by Shea Balik
Forest knew it was a stupid move to run, but after Wolfe’s words the need to escape had been too much, so he ran. “I do believe the very dominant panther is your mate.” There was no way Forest was going to get mated, especially not to some domineering shifter who would try to control him.
His whole life had been dictated to him by his overbearing parents, and he’d be damned if he’d allow someone else to do it. Pain at the reminder of his parents made him stumble. A hard body slammed into him before pinning his coyote to the ground.
Unwilling to give up, Forest fought against the black panther. He quickly realized he was completely outmatched as Blade once more pinned him to the ground. This time Blade didn’t take any chances as he clamped his jaws around Forest’s throat, demanding his submission.
His coyote was ready to submit as he knew the panther was more powerful, but it grated on Forest to give up. Those razor-sharp teeth clamped down further with a little shake of his head. The message was clear, submit. It wasn’t a matter of just submitting for him though.
If Wolfe were right, he’d never be free of this panther. Giving up too easily would set a bad precedent. Forest refused to allow the man to think he would just roll over and show his belly. Doing his best to glare at the panther, he waited to see what Blade would do.
Pressure unlike anything Forest had ever felt closed off his airway as Blade’s growl reverberated through Forest’s body. The need to breathe overshadowed his pride. Using the only means he had left to show his submission, Forest let his body go completely limp. Fear spiked through him when Blade gave another growl but finally the panther’s mouth opened.
Sucking in huge gulps of air, Forest watched as Blade shifted back to his human form. Muscles rippled as bones realigned into what had to be the sexiest man alive. All that dark skin and bulging muscles, what man alive wouldn’t want to lick Blade from head to toe. His coyote wanted to roll over and show his belly to the God of a man.
Forest forced his coyote back until the animal could only whimper in the back of his mind. There was no way he was going to give this man any more ammunition than he already had to use against Forest.
“Shift,” Blade commanded.
Against his will, Forest found himself once more in human form, naked and kneeling at Blade’s feet. Hatred flowed through his veins for how weak he was when it came to this man. Glaring at the man responsible, Forest directed his anger out on Blade. “Fuck off.”
Blade smirked at his words before kneeling down to get in Forest’s face. “As you have only just arrived I will give you a pass this once.” Those eyes so dark, Forest was sure he was staring into a bottomless pit, one the panther was ready to throw him in by the way he talked to Forest. “Next time you will be punished just like anyone else.”
Forest shivered at the threat, but he refused to be cowed by anyone. “Fuck you.” Okay, clearly he needed to improve his vocabulary, but the words got his message across effectively. Except with the way Blade practically was laughing at him, Forest wasn’t so sure.
Standing back up, Blade reached a hand down to help Forest up. Refusing the hand, Forest stood. A very tall, very muscular man came up with a bag and handed it to Blade. “Thanks, Wyatt,” Blade said as he took the bag and the man disappeared.
Opening the bag Blade took out shorts and T-shirts for both of them. Forest couldn’t get dressed fast enough. The entire time he’d been praying he wouldn’t pop wood in front of Blade. As much as he hated to admit it, the man was sex on a stick, and Forest was having a hard time controlling his body’s reaction to him.
Once dressed, Blade stared at him for several moments, making Forest so uncomfortable he wanted to squirm under the man’s scrutiny. Not liking the feeling, he stuck out his chin. “Why are you staring at me?” he finally demanded.
Blade didn’t answer him right away, as he continued to stare. Forest was ready to walk back to the others when Blade finally spoke. “What did Wolfe say to you that made you run?”
Heat filled his cheeks. Clenching his hands, he faced off against the panther. “That’s none of your business.”
Blade’s head tilted slightly as if he were trying to figure Forest out. “Why would you bother lying to me? You know I can scent a lie.”
Yes, Forest knew, but he wasn’t about to tell this man that he might be Forest’s mate. “Fine. But I’m still not going to tell.” Forest crossed his arms over his chest as if daring Blade to try to make him tell. One thing Forest had learned since his parents were killed in front of him, before he was kidnapped to be used as a sex toy for a sick fuck, was he was stubborn as a mule when he wanted to be.
