Danika explained, “Shifters usually have control of their inner animals, but sometimes, when they’ve been severely injured or feel threatened, the animal side takes over. When that happens, it’s about a fifty-fifty chance of bringing the human side back.”
She tried to imagine Sean wild with an animal-frenzy, but couldn’t picture it. She’d known her boyfriend was a cougar-shifter, but he’d never, not once, given her a reason to fear his animal side. “Only fifty-fifty?”
Sylas added, “That’s where you come in. When someone both the human and animal sides love tries to coax them back from the brink, be it family or a mate, the odds of saving them increases exponentially. The only real question is, are you confident in your love for Sean and his for you? Because if you’re not, Sean may kill you in that state.”
Without missing a beat, Lauren nodded. “Of course. I love Sean Fisher. He’s my best friend, and I’d rather die than live without him.”
Sylas nodded in approval. “Good. Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that, but I feel better with you being prepared.” The male shifter glanced at Danika. “Feed her, Dani, while I tap my contacts.”
“No, Sy, you feed her. I have a far bigger reach than you, and you know it.”
Lauren interjected, “Why don’t you both try to reach people? As long as there’s food in the kitchen, I can feed myself. I’m a big girl.”
One side of Sy’s mouth ticked up. “Good human. The fridge is stocked, so have at it.”
She was about to turn around and head for the kitchen when Danika said, “Oh, and a doctor is coming to check you out properly. So eat fast.”
At the word “doctor,” Lauren prevented herself from showing any emotion on her face. While she wanted to make sure she was all right, she was afraid the doctor might discover her secret and then deliver the bad news.
She kept a steady face and nodded.
Her mask must’ve been convincing because no sooner had she given her confirmation, Danika looked back over to Sylas and began discussing who to call.
Well, at least that discussion had been avoided. If anyone deserved to hear about her secret first, it was Sean.
Lauren limped to the kitchen and hoped these shifters knew what they were doing. The longer Sean was missing, the greater her fear grew concerning Sean making it out of this alive.
Hold on, babe. You haven’t given me a chance to say yes.
In that moment, Lauren realized the best Christmas gift she could ever hope for was to have Sean alive and back in her arms again.
Chapter Five
Sean was finally alone again. The male human bastard had throttled him for nearly half an hour before he stopped to give an overly enthusiastic speech into the video camera.
The speech hadn’t told him much apart from “a large-scale attack was coming soon.” They’d only let him hear that, and the call for more recruits to reply to the video for more information, because they assumed he’d be dead soon.
Sean hoped to disappoint them on that front.
He scanned the room around him more slowly than before, now that he was alone, to try to find something to help him escape.
He didn’t see any two-way mirrors for observation or anything that looked like a camera. Human Purity wasn’t completely stupid; the less evidence they had of his kidnapping, the less chance of a conviction. Even with the video of the male punching him, they’d be careful to block out both their faces.
Not like the US Shifter Department of Justice would take much notice. They were understaffed and overworked. A single kidnapping was low on their list of priorities.
The reminder that he was on his own, at least until his clan knew he was missing, focused Sean. He might be the only one who could save Lauren. He needed to find a way out of here.
But no matter how much he studied the room, he didn’t see anything that would cut through his bindings.
Ignoring the pain from his injured shoulder, he tried pulling his hands apart again, but nothing. The material wouldn’t budge.
He then closed his eyes and focused on the position of his fingers. As he wiggled them the minuscule amount allowed by his bindings, he realized something about the fourth finger on both of his hands. If he extended his claw and pierced through his palm, he might just be able to cut through the material on the other side.
Sure, it would hurt like hell, but given the amount of pain he already was in from the car accident and his beating, a little more was no big deal. Especially if it meant he could be free to find Lauren and make sure she was all right.
Concentrating, Sean extended the claw on his ring finger of his right hand and clenched his jaw as the sharp point poked through his palm. He felt it pierce the other side and into the binding material. Gearing himself up for more pain, Sean then moved his claw up and down through his palm. The bones of his fingers made it difficult to move more than a little, but it was enough. He could feel the claw catch on the bindings. He’d have to do both sides, and then he might just be able to pull his hands apart.
Since the blood from his wounds would drip onto the floor and alert anyone from Human Purity who came to check on him, he focused on his task. He had one shot at freedom, and the next time the door opened on the far side of the room, he’d be ready to spring. Given the confidence of the pair he’d seen earlier, combined with the normal-looking lock on the door, his prison probably wasn’t that secure. One shifter against a handful of humans were good enough odds that even with his injuries, he might be able to escape.
Gritting his teeth against the pain, he continued slicing through the binding material. Hold on, Lauren. I’m coming.
Rescuing her was his top priority. It helped him to forget that after this, Lauren might want nothing to do with him.
No. He would fight for her. He loved his human, and he would protect her. No more hiding from his clan; he would introduce Lauren and ensure she had the protection of Clan DarkStalker for the rest of her life whether she wanted it or not.
~~~
Lauren blinked at the blonde-haired, green-eyed woman who called herself “Dr. Lisa.” Although she hadn’t said as much, judging by her height and familiarity with Sylas Murray, Lauren suspected the woman was a shifter.
