“Well, Cora has the same crazy imagination. And she didn't just offer to be bait. She insisted.”
Caleb inhaled sharply then surged to his feet.
“She is our Alpha's mate. We will obey her orders and we will protect and defend her with our lives,” Caleb said, saluting smartly. “I will brief the team leaders and assign them their roles.” He stared at Ethan with a look of utter admiration and disbelief. “Your mate...would risk her life, to take down the Hyland pack. She may be human, but she has a bear heart.”
Ethan stood and nodded at his beta. “Cora...is an amazing woman. I can't believe I've found her. She is infuriatingly stubborn, incredibly brave, smart and resourceful, and she has so much fire and life. I...won't lose her.”
“Neither will we,” Caleb said firmly. “The Hyland wolves are going down. And they will be brought down by their own blood lust.”
Ethan had to smile. “Yes. If they leave my bride alone, our trap falls flat. But if Cora is right, they will want to take her to exact vengeance on our clan. And for that, they will pay with their lives.”
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Cora smoothed her hand down her beautiful, designer wedding dress and resisted the urge to whip out her mobile phone and snap a selfie. Ethan hadn't grabbed any old wedding dress off the rack for her. He had bought a designer dress for her.
Cora had told him that he shouldn't have gone to such expense, especially since this was all just for show. But he had beamed and asked her if she liked the dress he had picked out for her.
Like it? Was he kidding? She loved it! It was simply divine! It was an off-shoulder, figure-hugging mermaid gown showcasing all her luscious curves in the most flattering way. She wished Aubrey was here with her, but she couldn't risk the wolves seeing Aubrey in the crowd and seeing just how close they were. That would put Aubrey in mortal danger.
But Cora had snapped a hundred pictures of herself in her gorgeous gown. She would show them to Aubrey later, even though Aubrey would kill her for leaving her out of the fun. But this was a matter of life and death.
And Cora felt like she could die, right now! She was on the arm of Liam Skyworth!
Yes, say it again. Liam Skyworth, the casino tycoon who looked like a movie star! Liam Skyworth was the owner of Skyflame Casino, the largest, shiniest casino this part of the globe! She'd heard rumors that he was a dragon shifter, but those rumors were never confirmed or denied. He was happily married now and his beautiful wife, Hannah and adorable three-year-old daughter, Sara, were seated among the guests.
Cora fanned herself with her free hand. Liam Skyworth was walking her down the aisle. She was arm in arm with one of the most influential, powerful billionaires in the city, a real mover and shaker. Apparently, Ethan was friends with Liam and having the Skyworths present made the wedding pretty high profile. The Hyland wolves were sure to take note.
The majority of the wedding “guests” were members of Ethan's clan. They were all dressed to the nines, breaking out their tuxedos and fancy gowns for the event. But under their jackets and shawls were deadly guns and knives.
The wedding was held in the field behind Ethan's house. There was a small park just beside the field, with benches and swings. That was where they would drop the bait.
Cora shifted her weight nervously and glanced up at Liam. The handsome billionaire smiled down at her and asked gently, “You okay?”
“Yeah. I'm just...excited.”
He leaned in, pretending to kiss the top of her head and whispered, “I can smell the wolves. They're here. Are you sure you want to do this, Cora?”
She started and gulped. “Y-yes. I'm doing this.”
“Okay. Good luck.”
Liam rested his hand reassuringly over hers as they walked towards Ethan and Caleb. This might be just a mock wedding, but Caleb was taking it very seriously. Ethan said his beta had gotten himself ordained over the internet and had announced that henceforth he would be officiating over all weddings in the clan.
Cora locked eyes with Ethan as she walked towards him. His lips parted and she saw him suck in a sharp breath when he saw her. His eyes were shining with love and respect, joy and pride. This felt...so real, like she was really getting married.
Cora felt her heart constrict with longing and regret. It was too bad that this was just a fake wedding. Marrying Ethan would be...a dream come true. She would be so proud and happy to have Ethan as her husband. She knew they would be perfect together, and he would be the perfect mate for her. Yes, this was all her idea, but she couldn't helping wishing that she was getting married for real.
