shards of glass showered the dining room and sections of the kitchen. Heather jumped back, too stunned to do more than scream.

  Two massive wolves leapt into the dining room, followed immediately by her father. Two additional wolves entered after Nate but Heather’s attention was drawn to the gun in his hand.

  “Where is Dhane?” He stomped across the kitchen, gun directed at her face.

  Jake jumped over the back of the sofa, transforming in midair. The tiger roared so loudly it hurt Heather’s ears, but she didn’t shift her gaze from her father’s angry face.

  “Tell him to back off or I’ll break your arm.” He grabbed her wrist with his free hand, viciously twisting until she cried out.

  Dread spread through Heather like cancer. The ruthless gleam in her father’s gaze made it easy to believe him. “Jake. Not yet.” She could feel Jake’s lethal fury so she sent the warning across their private link as well.

  He didn’t speak, didn’t distract her from the threat, yet he calmed down enough to send encouragement into her mind. He growled low and long then snapped at the nearest wolf.

  “Like Landon, you’re now dead to me.” Bitterness hardened each word as he released her wrist and shoved her back a step. “All I want is Dhane.”

  “I don’t know where he is.” She stared into her father’s eyes feeling…nothing but pity. For the first time in her life she saw Nate Fitzroy without the filter of a daughter’s love. He was selfish and cruel and disloyal. And she would do nothing to help him.

  He grabbed her throat and moved the gun closer to her face. “You worthless—”

  Jake leapt across the kitchen and knocked Nate to the floor with one swipe of his powerful paw. The gun went off but the bullet lodged harmlessly in an upper cupboard. The wolves closed in, growling menacingly as they took up strategic positions. Two angled their bodies, blocking the only retreat. One guarded the shattered glass door while the other jumped onto the breakfast bar, the counter nearest Heather.

  Her father lay at her feet, moaning. He’d let go of the gun as he fell and it lay a short distance away. His back was laid open from shoulder to waist and blood from the four deep grooves quickly soaked his shirt. Heather bent and snatched the gun off the floor, pointing it at the wolves.

  “Get out!”

  The wolf on the counter bared its teeth and snarled. The others quickly echoed the sound.

  Heather nudged her father with her foot. “Tell them to leave.”

  “Fuck you,” he muttered, then, “Attack!”

  The wolves on the floor jumped together, attacking Jake. The lead wolf, crouching on the breakfast bar, leapt for Heather but she ducked and the wolf hit the wall. The wolf by the glass door joined the fray, jumping onto Jake’s back as the others continued their assault. Snarls, growls and yelps overlapped as the combatants rolled and twisted. Jaws snapped and claws slashed in a blur of fur and sharp teeth.

  Heather jumped over her father then pressed against the wall, making sure no one could sneak up on her. She bent to one knee beside Nate’s head and pressed the gun against his temple. “Stop now or your alpha dies!”

  The wolves paused but Nate laughed. “You don’t have it in you.”

  “You’re right. I won’t kill you.” Tired of being underestimated and abused, she aimed the gun at his knee and covered the trigger with her finger. “But you’ll limp for the rest of your life—if you walk at all.”

  A long, strained pause followed. No one seemed to breathe.

  Finally Nate sneered, “Retreat.” He was obviously infuriated by the concession. “I’ll follow.”

  “Like hell you will,” Heather whispered.

  The wolves disengaged and filed out through the broken glass door.

  As Heather’s focus expanded she found Erin, Ian and Devon standing in the living room. They looked calm, almost amused by the outcome.

  “Hey.” Heather smiled, feeling giddy as she accepted that the danger had passed. She stood, gun still in hand, her legs wobbling beneath her.

  I’ll be right back. Jake rubbed against her leg then headed for their bedroom, doubtlessly to shift back and dress.

  Ian joined her in the kitchen and motioned toward the gun. “Do you know how to use that thing?”

  “Yes.” But her hands were shaking so badly she passed the gun to him. “Dad needs to shift or he’ll bleed to death.”

  “It’d serve him right.” There was no pity in Ian’s expression. “Grab a blanket or help him undress.”

  She opted for the blanket, not interested in seeing her father naked. She spread the blanket over Nate and said, “Heal yourself but don’t try anything stupid. Ian will shoot you dead without blinking an eye.”

  Nate glared at her then loosed his wolf and transformation rolled across his body. Usually he could transform so fast the change was instantaneous. This time the shift distorted his features and his body undulated beneath the blanket. He was weaker than she’d realized. After several moments of horrifying labor, his wolf finally appeared.

