9781631054747HerstoBearHoffa

by Tamara Hoffa

  Bern laughed and nuzzled her neck. “Can’t help it, little one. I’m in there, I just feel your emotions, especially when they are that strong. Please don’t strangle my sister. I know I have five, but the others would miss her.”

  That diffused Jenna’s anger and she laughed. “Okay, I’ll let her live…for now.”

  “And by the way, you called her a sow,” he teased.

  “Oh my God, I did, you heard that?” Jenna covered her mouth with her hands and then laughed hysterically. Everyone at the table looked at her like she’d grown two heads, which just made her laugh harder.

  When she finally got herself under control her head was laying on Bern’s shoulder and he was holding her trembling body, to keep her from falling on the ground. “Sorry.” She hiccupped.

  “Wanna let us in on the joke?” Julia asked. “I could use a good laugh.”

  Bern shook his head. “Um, no. Private joke.”

  Thank God, Sebastian and his entourage chose that moment to walk up. Bern placed Jenna on her feet and stood.

  “Bern, we had a lovely evening. We’re going to take our leave now.”

  “Thank you so much, Sebastian. We’ll see you out.” Bern nodded to his family and turned to escort his guests to the front door with a hand on the small of Jenna’s back.

  Sebastian’s SUV idled outside the ornate front doors, one of his minions obviously having retrieved the vehicle. His guards surrounded them on the porch and Jenna, Bern and Sebastian shared a private moment.

  Sebastian first looked at Jenna. “You, my dear, are a lovely lady, and will make a fine Sippe’s mate. Thank you for allowing me to be a part of your ceremony.” He kissed both of her cheeks, and for once Bern didn’t growl.

  He then turned to Bern, the look they exchanged was long and full of hidden meaning. Jenna could only wonder what they shared through their connection. “Good night, my brother,” he said as he embraced Bern.

  “Good night, my brother,” Bern returned.

  Jenna would swear both men’s eyes were suspiciously damp when they pulled apart, though she was certain they would both deny it.

  * * * *

  Everyone finally left, and the house was quiet. Jenna and Bern sat in the living room snuggled on the couch before a low crackling fire, sipping hot chocolate and relaxing from the stress of the day.

  Bern toyed with a curl of hair on her temple. “Are you ready to call your folks?” he asked.

  Jenna snuggled closer and released a soft sigh. “Yes, I guess.”

  “You’re not nervous, are you?”

  “No, not really. Excited, kind of nervous. I know Mom and Dad are going to love you. Where’s my purse?” She lifted her head to look around.

  Bern pulled his cell from his hip holster. “My phone is right here, just use it. Then I’ll have their number programed in,” he said with a smile.

  “That works.” Jenna took the phone and dialed.

  Her mother answered on the second ring. “Rayne residence. How can I help you?” The unfamiliar number putting her into her professional mode.

  “Hi, Mom, it’s Jenna.”

  “Jenna! Where are you calling from? Is everything all right?”

  “Calm down, Mother. Everything is fine. I’m calling from my…um, fiancé’s phone.”

  “Fiancé! Did you say…? Barton! Get your fanny down here, your daughter just said she has a fiancé!”

  Her father picked up the other extension. “Baby girl, is that you?”

  “No, Daddy, it’s your other daughter. Of course it’s me. How are you?”

  “Fit as a fiddle. What’s this I hear about a fiancé?”

  “I’m engaged! His name is Bern Helms, he’s right here, he’d like to speak to you.”

  Jenna handed Bern the phone. “Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Raynes. It’s a pleasure to meet you. I wish we could have met in person, but that will come soon enough. I love your daughter very much, we are already mated and will marry when arrangements can be made.”

  “Mated?” Barton said. “So I take it you are a shifter?”

  “Yes, sir. I am a grizzly shifter. Alpha of my clan.”

  “Good, then you will never hurt my daughter.”

  Bern held the phone out and looked at it, of all the responses he had run through in his mind, that one hadn’t even entered the picture.

  “No, sir. I would never hurt my Jenna. I would die to keep her safe.”

