Bear Mountain Baby: Shifter Romance (Bear Mountain Shifters)

by Sky Winters

  “Seriously, sis- get up to your room,” said Giovanni, his voice taking on the tone that signaled he was done talking.

  Mona knew that there’d be no point in protesting. She started off towards the stairwell, feeling the eyes of the male drug buyers on her, their gazes lingering on her body. Mona hated the feeling of these low-life men looking at her like this, and though she hated the idea of being stuck up her room for the night, she now preferred it to being around the types of people that Giovanni dealt with.

  She ran up the stairs, arriving at the second of the three floors of the home. But as she prepared to finish the trip up to her room, she was struck by the sight of a pair of silhouettes standing on the balcony. Nothing but their outlines were visible, aside from the pair of orange embers of their cigarettes as they took slow drags.

  Mona stepped towards the balcony, curious as to who was out there. She knew hey must’ve been guests of the party, but they were choosing to be apart from it, smoking on the balcony in peace rather than partaking in the debauchery that was on the verge of breaking out.

  She walked slowly, her steps quiet and careful, as though the pair were two wild animals that she didn’t want to scare off. But as she drew close enough to see details of the pair, the doors to the balcony flew open, the cool, evening air rushing into the apartment.

  Mona saw instantly that the pair on the balcony weren’t like the others downstairs. They were Senegalese Tiger shifters- a man and a woman. The two were tall, with dark, ebony skin and white eyes with chocolate circles in the middle that gazed upon Mona with expressions of knowing amusement, the din of the street below swirling around them. Both were dressed in tight-fitting, stylish clothing of mute colors and vaguely African inspiration, and both were strikingly beautiful.

  “There’s the little girl we’ve been hearing so very much about,” said the man, flashing two rows of pearl-white teeth as he spoke.

  “It appears so,” said the woman, looking Mona up and down. “But isn’t it always the case that when you hear so much about someone before meeting them they always end up being shorter in person?”

  The man chuckled while swirling a glass of red wine.

  “Yes, that is true. Especially when they end up being this small.”

  “Who the hell are you two?” asked Mona, frustrated with being spoken about in such a way, right to her face.

  “We are guests of your brother, of course,” said the man, as though the statement were so obvious that he found it strange the question even needed to be asked.

  “Then what are you doing up here?” asked Mona. “Why aren’t you both downstairs with the rest of the…guests?”

  “I am thinking that ‘guests’ wasn’t the word that she wanted to say, my brother,” said the woman to the man, a smile creeping across her full, dark lips.

  “I am thinking the same thing,” said the man. “But what bad guests we’re being, separate from the party and not even introducing ourselves to the sister of our gracious host.”

  “Sana,” said the woman, touching the bare upper portion of her chest with the fingertips of her right hand.

  “And I am Awa,” said the man, raising his glass of wine before bringing it to his lips.

  “How do you know me?” asked Mona. “Have we met before?”

  “We have not, little one,” said Awa. “But we have heard much about you.”

  “How? From Giovanni?” Mona asked, feeling ill at ease.

  The two shared a knowing look.

  “Yes, from your brother,” said Sana.

  “We do not wish to be rude, little Mona,” said Awa. “But we are in the middle of a private conversation.”

  “Yes,” said Sana. “An important one.”

  “Hey, I live here,” said Mona, indignation to her voice. “You can’t ju-“

  “But it was a pleasure meeting you,” said Awa, interrupting.

  “And we are certain that we will be seeing more of you in the future,” said Sana.

  Mona said nothing, simply backing away from the strange pair and shutting the door behind her. She walked the rest of the distance up to the third floor, the entirety of which was more-or-less her room. The events of the evening swirling in her mind, Mona collapsed on her bed and fell into a dreamless sleep.

  CHAPTER 7

  “Mona! Where the hell are you?” yelled Giovanni from beyond the door.

  Mona’s eyes shot open and she jumped out of bed, knowing even through the sleep that hung heavy on her that she shouldn’t keep Giovanni waiting. She threw on a pair of jeans and a tight-fitting t-shirt, stepped into a pair of sneakers, and dashed down towards Giovanni’s master bedroom on the second floor.

  Mona had slept well into the afternoon, only leaving her bed when she awoke to get something to eat. The living room was a mess, as expected, and she was grateful to have so much space in the house so she could at least have some respite from the constant, loud partying Giovanni always seemed to be bringing into their home.

  Once down on the second floor, Mona saw that the door to Giovanni’s bedroom was wide open. He was sitting on the edge of his massive bed with his head in his hands, the sheets a mess around him, beer bottles and drug paraphernalia on the floor, the two girls from the night before on the bed, their limbs sticking out in random angles from underneath the covers.

  “There you are, goddamnit,” he said, his voice tired and worn. “How long were you gonna make me yell?”

  “You know, you could just come up and knock on my door like a normal person,” Mona said, frustration in her voice.

  “Mo, don’t even think about starting my day with attitude,” he said.

  “Well, what do you want?”

  “I got another get-together happening tonight. High-ups, important people this time.”

  Mona’s stomach sank and the idea of having to suffer through another one of Giovanni’s drug-deals.