  She tried to ignore the rush of pity inundating her heart, but he was her father. Despite his character flaws she loved him. She would no longer allow his decisions to poison her life but she would always love him.

  They waited for Nate to shift back but he panted harshly and then closed his eyes.

  “Is this an act?” Jake stood beside Erin and Devon on the other side of the breakfast bar.

  “I don’t think so.” Ian nudged the wolf with his foot and waited for a reaction. “He’s out cold.” He s
et the gun’s safety then laid it on the counter, the muzzle pointing toward the wall.

  “Take him below,” Erin directed. “He must be questioned before the Prime Council decides what to do with him.”

  With far less care than Heather would have liked, Ian draped the wolf across his shoulders and headed for the front door. This house was too far out to be part of the tunnel network. Ian would take Nate to the nearest networked house and access the tunnels from there.

  Jake came around the counter and wrapped his arm around her waist. “Are you all right?”

  “Physically.” She glanced at the blood pooled on the floor and smeared on the wall and shivered. “This makes it all a little too real.”

  “I don’t think he would have harmed you,” Erin said, compassion warming her green eyes.

  “I’m not so sure.” She looked at Erin and took a deep breath. The time for denials was past. If she honestly hoped to build a future with Jake, she had to be willing to let go of her past. “He’s a self-serving traitor. He might not have killed me, but he would have been more than willing to make me bleed.” Erin and Devon stayed on their side of the breakfast bar, but Heather knew they were letting Jake comfort her rather than being indifferent to her pain. “What charges will be brought against him?”

  “We have irrefutable proof that he has been working with the backers,” Erin explained. “We need to learn as much as we can from him before he’s sentenced.”

  “Which means his sentence will most likely be death?”

  “Only if it’s warranted.” Erin sighed and then added, “And in his case, I’m pretty sure it is.”

  “He killed my brother. He manipulated the situation so it looked like Bruce brought it on himself, but I know Dad was behind it.”

  Devon glanced at Erin and Erin nodded. Compassion turned to pity as Devon said, “There are solid indications that your mother’s death wasn’t an accident either. Anyone who crossed Nate Fitzroy had a way of ending up dead.”

  Tears flooded her eyes and her lips trembled. Relief and regret twisted in a disconcerting cyclone. Jake pulled her fully into his arms and pressed her face into the warmth of his throat. “It’s over, angel. You’re safe and this is finally over.”

  “Why don’t you take her to my house for the night,” Erin suggested. “Devon and I will take care of things here.”

  Jake nodded and eased her away from his chest. “Want to grab some pants or shorts before we head over?”

  Heather glanced down at her bare legs. She had honestly forgotten she was half-naked. After slipping into a pair of jeans, she followed Jake out into the warm summer night. Actually it was early morning, but the dark tranquility felt like a healing balm. Heather sucked in a deep breath, purging her nose of blood’s cloying stench.

  Jake laced his fingers through hers and they headed across a grassy meadow. He’d thoughtfully grabbed a flashlight to keep them out of prairie dog holes and he let her set the pace as they strolled along.

  “Will your pack accept Landon if he returns as alpha?”

  Heather shook her head. “Landon has no interest in leading our father’s pack. When and if Landon forms his own there are a few who will leave Silverthorne and follow him, but most will stay true to whoever wins the challenge and becomes the new alpha.”

  “We need to move Lexxie to Aspen.”

  “Absolutely. The entire pack will see her as a traitor now.”

  “Or she can join Landon’s pack if she’d rather be with wolves. Just let her know she’s welcome in my territory.”

  “Don’t you mean in our territory?”

  He chuckled. “Yes, in our territory.”

  She squeezed his hand and let the starlight soothe her. So much had happened so quickly and the changes had just begun. She still needed to decide which bloodlines she wanted to add to her definition and what role she would play in this new reality. It was wonderful just to have options again.

  She sighed and moved closer to her lover, her mate. “When can we go home?”

  “We’re not prisoners, sweetheart. We can leave whenever we like.”

  “I appreciate all your friends have done for us, but—”

  “All our friends have done for us.”

  “Fair enough.” She smiled. “I don’t want to seem ungrateful to our friends, but I’m anxious to settle in to our new life.”

  “I am too, but we need to see if Serra will open up to you now that you can speak with her directly.”

  She nodded, picturing the sad-eyed tigress. “I’ll do whatever I can. I can’t imagine what that poor girl has been through.”

  “It might take some time, which means we might need to hang around for a bit longer.”

  “Then I’m going to have to buy some new clothes. I am sick to death of your t-shirts and Enya’s jeans.”

  “That I can arrange.” Jake laughed and wrapped his arm around her waist.

