by Terry Spear
And then her heart nearly gave out when she and Jessup stumbled over the felled pine, falling to their knees as Hunter took another bite at Yoloff's face. Yoloff suddenly went for Hunter's leg. They were both too close to the cliff edge! She wanted to warn Hunter away from the drop-off, drag him from the danger herself. But everything happened so fast she couldn't react quickly enough to do anything.
Yoloff bit into Hunter's leg, and Hunter snapped at Yoloff's neck. But Yoloff's back paws lost purchase on the crumbling soil. He slipped off the edge, pulling Hunter with him.
"Hunter!" Tessa screamed and ran for him, but Jessup grabbed her arm and yanked her back. She kicked and thrashed back and forth, trying to break free, to save Hunter.
"Butch will be pleased," Jessup darkly said, and jerked her toward the edge of the cliff.
Only when she saw the direction he was going did she go willingly to see Hunter, to ensure he was all right. She prayed he was.
Down below, both Hunter's and Yoloff's wolf forms lay still as death. Yoloff's brother was gone. Her heart splintering, she stifled a sob.
"Come on. Time to clean up the last of the loose ends. You'll tell us where the gold is hidden on your property, and we'll let the others go."
With tears streaking down her face, she didn't believe it for a minute, although it wouldn't have made any difference because she didn't have a clue if there was any gold anyway. All that mattered was whether Hunter had made it or not.
Jessup tugged her in the direction of Bethany's house, but she fought him every step of the way, wanting to climb down the cliff to Hunter. He had to have survived the fall like before. He had to have. And she had to go to him.
But Jessup tightened his grip on her, cutting the circulation off in her wrist, her hand numbing. He hurried her faster to the house, forcing her to run to keep up. What about Hunter's pack? Where were they when they needed them most?
Jessup shoved the front door open and yanked her into the house. "She's yours, Butch. Just like you wanted."
"The others?" Butch asked, offering Jessup a beer.
Jessup forced Tessa onto the couch next to Meara and Cara, their hands and mouths bound, their eyes wild. Ashton and Rourke were bound, but unconscious on the floor. Meara looked at Tessa, trying to read her expression, but Tessa sobbed, attempting to appear so inconsolable that she was useless, and so that they wouldn't tie her up also, while she looked for another weapon. Not that her tears and upset weren't genuine, but she tried to keep a clear head until they were able to destroy the men before they harmed anyone else. And then she had to go to Hunter.
She spied a poker next to the cold fireplace as Redmond took a seat at the dining table. If she could just slip over to it.
"Hunter took care of Yoloff's brother first. Although he worked on Yoloff in the beginning. His tactics threw all of us. Especially, when Hunter forced Andreas off the cliff." Jessup took a swig of beer.
But then Tessa worried that if she got the poker, Jessup still had the rifle and three men against one woman wouldn't do. If she could free Meara, she could shapeshift, whereas no one else could. Tessa had to chance it. She moved closer to Meara and began working on her bindings.
"But Yoloff's gone also?" Butch asked.
"Yeah, Hunter got him, too, only he had the last laugh. He pulled Hunter off the cliff and both hit the rocks below."
"You're sure Hunter was dead? He survived before," Butch warned.
"Yeah, he was dead. Last time, he hit the water and managed to swim to Tessa's beach. Not this time."
Her heart in her throat, Tessa felt the ties loosen on Meara's wrists. Meara quickly yanked them free, then tugged her clothes off. Tessa dove for the fireplace poker and Meara shapeshifted.
As a wolf, Meara targeted Jessup, the leader, and Tessa went for the rifle, poker in hand.
But no sooner had Meara's teeth clamped down on Jessup's arm, making him drop the can of beer, than Butch dove for the rifle.
No, no! Tessa swung the poker at Butch's head and knocked him out cold. But somehow Redmond had managed to slip by her in the shuffle and went for the rifle.
Growling furiously, Meara lunged for Jessup's throat, while he grabbed onto her muzzle to keep her from killing him. Tessa froze as Redmond grabbed the rifle and pointed it at her. He could shoot her, but she wouldn't die. Yet, Tessa couldn't let go of the fear that Meara could. Meara was their only real chance at survival, and Tessa had to protect her. She prayed her lupus garou genetics would save her and leapt forward, swinging the poker at the rifle.
