by J. H. Croix
At Hayden’s arched brow, Jake and Dane quickly summarized the events in Catamount and Shana and Phoebe’s unexpected journey. When Dane mentioned the shifters Shana and Phoebe had seen yesterday, Hayden swore. “The last thing they need to be doing is heading out in the foothills around here. I don’t know about your numbers back East, but easily half the mountain lions you might encounter out here are shifters. The area they found happens to be the camp of one of the local guys who’s been smuggling.”
Anger tightened its coil inside Jake. He couldn’t think about Phoebe without being afraid of what could have happened. Right now, he just wanted to march her to the airport and get her back to Catamount. Reason reminded him that Chloe hadn’t been safe in Catamount, so he couldn’t assume Phoebe would be safe there either. All he knew was he couldn’t bear to think of her at risk.
***
Phoebe took a sip of coffee and glanced around the diner where she and Shana had come for a late breakfast. She’d woken in the early hours of the morning with Jake spooned behind her. The gray light of dawn filtered through the curtains. The feel of his heartbeat against her back had sent desire curling through her veins. A sharp knock at their door had interrupted the moment. Jake had dropped a soft kiss on the back of her neck before rolling out of bed. He’d called to Dane that they’d be out shortly and proceeded to drive her wild inside of five minutes.
He departed after she was all but limp, leaning against the shower wall, shudders reverberating through her. The recollection made her flush. She shook her head, forcing her mind back to the moment.
“So, you and Jake?” Shana asked, a teasing glint in her eyes.
Phoebe nodded, her flush returning. “Yeah. I, uh, didn’t really expect it. But things seem to be happening. I’m not sure what it means in the long run.” She paused and considered what to say. Shana was her closest friend, yet Phoebe had held the secret of her feelings for Jake close because she’d never thought it would amount to anything. She took a breath to get to the other side of her nerves. “Honestly, if I let myself think about it much, I go a little crazy.” She stopped there, not ready to say aloud what her heart knew. Things had already progressed too far, too fast with Jake. They’d blown past the point where they could ever return to being just friends. She didn’t know how her heart would survive if it didn’t work out. Her initial fears about losing their friendship seemed quaint and simple now. Now, she feared her heart would be shattered.
Shana looked at her for a long moment, her blue-gray eyes soft and warm. “He loves you, you know.”
Shana’s words slammed into her center, sending butterflies up in a swirl inside. “You think so?”
Shana nodded slowly. “I’ve always thought he loved you for years, just like I thought you loved him. I didn’t say anything about it because he was stuck on not dating any woman who wasn’t a shifter, and I figured you didn’t want to rock the boat. I always meant to eventually give him a good shake, but he seems to have finally come to his senses on his own.”
“Was it that obvious?” Hope beat like a drum in her heart. To hear Shana say she thought Jake always loved her was a thread she grabbed and held onto, hoping it would lead her to what her heart so desperately wanted to believe.
“If you mean how you felt about him, it wasn’t too obvious. I had a hunch because I know you so well. To anyone else, it probably wasn’t so obvious. As for Jake, Dane thought it was obvious and he knows Jake better than anyone.”
Phoebe added a dash of cream to her coffee, watching the swirl as she stirred it in. “I’m trying not to worry, but it’s hard. I love him. I managed to keep it together all this time. If this blows up, I’m not so sure I can handle it.” Her breath caught, her throat was tight. She met Shana’s gaze. “On the one hand, this is what I wanted for so long, I almost can’t believe it. On the other, I’m in too deep already. If this doesn’t work out, I’ll lose everything I had with him because I can’t go back to being his friend.”
Shana tilted her head and sighed. “How about you focus on what’s happening instead of what’s not happening?”
Phoebe twirled an errant curl around her finger and echoed Shana’s sigh. “I’ll try.”
Shana reached over and squeezed her hand. “With everything I’ve had to come to terms with lately, I’ve become a big fan of focusing on the moment. I could spend all day obsessing over memories, wondering how I could have missed what Callen was doing, but it doesn’t change a damn thing.” A tear tipped over Shana’s lashes, and she swiftly wiped it away.