  “Speaking of Enya.” Heather hesitated, unsure if she wanted to plunge them back into unhappiness. “How do you think she’ll react to our joining?”

  “It will take some time, but once she knows you, she won’t be able to resist you.”

  “I hope you’re right.” She gently pulled away and grasped his hand again, not willing to lose contact entirely. “Why does she hate wolves so badly?”

  He shook his head. “Sorry. It’s Enya’s story to tell and she’ll likely say no more than, ‘It’s in the past.’”

  “But it’s not. If she reacts negatively to every wolf she meets then whatever happened still has a powerful hold over her.”

  “I know, but I’m not the one you need to convince. Believe me, I’ve tried.”

  “I’ll wait until we know each other better, but I’m going to try to bridge the gap. I know how important she is to you and I want us all to get along.”

  He chuckled. “Now you sound like Erin. She’s convinced that honest communication can right all the world’s wrongs.”

  “You make her sound naïve.”

  “Not naïve, just impractically hopeful.” He paused to help her over a split-railed fence. “Too often life isn’t that cooperative.”

  “How much farther is it?” She looked off into the distance and still didn’t see a house.

  “Did you honestly just ask, ‘Are we there yet?’” He laughed.

  She playfully punched him in the arm. “I’m not being impatient, exactly. I wish we could let our cats run. My tigress has been stir-crazy ever since I woke up.”

  “Who says we can’t?” Jake stopped and faced her, smile flashing in the moonlight. “We’re still at least a mile away.”

  “What about our clothes? We can’t run around Erin’s house naked.”

  “We could, but I’ll show you a Therian secret.” He pulled off his shirt and folded it into a neat square. After a brief hesitation she did the same. “Now take off your jeans and stuff your shoes up the pant legs.” She did as he instructed and pretty soon they stood in the field naked and laughing. “Fold your jeans so the shoes won’t fall out when your tigress grabs the stack with her mouth. It works best if you have a backpack, but this works well enough if you don’t.”

  She prepared her stack of clothing and made sure one edge was turned slightly upward so it would be easier to grab with her teeth.

  “Ready?”

  Her tigress circled and growled, more than ready to be set free. “I am.”

  Pausing long enough to kiss her, Jake flooded her mind with hope and tenderness. Then he whispered, “Follow me.”

  She opened the metaphysical cage and freed her tigress. The shift hit her fast and hard, shocking and exhilarating. The pain was over so quickly she hardly noticed it as feline perspective took over her human mind.

  Jake’s tiger made a rumbling sound that her tigress immediately echoed. Affection and desire flowed between them. It took Heather a moment to realize the emotions emanated from the cats rather than their human counterparts. Knowing that their cats loved each other as much a
s they did only added to Heather’s happiness.

  Skillfully picking up his clothes, Jake bounded on ahead. With a little more effort, Heather grabbed her clothes and eagerly followed. Their eyes required no flashlight and their footing was sure as they ran side by side through the meadow.

  Heather was content for the first time in her life. Finally her future was secure. With her mate at her side, she was ready for whatever life had in store for them.

  Epilogue

  Infuriated beyond caution, Zophiel swept the contents of Tias’ desk with her arm. Pens, pencils and papers went flying and the human’s laptop crashed to the floor.

  “You’re damn lucky that’s backed up,” Tias muttered.

  Zophiel spun and grasped the petite human by the throat. “Don’t use that tone with me! I will not tolerate insolence.”

  “Yes, mistress. I’m sorry.” The words sounded strangled, so Zophiel eased the pressure on the human’s throat without turning her loose.

  “I can’t believe he’s dead. I wasn’t finished playing with him.” She ignored how close to petulant the complaint made her sound.

  “Nate is not dead, mistress.” Tias spoke with obvious effort as she lightly placed her hand on Zophiel’s wrist. “He was alive when Eli saw the cats lock him in one of the underground rooms.”

  “Don’t patronize me.” She shoved the human back as she released her throat. “If the cats have Nate, he’s dead. They know too much about what he’s done to let him live.” At least she’d had one final night with him before this thing unraveled. Even if he hadn’t been as rough with her as he’d been when he thought she was human, she’d enjoyed herself immensely. She tried to dismiss the entire incident as a pointless distraction but her temper still simmered. “I am so sick of men fucking up my plans.”

  “Are you referring to Nate or the cats?”

  Her only response to the question was a caustic glare. “I want you to kill Milliner. I won’t have him second-guessing my decisions or countermining my orders. Our partnership will work better without a man gumming up the gears.” She dared the human to argue with another caustic glare.