The Tiger's Heart

by Marissa Dobson

  “Lukas’s brother sent another transmission. You should find it in your email. Unfortunately this one wasn’t in time to stop the attack…it was about Bethany.”

  A growl escaped before he could get ahold of it. “Did he mention her by name?”

  Ty shook his head. “But it implies she’ll only be the first of many.”

  “With a little luck, having to find another to do his dirty work will slow him down…the guy who kidnapped Bethany won’t be doing anyone’s dirty work any longer. He’s dead.”

  * * *

  It was after eleven o’clock at night when Bethany woke to find Raja asleep on the chair next to the bed. His neck resting at an odd angle, his hand still wrapped around hers, and a laptop on his lap.

  He didn’t leave. If he wanted to harm me, would he really be sitting here passed out in the chair, holding my hand? She shook her head at the idea but still she had the feeling something was different about him and that he hadn’t been entirely straightforward with her. Earlier she saw the concern for her on his face. Why would he care about me?

  She caught a glimpse of his cell on the nightstand. If I can only reach it without waking him, I can call home.

  She adjusted slightly. Careful not to jar the bed, she reached for the phone.

  Her fingers closed around the phone when a throat cleared behind her. She almost dropped the phone in her haste to move away.

  “Planning to call someone?” Raja sat there in the chair watching her as if she was under a microscope.

  “Umm…”

  “You’re not a prisoner here, Bethany. You can call someone without sneaking around.”

  “Well then…” She unlocked the phone and pulled up her contact list.

  “How about you wait until morning? If you’re calling your family, it’s past four in the morning.”

  Her hands dropped in defeat.

  “What are you going to tell them anyway?”

  “Umm…” she stuttered. She didn’t think of that.

  “Wow, you have it all planned out. Don’t you?”

  “I’m going to ask my father to come get me. He can fly out here and help me get back home.” She was proud she was able to come up with something so quickly. But she wasn’t sure if it was the truth. Would she have been able to tell her mom she was right and now needed to be saved? She would hear about that until the end of time.

  “Are you going to tell them you were kidnaped? How your knee got busted?”

  “What do you care what I tell my parents?” Frustration filled her voice.

  “I care because I killed the man who did this to you, remember?”

  “If you’re worried I’m going to turn you in, don’t. You helped me when I couldn’t have done it myself. I’m just trying to rid you of the problem. I’ll tell them it was a snowboarding accident.”

  “I’m not worried about myself. I’m worried about you. You leave here and you’ll have a bull’s eye on your back.”

  “I don’t see how it matters if I’m here or back with my family. This asshole will still want me. At least back home I have the upper hand. I know the lay of the land and have people who will protect me.” She leaned back against the pillow.

  “No one can protect you like I can. Plus we’re already on the trail to finding this bastard.”

  “Oh a He-man who thinks he’s the only one good enough for the job.” She let a puff of air out, blowing the hair away from her face.

  “I don’t think. I know,” he growled at her.

  She sank back into the bed, wishing it would swallow her whole. Anything to get away from him.

  “I’m sorry. It’s just that I don’t want to see you hurt worse or possibly killed.”

  “Oh and you think I do?”

  “You’re sure the hell acting like you don’t value your life very much.” He set the laptop on the stand and stood. “If you would just trust me, we’ll deal with the situation while you’re recovering, and then you can do what you want.”

  “Who is we?”

  “There is a group of us that live here together. I don’t know how you got dragged into this, but the man behind your kidnapping it someone we have been hunting for a while. He’s very dangerous and has killed before. Taking your life…he wouldn’t lose a night’s sleep over it.”

  “What did you do to him?”

  “It wasn’t what we did to him. It was more like what he did to us. It’s a long story.”

  She heard the anger in his voice but more than that, she recognized the pain. What happened to him to have such pain in his voice? “Tell me.”

  “Another time.” He reached up and tied his hair back with a leather strap. “How are you feeling? Are you in pain?”

  He was trying to get away from the topic, and for now she would let it slide. She didn’t have the strength to fight him now.

  “Not real pain. I feel drunk more than anything.”

  “It’s the pain medication. It will make you think you can fly if you let it.” He smiled down at her for the first time.

  Wow, what an amazing smile. It could light up the darkest room.

  “You have a beautiful smile. You should use it more often.”

  “You’re starting to sound like Tora.”

  I can’t believe my luck—he’s married. She looked down at his left hand but there was no wedding band. Not every man wears his ring. I should know that better than anyone.

  As if he caught her looking at his hand, he smiled again. “Tora’s my sister.”

  “Your sister?” She was unable to keep the surprise out of her voice.

  “Yes. She’s married to Marcus, and they have a beautiful daughter, Scarlet.”

  She could hear the happiness and love in his voice. His whole body came alive when he spoke of them. “You seem close to them. How old is Scarlet?”

  “I am. Tora and I have been through a lot together over the years. Scarlet is fourteen months, and she has her Uncle Raja wrapped tightly around her little finger.”

  She smiled, picturing Raja with children. She loved children and hoped someday to have some of her own.

  “In your tone I can hear how much you adore Scarlet. Any children of your own?”

