by Ruby Shae
Text copyright ©2015 by the Author.
This work was made possible by a special license through the Kindle Worlds publishing program and has not necessarily been reviewed by Eliza Gayle. All characters, scenes, events, plots and related elements appearing in the original Southern Shifters remain the exclusive copyrighted and/or trademarked property of Eliza Gayle, or their affiliates or licensors.
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Bear Sentry
(An Enforcers/Southern Shifters Crossover Novella)
Ruby Shae
About This Book
After a routine mission turns deadly, bear shifter and former Enforcer, Jase Wagner is lost. The ability to trust his senses disappeared with the death of his partner and left him feeling worthless and unable to protect his clan. In an effort to find a place to fit in, he travels south and ends up in Deals Gap, North Carolina.
Violet Black lives in the neutral zone between the wolf and cougar clans, otherwise known as Deals Gap. In a town of hybrids, a half-wolf and half-human shifter is nothing special, but being a curvy, plus-sized virgin with no shifter senses definitely makes her a freak. Luckily, no one ever gets close enough to learn the truth.
When Jase walks into the coffee shop where Violet works, his whole world flips upside down. He immediately recognizes her as his mate, but when she runs, he realizes his senses still can’t be trusted. As much as he thinks he wants Violet, he vows to leave her alone…until she forces him to protect her.
Bear Sentry
(An Enforcers/Southern Shifters Crossover Novella)
By Ruby Shae
Chapter One
Jase Wagner closed his eyes and sighed as he cut through the cool mountain air on his motorcycle. The long, straight stretch of highway in front of him was the refuge he’d sought when he’d left home, but his plan had backfired. Instead of escape, the lengthy, uneventful ride allowed his mind to wander back to the day Montgomery died.
As if on cue, sharp pains erupted from the hidden two inch scar on the back of his head.
Phantom pains.
In the month since the attack, his hair had grown back and he’d been approved to return to work. Unfortunately, he’d lost more than a lot of blood that day. He’d lost his partner, his best friend, and his edge.
The healer had warned against dwelling on the past, but so many questions from his attack remained unanswered.
Another sharp pain jolted through him as he remembered the interrogation he’d endured from Logan, the Lead Enforcer, and several of his peers. He and the officer who’d found him had been the only two suspects, and the team had grilled them hard. They were immediately assumed guilty and questioned, even as everyone mourned the loss of their friend.
Once he and the other man’s innocence had been determined, the team supported his return to work, but he sensed their underlying lack of trust.
He didn’t blame them.
He’d proved himself an easy target, resulting in the death of a trusted friend, and he still couldn’t remember any details of the ambush. After a grueling two week recovery period, he’d demonstrated his uselessness on two missions, and Logan had reduced his duties to nothing more than those of an errand boy.
He’d been told it was a temporary move until his confidence returned, but he knew otherwise. The Enforcers were made up of the best of the best, and he no longer fell into that category. After two weeks of embarrassingly simple tasks, and unnecessary partnering that felt more like babysitting, he’d turned in his resignation. Logan had ripped up the paper and sent him on an indefinite leave of absence, but he knew he would never return to the team.
The Enforcers were the police and security of his bear clan, and he’d lost his ability to protect.
His cell-phone vibrated in his back pocket, and he roared a curse into the wind. Logan, Mason and Jacob had been keeping tabs on him with seemingly random texts, and their concern, while appreciated, was beginning to get on his nerves. He knew they cared, but he also knew they were too busy to chat via text every other day.
He just wanted to be left alone.
He twisted the throttle on his bike and barreled down the two lane road, determined to ignore whoever was texting. He’d turned in his notice, and whether or not Logan accepted it wasn’t his problem. He wasn’t their responsibility anymore.
Guilt washed over him and he swore again. He slowed the machine to its original speed, and then looked for a place to pull off the road. It had been two weeks since he’d left the comfort of home, and he’d only shifted a few times. The trees lining both sides of the asphalt called to him, and he pulled onto a dirt trail labeled with a small wooden brown and yellow sign.
Once he felt his bike was hidden from any passersby, he shoved the keys in his pocket, pulled out his cell-phone, and read Logan’s message.
How are you today?
Seriously? The man needed to work on his subtlety. Jase frowned. He’d gone from a trusted, capable warrior to a newborn cub that needed to check in every other day. The reality was both shocking and insulting. What would he do when he went back home? He’d spent his life training for the Enforcers, and all he had to show for it was a pile of money and hidden scars.
After the attack, fear had kept him from making tactical decisions on missions, and the unknown details of the death of his friend fueled the fear. He’d been born to fight and protect, but he’d lost the ability to do either. His acute shifter senses had failed him, and for the first time in his life he felt worthless.
He didn’t know what to do with the empty feeling that consumed him, but he knew he could never go back. That life, the life he’d worked so hard to build, was over.
Great! Going swimming. Talk later.
