by Terry Spear
They still had another half hour or so to go when someone shouted, “Jaguar!”
“Stay together,” Francisco told them. “Don’t run. Just stay together. They don’t go after humans.”
Maya was looking around, trying to see if another cat was in the area besides her brother or sister-in-law—an all-jaguar cat or Lion Mane.
Her heart was already pumping hard from the exertion, but she felt a little hope that the jaguar might be Wade or David.
The pink ribbon of sky peeking through the thick canopy had all but faded, leaving a dark blue ceiling sprinkled with the Milky Way. It was getting darker, and they still had a long way to go, so most of the people were turning on their headlamps.
“Keep talking. Make a lot of noise,” the guide told them. “The cat will stay away. Just don’t run.”
They should stand still if approached by a jaguar. The tour guide opted for getting them back to the resort before the jungle became inky black like the cave had been in sections.
Maya wanted to tell them to be quiet so she could hear where the jaguar was and ensure it was one of her own family that had spooked everyone. But the tourists tromped through the jungle with so much noise that holding their tongues wouldn’t have mattered. She assumed the jaguar had to be a shifter. No all-jaguar cat would come this close to a bunch of noisy humans.
She tried to listen for sounds of a jaguar moving about in the brush that only her jaguar hearing would pick up.
She lifted her chin and smelled the breezeless air, noticing that the temperature was dropping with the coming of night. Nothing but the smell of wet earth, of leafy plants and fragrant flowers, of…
She turned her head just as a woman screamed several yards ahead of her.
People raced along the path far in front of her. She’d fallen behind again.
“Walk!” Francisco commanded them. “Don’t run. If you do, the jaguar will chase you.”
It was too late. Everyone was running to avoid the imminent attack of the jaguar. No one wanted to be the last one trailing behind, the weakest link ripe for the predator’s picking.
Except for Maya. She couldn’t run after them, not with the heavy pack on her back. She wouldn’t run, knowing that was the worst thing anyone could do. Cats loved to chase. And pounce. Then bite. And she was the last one left behind. Easy prey.
A hiss and a growl emanated from somewhere in the jungle, but she couldn’t see what was going on. She stood still, alone now, heart pounding, her blood rushing through her veins.
The guide would get the panicked people back to the resort, hopefully not losing anyone else in the process but her.
She wanted to ditch the backpack and shift. As a jaguar, she would feel a whole lot less threatened.
People were still making a full-scale ruckus as they fled north of where she was, screaming, wailing, and stomping the ground.
“This way!” the guide yelled as some of the panicked people ran in the wrong direction in the dense jungle. She could imagine them being lost forever.
She barely breathed, concentrating on the world close to her, the knocking sound of a frog on a leaf nearby, something scurrying around on the rainforest floor near her foot, something slithering on a branch near her head. She moved then, walking in the direction of the cottage.
She walked slowly. She would not run; she knew better.
Another hiss. A low, growling rumble off to her left. She wanted to stop. She wanted to go. She wanted to shift, feel her balance with the jungle, and be part of it, not stand out like a human did.
A figure moved out of the leaves as if it had been part of the vegetation. “Kat,” she breathed, feeling relief at once to see her sister jaguar, to smell her scent.
Kat grabbed at the backpack strap dangling in front of Maya’s waist with her jaguar teeth and gave a pull. Her urgency made Maya walk quickly with her toward the cottages.
“Where’s Connor?” Maya asked, as if Kat could tell her in her jaguar form.
Kat kept tugging, kept moving her in the direction of where the tourists had disappeared. Kat wouldn’t leave Connor behind unless he told her to go with Maya. So where was Connor? Facing off another jaguar shifter?
Maya’s heart was thudding hard, and she could hear Kat’s heart pounding just as quickly. Connor had to be keeping another jaguar away from them. She kept looking over her shoulder, but Kat wouldn’t let her stop. Her mission, it appeared, was to get Maya safely back to the cottages.