  “Not yet.” He laughed. “Someday I want a few dozen of my own.”

  “Dozen?” her voice full of shock.

  “Yeah, why not?”

  She let out a heartfelt laugh. “You better find a few very understanding women to give you that many. I doubt one woman would give you a dozen let alone a few dozen.”

  “I guess when I find the woman I’ll know and I’ll take as many munchkins as she will give me.”

  Uncomfortable, she tried to readjust, pain shot across her face, making her eyes water.

  Raja reached for her. When his hands closed around hers, the pain subsided.

  “What just happened?”

  “You’re not due for another pain fill for any hour, but if you’re in that much pain I’ll get Doc. Surely there’s something he could do for you.”

  “Raja, you just ignored my question. I have a feeling you know what I’m talking about. Answer me.”

  “It’s nothing.” He lowered himself back into the chair he recently vacated.

  “Don’t tell me it’s nothing. It’s something and you don’t want to tell me.”

  Chapter Ten

  How am I supposed to tell a human that knows nothing about shifters that I’m her mate and that’s why the pain subsided? This is insane. It’s dangerous and could expose us all. This isn’t just risking my ass but everyone’s. Tabitha is in enough danger she doesn’t need more. Raja paced around the small room, raking his hand through his hair, as he played out the outcomes to the problem in his mind.

  “What is your problem, why won’t you be straight with me?” Bethany voice laced with the irritation that he could feel building in her.

  “Bethany…” Raja growled before reining in his temper. “You don’t understand what you’re asking. This involves more tha
n just me.”

  “If you’re not going to be straight with me, I’d like you to leave.”

  “Everyone wants something, but babe, you don’t have a chance in hell of getting that. So just get some rest and we’ll deal with the rest of this crap tomorrow.” Raja stopped at the foot of the bed, glaring down at her.

  “I don’t want to sleep.” But her body was betraying her. He could see her eyes were growing heavy, and she tried to stifle the yawn.

  “It’s the best thing for you. The faster you will heal, the quicker you’ll get back on your feet.” Her eyes closed heavily. “Sleep, my sweet Bethany,” he whispered as she drifted to sleep.

  Leave it to me to get saddled with a mate that would be a handful. A full human to boot. How am I supposed to handle this?

  * * *

  The hair on the back of Raja’s neck stood up. Glancing behind him at the doorway, he found Shadow standing just beyond the frame. Shadow was barely twenty but before joining their clan, she had a hard life. She spent much of her life on the street, working odd jobs just to keep food in her stomach. Yet she still had a childlike innocence to her. She tried to find the good in everyone, but get on her bad side and watch out. She could be as vicious as any male shifter in a heartbeat.

  There she stood in her oversized University of Alaska sweatshirt and leggings, looking more like a college student then one of their best guards.

  “Shadow, what are you doing here so late?”

  “Doc asked me to look in on the patient. He mentioned she was human and wanted to make sure there wasn’t anything going on inside her that his test wouldn’t show.”

  Doc didn’t mean medical. Shadow wouldn’t have been useful in a medical emergency. Her abilities lay in the psyche. She was still relatively new to the Alaskan Tiger’s Clan, and Raja hadn’t had the time to get to know her that well, but she was clearly making a name for herself. Already one of the most trusted guards for the compound.

  “Is that implying the rumors I have heard of you are true?”

  “I’m not sure what rumors you have heard, sir. But I’m sure not all of them are true.” Shadow was reserved and spoke in a low tone. If you weren’t a shifter, you would struggle to hear her. At least she was now speaking. When she first arrived in Alaska, she barely spoke a word.

  “I’ve heard you can tell everything about a person just from looking into their soul. Everything from their past, future, and even their destined mate. True?”

  “To a degree. I know their conscious and unconscious minds. If I have met both of them, then yes I know who their mate is, even before the mating ritual takes place. I cannot say I know everything about a person. People are surprising creatures and in the end will surprise you,” she took a step into the room, coming closer to the bed where Raja stood. Her eyes closed as if she was concentrating on Bethany. Her long dark hair falling forward, blocking her face from Raja’s view.

  Raja stood to the side observing Shadow.

  “Doc has nothing to worry about. She is and will be fine,” she said, turning on her heels to leave. She stopped just inches from the doorway. “Sir, if I may speak freely.”

  Raja nodded. If she didn’t feel it was important enough to risk the wrath of an Elder, she wouldn’t have asked.

  “Be up front with her. She can handle it. Subconsciously she already knows of shifters.”

  With that, she was gone. Leaving Raja alone with his thoughts. Could she handle the truth?

  Chapter Eleven

  Bethany woke to find a strange woman sitting by her bedside, Raja nowhere in sight. Great, he decided to take my advice and leave. Why send this woman…unless I’m a prisoner here.

  “Morning, Bethany.”

  Wow, someone is excessively chipper in the morning. She turned toward the bedside clock. “Two in the afternoon.” It was too late to call her parents. They’d already left for the weekend trip to their mountain cabin. She wouldn’t be able to get in touch with them or her sister for the next few days.

  “Raja left me with detailed instructions. I wasn’t supposed to wake you. He said you needed your rest and you had a rough night.”