He typed back a quick message and turned off the device. There was no reason to elaborate on the truth. His Lead didn’t want the truth, the man just wanted to know whether or not he was alive.
He double checked the area, and then called his bear to the surface. The magic allowed the animal to transform in an instant, replacing the human with its form. Somewhere in the distance he could hear a babbling brook, and the bear ran toward the sound.
The cool water felt like heaven on his paws, and squatted low and rolled on his back in the tiny bed created from the stream. The water washed over and around his fur while he closed his eyes and soaked up the warmth of the sun. The forest called to him, and he longed to go deeper into the trees and disappear, but his animal nudged him back. Like Logan and his friends, the bear wouldn’t let him forget reality.
He’d been sleeping under the stars and using campground facilities for nearly two weeks, but he longed for a comfortable bed and a long, untimed shower.
After about an hour of relaxing in his bear body, he walked back to his bike, surveyed the area, and shifted back into his human form. He slowly maneuvered his bike out of the woods, and then took off again in the same direction he’d been going before.
Thirty minutes later, he finally saw a sign for food and lodging.
Deals Gap, North Carolina.
The name held no special meaning, but he felt compelled to stop in the tiny, unknown town. He shook his head and let out a humorless laugh. It was clear his senses couldn’t be trusted.
All he knew for certain was he wanted a hot meal, a hot shower, and a place to call home for a few nights. If he found those things in Deals Gap, he’d be a happy man. If not, he’d move on. The location where he stopped wasn’t important. Food, shelter, and the ability to keep his bear
hidden were all that mattered, and he could literally find those things anywhere else and be just as content.
Maybe after a few nights on a comfy bed, it would be easier to figure out what to do with the rest of his life.
***
Violet Black finished drying off the small round table she hovered over and looked outside in time to see an attractive couple walking across the street with their fingers laced together. The sight made one half of her mouth rise in a sad smile, and she envied the way they seemed to fit together perfectly.
She withheld a sigh and looked around the small, packed, coffee shop where she worked. Hybrids, or so she assumed, occupied every corner of the room, including the table she’d just cleaned off. As soon as one vacated a seat, another one walked in and snagged it.
The coffee shop had always been busy, and she was proud of her childhood friend, Monica. The woman had been right when she’d taken a chance and opened the store in their small, underdeveloped hometown. It seemed the only thing shifters loved more than sweets was coffee.
One of Sienna’s donuts sounded like a great way to end her workday, but then she looked down at her soft, curvy body and stifled a curse. Most shifters, whether full or hybrid, had incredible metabolisms and thin, sleek, muscular bodies. They could eat whatever they wanted and never gain a pound, but she was the complete opposite.
She was the only shifter she’d ever known that had to worry about her weight.
Her parents, brother and small group of friends lovingly called her an anomaly, but almost everyone else called her a freak. The only exceptions were the leaders of the hybrids, Bhric and his team; they didn’t go around pointing out weaknesses in others.
Deals Gap, also known as the neutral zone, sat smack dab in the middle of wolf and cougar country. Half-breeds, or hybrids, made up about ninety-nine percent of the population, and the rest of the town was inhabited by humans, unaware of the magic surrounding them.
The zone had been the result of a treaty created by the Councils, or Elders, of the wolf and cougar clans, because they believed full blooded shifters shouldn’t mix with other species. If they did, they were labeled misfits or rejects, and the result was banishment from clan lands. Finding a full blooded shifter living in the neutral zone was rare, but it did happen.
Several years after the treaty, many different combinations of hybrids from all corners of the world occupied the area. Though they didn’t follow the same hierarchy, or strict, outdated rules of the clans, they relied on their leaders to maintain order, guide them when needed, and handle all pack politics. Especially when dealing with the surrounding clans.
Shifters liked planting roots and being around family and friends, even if conventional social norms didn’t apply. Though she didn’t quite fit in with the other hybrids, the reasons for staying outweighed any thoughts of venturing to the outside world.
Violet had been raised in Deals Gap. She still lived in her childhood home, and her animal could roam free with virtually no threats. She might be a freak, but she knew she was exactly where she belonged.
You don’t belong alone just because you’re different.
She stifled her inner voice and plastered a smile on her face as she walked behind the counter. Her replacements had arrived thirty minutes before and they were both busy making drink orders.
Violet walked through the employee door, threw the rag into the hamper and took off her apron. After dumping her apron in her locker and fishing out her bag, she peeked her head into Monica’s office.
“We still on for tonight?” Violet asked.
“Yeah,” Monica said, smiling up at her. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing, why?”
“You know you can’t lie to me, Vi,” Monica chastised. “What made you so sad?”
“You’re crazy,” she said, waving her hand in front of her friend. “Nothing is wrong, I’m just saying goodbye.”
“Right. We need to find you a man.”
“Whatever,” Violet rolled her eyes. “I’ll see you at ten.”
“See you,” Monica called after her. “Wear something sexy…and low cut.”