The doctor was poking and prodding her abdomen as she said, “Does it hurt here?”
“No.”
Lisa removed her hands and stood up. “While scans would give me a better answer, my preliminary exam didn’t find anything life threatening.”
“So I can help with Sean, if they need me?”
“I don’t like it, but it’s not like I can stop you.”
The doctor remained quiet and Lauren realized if this woman were a shifter, she could finally get the answers she’s been looking for. She blurted out, “Are you a shifter?”
“Yes. I assumed Sy or Dani would’ve told you that.” She gave a long look and then continued, “Since you claim to be a shifter’s fiancée, I’m guessing it doesn’t bother you that a shifter just touched your skin. So tell me why you burned to ask me that question.”
The female shifter was very calm, collected, and logical. That made Lauren like her all the more than the flirty Sylas or gruff Danika.
Especially since Lauren had some questions she’d itched to ask for months now, but hadn’t known whom to ask. Of course, two weeks ago, the need to find answers had become more pressing. She wasn’t about to pass up this chance. “I want to ask you some biology questions, but if I do, will it qualify as doctor-patient confidentiality?”
“As long as it doesn’t endanger any of the shifter clans in the Cascade Mountains, then yes, ask away.”
Lauren picked at her borrowed sweatpants, suddenly nervous. But no, she needed an answer to prepare herself before talking with Sean. So she asked, “Do babies conceived between humans and shifters turn out okay?”
The shifter doctor stared at her a second before she asked, “How far along are you?”
That answer made her heart sink. “Why? Wil
l it not survive to full-term? Please just tell me, Doctor. I need to know.”
“Because of the laws, it’s rare for shifters and humans to conceive, but it has been done many times before. Just like with any pregnancy, there are risks, but there is no reason your child shouldn’t survive and be born healthy.”
A huge weight suddenly lifted from Lauren’s shoulders. At first, when she’d taken the pregnancy test last week to try to confirm her suspicions, the test had resulted in a half-plus symbol, which was neither positive nor negative. Four more tests all turned out the same way, making her think humans and shifters weren’t supposed to have children.
But now, if what Dr. Lisa said was true, her baby might live.
Dr. Lisa’s green eyes were stern yet inquisitive. Lauren decided to give her more details. “I missed my period about two and a half weeks ago. Combined with fatigue and lack of appetite, I suspected I might be pregnant. I stopped taking my birth control pills just in case. The tests I took all came out weird, so I wasn’t sure what to think.”
“And you couldn’t go to a human hospital for fear of arrest or a forced abortion.”
“Yes.”
“I’m going to hazard a guess that you didn’t tell Sean, let alone Sy and Dani about this.” Lauren shook her head and the doctor let out a sigh. “I really wish you would have. If Sean knew his female was carrying his child, he would’ve taken better security measures to ensure your safety.”
Lauren knew the shifters had their own way of doing things, but if she didn’t set a line now about her opinions, it might be too late. Straightening her shoulders, Lauren said, “There will always be risks and I’d rather face them than be kept in a glass cage.”
The doctor smiled. “I feel about the same way, although be prepared, Lauren. Sean will turn into a possessive, protective male once he knows the truth. As difficult as it may be to do it, allow him to be a little more protective of you. Otherwise, he may turn wild.”
“Why does everyone keep mentioning Sean turning wild? He’s never been that way with me, not even in the worst of our fights.”
“That’s a good sign. But just prepare yourself, because shifter men aren’t human; denying their animal sides will eat away at them until they turn into an unhappy, depressed mess.”
“An unhappy, depressed mess? Is that your clinical explanation?”
Lisa snorted. “A more apt description is a fucking mess, but I was trying to be somewhat polite.”
Lauren smiled. “I like a doctor who’s honest.” Sobering back up again, she continued, “Will you be my doctor?”
“I’m a GreyFire wolf-shifter, but if Kian will allow me to visit once you move to DarkStalker’s land, then I would be delighted. It would give us more information about human-shifter pregnancies that could end up saving lives in the future.”
She didn’t like the idea of being a test subject, but she’d put up with it if it meant she could have Dr. Lisa.
There was a knock on the door and Dr. Lisa said, “Come in. The exam’s over.”
Sy opened the door and poked his head in. “We’ve narrowed it down to two locations in the area. Is Lauren cleared to go? I need both of you to come with me. We might need you.”
The doctor nodded. “As long as you don’t bring her into the den of snakes, then yes, she can go.”
The two women shared a look and Lauren nodded in understanding; she needed to be careful of the baby, especially after the recent car accident.
Lauren turned toward Sylas. “So, where are we going?”
~~~
Both of Sean’s palms throbbed as he waited for his next visitor. It had taken at least an hour to saw through his bindings, maybe more, but they had finally given way. The bitch of it all was he couldn’t rotate his shoulders or move his arms for fear of someone walking in on him, yet every muscle in his body itched to do exactly that.