“Shana, I’m so sorry. I wish…”
Shana shook her head. “I know you want to fix it, to make it all better. You’ve been the best friend ever through all of this just by being there. I’m hanging in there. I know I shouldn’t have pressured you to come with me out here, but I’m damn glad you did.”
Phoebe’s eyes filled with tears, so sad for what Shana was going through and wishing she could find a way to ease her grief. Their waitress arrived at that moment, hesitating when she caught their expressions. She started to back away when Shana shook her head. “Oh, don’t you worry. Food will help,” she said with a wry grin.
After their waitress served them and refilled their coffee, Shana met Phoebe’s eyes, lifting her coffee mug up in a toast. “To friends and second chances.”
Phoebe clinked her mug against Shana’s and dug into her pancakes. As their conversation moved onto lighter matters, Jake and Dane arrived with an unfamiliar man in tow. In short order, they were seated at the booth and had ordered breakfast. Hayden introduced himself. Conversation stayed superficial though Jake and Dane had both assured them that Hayden was on the safe side. As they ate, Jake’s leg pressed against hers in the crowded booth. It didn’t matter that only hours earlier she’d been tangled up with him, she wanted him with every breath and every beat of her heart.
Chapter 11
Phoebe walked alongside Shana in downtown Bozeman. Jake and Dane had headed back to another meeting with Hayden to review data Jake had compiled. Phoebe and Shana headed downtown for the superficial purpose of shopping, while also following up on some tips Hayden offered about a few areas shifters frequented. Dane and Jake had grudgingly agreed after Hayden assured them that he considered the area safe due to its density. Downtown Bozeman included a historical district filled with art galleries, shopping and restaurants. After Jake and Dane had shared that Hayden estimated half of the mountain lion population out here were shifters, Phoebe found herself constantly assessing everyone they encountered. Though Catamount was heavily populated with shifters, their existence back East was much more prescribed. Mountain lions had healthy populations throughout much of the West. It was strange to consider shifters had such a presence here. Within the context of recent events, this worried Phoebe. She didn’t know whom she could trust beyond her small circle of friends.
Shana hooked her hand in Phoebe’s elbow and tugged her into another art gallery. “We have to bring something home for Roxanne and Lily.”
Roxanne was a good friend of both of theirs, along with Lily who was Jake’s younger sister. Phoebe glanced around the gallery, which was filled with a mix of pottery, jewelry, metal sculptures and watercolors. Shana gestured to where she was headed while Phoebe moved to look through the pottery selection. The gallery was busy with a low hum of conversation and soft music in the background. She found a pair of mugs she thought Roxanne would like when she thought she heard someone say her name. When she looked around, she couldn’t find anyone looking in her direction. She headed toward where she’d last seen Shana, but couldn’t find her. Unease snaked up her spine. She spent the next few minutes circling the gallery. Shana was nowhere to be found. She finally asked a salesperson if they’d seen Shana, providing a brief description of her.
The woman gave her an odd look and slowly nodded. “Yeah, there was a woman here who looked like that. She left with a man. I thought they were together. He had her by the arm. Is everything oka
y?” she asked, her eyes widening.
Fear bolted through Phoebe, knotting in her belly. “Are you sure she left?”
“I’m only sure a woman who looked like the one you described left. If that’s her, yes, she left.”
“Oh my God! Did you recognize the man with her?”
The woman’s eyes were wide with fear at this point. She shook her head rapidly. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know she wasn’t with him. Let me call the police for you.” She stepped to the counter and called.
Phoebe fumbled in her purse, tapping on Shana’s number immediately. To her relief, Shana answered. “It’s me,” she whispered.
“Where are you?” Phoebe asked, stepping out of the way of some customers by the counter.
“Across the street at a little café. One of the men I saw yesterday when we were in the woods came up and asked me if we could talk. I told him I’d only meet in public. Don’t freak out, I’m in plain sight. He went to order something at the counter. I was just about to call you.”