Her hands and mouth still bound, Cara had managed to slip behind Redmond and gave him a shove. The bullet fired into the carpeted floor.
Before Tessa could take another swing at Redmond, a different wolf growled low. She turned and saw Hunter, his hip bleeding. Alive! Tears filled her eyes and she wanted to rush to him, to hug him, proving he was really real.
His fur smelled foul, like he'd rolled in a bed of rotting kelp. He quickly targeted Jessup, and Meara swung around to get Redmond.
But even over the growling and the sound of a porcelain lamp crashing, Tessa heard a vehicle driving up. Finally, Hunter's people had arrived.
She ran to help untie Cara, but Butch came to and grabbed Tessa's ankle.
Redmond slid down next to her, his throat ripped out. Hunter didn't hesitate to make short work of Butch. Jessup was already dead.
"Hello?" a man called out.
Hell, it was the sheriff.
Still in their wolf forms, Hunter and Meara looked in the direction of the front door, then raced out back.
Tessa continued to work on Cara's bindings.
"What the hell," the sheriff said, his gun drawn.
"A pair of wolves saved us from these men," Tessa said, her voice and hands shaking.
"Ashton?" The sheriff ran over to help his son.
"These men knocked Ashton and Rourke out. They planned to kill the whole lot of us."
The sheriff stared at Butch and Redmond. "Hell, those two were seeing Bethany."
Staring at the sheriff in disbelief, Tessa untied Rourke. All the time he'd said Michael had lied and Bethany hadn't been seeing anyone. What if one of these guys had killed her?
Ashton moaned and rubbed his head. "I thought you said no one had been seeing Bethany, that Michael had made it up. How do you know they'd been here?"
The sheriff appeared flustered.
"How?" Ashton asked his dad again, his eyes slightly glazed, his tone threatening.
"Who the hell do you think you are, questioning me?" The sheriff glanced at the men and added under his breath, "The little whore."
Ashton's face lost all its color. "You were the one who discovered her body. No one questioned you because you were the sheriff. You said she'd called you because she worried Michael might kill her he was so angry. But she didn't, did she? You used her phone to make the call. You killed her. Why?"
Tessa's skin chilled.
"Because," Hunter said, stalking in through the back door with a limp, his pants leg bloodied, blood on his sweatshirt, his face bruised, his expression deadly, "Bethany reminded him of his unfaithful wife. Isn't that right, Sheriff? Didn't want a two-timing woman to hurt your own son?"
Dying to hold Hunter tight, Tessa's eyes filled with tears of joy that Michael could be exonerated. But the menacing look Hunter gave the sheriff warned her to keep her distance.
What about Meara? Her clothes were lying on the floor next to the couch. Cara's gaze followed where Tessa looked, and Cara left Rourke, grabbed Meara's clothes, and headed outside.
"You must have staged the phone call," Hunter said.
The sheriff reached for his revolver.
His look feral, dangerously challenging, Hunter asked, "What are you going to do? Kill all of us? It's over, Sheriff. Time to be a man and face the judge and jury."
Chapter 17
SEARCHING FOR THE GOLD IN THE AREA BEYOND the house, Tessa tried to settle the way her stomach flip-flopped. Thankful
Judge Graydon had obtained Michael's release and agreed to try Sheriff Wellington for Bethany's murder, she still felt badly for Ashton, who was torn between hating his father and still loving him. But now Devlyn Greystoke was speaking privately with Hunter inside her house about Hunter making Tessa his mate without her cousin's permission, and he was pissed.
Tessa hoped to god the two could settle the matter without bloodshed, but she was annoyed they'd dismissed her like she didn't have any say in the matter.
Although, secondary to all that was the fact Hunter was still perturbed with her for biting her brother and changing him. As if she'd go through life without sharing it with her brother.
She took a deep breath of the salty air and of the sea kelp rotting on the beach she normally despised. But if it hadn't blanketed the rock where Hunter had fallen, he probably wouldn't have survived. Where Yoloff and his brother had fallen, the tide had cleaned the rocks, leaving them bare and deadly. The police had eventually found Andreas's body on a different beach, thank god.