Firm lips lifted again as if Blade was amused with what Forest said. It was starting to piss him off that no one seemed to take him seriously. Wolfe had laughed outright at him when he’d told the guy he was going home to hunt down those responsible for his parents’ death.
The man at the top of that list was Raptor Ramirez. If it hadn’t been for Raptor, the psy wouldn’t have easily come into their territory to kidnap Forest and kill his parents.
No matter what Wolfe and the others thought of Forest, he wasn’t stupid. He knew his plan was dangerous. It wasn’t like he could just walk up to Raptor and shoot him. Forest wouldn’t get close enough before one of Raptor’s goons killed him.
Still he had to try, but first he had to find the man, and that was one skill Forest had. Well, maybe skill wasn’t exactly the right work, but he would still be able to find the man. Forest had friends who lived in the seedier side of life who would be able to help him find Raptor. His parents had tried to control his every move growing up. Forest rebelled by finding ways to circumvent his parents attempts. One of those ways had been to make friends whom his parents wouldn’t approve of.
Hell, Forest would have never talked to some of these people if it weren’t for the fact that he’d been trying to stick it to his parents. Now that his parents had died, Forest regretted his behavior, but those friends would come in handy for tracking down Raptor.
Not willing to put up with Blade’s amusement at his expense any longer, Forest headed back to where the others waited. Striding up to Wolfe, he pulled the man from his conversation with Alek and Talon. “Not one more word about it,” he warned the man. He was walking on the edge with Wolfe but Forest didn’t care.
Wolfe glanced from him to a spot beyond Forest’s shoulder. If he had to take a guess, Blade stood there. Wolfe gave Forest a nod. “You got it, kid.”
Fury rose once more at that stupid nickname. “I told you I’m not a kid,” he bit out.
“Then prove it,” Wolfe said, before turning back to the conversation Forest had interrupted with Alek and Talon.
Forest stood there thinking about Wolfe’s words. His whole life, he’d been trying to find ways to buck the system. At first it was his parents’ rules. Even in college he was constantly getting into trouble with the administration for his antics. Teachers were usually complaining about his disrespect when he mouthed off in class.
Hell, when Wolfe had rescued him from that sick, perverted psy, Forest had spouted off his mouth instead of thanking the man. He’d tried to tell himself he would have gotten out of the situation himself, but he knew it for the lie it was. The other three Wolfe had rescued had been beaten and raped, a fate that would have been Forest’s if Wolfe hadn’t been there.
Forest shivered at the thought of the dolphin shifter that had barely been alive. It had been over a week, and still the guy hadn’t woken up from his coma. Dr. Reid had tried to help by healing his more life threatening injuries, but Dr. Pratt thought the dolphin shifter had buried himself so deep within his mind to escape what was done to him that he refused to wake up.
He owed Wolfe his gratitude, but ever since the moment he’d been released from the handcuffs that had been bolted to the floor, Forest had been nothing but ungrateful. Maybe Wolfe was right, he’d been acting like a spoiled brat. No wonder why everyone was treating him like a kid.
&n
bsp; Part of being a man was to own up to your mistakes. Or at least that’s what Forest’s father used to tell him. He hadn’t really followed his father’s advice when the man was alive, but Forest felt he owed it to him to do so now.
“Okay, we’ve taken up enough of your time,” Alek told Talon and the others. “We brought three Hummers with upgrades that you haven’t seen before. I left manuals in the vehicles.”
Wyatt, the man who had brought Forest clothes took off toward the Hummers like a shot. What was so fascinating about the cars, Forest had no clue. When Alek and Wolfe turned to go back to the plane, Forest grabbed Wolfe’s arm. A growl behind Forest told him Blade didn’t like it.
“Can I have just a minute please?” he asked Wolfe.