Phoebe’s heart didn’t slow, but she was able to catch her breath. She was furious with Shana. Every time she thought Shana’s recklessness was waning, she went and did something like this. Phoebe glanced up and gestured at the saleswoman, pointing to her phone and giving a thumbs up. “I’m coming over now. Don’t hang up. I want you on the line with me until I get there.”
She strode briskly over to the saleswoman, tilting the phone away. “I’m on the line with my friend. No need to call the police, but thank you for your help.” At the woman’s nod and smile, Phoebe turned and raced outside, asking Shana every few seconds if she was still there. When she saw the small café across the street, she jogged over and walked inside.
Shana sat at a small table by herself. She waved once she saw Phoebe. The line went dead in Phoebe’s ear when Shana tucked her phone in her pocket. Phoebe slipped into the chair beside Shana.
“Where’s the guy you followed over here?” Phoebe asked immediately.
Shana shrugged. “After he asked if I wanted to talk, all he said was we should be careful. He left after he got a coffee. I was about to call you when you called me. I figured you’d be about to freak out. Aside from the fact that he pissed me off when he grabbed my arm, I figured I’d be safe because we were in the middle of so many people.”
Phoebe forced herself to breathe slowly. “Did you forget Chloe was kidnapped in in the middle of downtown Catamount?”
Shana didn’t flinch though Phoebe knew her tone was sharp. “No. I didn’t forget. It might have been the middle of Catamount, but it was late afternoon when not many people were around. We were in a crowd over there. I get that you’re pissed, but I figured I might as well see what he had to say. Not much though.”
Phoebe took another breath, her pulse finally slowing down. The fear that had knotted in her belly loosened. She held her words back. Part of her wanted to lecture Shana, but she wasn’t Shana’s best friend for nothing. She knew Shana well enough to know a lecture would only result in Shana completely ignoring her. At the moment, Shana was safe and that was all that mattered.
“Did he happen to mention his name?”
Shana shook her head. “It’s weird. I kinda think he wanted to make sure we were okay. Or if he meant to say something else, he changed his mind.” She paused and glanced around. “Do you want to get something to eat while we’re here?”
Phoebe took another breath. Her initial thought was to say no, but she was starving. “Why not? I’m calling Jake though.”
Shana nodded quickly. “I’m not being stupid. I already texted Dane. He wants us to meet them back at the hotel.”
***
A mountain lion raced into the foothills behind Hayden’s office. Jake paused as they walked across the parking lot. His lion rippled under the surface of his skin. He turned to Dane who walked beside him. “See that?”
Dane nodded tightly. “I’d like to follow, but I’m thinking we need to touch base with Hayden.”
Jake resumed walking, striding quickly to the building. Hayden called out for them to come in as soon as they stepped inside.
Jake didn’t bother with the preliminaries. “Was that a shifter behind the building?”
Hayden glanced up from his computer. “What?” he asked sharply.
“We just saw a mountain lion behind the building run into the woods,” Dane replied.
Hayden stood and walked to the window that faced the woods behind his office. “Those tracks there?” He pointed to fresh tracks leading into the woods. The mountain lion was well out of sight.
“That’s right where it went. What are the chances that was a wild cat and not a shifter?” Jake asked.
Hayden shook his head and turned back to them. “Not good. Though there’s a healthy population of wild mountain lions out here, they stay away from town. I can never say for sure unless I see them myself, but lions you see near populated areas are most likely shifters. I can recognize most of the locals because I’m one of them.” He strode to the coffee maker in the corner. “Coffee?”
Hayden quickly poured three cups when Jake and Dane nodded in unison and then gestured for them to sit at the table. Jake had to fight the urge to bolt and shift. The lion in him wanted to follow the mountain lion he’d just witnessed. He had to keep a tight rein on the impulse. He was getting damn tired of worrying about who was who and what was what. After Shana’s brief encounter yesterday where she was warned that they should be careful, the only reason he hadn’t forced Phoebe onto a plane was she’d flat out refused. They’d already filled Hayden in on that, along with Shana’s description of the man who’d warned her. Hayden’s guess was he was one of the locals connected with the shifters who smuggled, but from what Hayden knew, he’d yet to get involved himself.