Liam handed her over to Ethan and stepped away to join his wife and daughter. Ethan took both her hands in his and gazed deeply into her eyes as he said his vows. Cora tripped over her words but successfully made it to the end and managed to slip the ring onto Ethan's finger without dropping it.
Ethan pushed the ring securely to the base of her finger and met her eyes. There was a chip in the ring that would allow the bears to track her.
Ethan brushed his lips over the shell of her ear and whispered, “You're right. The wolves are here. They've surrounded the house, but they won't attack. They're waiting.” For you.
Cora swallowed. The plan had worked. They had drawn the wolves here. She could almost smell blood in the air.
“Let's do it,” she said.
“I...” Ethan gripped her hands suddenly. “I won't lose you, Cora. I love you.”
“Ah...” She blinked repeatedly and stammered. This was supposed to be fake. Did he not remember that this wedding was fake? He didn't have to say those three words.
“Y-you won't lose me,” she said with false bravado. “You will come and get me. I'll be waiting for you.” She quirked a crooked smile and snapped, “Don't be late.”
And I love you too.
She opened her mouth but she couldn't get the words out.
Ethan pressed his lips to hers in a tender, lingering kiss.
“You ready?” he whispered.
Gulp.
No.
Cora looked up and gave Ethan her brightest smile.
“Yes!”
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Ethan watched Cora at the corner of his eye while pretending to be engaged in animated conversation with Caleb and Liam. Cora took her glass of champagne and strolled over to the little park. She sat on one of the benches under a tree, dabbing at her neck and forehead and acting like she was trying to cool off in the shade.
“Let's move off towards the house,” Caleb suggested quietly. “Leave her alone for a moment. The wolves won't be able to resist a lone, helpless, human woman.”
Ethan nodded and took a few steps towards the house. The hairs on the back of his neck prickled and he couldn't take another step. His pulse began to race and sure enough, he heard the sound of glass shattering.
He swung round and saw Cora's champagne glass in pieces on the ground near the empty bench. There was a flash of white lace near the trees bordering the field, and Ethan dashed towards the woods.
Caleb barked orders and several team leaders sprang into action. They ran towards the woods, following Cora's trail. Ethan ran ahead, following the scent of his mate, closing in on her.
He could sense her roiling emotions. There was confusion, apprehension, excitement and frustration. But there was no fear. She wasn't afraid. Instead, he could feel her annoyance and impatience at him.
Ethan frowned and forced himself to fall back and let the wolves get away from him. Cora had warned him not to come too close. They had to let the wolves take her to their hideout. Their target was Marlo Hynderland, not his dispensable lackeys.
Ethan took a deep breath and reached out with his heart and mind for his mate. He could feel the adrenalin pounding through him. Cora wasn't feeling scared at all. She was feeling excited, brimming with grit and resolve. She was determined to lead the bears to the slimy, murderous leader of the Hyland pack and put an en
d to the wolves' criminal activities once and for all.
They would save Keith and Billy Maxwell, and countless future victims of the Hyland Wolves.
Ethan put up a fist to halt his pursuing bears. He gave them their instructions in low tones, and the team leaders immediately split up and veered off in various directions. They would still track Cora from a safe distance, never losing her scent and making sure they knew exactly where she was every single second.
Ethan stared at his watch. The red dot which showed Cora's location kept moving westward. The wolves were moving towards the coastline.
“He'll have a speedboat ready,” Ethan said to Caleb, who kept close to his side. “Marlo knows that we're tracking Cora. And he knows that we won't be able to follow him out to sea. His boat will only carry him and his inner circle of bodyguards. The rest of his wolves will be left behind to fight us, and be killed by us.”
“He really is a slimy bastard.”
“Cora is right. This is our only chance to get him,” Ethan snarled. “Let him think that he has the upper hand. Let him think he has beaten me and Keith.”
“Keith?”
“Yes. Keith and Billy will have to face the wolves again I'm afraid.”