  “I want you to get the downstairs spic-and-fuckin’-span for tonight.”

  She wanted to protest, but knew it wouldn’t do her any good.

  “Fine,” she said, stomping off downstairs into the living room.

  The beer bottles and cans were one thing, but as she looked over the evidence of the drugs sales that and the attendant samplings that took place last night, a feeling that was a combination of fear and anger began to swell in her. Giovanni was getting deeper and deeper into the drug world by the day, and Mona feared it would open up and swallow the both of them into it.

  Ever since her people, the Italian Wolves, arrived in the city in the latter part of the 19th century, they strove to maintain a strong tradition of hard, honest work. Like the other European immigrants who came to the city during this time, they were outsiders in a home so unlike the one where they had grown up. But unlike the other Italians that arrived in the new world, her ancestors had another aspect to their nature that made isolated them from the rest of their new home: they were shifters.

  They kept to themselves, for fear of their powers being known. But despite this burden, they worked feverishly, so that they could amass a fortune large enough for their descendants to have wealth substantial enough to not only live well, but to stay competitive with the Ukrainian bears and the Senegalese tigers that also called the city home. They knew that if they fell behind and became less powerful, they would be overwhelmed by the other shifters in the city.

  So they worked, becoming extremely wealthy in the process- wealthy enough for the pack to stay strong and rich, and wealthy enough that they could bring new shifters into the fold, if they so choose.

  But this all changed when Mona and Giovanni’s parents were killed by Ukrainians decades ago. Giovanni, revenge and rage in his heart, quickly took over the pack when he came of age, using the power of the blood of the Alphas who were in his line to seize control. And when he was firmly placed in charge he made two oaths, the first that he would one day destroy the Ukrainians, and the second that he would make the pack more rich and powerful, by any mea
ns necessary.

  To this end, he used the money passed down from generation to generation to purchase product and connections, embroiling the pack in the New York drug trade. He peddled heroin and coke to whoever wanted it, selling more and more by year. And over the course of the last few years, he had become one of the most powerful drug kingpins in the city.

  This power, however, came at the cost of the strength of the pack. The rest of the wolves were fiercely opposed to involving the pack in the drug trade, preferring the honest work of their ancestors. They, like Mona, knew it was only a matter of time before either the law or one of the other drug families in the city came down on them, and when that day arrived the pack would be torn apart. But Giovanni was the alpha, and due to his standing, the pack was obliged to do whatever he commanded. Unless the wolves wanted to overthrow him- a power shift that could be deadly with the possible war with the Ukrainians on the horizon- they were stuck with his orders.

  Mona knew that she was safe for now, but knew it was only a matter of time before everything came crashing down.

  She cleaned the living room as best she could, knowing that it would be a wreck again before the night was out. And by the time she finished, it was well into the evening, the lights of the street beyond the massive windows of the living room flooding the otherwise dim room.

  With the downstairs clean, she had no reason to be out of her room; Mona knew that she would incur Giovanni’s wrath if she was out here against his wishes. Taking a beer from the fridge, she went back up to her room to spend the rest of the Saturday evening ahead alone.

  Cracking the beer and taking a sip as she collapsed onto her bed, the events of the evening prior flooded her mind as she looked out of the bedroom window onto the evening cityscape. She thought of Boris, how he looked on stage, his guitar slung down to his knees, his handsome face tightened into an expression of passion as he sang his lyrics. She’d had her eye on him for months and last night she finally had her chance. But Giovanni and his protective, controlling nature once again interfered with any chance of her being able to live anything resembling a normal.

  She was beginning to resent Giovanni, wanting nothing more than to tell him that he couldn’t control her forever, that his reckless rule of their pack would be the death of all of them. But she knew that she couldn’t tell Giovanni these things- even though she was his sister, confronting the Alpha in such a way was tantamount to rebellion. He would be obliged to put her down to protect his status.

  Mona felt trapped. Sure, she had an amazing place to live and didn’t have to worry about money, but she wondered what was the point of any of that if she couldn’t live how she wanted? And her shifting was beginning to happen more and more frequently; she still didn’t know how to control it.

  Taking another sip of her beer, Mona reached for her laptop, preparing to spend another dull evening inside, followed by a day of more cleaning.

  But before she could open her computer, a rapping sounded at her window. She gasped, seeing that there was someone standing on her fire escape. She clamored out of bed and drew close, her heart racing as she tried to imagine who could be standing there.

  Then, to her surprise, she saw that it was Boris. She gasped, her beer falling to the floor with a thud.

  CHAPTER 8

  Mona looked around in her room, as though she were expecting Giovanni to be standing behind her, aware of what was happening. She drew closer to the window, now near enough to be able to see Boris in clear detail. He was wearing another button-up shirt, like last night, though this one was a deep, dark red. It fit his muscular torso snugly, hinting at what lay beneath. His hair was slicked backwards, looking dark and wet. His gorgeous face was fixed in an expression that was sensual and playful, as though attempting to entice her to break the rules simply with a glance. When Mona drew close enough, Boris flicked his eyebrows and nodded towards the hatch to the window.

