In the dark, she felt around for something she could use to cover herself up with. She found Brad's high-viz jacket, it had “Police” emblazoned on the back, it would have to do. If they inspected the truck too closely, she would be seen. A cursory glance might miss her if she kept still. Lying on her side, she tucked her feet and legs behind the seat. With her body covered by his jacket, she waited for their next move. Abbi only hoped they wouldn't see the truck shaking as her body trembled with fear. All she could do was wait. For what? Soon Wag would turn up and track her down to the truck.
There was nothing for it, she would have to bide her time and then try the ignition. Abbi put it off as long as possible. Her feet and legs slowly went to sleep, while her ears strained to catch any sounds or voices. It was all quiet. Flexing her stiff legs, she made to move, when a voice shouted.
"She's not here. But I'm sure she's been inside the house. If it didn't stink so much of bear, we might have a better chance of tracking her. Where the hell is Wag?"
"Coming, but it seems the bears have caught his scent, he's trying to lead them away. Well, lead them to an ambush down at Forks Crossing."
Two things battled for dominance in her head. The first was that, from what was said, Brad was a shifter. A bear. It all clicked into place. He was one of them.
But he had rescued her. He had come to the house she was hiding out in and taken her home. Fed her, clothed her, and, more importantly, made her feel safe. Then he had gone out, risking his life to end this. For her. Yes, she knew it was his job as sheriff, but he had said it was all off the record. Of course, so that no one asked any questions about men that changed into other ... things. No questions, no interrogations. It was all kept quiet. That was the way Bear Creek handled itself.
It didn’t stop the second half of the exchange between the men outside hitting home. Brad, and whoever was helping him, were heading for an ambush. She had to warn them.
Taking firm control of her courage, she sat up, hauled herself up into the driver’s seat, and put the key in the ignition. One way or another she had to help the bears. If that meant she had to give herself, then so be it. She wouldn’t let anyone get hurt while she hid herself away. She turned the key.
The sound was like an explosion ripping through the air. It fired into life straight away. She needn’t have questioned that it would. Brad was a sheriff; he would never chance having a vehicle that wouldn't start. He would need it to be reliable for when he had to get to an emergency fast.
Her next problem was the lights. She wouldn't get far if she couldn't see where she was going. All the trees between her and the road would be obstacles she would never avoid. She started flipping switches and got the windscreen wipers, and then the lights. Once they were on, she could see the danger she was in.
Right in front of her, running full pelt at her, was a man. Who at the same time was turning into a creature of some kind. Abbi didn't wait to watch what he became; she hit the gas and drove.
There was a bang on the passenger door. Enough to put a dent in it, she was sure. There was no way she was hanging around to find out who, or what, had done the damage. Insurance details were not about to be swapped. Instead, she drove the truck as fast as she dared, while still staying on the track leading down to the road. This was harder than she thought it would be. The darkness was complete under the trees, only the truck’s lights showing her the way. The twists and turns made it hard to anticipate the direction she should be taking.
A few near misses brought her down onto the road. She didn't stop, turning sharply onto the tarmac, only to narrowly miss a motorcycle. Swerving, she couldn’t hold the road and ended up in the bushes. Jolting forward, her head narrowly escaped hitting the steering wheel. Instead, her hands gripped it until the whites of her knuckles showed. They shone in the light from the motorbike now lying on the road.
Feeling the shock taking hold of her, she tried to think of what to do. This must be the others, coming to join in the hunt for her. It was no good, they had won. Maybe she should simply go quietly, spare the bears from having to fight for her. But that was the old Abbi.
Opening the door, she slid out, her knees only just supporting her. More headlights came towards her, single lights. Motorcycle lights. There were at least five of them, maybe more, but they dazzled her and she shielded her eyes.
"What the hell are you doing?" A man dragged himself up off the road, his eyes a strange amber colour. He was enraged, and she shrunk from him, her courage failing. Was this another tiger come hunting? "Why did you come out of there like that? You do know you're supposed to look."
"Yes ... I was trying to get away..." This was not a story anyone would believe. I'm running away from men who can change into animals. Yes, mental hospital here I come.
"Wait. That's the sheriff's truck. Are you running away from the sheriff? Or something else..."
She looked at his eyes, seeing the unnatural glow. "Something else."
He turned to his men and signalled. They turned up the drive towards the sheriff's house. "Is the sheriff at home?"
She shook her head. "No. He went out. I think he went to deal with the men who were chasing me. But there's an ambush. A ... creature named Wag is leading them into a trap."
"We'll deal with these first. Then we'll try to find the sheriff." He turned to the men on motorbikes and called. "Leave one alive. We need to get some answers."
"I know where they're going. Forked Crossing."
"Then let's see if you've wrecked my bike. If it's still working, we'll go and save your sheriff."
"Oh, he's not mine," she answered.
"If that's a come-on, I'm not interested."
"No. No, it was just a statement of fact. He wouldn’t be interested in me."
Motorcycle guy looked her up and down, taking in her clothing. She glanced down and saw where he had got the idea. She was standing in the middle of the road, with the sheriff’s truck crashed behind her, wearing his shirt. If anything screamed slept with the sheriff, she did.