“Sure but can we do it while walking?” He didn’t really give Forest a choice as he kept pace with Alek.
“I wanted to say I’m sorry for the way I’ve been acting.” Wolfe stopped in his tracks as soon as the words were out of Forest’s mouth. He would have preferred they’d kept walking so he wouldn’t have to look at the man and admit his mistakes.
Hearing his father’s voice in his head, Forest gathered his courage and looked the man in the eye. “You rescued me, and I acted like, well, like a jerk, and I’m sorry. You were right. I was acting like a child and none of you, especially you, deserved that.”
Wolfe stood there with his mouth open, staring in disbelief. Suddenly he smiled, this time not with laughter but with joy. He pulled Forest in for a hug and whispered, “Thank you for your apology.”
Blade’s growl of warning echoed around them. Wolfe stepped back to confront the panther. “I’m only going to warn you this once. You protect him with your life or I will hunt you down. Got it?”
Forest saw Blade nod his understanding before Wolfe pulled Forest into another hug. “If you ever need anything, I’m just a phone call away.”
Tears that Forest fought to control, threatened to spill down his cheeks. “Okay,” his choked out.
Pulling back just a bit, Wolfe put his forehead to Forest’s, forcing Forest to look into his eyes. “I know you want to fight it. But trust me, it won’t help. So do yourself a favor and give into the mating.” Wolfe’s lips pressed to his forehead before he strode up the stairs.
Blade had growled once more at the kiss but just as every other time Blade had growled at Wolfe, the man just didn’t care.
Forest watched as the plane lifted off until the clouds obscured it from sight. A hand brushed down his arm. When he turned around Blade’s gaze glowed with rage. “Are you two in love?”
Laughter spilled out of Forest. “No.”
Without any further explanation, Forest walked over to where the others were loading up the Hummers. Yeah, it was childish not to explain. So sue him.
Chapter 4
Blade cursed as he watched Forest once more walk into a dangerous situation. It had been nearly two weeks since Forest had been thrust into their group, and Blade found himself at his wit’s end with the kid.
No matter how much pressure they’d put on Raptor’s followers, no one had any clue where he was. Now that Forest had joined their squad, he was able to get them leads when the rest of them had failed. Blade should have been happy they were finally making progress, but in order to get the leads, Forest had to enter some of the most dangerous places in Juarez.
Don’t even get him started on the people Forest was talking to. The guy he was meeting today was called Concesionario Muerte, which loosely translated to “Death Dealer.” To say Blade was freaking out, was putting it mildly. The question was, why?
Sure, Wolfe had threatened him about keeping Forest safe, and even though he had no doubt Wolfe would come through on that threat, it never entered his mind when it came to Forest. All he knew was the only time he and his panther were calm was when Forest was next to him.
The door to the Devil’s Ride opened, and Forest vanished from his sight. Blade stood out of sight with his eyes never straying from that door as he waited for Forest to come out. Each time the door opened, he prayed it would Forest. When it wasn’t, his heart would constrict as his panther urged him to go check on the kid.
“We never should’ve let him do this,” Blade said into COBI.
“We know,” each of his friends answered back.
“You know this isn’t our first choice, but after what happened when we refused to let Forest meet with one of his contacts, we don’t have any other options,” Talon said.
After meeting with Alek, their team had returned to the man whom they had been watching when called to meet the Alpha. Unfortunately, that man was dead when they got back in position. There was no doubt it had been Raptor. Each time they’d had someone under surveillance, somehow that person ended up dead before they could talk to him.
Blade would like to blame Alek for forcing them away from surveillance, but the fact was even when they had their eyes on someone, that person was still killed, often right before their eyes. It was like Raptor was taunting them.
Forest tried to convince them he had contacts who would talk to him, but when he gave the first name “Jackal,” the entire team refused Forest’s request to meet with the man. Jackal was one of the most notorious criminals in Juarez. He dealt in weapons, drugs, and human trafficking. Actually, the guy would deal in anything if enough money were offered.