  Barton laughed. “You misunderstand me, son. You think like a shifter. I know you will keep her physically safe, but I meant you would never hurt her emotionally. Never cheat on her, mess around, like these stupid young punks now-a-days that you can’t trust as far as you can throw them.”

  Cassandra broke in. “Oh, I can’t wait to meet you, Bern. We were planning to come down for Christmas, but maybe we will move it up and come for Thanksgiving. What do you think? Barton, could you get away then?”

  “We’ll see, Kiki. Where’s my daughter, is she listening in?”

  “I’m here, Daddy,” Jenna said, Bern held the phone so they could both hear.

  “I’m so happy for you baby. If your mother has her way, and you know she will, we’ll be there in November, but we’ll talk to you next Sunday.”

  “We love you,” they both said.

  “I love you too,” Jenna said, and they both hung up. Bern hooked the phone back into the holster on his belt and Jenna laid her head on his shoulder. “That went well.”

  “Yes, it did. Your father sure didn’t seem to care that you mated a shifter.”

  “I told you he wouldn’t.”

  “I know you did, but I have to say I had my reservations.”

  Jenna sat up and looked into his eyes, in them she saw reflected the pain of years of prejudice. She leaned in and tenderly kissed his lips, palming his cheeks and then running her fingers through his shaggy brown hair.

  For long minutes they gently caressed and kissed, passion took a backseat to warmth and affection. Jenna’s hands travelled over Bern’s muscled back, moving constantly, mapping the hills and valleys of the sculpted terrain.

  Bern’s hands tangled in Jenna’s curls, holding her head in place for his kisses. When they finally broke apart, he leaned his forehead against hers and breathed deep of her scent. “I love you, my mate.”

  “I love you too, my big bear,” she said. They rested like that for a moment, and then she stirred. “I hate to say it, but I better go home. Alice is waiting, and tomorrow is a school day.”

  Bern kissed her nose. “You’re right, little one. I will take you home.”

  * * * *

  In the dark of night the HUNTS crew planned their mission. No fire burned at the campsite tonight. The men were all dressed in black, camouflage on their faces. They gathered in a circle around a map with a flashlight.

  “Okay, the damn wolf warned the fucking bears and they’ve increased the night patrols, but I still think we can make the grab tonight. The Schmidt’s house is at the edge of town, and we have enough sleeping gas for two rooms. If we time the grab between the roving patrols, and take out one of the guards with a tranquilizer dart, if necessary, we can grab the Schmidt kid before midnight.”

  “I want to hit the bears fast and get out of town. While they are out searching for the Schmidt kid, we’ll hit the playground after school tomorrow afternoon and get Sarah Barr, then we’ll take both kids to the lab,” John said.

  “That means we have to keep Jacob Schmidt here until tomorrow afternoon, aren’t you afraid the bears will find him?” Scott asked.

  “We won’t keep him here,” John said. “We’ll keep him sedated and in the van. It will only be eighteen hours, I have enough scent blocker to keep him hidden for that long and we can keep the van moving.”

  “Maybe we should wait and snatch the kid closer to morning,” Kyle said. “Hit the house like four am, then we wouldn’t have to hold the kid so long, or be on the run as long.”

  John scratched the scruff on his chin. “That’s a th
ought. Good thinking Kyle. It also gives us a chance to get a little sleep tonight. Okay men, set your alarms for three and hit the rack.” He slapped Kyle on the shoulder and the men dispersed.

  John went over to check the equipment in the van, Kyle followed. “Everything set?” Kyle asked.

  “Yeah, I’ve got sleeping gas for two rooms, twelve tranquillizer darts and twenty scent blocker pills,” John replied.

  “Are you sure this tranquillizer is strong enough for bears?”

  John quirked a brow at him. “Yes, I’m sure.”

  Kyle raised his hands in a defensive gesture. “Just checking.”

  “Get some sleep, I don’t want any mistakes tonight.”

  Kyle saluted. “Yes, sir.” He turned and headed to his tent.

  At three o’clock the men gathered and took their scent blocker pills, the pills worked within thirty minutes, so by the time they reached the outskirts of town they would have no scent.