Her cheeks heated as she walked back into the main part of the little shop. It wouldn’t matter if she undid a few buttons or wore a super short skirt, she’d still spend the evening watching the table and dancing with her friends.
They went to the Dark Moon nearly every weekend, and aside from a few random tourists, the crowd was always the same. She’d known most of the men in town her whole life, and they were either already mated, or not interested.
Sometimes a tourist, or one of her brother’s friends, would take pity on her and ask her to dance, but she really hated those moments. She felt guilty for her brother’s influence on the local men, and when the tourists found out she wasn’t putting out, they quickly ditched her for another female.
Add another freaky quality to the list.
All shifters liked to fight and fuck. The two qualities were programmed into their DNA, along with all of their other animalistic traits, and it wasn’t uncommon for them to have several sexual partners until they found their mate. Walking in on two shifters going at it in the bathroom, or the parking lot, was completely normal and expected when visiting the bar.
Of course, she wasn’t normal.
She was a thirty-year-old, chubby, hybrid shifter who’d never had sex. Most people knew she was inexperienced, but no one, not even Monica, knew she was a virgin.
She hadn’t meant to keep the information secret at first, but as the years went on it had been easier to listen to their stories and play the role of the quiet friend, rather than reveal the truth. Instead of having them realize she really was a freak, they all just believed she didn’t kiss and tell, and she liked it that way. She never wanted them to find out her secret. If they did, she’d have every available man in town banging on her door for a pity fuck.
She’d rather die a virgin than face the humiliation.
“Bye guys,” she said, waving to her coworkers.
She started for the exit at the same time a huge, muscular guy walked into the shop.
He wasn’t quite as tall as her brother, but he still towered over her five-foot-seven frame. His muscles were big and defined, and he seemed to suck all the air out of the room. He could easily lift her curvy frame, and her cheeks heated as she thought about what it would feel like to touch his taut, perfectly sculpted body.
She looked up and zeroed in on his full, kissable lips. She wanted to mount him and grab his lower lip between her teeth. The vision made her pussy tingle, and she squeezed her thighs together as she bit her own lower lip and raised her eyes to his. His light blue orbs reminded her of diamonds, but the way his brows were drawn together startled her.
Only then did she notice the silence in the room. It was as if everyone had taken a deep breath when he’d walked in, but forgot to let it out. Every pair of eyes in the shop stared at the two of them, and once again her shifter senses failed her. Seconds later, everyone returned to their coffee and friends, but fear consumed her and she broke their connection and raced out the door.
His low growl seemed to wrap itself around her, and she didn’t have to look back to know he followed close behind. The sheriff’s office was several blocks away, and the chances of the sheriff being inside were slim. Sweet Retreat, Sierra’s bakery on the next block, was her only possible escape.
She looked in the window and breathed a sigh of relief when she spotted Dean and Gage sitting at a table in the center of the room.
She rushed inside the shop.
Chapter Two
Jase finished his lunch, got up from the counter, and took his check to the cash register. Other than two wolves sitting near the window, the place was empty, and he welcomed the solitude.
Earlier, he’d followed the sign off the highway and stopped at the first hotel he’d seen. He’d parked his bike near the front of the parking lot, walked into the building and froze. Two cat shifters, couga
rs if he wasn’t mistaken, stood behind the counter. A moment of silence passed as the three of them sniffed the air, but in the next instant, one of the women greeted him with a warm smile.
He didn’t hate all cats, but felines in general made him wary. The two women didn’t seem to mind his bear, so he forced one foot in front of the other and proceeded to check in.
Back home, or the place he’d used to call home, bear and panther shifters were enemies. The prisoner that had bested him and killed Montgomery had been a panther, and before that, the felines had been caught in a lot of illegal activity, including revealing themselves to full humans on several occasions. They tended to act irresponsibly without caution or judgement, and the results put all shifters in danger.
A recent attack on the Lead Enforcer’s mate lead to a treaty between the two clans, but no one trusted the panthers to follow the rules laid out in the agreement. While the panther alpha seemed to want peace, his pack had grown wildly out of control.
Things seemed different in Deals Gap.
After he’d completed the check-in process, he’d unloaded the few belongings he had from his bike and proceeded to take a shower and change into a clean set of clothes. The showerhead wasn’t one of the low-flow kind he’d been using for the past two weeks, and he’d closed his eyes and let the warm water pelt his skin until his fingers had turned into prunes.
Food was next on his agenda, and he took a walk to survey the town and search for something to eat. His choices were limited when it came to sustenance, so he chose the closest diner and took a seat at the counter.
The two person staff also took a minute to smell him before the waitress approached with a menu and a silverware roll. Later, when the two wolves arrived, he’d received the same reaction.
Apparently, he’d ended up in a shifter town comprised mostly of wolf and cougar half-breeds. Some were mixed with human DNA, but many were both wolf and cougar. A few others were mixed with other predators.