Fine. Maya picked up her pace, hurrying now to reach the resort. She’d make sure she got Kat safely to the cottage and insist she stay behind. Then she’d shift and return to help her brother.
***
They were getting closer to the resort. Connor still hadn’t joined them, but Maya was walking as fast as she could, watching that she didn’t trip over the liana crisscrossing the path back to the cottages.
Kat was running alongside her until they heard their guide say, “Wait. Don’t go to your cottages or the lodge yet. I’m still trying to get a head count. Two are missing.”
“Can you go around through the jungle and reach your cottage without anyone seeing you?” Maya asked Kat, her voice low.
Kat bumped her with her head and rubbed her leg. Maya took that as a yes. “Okay, go. I’ll let Francisco know that we’re all fine. That you and Connor already returned to your cottage.”
She waited for Kat to leave, but instead, Kat jumped into a tree to watch her.
Maya sighed. “Okay, so you stay and protect me.” She began walking toward the guide, though she still couldn’t see him through the jungle foliage. “Connor and my sister-in-law already returned to their cottage,” she hollered. “I’m coming!”
That’s all she got out before she felt a claw swipe at her arm. She cried out in shock. Her shirtsleeve shredded, and she felt slices of throbbing and stinging pain streak up her arm. Before she could react to the angry cat, the large furry form hit her body, taking her down, his teeth bared.
“Lion Mane,” she gasped, grabbing at the skin at his throat, knowing she couldn’t keep him from biting her with his powerful jaws.
Just as quickly, another jaguar slammed into him, knocking him off her, snarling and hissing. Connor!
The cats’ angry hisses were loud enough that the tourists must have thought Maya was being attacked and torn to shreds. She could hear running feet as the people scrambled to get to their cottages and safety. Forget the head count.
She couldn’t catch her breath as she scooted away from the fighting males. Kat had jumped down from the tree and was standing protectively over Maya, who couldn’t get to her feet because of the weight of the backpack. Before she could get it off, Lion Mane ran away.
Connor poked his nose at her, sniffing her arm and licking at her. “I’m okay,” she said, reaching up with her uninjured arm to stroke his head. Lion Mane hadn’t hurt her badly, just scared the crap out of her. Kat purred next to her, her head bent to inspect the damage.
“All right, everyone’s accounted for,” the guide said, watching for her.
Her heart still thundering, Maya hurried as fast as she could to the guide. She had to let him know she was safe. “Are you sure everyone’s back?” she asked. “You said someone else was missing.”
“Another person whose wife said he’d fled to their cottage before I could count him.”
She could sympathize with the man—truly. “Is the wife okay?”
“She’s about as growly as the cat. Are you okay?” Francisco asked, looking Maya over. “I… I thought maybe it attacked you.” He was waving a stick in his hand, but it wouldn’t have done much if he’d wanted to get the big cat off her.
When he looked down at her sleeve to see that it was torn and blood trickled down her arm, he gasped.
Shaken but trying to appear as though the experience hadn’t rattled
her, she clasped her hand over the wound. “Just a scratch.” By morning the claw marks would have faded to scratches.
“Let me take care of it,” Francisco said. “I’ve got a first-aid kit.”
“No, that’s okay. My brother’s got medical training. He’ll see to it.”
“If you’re sure…”
“I’ll be fine.” She hurried to her cottage to clean up, change, and meet Connor and Kat for dinner. They’d eat, and afterward they’d make plans to search for David and Wade, hoping to God that Lion Mane and his companion in crime hadn’t already killed them.
She unlocked her door and walked inside, then shut the door, locking it. She tugged off the backpack and dropped it on the floor, relieved to finally have the weight off her back.
Turning on the light, she could see the claw marks down her left arm. Not pretty. She rummaged through her suitcase, and when she realized she didn’t have any bandages, she hurried to the bathroom.