Chapter Thirteen – Brad
He quickened his pace. In all the years he had spent in law enforcement, he could definitely say this was the most scared he'd ever been. Not for himself, but for Abbi. What if they had made it back to his house and found her. What kind of fool had he been to leave her there alone? He had told her to trust him, and she had. Now the guilt at having put her in danger was almost too much. As they loped along, he struggled to stop himself running headlong up the trail.
For Brad, it was lucky he still had his self-control. If he had gone off on his own, he would never have survived the pack of assorted mongrels that were waiting for the bears. Outnumbered three to one. It appeared the tiger had sent an army to capture Abbi.
A lone man stood leaning against a tree. As the bears approached, he put his phone back in his pocket. "Well, well. What a mangy bunch of bears you are. No match for my crew. So why don't you go on run away, back to your empty homes. And yes, sheriff, your home is empty. My friend just informed me they found the little cocktease. So if you boys want to back off, we'll leave. We have what we came for."
Sam stood firm; he turned his head to look at Brad, who shook his head. There was no way he was giving up his mate to these men. They would fight these beasts, and then he would track Abbi down. If it meant leaving Bear Creek to do so, he would. She was everything to him, his future bound up with hers in a way he would never understand. But that was the way it worked. He wouldn't fight his fate. But he would fight these mutts.
For a split second, he felt guilty that his friends were going to be dragged into this fight. They might be hurt, or even killed. It was always a possibility. However, they knew he would do the same for them. That was what bears did; they stuck together through thick and thin. As if reading his mind, Daryl and Hal brushed past him. They looked at him and nodded. The bears were going into battle.
Brad threw back his head, bracing himself on his sturdy legs, to let out a long, loud roar.
As it ended, he lowered his head. These creatures needed to understand, bears never gave in to trespassers. They were no match for a bear who was fighting for the virtue of his mate.
As he leapt forward, a hyena jumped on his back. He swung around, snarling at it, his teeth bared. Snapping at him, he caught its leg and then swung his weight around. The hyena flew off, crying out in pain as he hit a tree. One down, so many more to go. The other three joined him now, taking on foxes and another couple of hyenas. The loudmouth leaning against the tree sighed and then changed into his other self.
Brad looked up; in his jaws, he held one of the foxes, no match for him. But the lynx that had shimmered into being in front of him: now, that might be a problem.
Chapter Fourteen – Abbi
It all happened so fast. She was on the back of a motorcycle, heading up towards Brad's house. Only halfway up, the other bikers who had been sent to fight her pursuers met them.
"That was quick?" the man in front of her, the man she had her arms wrapped very tightly around, asked.
"They ran," one of his men answered and then sneered. "They saw us coming and ran."
"Which direction?"
"The falls."
"Come on. We have to go rescue the sheriff."
The others laughed. "Why not leave him to his fight? He can handle those idiots."
"There's more of them. And I don't know about you, but I would prefer to keep the sheriff we have, rather than one from outside."
There was a rumble of agreement. Then they were moving, too fast, back down the track, and out onto the road. She clung to him tightly, her body crushed against his. But despite this closeness, she felt nothing for him. Not like the intense heat that consumed her when she was around the sheriff. Brad. She closed her eyes and prayed he would be OK.
Motorcycle headlights flooded the road, their rumbling engines filling the night with their sound. They shattered the peace of Bear Creek, a warning that they were on their way. Abbi hoped it might be enough to frighten off the men waiting to ambush Brad. However, a loud roar echoing down the valley told her it was too late. The fight had begun.
The biker in front of her stiffened. He had heard it too. To have been heard over the motorcycle engines, she knew it must be loud. A challenge or the sound of defeat? A challenge, she told herself. Made herself believe. Brad would be OK. She wanted to shout, to let him know they were coming, but she guessed the bikes did that.
Turning off the road, they headed up a narrow trail. She had lost her bearings, but she was sure it headed back towards the house. He had been on his way to her. That was how they set up the ambush.
Once again, she reminded herself she was being stupid. He didn't care for her that much. As they bumped up the uneven trail, the headlights made the trees into silhouettes. She could hear the loud roars and howls of a battle. For someone he didn't care for, the sheriff was putting on a fierce fight.
Her brain struggled to cope with this information. She hadn't really accepted the truth that he was a bear. How many of these creatures were there? How did you become one? Was it a bite, like the werewolf myths? Would he bite her and turn her into one of these beasts? That was too much, and her stomach lurched. How the hell had she ended up in the middle of all this?
The bikers stopped and were off and running, throwing their helmets to the ground. As they moved they blurred, and in one fluid movement, they were bears. Big, hulking bears. Teeth bared, roaring with rage, they entered the fray. Carnage ensued, the assortment of other animals screaming in pain. She tried to make out which bear was Brad, but she had no idea. The whole scene was a mess of thick brown fur. Large bodies intent on one thing, defending their territory.