She poked around the tree roots of a massive pine, the water and unusually high winds having washed away a ton of soil, the snow long since melted away and something had drawn her attention. Metal? Something shining in the pale light of the moon.
The gold!
Footsteps approached, crunching on the fallen leaves and she looked up to see him--Devlyn. Their mutual great-grandfather, Seth Greystoke, was known in these parts as the gray devil wolf, and Devlyn had taken after him. Right now, he looked fearsome enough to hold the title. A strap of leather tied back his coffee-colored, shoulder-length hair, his equally dark brown eyes studying her, no hint of a smile on his stern face, as rugged as Hunter's, and he had the same kind of sturdy jaw. Tall and just as broad-shouldered, his unyielding posture gave her the impression he was a commanding alpha, not one to disobey.
His eyes raked over her and his gaze focused on her hair, a hint of a smile playing on his lips. But then the scowl returned. "It appears I'm too late to take you under my wing, dear cousin." His words were tight and terse.
She stood and brushed the dirt off her hands, faced him, her chin tilted up, although to look him in the eye, she had to anyway. "I'm Hunter's mate," she declared to make it very clear she had no intention of leaving him. Not that she guessed she could, according to what Hunter had said about their kind.
"In our way, I'd be compelled to deal with Hunter, wolf to wolf, for taking you without receiving my permission when he knew damn well I'd ordered him to keep his hands off you."
The thought anyone would have ordered that of Hunter made her smile inwardly, but outwardly with Devlyn, she steeled her expression. "I'm sure Hunter took your order under consideration, but my life was in peril and you weren't here to protect me."
Devlyn bowed his head slightly. "In truth, I didn't believe either Hunter--after what Leidolf told me about him--or you, would mind me. And now Hunter tells me you've turned your brother?" He raised a brow, his look still feral. He tsked. "I don't envy the task Hunter has cut out for him. But Bella is dying to meet you when she can travel. With triplets on the way, she's confined to her greenhouse and home."
Before Tessa could respond, Devlyn stalked toward her and hugged her soundly. "You and Michael are my cousins. If you ever need me or my pack for anything, we're family and you only have to call. Come see us. You're welcome anytime."
Family. The sound was like the caress of the waves stroking the beach, comforting, encompassing. First, Hunter and his family, and now Devlyn. "We'd be happy to visit with Bella and the rest of your pack."
Even though she hadn't been sure that she could fit in with the world of werewolves and their ilk, as long as her brother was along for the ride, and Hunter was her mate, she was one happy lupus garou. She glanced at the kitchen window and saw Hunter watching her, protective as ever. She guessed he and Devlyn had made tentative amends, but she could tell Devlyn wasn't totally satisfied.
Hunter kept an eye on Devlyn through the kitchen window, not liking that he'd hugged Tessa in a warm embrace, even if they were cousins. The word "distant," came to mind. Very distant. And his own mate was a redhead... so, Hunter just didn't care for it one bit.
"Come on, Meara. Change into the wolf so I can paint you," Michael said, following her into the kitchen.
"Hunter," Meara said, waving a magazine, "Uncle Basil advertised in this and said that's where he gets most of the reservations for the cabins. There's nothing in the advertisement encouraging alpha males to come here. I mean, there's no indication that they'll find me here. Hunter, are you listening to me?"
Hunter continued to watch Devlyn as he spoke further to Tessa. He'd expected Devlyn to be madder about him taking Tessa for his mate without first getting permission. But Devlyn had revealed how he'd gone after Bella, the alpha leader's chosen mate, and for the most part, understood Hunter's feelings. Although an undercurrent of misgiving was still evident.
"Was he very mad?" Meara asked Hunter.
"Devlyn? No. Everything is as it should be." As long as Hunter had Tessa, nothing else mattered.
"Not until you find me a mate, dear brother." She shoved the magazine at his chest. "Fix the ad or else I will. And you never know what I might offer."
Michael said, "Meara, just shapeshift for a little while. Please? An hour or two? I've never seen a wolf who's as beautiful as you."