She yanked off her T-shirt and washed her arm with soap and water, grimacing and gritting her teeth as the claw marks stung. Intending to take a quick shower, she kicked off her boots and had barely yanked off her socks when she heard a key shoved in the lock and the door opened. She twisted around and left the bathroom, figuring it would be Connor.
But it wasn’t. Wade loomed in the door frame, bag in hand, face grim, and his blue-green eyes darkened to nearly black.
Chapter 19
“Thank God you’re okay. Connor’s all right, isn’t he, Wade?” Maya asked quickly.
Wade set the bag down, pulled the door shut, and stalked toward her. “Hell, Maya,” he swore under his breath, his heated gaze going from her face to her bloodied arm.
“I’m all right. Is Connor—”
“He gave me the spare key to your place and told me to check on you. He’s fine. He’s getting cleaned up and dressed.” Wade sounded irritated and worried at the same time. “I’d kill the shifter that did this if Connor hadn’t insisted that I stay and watch over you.”
She parted her lips, unable to say anything for a moment. “Where were you? We waited as long as we could, but then we had to go or miss the excursion.”
“Chasing down Lion Mane. Only he led us on a damn wild-goose chase. We lost him at the river. We kept trying to catch his scent and where he had gone to, hoping to end this. We finally gave up and headed here, worried he might have come after you at the resort.” His gaze moved down her injured arm again.
“I’ve got to hurry and shower before they close the dining room.”
“Yeah, but this won’t wait.” His voice was rough with need and frustration. Wade took her arm gently and considered the claw marks.
“It’s okay,” she assured him, not wanting him to fuss over her. “You know how we heal.”
He pulled her roughly into his arms and kissed her hard, his tongue penetrating her parted lips. She was surprised at his passionate reaction. He rubbed against her like a cat needing to put his scent on her, growled when he smelled Lion Mane on her, and kissed her some more.
She was still stiff in his arms, worried about her brother and Kat, when Wade stopped kissing her and placed his forehead against hers, his breathing labored and his hands clenching her shoulders. “Okay. Go take a shower. I’ll be all right.”
She chuckled, then kissed him on the cheek, and hurried into the bathroom.
She took an ultrafast shower, and then she quickly dried and rushed to get some clothes.
Wade was showering on the back deck. She watched him for a moment as he ran his soapy hands over his naked body, his eyes closed. Transfixed, she couldn’t take her eyes off him. God, he was a beautiful specimen of a wild cat. Grabbing a pink-and-yellow strapless sundress from the closet, she slipped it over her head and shoved her feet into a pair of jeweled sandals.
When she was done, he was drying himself. He pulled on a pair of Bermuda shorts and a T-shirt and sandals, then headed inside. He stopped when he saw her and smiled.
“You clean up nicely if you don’t mind the cliché,” he said, stalking toward her. She thought he was going to begin kissing her all over again.
Instead, he took her arm and examined the claw marks. They had stopped bleeding, and he kissed them gently. “I suppose you don’t have any bandages.”
“No, afraid not. I thought I had some in my suitcase.” She envisioned David and the ladder of colorful, fanciful bandages across his forehead. She was almost glad she didn’t have any of those bandages.
“Okay, let’s go. David has a first-aid kit in his bag.” Wade caressed her back with his hand, and she thought that if they didn’t leave the cottage quickly, they’d end up in bed together instead.
“Just plain old bandages?” she asked.
Wade smiled down at her and kissed her nose. “We’ll have to add some fancy ones to the kit just for you. Your brother didn’t expect us for dinner, but he and Kat and my brother are saving us seats.”
She felt her face heat. “I take it you’re planning on staying here this evening.” She motioned to Wade’s bag as he escorted her past it, hoping he was planning on sleeping there. “And you’re not taking off after Lion Mane in the dark.”
She didn’t feel comfortable being alone if Lion Mane had any intention of returning to finish what he started.