Apparently Forest didn’t care whether Talon gave him permission or not. One night, Forest claimed to be turning in early and snuck out of his fourth-floor hotel room, by climbing out the window. Blade swore the kid had a death wish when he’d followed his scent.
By the time Blade caught up with him, he was sitting at a table with Jackal, laughing and joking as if they’d been friends for years. Not wanting to start a fight, Blade waited until Forest left before catching up with him.
“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” he snarled in Forest’s ear as he pinned the kid to the wall of a building.
Forest bucked against him as he tried to get free. Blade tried to ignore his rising erection as he increased the pressure to keep Forest still.
“I told you Jackal would have information. Now get the fuck off me,” Forest tried to demand.
Blade stepped back, not because of Forest’s demand, but because his panther was clawing at him to fuck the kid. His cock was so hard, all he could think about was burying himself deep into Forest’s tight ass.
Forest spun around with fire spitting from his eyes as he glared at Blade. “Stay the fuck away from me.” Blade watched him walk away.
He didn’t know why he was so hell bent on fucking Forest, but if Blade didn’t get control over himself soon he would end up doing something he would probably regret.
His attraction for Forest had only grown until Blade was nearly out of his mind with lust. There was no doubt the others knew, since they could smell his constant state of arousal.
He’d thought about finding some random guy for sex, but his panther wouldn’t allow it. For the first time in Blade’s life, he wanted only one person, and until he was deep within Forest’s body with the man screaming Blade’s name, no one else would do.
The door opened again, pulling Blade out of his thoughts. Forest strode through the door as if nothing were wrong, except something was off. Blade’s eyes narrowed as he studied the kid. His gaze went from the tip of Forest’s head down his chest until they landed on his left hand that was tapping against his leg.
It was subtle, but there was something familiar about what he was doing. When those dark green eyes that had been scanning the street as if he didn’t have a care in the world suddenly focused on Blade, he knew there was trouble.
Studying that hand still tapping against his leg once more, he realized it was old Morse code. Not exactly used any longer, but some things were still well-known. Three short taps, three long taps, three short taps.
Fuck!
“Guys, there’s trouble,” he said into COBI even as he continued to watch Forest’s every
movement. The problem was he didn’t know what the trouble was. Nothing looked amiss, yet Forest was clearly trying to tell him something.
“What is it Blade?” Talon asked.
“I wish I knew. Forest is tapping out SOS on his leg but I don’t see anything out of place.” Deciding he had to let Forest know he got the message, Blade stepped out from where he was hidden for just a moment, but he knew Forest saw him.
Sticking earbuds in his ears, Forest turned on music and started to lip-synch. Blade read his lips. Suddenly those lips mouthed, “Raptor inside.”
“Raptor’s inside the Devil’s Ride.” Blade didn’t wait for instructions. There was no doubt Raptor had someone watching the front of the bar, and if he had seen Forest, the kid would be as good as dead.
His feet had just reached the street when the door to the bar opened and a man the size of a fucking truck grabbed Forest. Everything slowed down as Blade ran like hell to get to Forest, but he was too late. Raptor’s goon had pulled Forest back into the bar, with the kid kicking and screaming the whole way.
Talon appeared at his side before the door had even completely shut. “We’ll get him back,” his friend said.
Blade turned to his leader and snarled, “We’d better.”
He knew this wasn’t Talon’s fault, but Blade was too enraged not to lash out. Why he’d ever let Forest go into that bar in the first place, Blade had no idea. When he got the kid back, and he would get him back, he was going to beat his ass and chain him up just so he couldn’t get into more trouble.
The team circled around where Blade had been hiding on the other side of the street. The plans for the building and the ones on either side of the bar were on their laptops, along with best ways to infiltrate. “Okay, guys, they have one of ours so we do whatever it takes, got it?” Talon said.
Each man nodded as they gave Blade pitying looks. He didn’t care what they thought. As long as they got Forest back, they could look at him any way they wanted to.