“The boy for your bride,” Caleb said flatly.
“Yes. I am expecting Marlo's call any minute now.” Ethan tapped his temple and flashed his beta a grim smile. “Marlo's not the only one with a criminal mind. How can we be in the security business if we can't think like criminals?”
Caleb smirked and answered with a favorite quote of his. “Know your enemy, win the war.”
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Cora winced as a collar was slapped around her neck. She was chained to the leg of a heavy table, and made to kneel beside a chair. She knew who would sit in that chair. Marlo Hynderland wanted Ethan to see him treating his bride like a dog, chained, collared and kneeling at his feet.
She wasn't too bothered by their cheap attempts to disgrace and denigrate her. The wolves were rough with her, throwing insults and crude comments in her face. But they only held her by her arms. They didn't molest her or try to take liberties with her. Cora could only guess that they were under strict instructions not to touch Ethan Flint's bride.
There were things that Marlo wanted Ethan to do for him. She was leverage. The Hyland wolves had to keep her alive and unmolested to get Ethan to do their bidding.
Cora didn't know much about underworld dealings and shifter power plays. But she did know that Ethan was smart. He couldn't control and lead a clan of ferocious bear shifters if he didn't have a sharp mind, quick reflexes and formidable prowess. And he was friends with a fearsome dragon shifter, one of the most influential men in the city, Liam Skyworth. And from the looks of it, Liam liked and respected Ethan immensely.
Ethan would get her, and he would take the Hyland pack down in one fell swoop. This was what they'd planned for. He wouldn't let her down. The Black Bears would come through. She knew they would.
Cora gritted her teeth as a tall, gangly werewolf strolled past her and openly leered at her.
“Keep your dick in your pants around this one, Royston,” another werewolf growled. “The Boss has plans for her.”
“Oh yeah?” Royston gyrated his hips and thrust his crotch in front of Cora's face. “I won't fuck her pussy. I can just come in her hot little mouth.”
Some werewolves laughed and added their own lewd suggestions.
Cora kept her expression carefully blank. She would not let them have the satisfaction of even seeing her flinch.
Cora looked around the wooden shack. When she had been blindfolded earlier, she could hear the waves and smell the sea breeze. And she could feel sand under her feet. They were along the shoreline and for a moment, she feared they were going to take her out to sea and dump her body overboard.
But she had been pushed through the door and into this shack. She tried to raise her head to look through the small window but all she saw was the back of a huge rock. The shack must be hidden behind a cluster of rocks. It wasn't easily seen and with the thunderous roar of the waves, any gunshots and screams coming from the shack would be drowned out.
This was the perfect spot for a murder.
Cora swallowed her fear.
She wasn't going to be murdered. Ethan wouldn't let her be killed.
She heard the engine of a speedboat and saw all the Hyland wolves tense and snap to attention. She knew that the Big Boss was coming.
The door opened and a white suit stepped into the shack.
“Ah, what have we here? The bride of the Black Bears Alpha. What a pleasure, my dear. Oh, where are my manners? I haven't introduced myself. I'm Marlo Hynderland,” Marlo smiled, his voice booming through the enclosed space and making her skin crawl.
Cora tilted her head to look him straight in the eye. With such a big voice, she had expected Marlo to be big and tall. But he was a relatively small man. He was about her height, with narrow shoulders and a pinched, long face. His eyes were close-set with dark circles around them. A pair of thick-rimmed spectacles perched on his hooked nose.
Cora blinked in surprise. He didn't look intimidating at all. In fact, he looked quite weak and nerdy.
Never judge a wolf by its cover.
Cora started. What?
What did that even mean?
And why was Ethan's voice in her head?
Marlo Hynderland took his seat beside her and laid a hand on her shoulder. Cora let out a breath very slowly. His thin hand was inhumanly strong, and she knew in that instant that she was in the grip of a cruel, brutal killer.
Even before her next blink, he could snap her neck and crush her skull in his palm.
The wolf under the man was a powerful, ruthless predator. His human form was just a cover for his real, animal nature.