“Oh yeah. If I hadn’t insisted on it, your brother would have. He doesn’t want you to be alone until he gets you home. He tested my resolve first, though.”
“Tested you?” she asked, puzzled, as Wade led her down the walkway toward the lodge.
“Yeah. He said David and I could stay in your cottage, and you could stay with your brother and Kat. I said no.”
Maya looked up at Wade, saw the determination on his face, and smiled. She smelled the aroma of red fish and stewed pork cooking and sighed. “I’m hungry. Is Connor really okay?”
“Yeah. He took a bite out of Lion Mane, though.”
Her mouth gaped for a second. Then she nodded. “Good. What about the hunter who’d been with him?”
“He’s joined the other one in the river.”
Maya pulled Wade to a stop. “What happened?”
“He held a gun on me at our cabana. I believe he’d been ordered to hold David and me hostage until the shifter returned. He didn’t figure on me not going along with the plan.”
Maya stared at Wade, then took a deep breath, tears misting her eyes. He pulled her under his arm and walked again with her toward the lodge. “Everything turned out all right. We just need to get Lion Mane now.”
“Did you get the name of the buyer?”
Wade chuckled. “No. I mean, it’s not funny. But you’re the third person who’s asked me that tonight.”
“Your brother and mine,” she guessed.
“Yeah. I only have my boss to add to the list when I call him.”
When they reached the dining hall, several of the guests were still arriving after cleaning up, some looking a little shaken from their ordeal with the jaguar.
“There had to be three or four of them,” one woman complained. “At least. They were roaring and screeching, and I was sure the lady…” She looked up to see Maya walking in with Wade and snapped her mouth shut.
Wade escorted Maya to the table where David and Connor rose from their seats. Kat remained seated, looking a little pale.
“Are you feeling all right, Kat?” Maya took a seat, and the men followed suit.
“I’ll be fine once I have something to eat.” Kat was already nibbling at a garden salad. She looked at Maya’s arm, which was burning like crazy. “What about you? Are you okay, Maya?”
Without any bandages, Maya hadn’t wanted to wear a sleeve that would rub against the open wound. David was already rising from his seat as the waitress approached.
Once they ordered their food, David said, “I’ll get a bandag
e for Maya,” then hurried out of the dining room.
Everyone was quiet for a while, then someone started talking again at another table about the jaguars attacking them. Maya said to her tablemates, “We saw the most beautiful crystal cave today where the Mayans held some of their ceremonies. A treasure trove of ancient pottery was strewn about. When we come back here, maybe you and David could see them with us.”
The conversation at the other tables died.
“It was spectacular,” Kat agreed.
David raced back into the dining room, breathing hard. He had to have run all the way to his cottage and back. He shoved a roll of gauze and tape at Wade, then retook his seat.
“Thanks,” Maya said to David. He smiled at her and winked.
Everyone waited for Wade to bind Maya’s wounds. She wished they would just talk and get all the attention off her. Her whole body was heating to sauna levels despite the cold air circulating in the dining room.
“Oh yes, and the cave tubing was so much fun,” Kat said, perking up after finishing her salad, finally starting the conversation again. “The water was just the right temperature.”
“I’d love to visit the cave.” Wade finished binding Maya’s wound, then took her hand in his and caressed it, gazing into her eyes like an adoring puppy instead of a hot-blooded cat.
She smiled at him, deciding she liked him both ways, a lot.
She noticed that both her brother and Kat were watching the way Wade was caressing her hand, and her whole body heated all over again. She pulled her hand away from Wade’s and dipped her spoon into her soup.
“We won’t be coming back for some time,” Connor said, running his hand over Kat’s belly. “Too difficult with twins on the way.”
Poor Kat. Every eye in the place turned to look at her stomach.
Maya sighed a little, grateful that Connor got her out of that one. Until he said, “But you and Maya could visit in the meantime, Wade. I wouldn’t want her to feel that she couldn’t enjoy the rainforest just because we can’t go.”