  “He’ll be back? Who are you?”

  “I’m Tabitha. Yes, he should be back shortly. He’s meeting with my sweetie and some of the…um…employees.”

  “I don’t mean to sound rude, but why are you here?” Bethany inquired, trying to find out if Raja was telling her the truth when he said she wasn’t a prisoner here.

  “He asked me to sit with you in case you needed something. Doc said you couldn’t put any weight on that knee for at least forty-eight hours. With you stuck in bed, having someone here with you seemed like a good idea. Plus after being stuck with Raja all this time, I thought you could use some girl bonding.” Tabitha let out a laugh.

  Bethany might not be a prisoner, but she couldn’t just get up and leave either. With no other choice, she laid her head on the pillow with a sigh.

  “If you prefer I left…”

  “No, you’re fine. I just hate being stuck in this bed.”

  Tabitha nodded. “I bet you could talk Raja into taking you out of this room for a while when he gets back.”

  Bethany gave her a smile. Tabitha meant well, but Raja…well, she didn’t want to deal with him if he couldn’t be straight with her.

  “I doubt that. Raja and I don’t see eye to eye.”

  “Raja can be stubborn, but he’s a good man and has his reason for his actions. Anything I can do to help you deal with him?” Tabitha leaned forward to pour a glass of water from the bedside pitcher.

  “I doubt that.” She thought about what happened last night as Tabitha poured them each a drink. “I’m not in some voodoo colony or something, am I?”

  Tabitha let out a wholehearted laugh. “I’m sorry,” she apologized for laughing. “What gives you that idea?”

  “Just something that happened last night. It was weird.”

  “You mean the pain leaving with his touch?” Tabitha handed her the cup of water.

  “How did you know about that?” Bethany eyed Tabitha.

  “Raja was still grumbling about it when I came down here.”

  “What caused it? It was the weirdest sensation.”

  “Bethany, honestly I would like to tell you. To explain everything to you and be able to answer all your questions…”

  “But you won’t,” Bethany interrupted.

  “Correct. I won’t. Raja will be back soon, and I promise he’ll tell you the truth. It’s something you should hear from him. However, I can tell you this. Something similar happened to me, but I wouldn’t change the outcome for the world. Trust in Raja, and you won’t be disappointed.”

  Bethany was doubtful and tired of the run-around. Maybe when Raja comes back I won’t want to hear the answer to my questions. Who am I trying to kid? I want to know.

  * * *

  Meanwhile two floors above, Raja was fighting to keep his temper from blowing. Pierce’s sister, Jessica, was working his last nerve.

  “Your brother killed people, do you realize that? He will keep killing unless you help us.” Raja slammed his hand on the table, making the papers jump.

  “He’s still my baby brother. I don’t want to see him killed because of what your kind did to him.” Jessica sat there in near tears, playing with the bottom button on her jacket.

  “Miss Black,” Ty said across the table, “you’re brother isn’t killing out of revenge. He’s killing because he knows no other way. He was never taught the way to handle the beast inside of him. In time, the beast took over. The man he is now is not your brother. He’s suffering; the beast is making him insane. He’s rabid. The brother you knew is gone.”

  “He’s still my brother,” she wailed.

  “I wish I could agree with you. I wish I could tell you there was hope for him. But you have to know deep in your soul that there is nothing you can do for him. With your education and training, you have to realize he’s lost.”

  �
��I won’t give up on my brother.”

  “Miss Black, if there was anything I could do to help you save your brother…if you would have come to me sooner I would have done it, but that time has passed. However it isn’t too late to protect the innocents.”

  “You people are not innocent. Look what your kind did to Pierce,” she hollered at Ty as tears fell down her face.

  “The shifter who attacked your brother was rabid. Like your brother, he let the beast take control. Once we were aware of the situation, the subject was terminated. The former leader tried to help your brother, and in return for his efforts, he and his wife were killed. Leaving an innocent child an orphan.”

  Raja could see that she didn’t know that part. The shock was shining in her eyes like lanterns on a dark night, as her hand covered her mouth. Pierce would only tell her things that would make her feel sorry for him, not something that she could use against him.

  “I need some time to think this over.”

  “We’ll have a guard show you to your room. All we ask is don’t contact Pierce. There are innocent women and children here.”

  She nodded before standing to leave.

  “Miss Black,” Raja called as she neared the door, “don’t want too long. Pierce will attack again, and I’d hate for another innocent woman to be caught in his wrath. The next one might not be as lucky as Bethany.”

  Chapter Twelve

  “She slept the whole time?” Raja asked, returning from the meeting.

  “No, she was up for a bit. She is impatient about what happened last night. Tell her, Raja.” Tabitha went to Ty, who’d followed Raja in.

  She wrapped her arms around Ty’s chest, and the look of love filled her face. It was something, before he met Bethany, that he didn’t know he wanted.

  “I told you I would. I won’t wake her up to tell her. She needs to rest.”

  “Here’s your chance,” Ty motioned toward the bed, where Bethany was stirring. He scooted out the door with Tabitha in tow.

  “Coward!” Raja called to them as they left, and in return got two smug smiles.