Bridge Hollow Shifters: The Complete Collection

by Samantha Leal

  The car slowed and she turned back to the right to see it pulling up outside a large building. She ducked her head a little, so she could see out the window and read the sign on the front…

  THE HOLLOW HOTEL

  She waited for the driver to stop and the engine went quiet. Sean opened his door and jumped out into the evening sun, and Pamela followed him, before the driver closed the doors behind them and went to the trunk to get their bags.

  The hotel looked big and old, but it was clear that it had been recently refurbished. When she had done her searching online, she had discovered it was the only hotel in town, and for that reason, they clearly were not short on customers. She grabbed the handle of her wheelie case and made her way to the front door, with Sean at her heels. The doors slid open and she stepped into the quaint and charming lobby.

  Ahead of her, a huge staircase seemed to cut the atrium in two, it went up and onto the second floor, with the balconies of the floors above winding around and up to the top of the building.

  Sean took the lead and made his way toward the reception desk, and Pamela found herself looking from left to right and at the two rooms that fed off from the reception. On one side was what looked to be a library bar, with books lining the walls and several people sitting and enjoying a cocktail hour drink in the dusky light. To the other side, she saw the waiters and waitresses setting tables for dinner, the scent of home cooking was wafting from the kitchen behind.

  “Hello,” Sean said with a sigh as he approached the desk and it became apparent that there was no one there.

  Pamela watched him with a smirk as he undid the button on his shirt and ran a sweaty hand through his hair. It had been hot on the train and even though they had been sitting in the air-conditioned town car since they had arrived, it was clear that Sean had yet to cool down.

  He breathed heavily out his nose and rubbed his temples before he leaned over the desk and started to tap his fingers on the wood.

  “Hello?” he said again, his irritation clear for Pamela to see.

  She cringed inside and hoped that whoever came out from the saloon doors behind the desk was ready for what Sean was going to throw at them, because she had the terrible feeling it was going to be one hell of a bad attitude.

  “Hello?” he said again as he peered behind, clearly able to see that someone was there.

  Pamela stepped up to stand behind him and wanted to intervene, but didn’t see the point, he was her boss after all. If he wanted to act like a jackass, then she may as well let him. It wasn’t going to do her any favors stepping up and telling him to calm down.

  Behind the doors, a large shadow appeared, and then, they quickly swung open. Sean instinctively took a step back and cleared his throat nervously, and Pamela heard the heavy boots of whoever had emerged from behind reception stomp out before the sound of a big pair of hands slapped down on the desk.

  Sean took another step back and Pamela looked up.

  She felt her mouth sag open as she saw the man standing in front of them. She didn’t know what she had been expecting from a hotel like this in the middle of a quiet town, but it certainly wasn’t what was in front of her at that very moment.

  Her heart began to beat fast and she felt herself become nervous. The man was tall and muscular, so tall, his head almost grazed the ceiling of the tiny reception area. He leaned forward, eyeballing her and Sean with menace.

  “What?” he said so curtly it was almost like a bark.

  Pamela’s eyes grew even wider.

  She couldn’t help but let them travel around him. She went from the top of his head and his dark, rusty hair, down to his broad and tanned shoulders and down his incredibly big and powerful looking arms. He was like a brute standing there, and so completely out of place she didn’t know if he had just robbed the place and they should call the police.

  He looked more like a felon than a receptionist, and she could tell that Sean was feeling uneasy too.

  The man looked from Sean over to Pamela and she saw his head cock slightly when their eyes met. It was so slight that if she hadn’t been staring directly at him, she was certain she would have missed it. But when he saw her, it was as if she had taken him by surprise.

  “So…,” the man said, trailing his eyes slowly away from Pamela and back to Sean. “Are you going to tell me what is so important that you can’t wait two minutes for my aunt to get back from the ladies’ room?”

  He crossed his huge arms over his shoulders, and Pamela was completely lost in his eyes. They were so dark and engulfing, she was transfixed. Whoever he was, he was clearly angry with them both, and he had instantly recognized Sean’s irritated tone when he had barged into the hotel and wanted immediate service.

  “I…we… emmm…,” Sean stammered, and he scratched the back of his neck. “I just want to check in.”

  “Well, then, wait your goddamn turn,” the man said from under his hooded brow, and Pamela couldn’t help but let a little giggle escape from her lips.

  Sean looked flustered and was bumbling an apology, and the man glanced at Pamela and caught her eye again. She felt a rush of excitement roll over her, and he smiled back too. It was just a flicker, the quickest, smallest smile she had ever seen, but she saw it and felt it and it made her want more.

  His eyes stayed fixed on her and she was sure she could feel something between them, something hot and powerful, and she lost herself for a moment, before she pulled herself away and looked down at the floor.

  What was she thinking? She wasn’t there to ogle at hot guys, she was there to work and make a good impression.

  She turned her back and closed her eyes, as Sean continued to mumble his apologies and dug himself further into the hole.

  “Can you not check us in? You don’t work here?”