She rolled her eyes. "Michael, give it a rest. I've got better things to do than pose for a painting for several hours. Take a picture of me the next time I shapeshift and paint that."
"It's not the same."
Ashton, Rourke, and Cara entered the living room and Michael whipped around, targeting them. "Will you change into wolves so I can paint you? Just think, immortalized forever and--"
"Come on, Cara," Ashton said. "My father's home is mine now. I need to take care of some business there."
"How do you feel?" Cara asked him, her hand stroking his arm.
"Like it's all so unreal. I guess deep down I suspected Dad knew I was seeing Bethany, but I didn't realize how much he hated her."
"That day when you ran after Hunter and Rourke and left us alone--"
"I had to know if they'd discover who the murderer was. I felt terrible I left you, Tessa, and Meara to fend for yourselves, but I had to know." He glanced at Michael and raised his brows. "Bring your paints."
Michael grinned from ear to ear. "You bet." He hurried off to the office.
"Watch them, Cara," Hunter warned.
Hell, having so many new lupus garous under several different roofs... He shook his head. Yet, with Ashton's father's arrest, Ashton had finally become more of a man. The notion of being a Navy SEAL was forgotten though. Cara liked his long blond hair way too much, but he was looking into becoming a police officer. And Cara seemed to love him all the more.
Rourke joined Hunter and Meara as the others left the house. "I've got to run by the newspaper office and leave off some reports. We're taking Devlyn to the airport, right, Meara?"
Meara nodded. "He says four of his male cousins are unmated and might like to vacation here." She cast Hunter an interested look.
He grunted.
She stood straighter and folded her arms. "He said they manage his affairs when he's away. Although, Tanner, the one he mentioned most, prefers redheads."
Hunter took his eyes off Devlyn. "He's not coming here."
Meara gave him a devilish smirk. "Uncle Basil called and said he'd heard about our bad storms, but couldn't get through. He wanted to know if you took care of Tessa."
"Eliminated the threat. Right."
"Yeah. To her. He figured once the two of you met, you'd keep her safe. Not like he could."
Hunter shook his head. "Uncle Basil could have been less cryptic." He yanked open the back door and headed for Tessa and Devlyn.
Devlyn stepped back, a knowing look on his face, acknowledging the possessive alpha male who wants another to stay clear, no matter the familial connection.
&n
bsp; "I found the gold," Tessa said, her face beaming, her green eyes sparkling like crystal gems. "But the greatest treasure of all is finding family and becoming your mate." She reached to take Hunter into her arms, but he moved to do so first.
And with one fell swoop, he lifted her in his arms and headed back to the house. "Meara says your flight leaves soon," Hunter said over his shoulder to a bemused Devlyn. "Better not miss it. And by the way, if your cousins are alphas, they're welcome to stay at our resort. All except for Tanner."
A small smile brightened Devlyn's face, and he even managed a dark chuckle.
"Why not Tanner?" Tessa asked.
"He likes redheads."
Tessa said her good-byes to Devlyn, although Hunter hovered nearby, menacingly threatening. But once everyone was gone, the house was nice and quiet--time to show Tessa how important she was to Hunter.
She headed for the heater and turned it on. No response.
She rubbed her arms while Hunter flipped on a light switch. "Electricity's working." He opened the closet and checked the circuit breaker. "Circuit breaker's tripped." He flipped it back, but as soon as Tessa tried the heater again, it tripped the circuit breaker. Hunter growled. "The brothers Grimm fixed it, right? So much for their being electricians." Hunter lifted Tessa into his arms and stalked toward the bedroom.
"Shoot, Hunter, at this rate you'll never get me out of those pajamas--not until spring at least."
His chuckle was deep and dark and silkily seductive. "In your dreams, sweet Tessa. In your dreams."
The End
Acknowledgments
I want to thank my mother and son and daughter for all their help and encouragement. My mother was always first to offer help when I was stuck, except I would have to remind her that I'm writing a romance, not a werewolf horror story.
And thanks to my Rebel Romance critique partners who always help me over the rough spots--Vonda, Judy, Pam, Tammy, Randy, Carol, and Betty.
And I so appreciate Deb Werksman for being a super editor, for believing in my work, and being such a dream to work with.