Cora closed her eyes and tried to silence the hammering of her heart. She was sure Marlo could hear her frantic heartbeats. His lips were curving upwards, and he flicked his eyes from her to the door.
“You're here. At last.”
The door opened and Cora bit down her cry as Billy Maxwell stumbled into the room. The little boy had a gun to his head.
Someone walked in behind Billy.
Ethan.
And he was holding the gun.
“No,” Cora whispered.
Marlo chuckled. “You're punctual, Ethan. I like that. And I see you have the son with you. Where's the father? I love family dramas!”
There was a shout as Keith Maxwell was shoved through the door by Caleb.
“Let my son go!” Keith yelled at Ethan. “You bloody traitor! I will kill you!”
Marlo tut-tutted at Keith. “Shhh. Don't work yourself up. There's nothing you can do now...but watch your son die. I won't be doing the killing. Ethan will shoot your boy in the head.”
Marlo got up and circled Keith. Keith tried to lunge at Marlo but Caleb held him back.
Marlo laughed and patted Keith's cheek sympathetically. “You son will die a quick, painless death. But I'm afraid I am unable to extend the same courtesy to you. You—will beg for death.”
CHAPTER TWENTY
Cora stared at Billy and Ethan with stricken eyes. What was happening? What was Ethan doing? Was he out of his mind?
Ethan held Billy by the scruff of his neck, his gun pointed at the boy's head. He didn't even look at her. Instead he kept his gaze steady on Marlo.
“Let her go,” Ethan said, his voice cold and flat.
Marlo chuckled. “I think I'll keep your lovely bride here for a while more. I want her to see what her new husband is capable of. I never thought you'd claim a human for a mate, Ethan. How well does the little human know you? I bet she hasn't really seen you in action. Well, now she can see what you are truly capable of.” Marlo smiled broadly, his eyes turning wolf.
Cora heard Billy choke down a sob. The boy had his head bowed, his face hidden under his unruly mop of hair. Cora fr
owned and stared hard at Billy.
It wasn't like Billy to avert his face from her. She had seen the little boy show great courage and strength even in the most dire situation. He wouldn't give up the fight, and if he saw that she had been captured and chained by the wolves, he would definitely try to fight his way to her.
Cora swallowed and stared at Ethan. He inclined his head slightly in her direction, but kept his eyes locked on Marlo.
“I'm going to put a bullet through his head,” Ethan said very slowly but clearly.
Marlo laughed and pressed the barrel of a gun to Cora's temple. “Yes. I'll make sure you do that.”
The wolf leaned in and breathed down Cora's neck. “Don't worry, sweetheart. This gun at your head is just...an incentive for your groom to do as he promised. It's not a threat. I never threaten women.”
Cora ignored Marlo completely. All her attention was on Ethan. She watched his face, his eyes, his hands intently, listening with her ears and heart. She slowed her breathing to match his, tuning her senses to his subtle signals.
His words echoed in her mind.
I'm going to put a bullet through his head.
She'd heard his inflection.
His careful, deliberate tone.
Ethan wasn't referring to Billy's head.
Cora's lips twitched.
Only Ethan caught that smile, which was cleverly disguised as a wince.
Ethan spun the boy around and said gruffly, “Take one last look at your father, kid. Take a good look.”
Billy stood stiffly and faced Keith.
Cora still couldn't see his face, but she heard him say, “I love you, Dad.”
Keith screamed and thrashed in Caleb's grip as Ethan raised his gun and pointed it at Billy. Keith's tortured screams and curses filled the shack as he struggled to reach his son. His huge body contorted and there was the sound of bone snapping as he half shifted in his agony.
A cruel laugh rumbled from Marlo at the sight of Keith's torment. Cora felt the gun move a fraction of an inch from her temple. Marlo was too engrossed in the spectacle of his enemy's pain and suffering to pay attention to her. She was of little consequence to him, just a pawn in his twisted game.
Bear's Bride (Bear Heat Book 1) (BBW Paranormal Shifter Romance) Page 6