  “No,” the man replied without the slightest hint of amusement. “And when the lady that does gets here, I want you to treat her with perfect respect.”

  Out of the corner of her eye, Pamela could see Sean nodding and it made her smirk again, but this time, she wasn’t about to let the handsome stranger behind the desk see her. She had to remain professional and not get involved.

  “Oh, thank you, dear,” a little voice came from behind the doors and an old lady emerged. She was short and chubby, with perfect silver hair, and she reached up and patted the man on the arm before he wrapped a protective arm around her shoulder and gave her a squeeze. Then, he stepped out from behind reception and kept his angry eyes fixed on Sean.

  “If you need anything, give me a shout,” the man said to the old lady, before he turned and gave Pamela the dead-eye as he moved toward the door.

  She felt her heart crash and her skin prickle with dread. He must have thought she was as rude and obnoxious as Sean was, and she didn’t want to be tarred with the same brush.

  “Thank you, Ryder,” the old lady smiled, “I will.”

  Ryder…

  The name thundered around Pamela’s mind and she found herself looking back over her shoulder at him as he approached the main doors and stepped out and into the dying sun.

  When she finally gained her composure and looked back to the lady at reception, she could see the look of knowing in her eyes and she felt herself blush.

  “My nephew,” the old lady said with a wink. “He pops round to help me from time to time.”

  Pamela smiled and tried not to let Sean see that she was blushing, before she picked up her bag and pulled it away from the desk slightly.

  Sean checked them in to their own rooms and Pamela was in a daze while it was all happening. She didn’t hear a word that the lady said to them, or a word Sean said when he handed her the room key. All she could think about was Ryder and the fact that when he looked at her, something strange had happened.

  She wandered up to the elevator in a dream and when she found herself on the third floor, she dragged her case along in a daze until she found the number written on the key card. She stopped and slid it into the lock a
bove the handle and when the little light shone green, suddenly, a wave of tiredness seemed to knock her off her feet.

  She opened the door and stepped inside, flicking on the light switch and smiling as the room illuminated and came to life. It was a gorgeous room, one with big doors that opened out to a balcony and to the vista of the mountains beyond. The sun was setting and it was darkening with each passing second, but she could see that the town was still vibrant and full of life outside, with the lights of taverns turning on, the sounds of music thumping through the streets and the laughter of the tourists and town’s folk rumbling around every corner.

  She pressed her nose against the glass door and watched the scenes in the town below and found her eyes traveling up to the forest and the mountains. This place was so perfectly beautiful, it was hard to imagine such horrors happening there. Surely, there must be a chemical plant or something close by responsible for the mass die-offs of animals. She felt a sadness take hold. To think of this place being poisoned was devastating, and something she couldn’t even bear to think about. She shook her head and took a step back, before she opened her suitcase and started to unpack her clothes into the old wooden closet.

  4.

  By the time she had showered, freshened up, changed her outfit into a cute pair of jeans and a skinny t-shirt and unpacked, it was getting close to 8pm. The town showed no signs of quieting down, and even though she had been tired, she now felt wide awake and eager to get out and see more of the place.

  She looked at her cellphone and the screen flashed with a message from Sean…

  S: I’m heading out to find somewhere to eat, let me know if you want anything!

  She studied it for a moment and scrunched up her lips. She had probably had enough of Sean for one day, and she knew they were going to be spending plenty of time together during the coming weeks, so she decided against taking him up on his offer and wrote a quick reply.

  P: Thanks Sean, but I’m going to head out myself and do a little exploring. See you in the morning, bright and early!

  She hit send and slipped the phone into her purse and slung it over her shoulder before grabbing her jacket. She turned off all the lights, apart from the beside lamps and the room looked so cozy and welcoming, she almost couldn’t wait to get back and climb into bed for an amazing night’s sleep.

  “But first things first,” she said as she held back her shoulders and headed for the door. “Let’s see what this place is all about.”

  As she wandered down Main Street, she was fascinated by the different groups of people, and at how much fun a small town seemed to be having out there in the middle of the mountains. She had read that Bridge Hollow was a tourist hotspot, but she had never expected it to be so full of skiers, holiday makers, and families having a great time together in the midst of so much rumor and legend.

  She wandered past shops that were completely unique and rustic. She saw grocers selling Bridge Hollow’s own label jam and bread, their own ale and cider, bottles of wine, cheeses that had been made from dairy farms close by, and many other gorgeous looking treats that she couldn’t wait to devour. There was a mystical shop that had a bead curtain flapping in the breeze at the doorway and the strong smell of incense drifting out from the inside. A secondhand bookstore and coffee shop, handmade clothing and an expensive crystal wear store were all dotted across the street, and nothing seemed to be from a huge corporate chain, everything was completely unique and enchanting.

  She stopped and peered through some of the windows as she passed by, but it wasn’t until she came closer to the very center of Main Street that her mind was completely blown. She felt the tingles rush up her spine and prickle the skin on her arms as she stared up at the statue. Her mouth sagged open a little and she swallowed as she stared up at the bronze structure ahead of her.