It ended quickly, no beast able to withstand an attack from this number of bears. Most ran off, but one, a cat of some sort, was pinned to the ground under a giant bear claw. While she watched, one of the bears shimmered before her eyes. He faded into nothing before he materialised as Brad.
She gasped; his body had scratches across it. His chest showing what looked like cat clawmarks, seeping blood. That he had gone through so much for her made her ache to soothe his pain away. The other bears didn't change. They stood in a group, snarling and growling at the cat lying on the floor.
"This is a warning, cat. Leave our territory. If we so much as scent you around Bear Creek, you will not be spared. Now go tell your boss. Abbi belongs to another."
The cat looked up at him and hissed. The bear still pinning him down pressed a little harder. The cat hissed and then meowed like an injured pussycat. Then the bear took his weight off and the cat leaped up. In a streak of fur, he jumped into the undergrowth, moving fast to get away.
Now calmer, the bears changed, one by one becoming men.
Brad went up to motorcycle guy. "Thank you, Will. We could have handled them." Will laughed, and Brad conceded, "But it would have been a lot harder without you."
He looked at the rest of the men; none of them were so bruised and cut up as Brad. "Thank you all. You don't know how much this means to me."
Abbi stood there, stunned. His words to the cat, and then to everyone else. He said she belonged to someone else, and then thanked them all for helping him. Did he mean that she belonged to him? She wasn't sure she liked the idea of that. There was no way she was going to live as a modern-day slave just to thank him for saving her life.
His eye caught hers and read her expression. Her emotions were spiralling out of control. One part of her craved to be his, the other part of her wanted to run away. She had not swapped a tiger for a bear. Don't say she had to go on the run again! But when he came towards her, she stood her ground.
"Can I say thank you too? Thank you all. I don't know you, and you don't know me. But thank you for helping get rid of those..."
"Animals," Will said. They laughed, and the mood broke. Then they talked and laughed, many re-enacting scenes from their fight. Albeit a little overexaggerated. They were just like normal men. They could be talking about a football match rather than a battle between beasts.
Brad came over to her. By his face, she could tell he was unsure how close to get, or what to say. "Are you OK?" were the words he settled for.
"Yes. Thank you." She looked at his wonderful body, all beat up and scratched. "You really look as if you need to see a doctor."
He looked down at his chest. "It'll heal." He hesitated and then said, "We heal pretty quickly."
She looked into his eyes, seeing his nervousness. He was so unsure of her reaction. She had been wrong to imagine he was anything like Tarnac. He wasn't going to push himself on her, to make her do anything she didn't want to do. Attacking those beasts had been done to keep her safe as much as for him to claim her as his own. The question she had to ask herself now centred on how she felt about belonging to this man. Not as some slave, but as his mate. A bear’s mate.
The idea excited her.
"By we, I take it you mean bears."
He nodded, not taking his eyes off her face. "I would have broken it you more gently. But..."
"It's OK. I'd already worked it out."
"You had? How?"
"Some of them came to your house. I heard them talking ... Oh, that reminds me. Your house. They were inside. I don't know what damage they've done."
"As long as you're OK. Everything else can be replaced." He smiled. "Wow that was a corny line."
"Yes. It was." She looked up at him shyly. "But I liked the sentiment."
He grinned. "I think it would be a good idea to break up the party and get home." He turned to the group of men behind him. "I think it's time we dispersed."
"Right, Sheriff," Will said, saluting Brad. "Come on, I'll take you home."
Abbi looked at him, and then back to Brad. "I'm not sure..."
"I thought you said he wasn't interested." Will smiled wickedly and winked at Abbi, who blushed furiously. "So I thought you and me could hook up."
"She's mine." Brad squared his shoulders, his fists clenched
. Testosterone filled the air.
Will laughed again. "I'm glad you admitted that to her. Otherwise I might have had to take her home and show her what it is to be with a real man."
Brad opened his mouth to retort. But Abbi placed her hand on his chest and smiled up at him. He relaxed immediately and looked down at her. "He was only joking."
"I know. It's just I feel like I owe you an explanation."
"That can wait until later. I really want to go home."
He froze. "Oh, of course. Ask Will, he'll take you wherever you want to go."
"I meant your home."
Chapter Fifteen – Brad
More than anything, that was what he wanted, to take her home. To take her to bed.
"I'll give you a ride," Will said, sauntering back to his bike.
Brad felt his jealousy rising. Was Will purposefully trying to make him angry? Whether he was or not, Brad's temper was flaring. Abbi was his mate. He was grateful they had all helped him, but she was his. He kept repeating that to himself, he knew he should be telling it to Abbi, proving it to Abbi. But he was afraid to come on too strong. He didn't want to go all caveman on her.
"How are you getting back?" Abbi asked him.
Her words cut through his brooding mood. It was a good couple of miles over rough terrain. He would probably be better to go bear. Otherwise, he would have to accept a lift from one of Will's bikers. Not good when you're the sheriff and those boys sometimes skirted close to breaking the law. If he asked her, she might walk with him, but she looked dead on her feet. And she was half naked. He should have noticed that before.
"I'll walk, well, run. You go with Will. It'll be quicker. You must be freezing."
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