  “Move out,” John said and the men piled into three vehicles, the van and two jeeps. They drove to the edge of town and parked the jeeps in the woods, concealing the vehicles. They drove the van as close to the house as possible, still keeping out of sight.

  According to their reconnaissance, the guards shouldn’t be due to patrol this area until five am so they had an hour to get in and out. John grabbed the tanks of sleeping gas, it was a formula the scientists had come up with of aerosolized Ketamine, Rohypnol and God only knew what else, John sure didn’t want to know. But it worked great for their purposes. The animal tranquilizer put the weres to sleep and Rohypnol made them forget anything they might have heard of the crew during the kidnapping.

  The couple would wake in the morning, astonished to find their child missing. Saying they had never heard or seen a thing. It was beautiful.

  The fall weather made things even easier, the windows were open to the cool night air, so all John had to do was slip the hose through the open window and open the valve. Ten minutes and the drug had taken effect.

  He moved to the child’s window and repeated the process. The men donned gas masks and entered through the open window. John injected the child with a dose of Ketamine to make sure he stayed asleep and carried him out to the van.

  Metal cages were built into the sides of the van and he secured the child in one of the cages, locked the door and backed out of the van, closing the double doors. He slapped Scott on the shoulder. His white teeth showed through the black paint on his face as he smiled.

  “Let’s get out of here. Well done, my friend. Well done.”

  * * * *

  Bern’s phone woke him from a sound sleep, never a good thing. “Bern here,” he answered.

  “Sippe,” a tearful voice cried. “Jacob is gone!” Margo Schmidt’s voice was so agonized Bern hardly recognized it. He sat bolt upright in bed, threw off the covers and began to grab clothes, dressing as he asked questions.

  “When did you notice he was missing, Margo?”

  “We woke to find him gone! I don’t know how, Sippe. We never heard a thing. We went to bed and everything was fine, I went to wake him for breakfast and his bed was empty.” Margo began sobbing and her husband’s voice came over the phone. His voice was more bear than human.

  “I will kill them, my Sippe. Send a hunting party. We will search.”

  “Can you find a scent, Alexander?”

  A roar sounded on the other end of the line, full of both anger and sorrow. “No,” he growled. “There is so scent, no tracks. Nothing. Like ghosts stole in the night, but I will find them. They will not get away with my son.”

  “No, they won’t, Alexander. I will pull out all stops. I will also call in the wolves, they are the best trackers around. We will find them, but please, stay there until we arrive and set up a plan. Don’t run off half-cocked.”

  “I will try, but hurry.”

  “I’m on my way.”

  Bern was already dressed, his next call was to Martin, he directed him to call out the all the guards in the clan. This would be an all-out assault, he would keep a skeleton crew in town to guard the population, but everyone else would be searching for Jacob Schmidt.

  Next he called Sebastian Von Drake. One day after their bonding and already he was calling on their bond. They hadn’t even performed the ceremony in front of Sebastian’s pack yet. What a cluster fuck.

  “Bastian, HUNTS hit last night. We have a missing cub.” No time for greetings or small talk, Bern just laid it on the table.

  If Sebastian was less than alert before the call you would never know it, he answered straight in operational mode. “I’m on my way. I’ll bring my three best trackers. How many other men do you need? Do you want the whole pack? All my guards?”

  Bastian felt his heart swell, with that many shifters searching they would have to be able to track the cub.

  “If you could bring all the guards I would appreciate it. We should be able to cover every possible escape route between your men and mine.”

  “I’ll make the calls now. Where do you want to meet?”

  Bern gave him the address, and signed off, feeling slightly better, knowing he had the help of the best trackers in the area and double the man power to help in the search. He quickly dialed Jenna to let her know what was going on.

  “Hi, darling,” she answered.

  “Hi, Jenna.”

  “What’s the matter?”

  “You already know me so well. One of our cubs was kidnapped last night.”

  “Oh my God! No! Who was it? Is it one of my students?”

  “I don’t know. It’s Jacob Schmidt.”