  It was big and unmissable, right in the center of town, and it gave her the shivers because of the look of rage and power etched on its face, but also because she knew it was in reference to one of the oldest legends of Bridge Hollow.

  The statue she was looking up at was of a huge, hulking half man, half bear. It looked as if a bear was ripping out of a man’s body, turning into the beast right there in the center of Main Street. The eyes of the bear were wild and unnatural, the look of pain and bloodthirst apparent, even though it was just a statue.

  She shuddered.

  “Wow,” she whispered. “Impressive.”

  She stayed watching it for a few moments, and then the loud crack of a motorbike coming to life shook her out of her stupor and she turned to see a group of rough looking, leather-clad bikers all lined up on their Harley’s outside of what appeared to be a bar.

  The building was long and wooden, it looked big and cavernous through the windows. From the sounds coming from inside and shadows flashing across, she could already tell that it was well patronized for the evening. The bikers were leaving, but they all revved their engines as they shook each other’s hands and prepared to get going, and a group of other men waited in the doorway to the bar and waved them all off as they went, one by one, revving and howling as they flew down Main Street in the opposite direction of Pamela.

  She watched as the men in the doorway of the bar backed inside and it half closed behind them, the rock music from within was still playing loudly and thumping out through the ground to where she was standing. Pam let her eyes travel up to the sign above the door and found herself frowning when she saw the name of the place was SHIFTER’S BLISS. It sounded so PG and family friendly, but with a gang of hairy and menacing bikers out the front, she could only guess it was anything but…

  She shrugged her shoulders and felt a little grin creep across her lips. She may as well get herself in there and see what it was all about. It was her first night in a new town after all, and the more she learned before she started her job the following day, the better. Plus, she had to admit, she could kill for a beer.

  She pushed the door open and stepped inside, where she was immediately hit with the hot smell of beer, wood smoke and meat. She hadn’t realized that she was hungry, but the smell of the hog roast that was heavy in the air set her stomach growling, and her mouth began to water.

  The bar was dark and crowded, with each table seemingly filled with groups or couples. A stage was dark, but still set at the front of the room, with guitars and drums, as if a band were going to be playing later in the evening. She looked ahead to the bar and at the high stools lining the front of it. She could easily hide away and slink into the one empty booth that appeared to be free at the back of the room, eat something quietly and then get herself out of there, but for some reason, she was feeling a lot more sociable than usual, and she wanted to enjoy her first night in town before all the hard work began.

  She stepped confidently up to the long, wooden bar and sat down on one of the high stools, before she placed her purse down in front of her and instantly searched deep inside it for her phone so she had a prop to help keep her busy if she wasn’t lucky enough to get chatting to one of the locals.

  She glanced around herself and saw that a few seats down were a couple of old-timers, supping on Bridge Hollow’s own beer and smoking rolled cigarettes, and she felt the urge to smile and go speak to them, but knew she had to resist.

  She had watched plenty of TV shows to know that this was the kind of place she could hear plenty of gossip about what was happening there in town, but what she was most intrigued to know was if there was some kind of chemical plant that had been hidden off the radar that might slowly be poisoning the land around them. She had heard of hidden facilities before, ones that were privately funded, that were dabbling in questionable activities and maybe even testing on animals. If something like that was happening in such a beautiful place, never mind so close to a national park, then there was going to be one hell of a big lawsuit going down, and heads, for sure, were going to roll.

  She tried to listen in on their conversation, but the noise around her was too loud
, and she quickly gave up and turned back to peer into the refrigerators behind the bar, scanning them for something to drink. When the girl who was serving finished with her customer, she glanced in Pamela’s direction and wandered over to her with a smile.

  “Hey there,” she said cheerfully. “What can I get you?”

  Pam held out her hand and waited for the girl to shake it, which she finally did, suspiciously, and cocked her head to the side.

  “Hi,” Pam beamed. “I’m Pamela, I’ve just got into town.”

  “Oh yeah?” the girl grinned and seemed to relax. “And how are you finding it so far?”

  “Great,” she said. “It seems like a friendly little place.”

  “It sure is,” the girl nodded. “I’m Wendy, here to serve all your drinking needs.”

  Pamela laughed. Wendy looked like a nice girl and couldn’t have been much older than herself.

  “Well, in that case, I would love to try one of these Bridge Hollow beers,” Pamela said as she looked back down to the row of them sitting and glinting under the light of the refrigerator.

  “Sure thing,” Wendy smiled as she reached down and collected one before she snapped off the cap and passed it across the bar top.

  “Thank you,” Pamela said, before she raised the bottle to her lips and took a sip. She had always liked beer, but this one seemed different, it was smoother and less bitter, light and airy, much like the mountain air. “Wow,” she grinned. “That’s good.”

  “It is, isn’t it!” Wendy smiled and laughed. “I love it too, definitely a good one for us girls to enjoy.”