The enduring pain and waiting around game reminded him of his teenage training years. At the time, he’d hated every second of it since he’d never intended to be a sentry or soldier for the clan. Building things and figuring out how stuff worked had always fascinated him, and from a young age, Sean had known he wanted to study engineering. Yet right now, he was glad for the training since it was keeping him disciplined.
It might also keep him alive.
He’d been waiting for what seemed like hours for someone else to check on him and give him the chance to shift and escape, but so far, no one had come. Each second that ticked by squeezed his heart. Was Lauren okay? Had she already been placed into Purity’s rehabilitation program? Would he ever see her again? And most importantly, would she want to see him again?
After all, she had every right to blame him for not thinking of her safety. Shifters were supposed to protect their prospective mates. Somehow, because of living in the human world for so many years now, he’d forgotten the most basic of rules in shifter life—to always remember that humans feared what was different, which meant each and every human could be your enemy.
Once he got out of this mess, he wouldn’t be forgetting that detail again. If Lauren would still have him, it was time to move back to DarkStalker’s lands in the mountains.
His cougar chirped at that. I miss the mountains.
Truth be told, so did he. He only hoped Lauren would be open to the idea. It would mean seeing her family less and adjusting to the shifter way of life.
Flexing his fingers behind his back, Sean focused back on his present situation. He could tell that his wounds on his palms had closed up and even healed a little. Thank fuck for fast shifter healing. Without it, his plan would probably fail.
The lock in the door clicked and he nearly jumped at the loudness of the sound after sitting so long in silence. This was it, his one and only chance at escape so he could find Lauren.
His inner cougar growled. We’re ready. Shift and let me take care of them.
Once the first human stepped inside the door, Sean swung his arms forward and let them become his front legs, his tail extended from his back, and his face shifted into a cougar’s muzzle as his teeth elongated into fangs.
The whole process took less than five seconds, which was just enough time for surprise to knock up the heart rates of the three humans at the door.
Not wasting time, Sean let his inner animal take control and they bounded toward the humans. His cat wanted to kill, but Sean told him, No. If we kill, we will lose Lauren. Knock them unconscious and then we go find her.
With a reluctant growl, his cougar jumped on the first human at the door and the impact of the human’s head smashing against the hard floor knocked the man unconscious.
One down, two to go.
He jumped to the next human and pinned her down with his paw against her neck to try to make her black out. In the wild, he would use his jaw around her neck to do the job, but a human’s neck was a lot more delicate than a full grown stag deer.
Just as the woman stopped struggling, he finally noticed that the third human had run.
His cat growled out loud. Good. I like the chase.
Sean bounded down the hallway in his cougar-form, barely registering the cold, wet tiles under his paws. Unlike when he was in human-form, his paws prevented him from slipping on the slick surface.
As he ran full throttle, he kept his ears and nose open for sounds or scents of Lauren, but detected neither. Then he rounded the bend and came across the remaining human trying to punch in a code at a door. Sean slowed his run to stalk up behind the man who didn’t seem to notice his approach.
Finding the last human so easily made him suspicious, but he pushed the feeling aside. Human Purity wasn’t comprised of trained soldiers. It made sense that in small numbers they were easy to take down.
While a cougar in its prime could jump eighteen feet, city life had made him a little soft and Sean wasn’t going to risk it. He waited until he was about six feet away before he jumped at the male human. Just as the force of his body smacked the human into the w
all, sprinklers went off overhead.
Both cougar and human smashed to the floor. Ignoring the water raining down on him, Sean rolled the human male over, but he was relieved to see that the force had knocked him out cold. His inner cat wanted to teach at least one of the humans a lesson, but he told his cat no. We need to find Lauren.
With a reluctant hiss, his cougar allowed Sean to take control of their mind and he backed away from the human. Sean then imagined his paws turning into hands, his ears shrinking to human ones, and his tail merging back into his spine. Now a naked male, he crouched down, ripped the black mask off the male’s face, and flipped him back over to tie his hands together.
All he wanted to do was rush to search each and every room in this place, but in the event Lauren had been moved, he needed the humans to stay put so he could interrogate them.
Satisfied the bindings would hold, Sean walked through the water pouring down on him and ran back to the other end of the building so he could tie up the remaining two humans. The water was pooling on the floor and he had to be careful not to slip. While letting his cougar out again would be easiest, he didn’t want to waste precious time shifting. Who knew how long the other two humans would remain unconscious.
The two humans were still on the floor, now soaked from the sprinklers. He went to work removing their masks and tying their hands before moving them into his former room. Once the door clicked shut, Sean eyed the corridor of doors. Lauren could be behind any one of them.
He moved to the one directly across from his, but as he fiddled with the lock, his vision swam. He closed his eyes and opened them again, but that only made his vision blur worse.
What the fuck? What is happening to me?
His left leg went numb, and he knew something was wrong, but what? They hadn’t injected him with anything in hours, nor had he eaten or drank anything. Then the sound of the water pelting his skin made it all click together. These weren’t ordinary sprinklers. No wonder the human male had been so keen to enter the code into that keypad. They had to be laced with some kind of drug.
Cougar's First Christmas Page 4