  “Oh, I know him. He’s in First grade. He’s adorable. Poor little boy, he must be scared to death! His poor parents! Is there anything I can do?”

  “No, little one, just keep yourself safe. Make sure you stay with Hans. Sebastian and his guards are on their way and his group and ours will be out searching as soon as we get organized.”

  “I can’t have my phone on in class, but text me and let me know what’s going on. I’ll check my phone whenever I can. Please be careful.”

  “I will, little one. You be careful too.”

  “I promise. I love you.”

  “I love you too. I have to go.”

  Bern pulled into Margo and Alexander Schmidt’s driveway. Alexander paced the front porch. Bern jumped from his SUV and ran toward Alex, he hugged the other man. The bear needed the support of his alpha and physical contact gave him necessary strength.

  Vehicle after vehicle pulled into the driveway after Bern’s arrival. The clan was assembling, it was a search party, a hunting party. Jacob Schmidt would be found.

  Chapter Thirteen

  The Schmidt’s kitchen became a command post, the kitchen table was covered with maps. Communication devices were handed out to everyone in the search party, specially made to be used in both human and shifted forms, the two way radio bracelets were self-adjusting, regulating to the size of the arm of the wearer.

  Bern divided the city and outlying areas into quadrants, two man teams would search each section. Reporting in every twenty minutes, time was of the essence. Every minute was a step farther Jacob got from home, and lessened the chance of him being found.

  Sebastian arrived just as Bern was sending out the first of the search groups. His expression was grave and he spoke through their mind link.

  Is it the same as with our cubs? No scent? No tracks?

  Bern nodded.

  My best trackers are here, but…you know they searched for our own cubs and found nothing. We will do our best, but be prepared for the worst.

  Bern met his gaze. I will not accept that. We will find Jacob. I have faith.

  I had faith too. Bastian responded.

  Bern looked down at the floor for a moment, then squared his shoulders and looked back up at Sebastian. “Welcome, my friend,” he said aloud. “Bring your trackers and come this way.” He led them to Jacob’s bedroom.

  The three wolves stripp
ed and shifted, scented the air, and then began a methodical search of the room. From corner to corner each wolf searched, scenting every object in the room, toys, bedding, and furniture.

  Finally, they shifted back, standing naked, unconcerned for their state of undress, they turned to Sebastian. As one they shook their heads, and the lead wolf stated. “I’m sorry, Alpha. There is nothing here, but the scent of bears. Nothing at the window or door to the room. Nothing in the room.” The wolf and his brethren looked down at the floor, embarrassed and disheartened to have disappointed their Alpha.

  Sebastian laid a hand on the wolf’s shoulder. “It is not your fault, Johnathon. You cannot find what is not there. Go outside search the perimeter. Do not despair. We will find Jacob, and hopefully our cubs too.”

  Sebastian stroked a hand through the wolf’s hair and he calmed from the soothing gesture, nodded and shifted back to wolf form, the other two following suit. The three wolves padded from the room and headed toward the front of the house.

  “How are they managing to leave no scent,” Bern raged.

  “I can only think that their scientists have somehow come up with a way to mask their scent, my friend. I do not know,” Sebastian replied.

  “Let’s head to the campsite, maybe your trackers can pick up their scent from there,” Bern said.

  “Good idea. Let’s go.”

  Sebastian grabbed the clothes his trackers had discarded and the two men gathered communication devices and headed out the front door.

  As expected, they found the campsite abandoned. The only indication anyone had ever been there was the burned out remnants of the campfire. However, the scents of the HUNTS crew were strong.

  They were able to easily discern the distinct identities of the five men. They would be able to identify them if they could find them. If. That was the problem. Finding them. Tracks from three vehicles left the campgrounds and they were able to follow them to the place where they had parked in the woods to kidnap Jacob, but from there it was a bust.

  It looked as though each vehicle had taken off in a different direction. They were intentionally confusing the trail. The men had taken to main roads, paved roads, and there was no way to follow a trail on paved roads. No scent to follow in a vehicle, and they didn’t even know which vehicle held the child. Which direction to follow. Oh, God, where did they go from here?