  Her eyes fixed on his, Mona opened the window.

  “Good evening,” he said, his voice calm and low, as though what he was doing was as not something that was putting his life at risk.

  “What are you doing here?” Mona hissed, her eyes wide as she threw one last glance back towards to the door to make sure it was shut.

  “I’m here to see you, of course.”

  “Do you have any idea what you’re doing right now?

  “I know exactly what I’m doing,” he said.

  Mona huffed and crossed her arms under her breasts.

  “Yeah? And what’s that?”

  “I’m here to ask if you’d like to join me for the evening.”

  “Are you insane?”

  “Maybe a little. Come, step outside with me.”

  Mona knew she shouldn’t even be talking to Boris, let alone leaving the apartment with him. Her rational mind knew that she should shut the window, draw the blinds, and pretend that she never saw Boris. But instead, she complied, stepping out of the window and onto the fire escape, the sounds of the traffic below rushing up to greet her. A soft, warm wind was blowing. As she brought her other foot over the window, Boris held Mona steady by her upper arms, that same rush of passion coursing through her blood as his skin touched hers.

  “Do you have any idea who my brother is?” she asked

  “Of course I do. And I know that he keeps you here in a gilded cage.”

  Mona said nothing. She felt silly for asking him if he knew how Giovanni was- every shifter did. And every shifter also knew how dangerous he was.

  “So what, you think you’re just going to show up and I’ll come with you, no questions asked?”

  “I think the time for ‘no questions asked’ has already passed.”

  “Cute. But I got in some serious shit last night for talking with you. If Giovanni sees me with you again...”

  “If he finds out, which he won’t, then I’ll be the one who pays the price. He talks a big talk, but he’d never do anything worse to his little sister than ground you like a tyrannical father.”

  Mona said nothing as she continued to glower at Boris, her blue eyes narrowed, her thin arms crossed again.

  “Besides, you know that once his little parties downstairs get going, he’ll be distracted for the night.”

  She knew that he was right about this. But still, she couldn’t help but wonder how Boris knew so many details about her and Giovanni’s relationship. It’s almost as if he’d done his homework.

  “Come on, there are more fun things we can be doing than standing on a fire escape,” he said, extending his hand.

  Mona’s worried expression turned to a sly, conspiratorial one. She took his hand, and with the gracefulness that shifters were capable of, they bounded down the fire escape and onto the city streets below. Once on the sidewalk, they stood still for a moment, the throngs of pedestrians moved around them like river water around a pair of stones, the last vestiges of the setting sun filling the air with a gentle mauve that drifted into a pitch black above.

  “I feel like I just broke out of jail,” said Mona, catching her breath.

  “That’s not an entirely inaccurate description,” said Boris.

  Mona took a moment to let her surroundings sink in, to let the fact that she was now breaking the rules in about as severe a manner as possible settle in her mind.

  “Well then,” she said, finally breaking the silence. “Where to?”

  “I think a little trip out of the city is in order,” said Boris, turning away from Mona and walking.

  “Wait, what?” she asked, surprised. It was one thing to slip out of her apartment for a quick bite, but leaving the city seemed just too dangerous.

  “Don’t worry,” said Boris over his shoulder. “I’ll have you back before bedtime.”

  Mona stepped more quickly to keep up with Boris’s long strides. They proceeded down the length of the street. After a time, Boris stopped.

  “What’s up?” asked Mona, wondering why they had stopped.

  Boris pointed with his
thumb to a motorcycle next to them, an impressive, bulky bike of chrome and dark green.

  “Here’s our ride,” he said.

  Mona looked over the bike with impressed eyes as Boris hopped on. She stood still for a moment, unsure of what to do, before Boris patted the seat behind him, a smirk on his face as he looked back at her.

  She climbed on, wrapped her arm around his firm, hard body, and with a series of powerful, loud revs from the bike, they took off, peeling down the narrow streets of Nolita, the evening air whipping Mona’s hair. They drove through Lower Manhattan, the high rises of the area towering above them, their glittering lights a contrast to the inky sky above. After a time, they reached the Holland Tunnel and drove down into its depths, the orange tracking lights that lined the side of the curved walls a straight blur as they made their way through.

  After a time, they exited the tunnel on the Jersey side. Mona held Boris tight, feeling safe as she gripped his body while he weaved the bike through traffic. Once they left the traffic of the city, Boris picked up speed, the engine of the bike emitting a fierce growl. They continued on, driving away from the city and the faraway New York skyline vanished behind the horizon.

  She wanted to ask where they were going, where he was taking her. And she still felt slight slivers of fear as she thought about what might happen if Giovanni found out that she was gone. But these worries ebbed and faded as they drove, the buildings around them growing less and less dense.

  But just Mona began to really wonder where he was taking her, she spotted a sign on the highway that indicated the turnoff for the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge was just ahead. As they reached it, Boris pulled off.

  Any signs of civilization disappeared as they drove, with great trees topped with canopies of dark green leaves beginning to tower above them as they made their way deeper into the park. Wildlife darted along the length of the road before disappearing back into the trees. Mona couldn’t remember the last time she was so close to nature.