As they settled in to review what Hayden had gathered in the years he’d been investigating, the door to Hayden’s office flew open. Hayden appeared to recognize the man, standing abruptly. The man shifted and leapt toward Hayden. In a flash, Jake shifted along with Dane and Hayden. With a snarl, the unfamiliar shifter swiped at Hayden. In the blur that followed, Jake toppled Hayden’s table over, leaping across it to land on the back of the unfamiliar shifter, knocking him to the ground. They cornered him before he slipped underneath Dane and crashed through the window, glass shattering in his wake. In rapid succession, they followed him through the window, racing into the woods behind the office.
Jake had been keeping such a tight, controlled leash on his lion side that the exhilaration of letting loose barreled through him. He raced ahead of Dane and Hayden, primal anger pounding as he chased after the shifter. They threaded through trees as they galloped deeper into the woods, making their way into the foothills. Hayden pulled alongside and thrust his head to one side. When Jake ignored him and kept following the other lion, Hayden growled and bumped his shoulder against Jake. Reluctantly, Jake slowed and eyed Hayden. In lion form, Hayden was roughly equal to him and Dane in size though his build was heavier. When Hayden met his eyes, he tossed his head to the side again and began to move in that direction, pulling them off the trail of the other lion.
Jake looked forward through the trees, the other lion still in clear sight. He gathered his haunches and leapt away from Hayden again, only to have Dane race past him and stop abruptly in front of him, roaring at him. Snow kicked up in a swirl around them. Hayden circled back, pausing beside Dane. Both stared at Jake. Fury pulsed through Jake’s veins, but he forced himself to think. Hayden clearly had a reason for nudging them in another direction. Much as Jake wanted to race after the other lion, he didn’t know these woods and knew the other lion might be leading them into a trap. With a soft snarl, he pawed at the ground, but held still. Hayden swished his tail as he turned in front and began to trot slowly away. Dane waited until Jake began to follow Hayden.
The terrain became steeper and rockier. Not much later, they crested a small rise. Hayden came to a stop. A small valley lay in view f
rom their vantage point. A cluster of homes was on the opposite side of the valley. Humans milled about in an open area, along with a few mountain lions. From their viewpoint, they could shield themselves behind some boulders. Once they were shielded, Hayden shifted back into human form. Jake and Dane followed. Though it was freezing and they were bare, their clothes discarded on the floor of Hayden’s office, the cold didn’t touch them. Shifting created so much heat that it would be a good while before they felt the cold.
Hayden met Jake’s eyes. “I didn’t want you ending up there,” he said, gesturing toward the valley. “I don’t doubt the two of can hold your own in a fight, but it’s a good bet everyone you see there is a shifter. The shifter who showed up in my office is Paul Malone’s brother, Neal Malone. Like I said, Paul’s your guy from the hospital. He’s in deep with the smuggling crew, along with his brother. There’s no sense in us taking a fight to them on their territory. Callen’s death has shaken things up. I think they’re worried about exposure and want to limit their losses. We need to target who we can away from the crowd. I haven’t seen Paul since he took off a few weeks ago. Aside from when Shana saw him the other day when she and Phoebe were out scouting, he’s been laying low. I’d like to knock him out of circulation and see what we can get out of him. For now, let’s get the hell out of here. As soon as I saw where Neal was taking us, I figured he was hoping to trap us there.”
Jake had to fight to keep himself from taking off again. He glanced at Dane and saw frustration mirrored in his eyes. He looked back to Hayden. “Any ideas where we can find Paul?”
“I have some ideas. Let’s get going and we’ll head back out another time.”
Hayden didn’t wait for their reply and shifted again. Jake and Dane followed and retraced their path, this time at a slower pace.
